ACT Labor has thrown its support behind Greens MLA Andrew Braddock for the position of Legislative Assembly Speaker, while presenting a five-point list of demands designed to ensure impartiality in the role.
Labor's preference for Greens candidate
Finance Minister Rachel Stephen-Smith confirmed on Monday that Labor would prefer Andrew Braddock over the Liberals' announced candidate, former opposition leader Jeremy Hanson. The declaration comes ahead of Tuesday's crucial vote, where the Assembly's first order of business will be electing a new speaker.
"All of those conversations are still ongoing. Other parties have their say in the matter," Ms Stephen-Smith said. "We have still to finalise the Labor position and we're waiting for responses from individuals who may be in the mix."
Five key demands for speaker candidates
Labor has outlined five specific commitments it wants the next speaker to adhere to, focusing heavily on ensuring political neutrality. The demands include ceasing attendance at party room meetings and withdrawing from involvement in party parliamentary strategy for the duration of their speakership.
Candidates are also expected to provide written explanations of how they would work with party whips and the manager of government business. They must commit to tabling written reasons before making major rulings that establish precedents in the chamber.
The party further demands improvements to parliamentary committee processes without requiring additional resources, including ensuring the secretariat and Assembly library provide literature reviews and summaries to committees.
Finally, Labor wants the speaker to table an annual report detailing the number of warnings, namings and suspensions issued each year, broken down by MLA and type of conduct.
Political manoeuvring and concerns
The speaker vacancy emerged following Mark Parton's resignation to return as leader of the Canberra Liberals after Leanne Castley's departure. The Liberals announced their nomination of Mr Hanson a fortnight ago.
Both Chief Minister Andrew Barr and the ACT Greens have previously expressed concerns about Mr Hanson's ability to maintain impartiality in the role. Mr Barr earlier this month compared the nomination to "the ACT equivalent of Tony Abbott nominating Bronwyn Bishop to be speaker of the House of Representatives."
Kurrajong independent Thomas Emerson ruled himself out of contention on Monday but indicated he would form a view once nominees were confirmed. "It sounds like Mr Hanson has managed to speak with almost everyone in the Assembly, if not everyone, to put his case forward," Mr Emerson said.
Ms Stephen-Smith left open the possibility that Labor could still support Mr Hanson if Mr Braddock doesn't become a nominee, indicating the party remains flexible in its approach to the speaker election.
