Federal Election 2019: Tasmanian Labor leader Rebecca White and former Liberal Bob Cheek condemn revival of north-south rivalries

A former Liberal has taken aim at the Coalition for reviving the state’s dormant north-south divide, saying it has damaged our bid for an AFL team.

STATE Opposition Leader Rebecca White and a former Liberal has taken aim at the Coalition for reviving the state’s dormant north-south divide in the federal election campaign.

The Liberals campaigned hard against Labor promises to spend money on AFL and the next stage of the Mona development. The decision was credited with helping them win Bass and Braddon.

Ms White said political leaders should be seeking to unite rather than divide, particularly in a small state like Tasmania.

“It’s really disappointing to see that old parochialism in Tasmania resurgent again under the premiership of Will Hodgman,” she said.

“He should be acting to unify our state, to work in the best interests of all Tasmanians to make sure that those north-south divides aren’t further inflamed.

“We all need to work together. We’re a small state. We have to look out for one another.

“We have to work towards achieving the best outcomes we can for our people and representing as one Tasmania’s interests in Canberra.

“And I feel very disappointed that the Premier tried to take advantage of that north-south divide just to gain a few votes.”

Labor leader Rebecca White at St Albi restaurant in Moonah. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

Former state Liberal leader Bob Cheek said he was thrilled that the Coalition had won the election, but said he was not impressed by the revival of old-style parochialism.

“They’ve used this to win Braddon, and it looks like Bass, but it just takes us back you know 20 or so years,” he said.

“I wanted a Liberal win for a whole lot of reasons but it just sad that it had to be done this way.

“I think it’s put back our bid for an AFL team. The great excuse that Jeff Kennett and a lot of other people use is that they will never get one down there because the north hates the south.

“We’re saying well that’s all gone now, we’re united and now it’s just we’ll open it up again, open up the wounds. It’s a great pity.”

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Ms White said that the Liberal’s focus on the north has come at the cost of the southern electorates — including Mr Hodgman’s own.

“The Liberal Party didn’t make a single commitment to the electorate of Franklin.

“That’s very disappointing and I think that just points out how cynical things have become in politics.”

Ms White said the style — and ultimate success — of the negative, small target Liberal campaign posed a challenge for political leaders in future elections.

“That does then raise questions about what kind of campaign political parties endeavour to undertake in the future,” she said.

People have linked this campaign with Hewson’s Fightback campaign, the failure of that: both big policy agendas that the opposition took to an election campaign.

“I do worry that in the future political parties will be less courageous and share less with the people when they go to an election for fear that the opposition parties will run fear campaigns against those ideas.”