High hopes for a statesman in Premier Gutwein

Outgoing premier Will Hodgman has left Mr Gutwein some thorny challenges to sort out: in the health system, in housing, in justice and in prisons. Can the new premier rise to the challenge?

IT’S an evolution from the “clever, kind and connected” catchcry of a few premiers back, but “conviction, compassion and opportunity” is a worthy enough lodestone for a new Premier.

Peter Gutwein’s first press conference after taking on the state’s top political job included an acknowledgment that the government must to do more to ensure all Tasmanians are sharing in the current economic boom.

There was a nod to health and housing crises, but the strongest emphasis was on the need to make sure that people from Smithton to Southport and Strahan to St Helens feel like they’re riding the crest of a wave too.

Who better to help spread the largesse than the man with the outsize claim to its creation?

There was only the slightest hint of the pugnacious performer so often seen on the floor of parliament during Mr Gutwein’s first appearance as Premier.

Maybe Greens leader Cassy O’Connor’s hopes of “a statesman rather than a brawler” are not misplaced.

The new Premier hearkened back to his humble origins and delivered a graceful acknowledgment of his erstwhile challenger Michael Ferguson — who withdrew in the hour before the vote was to take place.

Labor played up disunity in the Government, as they would, after a weekend of furious lobbying by some senior Liberal party figures on behalf of Michael Ferguson and Elise Archer.

In the end it backfired and only swung in the wavering voters in behind the Gutwein/Rockliff ticket.

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PUBLIC REACTION TO GUTWEIN’S RISE

Will Hodgman has left Mr Gutwein some thorny challenges to sort out: in the health system, in housing, in justice and in prisons.

There is a lingering suspicion that this year’s budget will be a tough balancing act too as GST revenues shrink.

But the biggest challenge for Peter Gutwein is the ticking clock: he has just 25 months until the next election to convince people he has delivered on his promise.

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