Talking Point: Whispers from the watchtower

CATH Hughes recently resigned after two decades as a spin doctor for the Tasmanian Greens. Today, she reveals some juicy behind-the-scenes anecdotes.

Politics Election portrait Greens adviser Cath Hughes

“THERE must be some kinda way outta here, said the joker to the thief...”

So opens Bob Dylan’s iconic All Along the Watchtower, a song many of my Greens colleagues over the years have endured blasting from my office late at night (usually the Hendrix version), and which sums up that which is the parliamentary vortex.

I’ve been asked to jot down some observations gleaned from pacing about the Greens’ watchtower over the years. While I have worked with some amazing people, ironically my longevity is largely thanks to the Labor and Liberal parties.

The collusion of the Labor and Liberal parties in 1998 to remodel the Parliament in their own image shocked me profoundly. I was pretty junior at the time, having been on the state MPs’ payroll for just over 12 months. I made a pact to myself to prove the Laborials wrong, and to stick around until the following three things occurred — another balance of power parliament returned; a Greens MP in each electorate; and the Assembly MPs numbers restored.

A dozen years later, the previous government almost delivered all three. The distorted bar of 25 seats was high-jumped, with each of the five electorates returning a Green MP, and balance of power. At the time, someone suggested revenge was best served cold, to which I remarked: “Well, if that is the case, then this has been marinating on ice.”

Over the years many lessons were learned. Here are a few pointers from my informal code of parliamentary practice.

Start as you intend to finish

Peg Putt

NONE of it could have happened without the political wiliness and sheer hard work of Peg Putt during those lonely years from 1998 to 2002. Peg was dubbed the “Real Opposition”, and while we were aware it was initially intended to insult some backbone into the [Bob] Cheek Liberals, we intended to be effective even under the tight fist of majority government. One of the first things Peg did was move to abolish corporal punishment in Tasmanian schools. The Bill had been written by official legislative drafters just prior the election, in an arrangement under premier Rundle, so we knew the Liberals should support it, and it was part of the ALP’s election platform.

With both parties having no choice but to pass Peg’s Bill, the Upper House was shocked to discover that instead of wiping us out they were now having to vote on Greens legislation. Beating both parties to the punch to deliver a major policy reform was a deliberate strategic shot across the bow.

Stay awake

Steve Kons

WHO could forget the contentious abortion laws debate of late 2001, with all parties having a conscience vote? Those against the reform included some from Labor’s ranks, aided by national QCs brought down by Brian Harradine sitting in the advisers’ box, while the women MPs were united in progressing the necessary reforms to keep the option of termination available. It was a long and late night. At some stage early in the morning the division bells rang on a crucial clause which the conservative anti-reformists desperately needed all their votes.

A senior Labor minister ambled over and sat next to Peg and said: “Steve Kons is asleep in the Long Room. I shut the doors so the bells wouldn’t wake him...”

The vote was taken, anti-reformist Steve Kons in another room, and the progressives won by the slimmest of margins.

Never take your eye off the ball

I WILL never forget seeing the hurt and betrayal felt by the involved Vietnam veterans who crowded into Parliament House to see the vote on our motion for a Commission of Inquiry into the Police Shooting of Joe Gilewicz, defeated by Labor and the Liberals, many of whom the Vets believed had promised them action in the past.

“We were told we were fighting for democracy against the commies,” one said to me. “But it’s clear now that all democracy is, is the right to say one thing at election time, and do the opposite once you’re safely elected.”

Many in government at the time thought the subsequent Estcourt Inquiry would shut the issue down, and received the shock of their lives when he recommended an inquiry.

However the shock and betrayal returned full circle when we discovered at the end of the inquiry that amendments to the Act, which the government told us Commissioner Mahoney had requested, omitted the key amendment he needed to have his assigned federal police officers granted temporary status as Tasmania Police in order to be able to use the state’s listening devices laws. By this sleight of hand, the rigour of the Commission was indisputably stymied.

Seize the moment (don’t sit on things that could explode)

MR Kons featured prominently in the next period of government as the star performer in Shreddergate. What he probably doesn’t know is he almost scored a reprieve on that one.

The weekend prior to the Tuesday’s finely honed parliamentary theatrics was one of the most anxious and nailbiting few days I have experienced. It transpired not long after Kim Booth drove to Burnie to collect, and commence his arduous reassembling of, the infamous shreddings, that the whistleblower had informed another person of their existence about two weeks beforehand. Astoundingly, that person failed to make the journey to Burnie to collect them. But that weekend’s Mercury reports alleging that a document had been signed, denied at the time by Mr Kons, had triggered their memory.

They suddenly wanted the shreddings. I received a terse phone call where the one-sided conversation went along the lines that Mr Burch had told them the shreddings existed some time ago, therefore ipso facto they belonged to them, they were their scoop and Kim Booth should hand them over. If not, they’ll go public with the shreddings’ existence, and blow our parliamentary strategy. We held our ground, and I nervously watched news reports over the next two days, but for whatever reason our strategy was not blown.

Maybe they couldn’t think of a good enough excuse to pitch to their boss over why they had sat on such an explosive lead for two weeks.

Don’t overreach (Tassie is a small place)

Paul Lennon

AFTER being outed having dinner with John Gay with a pulp mill proposal, then-deputy premier Paul Lennon decided ridicule was the best form of attack. The story is well-known how during Question Time he challenged the Greens to discover where he was having dinner that night, and with whom. ABC Radio ran the challenge on the 11am news bulletin. By lunch we had been contacted by an irate ABC news listener, who provided the location. We quickly rang and made a booking.

Conveniently, our table was positioned so we could see the ministerial car arriving without being seen. Hence the piercing ministerial squawk of horror from the bar when Peg’s business card signed by all our table was delivered to Mr Lennon by a waiter.

Mr Lennon’s dinner companion arrived to see him surrounded by Greens, which was too much for Treasurer David Crean, who couldn’t even squawk due to his jaw bruising his ankles.

Next morning, there was a tap at our Party Room door.

There stood the deputy premier acknowledging that clearly we’d be raising the issue again that Question Time, and he’d roll with those punches, as he had not even informed his own party of the evening’s events.

So the House sat flabbergasted while in response to the Greens’ first question of the day Mr Lennon, “could confirm Mr Speaker that indeed the Greens had met his challenge and discovered his dinner location...”

None were more flabbergasted than premier Jim Bacon, who really didn’t appreciate political surprises not of his own making.

You can’t fool the voter

Michael Field

THE voter is in control, as shown by the 2010 power-sharing election result where a fair chunk of them clearly didn’t appreciate the pre-election “no deals” bluster.

Remember the desperate joint media statement issued eight days prior polling day by four ex-premiers — Field, Gray, Rundle and Lennon — warning of the imminent apocalypse should a minority government be elected?

Or the post-election standoff where we watched and waited to see who would blink first? I’ll never forget receiving the call that Labor was willing to talk.

Nor will history forget that with the ministerial Rubicon crossed for the Greens, the power-sharing government went full term, was devoid of the reek of scandal that shadowed previous majority governments, and delivered progressive policy outcomes.

Throughout that period of “creative tension”, late nights, and policy negotiations that could resemble medical triage, Nick and Cassy demonstrated that not only could Greens be the Parliament’s “conscience” (not our chosen description, I assure you) but also its accountable workhorses.

Government by exhaustion is not a good thing

MY lingering regret is the current crippled state of the Assembly.

Despite the three party leaders signing an agreement to restore MP numbers, a lack of political will to right a recognised wrong that short-changes the electorate is disappointing. Unfortunately, gossip mag populism is in control. So I may not have achieved the trifecta in full but the acknowledgment the 1998 cut was wrong is a massive leap forward.

To have worked under the leadership of Christine, Peg, Nick and Kim has been a rare and varied experience. Politics is a weird and wonderful game.

Having sat on the support benches to those in the middle for so long, I vacate my perch in the watchtower looking forward to switching off the mobile and watching from the spectator stands.

With the Greens in play, I guarantee it will always be interesting!

Cath Hughes announced her resignation as chief of staff and media adviser to the Tasmanian Greens MPs on May 17. She started working for the Greens MPs 18 years ago in May, 1997.