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By 11.30 last night it had become clear the best Labor could hope for was a hung parliament if it manages to hold Bentleigh.
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Date Posted: 27/11/10 7:25:47
Victoria could enter uncharted territory as hung parliament looms James Campbell From: Sunday Herald Sun November 28, 2010 1:36AM Increase Text SizeDecrease Text SizePrintEmail Share
Add to DiggAdd to del.icio.usAdd to FacebookAdd to KwoffAdd to MyspaceAdd to NewsvineWhat are these?VICTORIA could be about to enter uncharted constitutional waters.
By 11.30 last night it had become clear the best Labor could hope for was a hung parliament if it manages to hold Bentleigh.
Victoria has had hung parliaments before, most recently in 1999, but never before has there been a tie between two sides.
By saying in his non-concession speech last night that Labor had provided stable minority government before, John Brumby seemed to be hinting that he might attempt to continue in office even if the parliament is split 44-44.
In one sense, there is nothing wrong with him trying to do so - as the holder of a commission from the Governor he continues to hold office.
But premiers in Victoria live and die on the confidence of the Legislative Assembly.
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The Australian, 1 hour ago.End of sidebar. Return to start of sidebar.
If Mr Brumby has only 44 votes, he won't have the numbers even to elect a speaker -- let alone pass a budget.
And given that Labor is expected to lose the two-party preferred vote, he will be hard-pressed to claim he has a mandate to continue in office.
If it becomes clear Mr Brumby does not have the confidence of the Legislative Assembly, he is obliged to do one of two things. He can either resign and advise Governor David de Kretser to invite Mr Baillieu to try to form a government.
Or he can advise Mr de Kretser to dissolve the parliament and call another election. The problem is Mr Baillieu would be no better placed to form a government than Mr Brumby.
The two leaders could, in theory, agree that one of them will serve as premier but they will be dependent on each other for every single vote.
The only hope for Labor in this parliament would appear to be to try to induce a member of the Opposition to "rat" on their colleagues and accept the position of speaker.
The alternative is another election less than a month before Christmas something that neither side is looking forward to.
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