Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong attack Nick Xenophon and his South Australian candidates
THE state’s two most senior federal politicians have accused popular Senator Nick Xenophon of playing on people’s fears and putting frightening strangers in his party.
- Xenophon alleges Liberal how-to-vote cards are deceptive
- Mr X defends criticism his candidates are “crackpots”
THE state’s two most senior federal politicians have accused popular Senator Nick Xenophon of playing on people’s fears and putting frightening strangers in his party.
In an unprecedented campaign attack, Industry Minister Christopher Pyne and Labor Senate leader Penny Wong lashed Senator Xenophon’s populist stances and warned of the risks of electing his little-known candidates.
Both argued Senator Xenophon would not be able to deliver on his promises.
He later responded by accusing them of trying to protect a cosy duopoly.
A new poll puts the Nick Xenophon Team’s primary support in South Australia at 21.3 per cent — reinforcing a Newspoll putting it at 22 per cent — compared with 31.1 per cent for the Liberals and 29.3 per cent for Labor.
Speaking during an Adelaide economic debate yesterday, Senator Wong branded many of the NXT SA candidates “ex-political hacks”, highlighting the two former Liberals, one National and one Australian Democrat in their ranks.
“It is easy, I think, in a time where there is economic uncertainty, where people are concerned about what is happening around them. It’s an easy thing to talk to people’s fears,” Senator Wong said.
“I can understand why they will listen to Nick.
“Nick may or may not be part of the problem but he’s certainly not the solution.”
Speaking at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia debate, Mr Pyne said Senator Xenophon would be re-elected and declared he was liked by the public, on his own.
“It’s a very big leap to voting for a group of strangers in the House of Representatives or on the Senate ticket of whom nobody knows anything about them,” he said.
“And the things they do know about them should frighten the hell out of them.”
Mr Pyne, who is facing a NXT challenge in his eastern suburbs seat of Sturt, said Senator Xenophon had voted with the Greens two-thirds of the time since he was elected in 2007.
“But yet he still pretends he’s in the sensible centre,” Mr Pyne said. “The reason why he has a high vote in this state is because he effectively does and can agree with every interlocutor he’s speaking to, because he never has to break their hearts.
“He never actually has to deal responsibly with any policy issue, because he never has to deliver on it.
“He will never be in government and therefore he can agree with everyone and does agree with everyone.”
Business SA chief executive officer Nigel McBride said it was easy for minor parties, such as the NXT or Greens, to make promises they never had to deliver.
“No matter how wonderfully successful the Xenophon team is in this election, he and his team will never have to deliver the kind of economic policies that we will need to make Australia a great country again,” he said.
Mr McBride conceded Senator Xenophon argued voting for his team ensured transparency, accountability and a sensible policy approach.
Senator Xenophon said the Labor and Liberal parties did not like his party shaking up their cosy duopoly.
“I’ve always believed in bringing people together,” he told The Advertiser.
“I didn’t realise my great success would be in bringing the Liberal and Labor parties together.”
He urged them to abandon personal attacks and focus on policies, particularly citing the need to grow jobs and population in SA.
The NXT is performing best in the Mayo and Grey electorates, the Morgan Poll of 1951 electors, conducted between April 2 and June 12, finds.
It found support for the Greens at 9.5 per cent and other minor parties and independents at 8.8 per cent.
Originally published as Christopher Pyne and Penny Wong attack Nick Xenophon and his South Australian candidates
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