‘Service, not personal vanity’: Stalwart Eric Abetz reflects on three-decade parliamentary career

“A lot of people sometimes see the conservative approach as being crony, selfish capitalism. I’ve never seen that.” one-on-one with Senator Eric Abetz, whose political career may be in serious danger.

ERIC Abetz has been called a lot of things during his 28 years in parliament, but one thing he’s never been called is “vain”.

The staunch conservative, Protestant Liberal Senator says he’s often had rocks thrown in his direction – but that he’s held fast to his opinions and never fallen prey to “cheap populism”.

“I can tell you personally, it does become uncomfortable when people throw those slurs at you,” he said.

Interview with Eric Abetz

However, he said as a result of his focus on “service, not personal vanity” – he’s been able to maintain a hold on parliamentary life, as well as achieve big wins for his constituents.

“And here we are, fast forward, you don’t get recognition for it because those that threw rocks at you at the time are all of a sudden very silent,” he said.

“They don’t issue press releases saying ‘Eric was right’.”

But right or wrong, Abetz’s unbroken reign may be about to come to an end.

No silver spoon

Abetz is disarmingly friendly for a man with the reputation as the most conservative politician in Tasmania.

“I can imagine it’s difficult to make me look good. Do your best, do your best,” he jokes with the Mercury photographer in his Davey Street office.

The German-born Senator explains his family migrated to Tasmania when he was a child – on an assisted passage – so his father could work on the Hydro Electric Commission.

“So no silver spoon in my mouth at all.”

Protest GST on womens sanitary items women protesters outside Senator Eric Abetz office

After a background of working as a farm hand and a taxi driver before starting up a successful Hobart law firm with one of his “mates”, the 64-year-old is now the longest-serving politician in Tasmania, and the second-longest in the Senate, just a year behind Labor Senator Kim Carr.

Love him or hate him, he’s been one of the most influential politicians in recent times, often described as a “powerbroker” able to push through controversial legislation like the GST, the opposition of an extradition treaty with China – and of course, the toppling of the Republic debate in 1999.

A younger Senator Eric Abetz.

Liberal Senator Eric Abetz casts his vote at Kingston High School

But he’s also raised ire in his time, notably for his opposition to same-sex marriage, his support of the Right to Life anti-abortion organisation, his views on China, and claims he made comments that “slut-shamed” alleged rape victim Brittany Higgins.

But he said he wasn’t interested in standing “for nothing” as a “sell-out for values and principles that you hold dear”.

“When I opposed the extradition treaty with China, I was labelled racist. I was labelled as prejudicing Australian trade with China, that I might cost jobs,” he said.

“Today, there is not a single parliamentarian that would suggest that it’s a good idea for Australia to have an extradition treaty with this brutal dictatorship in China.

“So at the time, I was unpopular, I think very unfairly characterised.”

The Senate ticket

Last year, Liberal party preselectors made the decision to drop Abetz to third place on the party’s Tasmanian Senate ticket – with colleagues Jonno Duniam and Wendy Askew in first and second place.

The move was a potential disaster for the stalwart Senator, with the third place notoriously difficult to win.

“It’d be fair to say I’m disappointed, as are a lot of my fellow Tasmanians, but that was the decision that was made,” he said.

Eric Abetz gets a kiss from his wife Michelle at his office in Hobart

Abetz said it was for “other people to explain” why he was dropped to third spot.

“But one thing that I have absolute confidence in is that it wasn’t work ethic, policy, advocacy, skills, all those sorts of things. There were other factors at play,” he said.

“There is no doubt that this is a very real challenge for me and my supporters to get me back into the Senate. And time will tell.”

Abetz – whose wife Michelle sadly died in 2019 – said he didn’t have “a plan B” if he lost his job.

“I’m sure I’ll be able to do something with my life post-politics, but that’s not something I’ve been contemplating,” he said.

Senator Eric Abetz with his Australian flag

Poster boy for the conservatives

Abetz said he had taken a paycut to get into parliament from his successful career as a lawyer, and that he’d stayed in the job so long because of his focus on service.

“It’s a Christian ethos with which I was brought up and it’s about service not personal vanity,” he said.

“Even when Malcolm Turnbull dumped me as leader of the government in the Senate, some people expected me to leave politics, but because it was about service and not about positions, I have kept on.”

Senator Eric Abetz at Agfest 2021. Picture: Rob Burnett

He said he’d always stood up for what he believed.

“A lot of people sometimes see the conservative approach as being crony, selfish capitalism. I’ve never seen that, but I do believe in reward for effort and that people should be given incentives to improve themselves,” he said.

“The easiest thing in politics is to lick your finger and find out which way the wind’s blowing and then say this is my policy for today.

“You cop it, but you are able to reflect with a degree of satisfaction that you stood up for the right cause. And look, sometimes you lose.”

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Originally published as ‘Service, not personal vanity’: Stalwart Eric Abetz reflects on three-decade parliamentary career