ALP steps in over ‘abuse of power’ in Tasmania

The ALP national executive has installed a popular mayor as a Tasmanian election candidate, against the wishes of Labor state powerbrokers, and may be asked to dump a candidate.

Kingborough mayor Dean Winter will be allowed to run for Labor in the seat of Franklin, after ALP national executive intervention. Picture: Nikki Davis-Jones

The ALP national executive has installed a popular mayor as a Tasmanian election candidate against the wishes of Labor state powerbrokers, and may be asked to dump a candidate.

Federal intervention came after the Australian Workers Union on Sunday accused the state Labor administrative committee of an “abuse of power” and “flagrant” rule breaches.

The AWU — backed on Tuesday by Labor leader Rebecca White — urged the national executive to override the committee to install Kingborough mayor Dean Winter as a candidate in the southern seat of Franklin.

Ms White’s decision to publicly side with the right-wing union over her own Left faction, which dominates the admin committee, will alienate her from key left-wing powerbrokers.

She appears to be gambling that there can be no move against her leadership ahead of the May 1 poll.

Mr Winter, a member of the AWU and former adviser to Ms White, is seen by several senior Labor figures as a potential future premier but his candidacy was blocked because of Left faction concerns about his politics.

In response to the national executive decision late on Tuesday, Mr Winter praised Ms White’s leadership and urged those who sought to block his candidacy to approach him ­directly. “I’m very excited to get the opportunity to put my hand up and represent the Labor Party again,” he said.

The 35-year-old suggested he was blameless for the distraction caused by the preselection stoush. “When the decision (of the admin committee to block his candidacy) came out on Sunday (March 28), I accepted the decision, wished Bec and everyone else well and went back to my job as mayor,” he said.

“I didn’t expect the dispute to be lodged (with the national executive) but when it was, I spoke to Bec and said ‘If you want me to run, I’m still open to running, and getting good feedback from my community’.”

His election would improve Ms White’s leadership position, while he is seen as a foil to the Left’s likely choice to succeed Ms White as leader, David O’Byrne.

Ms White is hoping the national intervention to install Mr Winter as a sixth Labor candidate in Franklin (Tasmania has multi-member electorates) will give the party clear air in the campaign.

However, The Australian is aware of internal party debate relating to a left-backed candidate that sources say is facing alle­gations of inappropriate behaviour towards a woman. Some are pushing for the candidate to be dumped before the deadline for nominations on Wednesday.

More broadly, some senior party figures believe the national executive may have to intervene more fully in Tasmania after the election, if Labor, trailing in the polls, loses badly.

They say the Left faction has become too dominant and a few “hard left” powerbrokers are “out of sync” with the electorate.

Ms White did not comment on the push to remove the candidate but said she backed national intervention to preselect Mr Winter after failing to negotiate an agreed outcome.

Sections of the Left criticise Mr Winter’s past comments about his council’s handling of a dog dispute, the closure of a cafe on a public holiday and privatisation, while some argue he is “pro pokies”.

Mr Winter rejected all the ­criticisms.