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One Nation’s stunning result in the South Australian election has convinced Jeff Kennett that Pauline Hanson’s party should be welcomed into a broad “coalition for Victoria” to ensure Labor is defeated at the November state election.
While debate is raging within the Liberal and National parties in Victoria over how best to respond to the rise of One Nation, the former Liberal premier has urged them to put the interests of the state first and work with anyone opposed to Labor.
Kennett said this could extend to including One Nation or independent MPs on the frontbench of a future non-Labor government.
“The government is corrupt. It sponsors corruption and the public are understanding that more and more every day,” he told The Age on Monday.
“In the event that the Coalition doesn’t win in its own right, I would have no hesitation in asking and inviting some of those who are elected who have experiences that we might not have to form a coalition for Victoria.
“I am not worried about One Nation. They are a part of the democratic process. If Pauline [Hanson] says she intends to take on Victoria, so be it. All of those who stand and are elected who are opposed to corruption must work together,” Kennett said.
“Victoria is a lot more important to me right now than the Liberal Party or the Labor Party or One Nation.”
However, Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has ruled out forming an alliance with One Nation.
Kennett’s radical idea of offering MPs from a populist, anti-immigration party a seat at the Victorian cabinet table is likely to be seized upon by Premier Jacinta Allan, who on Monday claimed that a secret pact had already been struck between One Nation and the Liberal and National parties.
Referring to comments on ABC Radio by One Nation upper house MP Rikkie-Lee Tyrell that her party and the opposition “have the same agenda”, Allan said “the cat has been let out of the bag”.
“One Nation and Liberal and National parties are working together in coalition,” the premier said.
“The only way to stop One Nation and the only way to back a fairer, better, stronger Victoria is to vote Labor.”
The prospect of One Nation moving into a balance-of-power position offers Labor a fresh rallying call to energise its progressive base as it chases a fourth consecutive term at the November state election.
In her interview with broadcaster Raf Epstein, Tyrell said the surging support for One Nation was “definitely going to be a shake-up” for Victorian politics.
“I would like to see the Coalition realise One Nation is not the enemy,” she said. “We both have the same agenda. We want to get rid of Labor, and we need to work together to do that.”
One Nation had secured 22.4 per cent of votes counted in the South Australian election as of 4pm on Monday, making it the most popular non-Labor party in the state. Support for the Liberal Party slumped to 19 per cent, while Labor attracted a healthy 37.7 per cent share.
The split among right-of-centre voters reduced the Liberal Party to a parliamentary rump, and helped deliver a record majority to Peter Malinauskas’ second-term Labor government. Yet One Nation could win only one lower house seat.
The Victorian opposition is now divided over how to best to respond to the South Australian result. Opposition deputy leader David Southwick said on Monday that the election showed what happened when the anti-Labor vote splintered.
“We know if people stray to other parties there is more chance we will get Jacinta Allan elected again after November,” he said. “People can’t risk that. If we want to see the back end of Jacinta Allan, we need to make sure we vote Liberal and Nationals in November.”
Others in the Coalition believe that in Victoria, the rise of One Nation has opened a path to victory if Hanson’s candidates can win once-safe seats held by Labor, particularly in the western and northern suburbs.
Kennett said Australian politics was undergoing its most rapid change since the Dismissal in 1975 and that, in stark contrast to South Australia, where Labor entered the election campaign with a popular leader and strong primary support, voters were abandoning Labor in Victoria after 12 years of government and months of damaging revelations about endemic corruption on government building sites.
“It is a totally different kettle of fish,” he said. “Every day that is passing, people are turning their back on what Labor have done. They have no chance of winning. They are going to lose a poultice of seats.”
Kennett also said that while some in the Coalition would be tempted to fight the election against the government and One Nation, this would be a fatal mistake.
“In South Australia, Peter did that. That’s because he leads a good government and everyone expected him to win. Here in Victoria, we don’t have the resources or the creativity to be fighting on two fronts – attacking One Nation as well as the government. My argument is stay focused on what you have to do, which is to defeat Labor in the interests of the state.”
One Nation is contesting the Nepean byelection, which was caused by the resignation of former Liberal deputy leader Sam Groth. But it is yet to announce its candidates or policies for the Victorian state election.
At the last federal election, the minor party campaigned on promises to substantially reduce immigration and abandon Australia’s commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
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