Former senator turned freelance “transparency warrior” Rex Patrick wants to get back into the red chamber again — this time as a member of the Jacqui Lambie Network (JLN). Crikey caught the South Australian on the phone on Friday, and got a bonus chat with Lambie herself.
“I’m driving and I’ve got Jacqui here in the car with me,” Patrick said. “We’re just turning up to where we’re doing a presser. We’re just enjoying the views of the Adelaide parklands.”
Crikey attempted to run both Patrick and Lambie through a series of rapid-fire questions about some of the big issues ahead of the next election. But as usual with politicians and political candidates, giving short answers turned out to be an impossible task, so the replies are edited for brevity.
What prompted your decision to run again?
“Okay, so,” Patrick began answering before Lambie cut him off.
“Jacqui has been knocking on his door for over 12 months telling him she needs him, just begging,” she said.
“There is a lot of truth to that,” Patrick said. “She has been pressing me for a long time … I actually just think in the longer term, I can do more on the inside than I can do on the outside. There’s an opportunity to have another independent small party representing the people of South Australia.
“Jacqui and I have worked together for a long, long time. So when I was an adviser to Nick [Xenophon], he would be sending me down to help Jacqui with an inquiry, and we’ve obviously been working together in the Senate. And since that time we’ve actually been working together, me doing [freedom of information requests] in the background for Jacqui, assisting her … We’ve been working together for well over six or seven years.”
Lambie’s outfit has been in turmoil recently, sacking two Tasmanian state MPs from the party for what the senator said was their “cosy relationship” with the local Liberal government. The JLN also lost its second senator, Tammy Tyrrell, earlier this year after Tyrell resigned, saying Lambie had indicated she was “not happy” with her work.
Asked if she thinks she’ll have a better chance at keeping her team together with her proposed new lineup — including possible candidates in New South Wales and Queensland — Lambie indicated Patrick would be an easier partner to deal with because of his prior experience in the Senate.
“You know what? We don’t take a lot of big donations, we don’t have a lot of cash, and wrapping people up in cotton when they come in — we just don’t have that kind of setup,” she said.
“I just don’t have the time to do my job and run through cotton wool and wrap them up. This is one of the problems I’ve had.
“It’s been quite difficult for [my former party colleagues] because they don’t have that prior experience … they’re lost in the fog [and] quite frankly, we haven’t had the psychologists and all that sort of stuff set up in the Network, we don’t do that, and that’s been very, very difficult.”
What’s your opinion of the Coalition’s nuclear energy plan?
Patrick: “I think it’s a distraction. It’s not properly costed and it won’t deliver a single electron for a decade or more, by which time we will have base loads sorted out for renewables.”
Lambie: “It took them nine years to try and find somewhere to put low-level nuclear waste and they couldn’t get that accomplished. So quite frankly, I think it’s a big belly laugh to think they could pull off a nuclear plant.”
What do you think about Labor’s housing policies? And what should be done about the housing crisis in general?
Patrick: “One of the things Jacqui and I have been talking about is banning foreign residential ownership. All that does is put pressure on prices and rob young Australians of an opportunity to buy into the market. It’s been done in New Zealand, it’s been done in Canada, and it’s working.”
Lambie: “On the housing policies, we can sit here and keep arguing over them if you like, or we can get on with it so we can start getting roofs over people’s heads. Because that’s not going to happen tomorrow. I do believe that’s what the Albanese government is attempting to do.”
What would you do on immigration?
Patrick: “I think we should be making sure the immigration levels are right and the right sort of people enter the country that can help fill in where we have the need. We do need to moderate to make sure that we don’t end up in a situation where we have people just flooding into Sydney and Melbourne where there are no houses.”
Lambie: “It has to be targeted — where are the jobs? Where do we need them right now? We need them in aged care. It’s about targeting what people we need in here to fill those jobs, and they need to tighten up on that so we can get this right.”
What about reform on gambling advertising?
Patrick: “We have to stop gambling advertising. Remember, I come from the genus of the Nick Xenophon party which was born out of “no pokies” — it generates profit for a limited number of people, and it’s hugely destructive for society.”
Lambie: “Watching kids wanting to place bets because they’re watching the footy, I find that beyond distasteful. Are you more worried about gambling companies than about the future of our children? Absolutely disgraceful. Once again, this is all about political donations, and making sure those TV networks aren’t running ads against you. Show some goddamn courage and do the right thing for our kids.”
What should be done to tackle the cost of living crisis?
Patrick: “One of the big issues is electricity prices. In most states it’s set by the gas price. Simply introducing a gas reservation policy — so that a percentage of all gas produced on the east coast is reserved for domestic use — would bring those prices down and help encourage the rebirth of some of our industries. Another thing is the Coles and Woolies duopoly. There should be divestiture powers so that the courts can divest these large corporations of some of their assets if they engage in monopoly conduct.”
Lambie: “With these new green builds, these thousands of houses we’re going to build — if you aren’t putting solar and electrifying those houses, then you are ripping off the Australian people out there, especially those in public housing.”
