Jacinta Allan hailed as 'unrivalled' leader by minister amid dire poll results
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has dismissed her dire personal approval ratings as one of her senior ministers mounts defence of her leadership abilities.
Premier Jacinta Allan dismissed her disastrous personal approval rating on Monday, claiming she was not focused on the polls.
It comes as new Freshwater Strategy polling shows Ms Wilson holds an impressive 16 point lead over Ms Allan as preferred premier, 47 per cent to 31 per cent.
That’s five points more than the 11 point lead that her predecessor Brad Battin held over Ms Allan before he was knifed in last months Liberal Party leadership spill.
Asked about the poll results on Monday, Ms Allan brushed the findings away saying she didn’t focus on them.
“There’s going to be a lot of polls,” Ms Allan said.
“The next state election is a year away, there will be a lot of polls that come and go over that period of time.
“What I’m focused on is building a fairer future for our state.”
Senior Minister Gabrielle Williams, who was asked what she made of Ms Allan’s tumbling personal approval, spent three and a half minutes praising Ms Allan as an “unrivalled” leader and one of the “greatest” problem solvers.
“What I know about my colleague and friend the Premier of Victoria is that her vision for this state is unrivalled and has had life breathed into it in the last 24 hours,” she said.
“The Metro Tunnel project simply would not have existed but for the now premier of Victoria Jacinta Allan.
“There is not a problem or an issue that Jacinta hasn’t seen and been able to solve.
“She has got some of the greatest problem solving ability that I have seen in my political life but more than that she cares.”
Ms Williams also used the opportunity to attack the opposition, saying voters should be fearful of their infighting.
“The savagery in which the Coalition members have pulled each other apart over the past decade should be a source of great concern and fear for the Victorian community,” she said.
Ms Wilson was also reluctant to weigh in on the results but indicated that she was confident her message was getting through to voters.
“I think there are good polls, there are bad polls,” she said.
“There’s going to be a lot of polls over the next 12 months, but what every poll tells me is that every single day we would have to work harder to earn the trust of Victorians.
“We have to outline a plan, and we have to work with Victorians and make them understand that we have an alternative vision for this state, and that’s our job over the next 12 months.”
Pressed over why she believed she was so popular in the polls after just two weeks in the top job, Ms Wilson said she had been “very clear with Victorians” about her priorities of wrangling debt, “ending” the crime crisis, improving healthcare and restoring the dream of home ownership.
Shadow attorney general James Newbury said the polls reflected a mood for change.
“Victorians are desperate for change and you can see that in the poll results,” he said.
“They know that the Premier is not delivering for them.
“They know the Premier, frankly, doesn’t tell the truth, and they know that they don’t have confidence in her.
“I think the polls show that clearly it’s exciting to have Jess as our leader, and I think she’s doing an incredible job.”
The latest polling, of 1220 Victorians, was conducted between November 21 and 24, days after Ms Wilson secured the party leadership on November 18.
Under Ms Wilson. the Coalition’s focus has pivoted toward the state’s economy following criticism it had focused too heavily on crime.
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Originally published as Jacinta Allan hailed as 'unrivalled' leader by minister amid dire poll results
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