Federal Election 2019: Premier Will Hodgman Liberals’ ‘secret weapon’ ahead of federal election

The Liberals will wheel out their secret weapon in Bass and Braddon over the next three days in a last-ditch attempt to improve their northern candidates’ election chances.

THE Liberals will wheel out secret weapon Premier Will Hodgman in Bass and Braddon over the next three days in a last-ditch attempt to improve their northern candidates’ election chances.

As Labor and the Liberals made competing funding announcements in the northern seats, with both party’s leaders visiting Bass and Braddon on Tuesday, the Coalition revealed it would lean on the state’s popular Premier to boost its chances of winning the key Tasmanian seats and retaining government.

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Liberal-commissioned TeleReach polling of 507 people in Braddon and Bass each showed Mr Hodgman attracted an approval rating of about 31 per cent and 26 per cent in the electorates respectively — markedly more than Opposition leader Rebecca White.

The results, seen by the Mercury, showed Ms White had a favourability rating of 0.22 per cent in Bass and -9.86 per cent in Braddon among the voters quizzed early last month.

Liberal Party state director Geoff Page said: “The Premier is a massive asset to the campaign and recognises the importance of this election to the future of the state and nation.”

Premier Will Hodgman and Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny Morrison arrive at Launceston Town Hall during campaigning in Bass. Picture: Tracey Nearmy/Getty

Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition leader Bill Shorten have this week stood alongside their Bass and Braddon candidates as the clock ticks ahead of Saturday’s poll.

The northern electorates have proven key battlegrounds in the federal election campaign, with both parties pouring resources and pledging big money for the traditionally volatile seats.

Bass is held by Labor MHR Ross Hart and Braddon Labor MHR Justine Keay but the Liberals have made much noise about being able to win them back after spectacular swings against the party in 2016. Their candidates are George Town Mayor Bridget Archer and beef farmer Gavin Pearce respectively.

The federal Opposition this week was upbeat about its chances in at least Bass and has dedicated enormous energy to retaining that seat, having clocked up 9740 direct conversations with voters by Tuesday afternoon.

More than 1650 voters were recorded as having changed their vote to Labor as a result of their contact with the party.

Mr Hart won the seat with a swing of more than 10 per cent at the last federal election but holds it by a 5.4 per cent margin after a redistribution.

At a hastily arranged press conference before Mr Morrison’s, Mr Hart said his party had planned to announce $4 million for Launceston’s Northern Suburbs Community Hub but would instead commit $10 million “to match what we believe was to be an announcement this afternoon”. But the Coalition, understood to have intended to commit $7.5 million to the hub, announced it would fund the entire $15 million project.

Both parties also pledged $10 million to turn 128-year-old Albert Hall into a 500-seat cultural and convention centre.

Mr Hodgman, speaking in Launceston with Mr Morrison and Ms Archer, was quick to address accusations the Liberals were only focused on the North by pointing out that Hobart, like Launceston, had a City Deal.

“For anyone who doesn’t think for a minute that the Morrison team isn’t committed to the whole of Tasmania, you simply need to look at the investment that comes, not only with [the Launceston] City Deal, but also the one in Southern Tasmania,” he said.