Upper House Northern Metropolitan representative and Leader of the Australian Sex Party, Fiona Patten MP, is calling on all sides of politics to stop the game-playing and bring on a final debate and vote on the Port of Melbourne lease this week in parliament.
“It’s time that the Port of Melbourne lease sale was finalised,” said Ms Patten. “A year and a half after the Andrews Government was elected with a mandate to lease the port, we are deadlocked in the parliament. The frustrating delays, the game playing by the coalition and the endless backroom talks have led us nowhere. All parties need to come together and sort this out – and this week.”
Ms Patten’s comments come after months of wrangling about the details of the port lease which the coalition and government can’t agree on.
“It’s surprising to me that we have not finalised this issue,” Ms Patten said. “Even more so when you consider that Matthew Guy and his team went to the election with a similar policy yet now it seems they are happy to delay a decision on something that they would have done anyway. This is politics at its worst – and in the end it will hurt the bottom line of Victoria’s budget and our wider economy.
“The public is sick and tired of watching politicians scoring cheap political points just to grab a sensational headline. In the meantime, other important issues aren’t being addressed that are of some urgency.”
Ms Patten said that the Greens and other crossbenchers can have an effect this week on the major parties and force them to bring this debate on in the parliament.
“My message to all parties is clear – time is up,” she said. “Stop acting like a bunch of pathetic schoolboys and just get on with it. You owe it to all Victorians.”
