The Macquarie Point stadium is deeply unpopular with the public, but apparently it’s not just voters who are angry with the Liberal and Labor party’s stated support for the project. It seems Labor MPs and candidates are also feeling unhappy about their leader’s approach.
The Greens don’t usually hear much from inside the Labor party, but since Labor Leader Dean Winter announced he is backing every element of the Liberals’ plan for the Hobart stadium, that’s changed.
We’ve heard from multiple sources inside Labor that there is a high level of dissatisfaction with their leader’s approach to the project.
Dean Winter has told voters his position on the stadium is identical to the Liberals. But it seems his position might not be supported by his current party room – let alone a future one.
It isn’t surprising to hear that Labor MPs are unhappy with the direction their leader has taken on the stadium. After all, many of them campaigned hard against it, had ‘no stadium’ bumper stickers on their cars, and made clear to the community they thought it was the wrong priority for the state.
It’s not just the current Labor party MPs that seem to have a problem. We also know high profile candidates are opposed to the project. If they join the party room as expected, they will add to the strength of opposition to Dean Winter’s position.
With so much internal division in Labor over the stadium, the Greens believe this election is a real opportunity to stop the project. With a strong enough vote for anti-stadium candidates, there will be huge pressure on Dean Winter to drop support for the project – both from within his own party and from the community.
If anyone is skeptical that Labor would change their tune again, just look at their track record. They’ve already had about 10 positions on the project. Why not 11?
Of course, it may be that Labor stick to their guns for a change and move to fast-track the stadium through Parliament like their leader says they will. But from what we’re hearing, that’s far from a done deal. That’s why voting against the stadium is so important this election – so there’s as much pressure as possible on Labor to ditch the project if they form government.
