Adam Bandt has put Anthony Albanese on notice the Greens would seek to formally lock in their support for a “stable effective and progressive” parliament if Labor fell short of a majority at the next election.
With polls suggesting a hung parliament could be a possibility, the Greens leader said there would be a “lot of merit” in clarifying what reforms could be achieved.
“I think working that out in advance, working out what the benefits will actually be for people and knowing how then the next three years would map out … that is probably the priority,” Mr Bandt told the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing on Tuesday.
The remarks are the first time the Greens leader has expressly suggested there will need to be a structured agreement with Labor if the party finds itself needing crossbench support to form a government.
It follows the minority party’s dramatic shift in recent weeks towards a new spirit of pragmatism.
The Greens backed the government on more than 40 bills on Thursday after watering down many of their demands on legislation such as Reserve Bank reform, social housing, and the Future Made in Australia industry support scheme.
In turn, Labor agreed to Greens demands including additional funding for household electrification and a block on using Future Made money for fossil fuel projects.
Greens change approach
Labor sources said the legislative flood came after a clear change of approach within the Greens, led by Mr Bandt and the party’s Senate leader, Sarah Hanson-Young, who one government figure described as being “back in charge of the party room”.
In turn, the Greens say they have adopted a new spirit of “good-faith negotiations” with the government just weeks after suffering electoral setbacks in Queensland, the ACT, and in some local government battles. They fear those losses were because voters regarded the party as playing an obstructionist or “wrecking” role rather than achieving goals.
Sarah Hanson-Young is one of the people behind the Greens’ new approach, according to government sources. (
ABC News: Matt Roberts
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“We certainly want to make it clear as we go into the next election that we have pushed as hard as we can in this parliament and got some really good outcomes for people,” Mr Bandt told the ABC.
“Where there is goodwill and everyone is prepared to say, ‘We’re not going to get everything we want,’ you can compromise.”
Mr Bandt held up former Greens leader Bob Brown’s agreement with Julia Gillard in 2010 as a model of power sharing.
That led to reforms such as Medicare-funded dental treatment for children, which Mr Bandt indicated would be used as a template for any future negotiations.
“As we go to the next election, the Greens position will be to keep [Opposition Leader] Peter Dutton out and push the next government to act on things like health and housing and climate and environment,” he said.
Asked directly whether he would seek a deal in writing, Mr Bandt hinted that it would need to be formal in nature.
He also dismissed the idea that the Greens would demand a backdoor veto on the Labor leadership by tying any agreement to Mr Albanese in person.
“The Labor Party gets to choose their leader and we deal with whoever they choose,” he said.
“So presuming that’s who they choose, we would of course continue to work with him as the prime minister in good faith and reach some outcomes.”
He said “priority areas” would be getting Medicare coverage for adult dental and mental health, free access to GPs, “some action on soaring rents” and areas such as “climate and environment”.
“It’s those kinds of things that I think in a minority government people would say, ‘Well, let’s actually get serious and do the action that’s needed,'” he said.
