Morrison deflects Liberals’ defeat in SA away from federal election
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has today defended the campaign of defeated South Australian Liberal Premier Steven Marshall.
Mr Morrison was speaking after Labor, led by Peter Malinauskas, swept to power in SA, winning at least 25 seats, one more than is required to form a majority government.
The Prime Minister insisted Mr Marshall had been an “outstanding premier”.
“Steven Marshall turned the state of South Australia around, he turned their economy around, he brought business back to South Australia, he created a new buzz in South Australia, which was drawing investment, technology firms, securing important events industry for his state,” Mr Morrison said.
“Steven Marshall ran a good show for the time he served as premier.”
Mr Morrison insisted the SA election was decided on “state issues” and said the federal election – which must be held by May – would be fought on federal ones.
“I think state elections, and the new premier made this very point, even before the polls were opened, and that was that this election was being fought on state issues,” Mr Morrison said.
“The federal election will be fought on federal issues. And what I know is is that Anthony Albanese is not Peter Malinauskas, he is not any of the other premiers, he is not Annastacia Palaszczuk. He is none of these other premiers.”
Mr Morrison also said the Opposition Leader can’t “duck and run” over claims of bullying within the Labor party, which have emerged following senator Kimberley Kitching’s death.
‘There are serious issues that Anthony Albanese has to deal with,” Mr Morrison said.
Morrison a ‘drag on SA Liberal vote’
Labor federal front bencher and South Australian Senator Penny Wong today said the result in the state election was a positive result for the party federally.
Speaking on Weekend Today, Senator Wong praised Mr Malinauskas’s campaign for focusing on the “next generation” of South Australians.
“Peter campaigned very clearly that his agenda, his objective, was not the next election but the next generation,” she said.
“I think Australians are looking for a leader who looks to the future, which is what Anthony Albanese is so clearly.”
Senator Wong also said Prime Minister Scott Morrison had been a “drag” on the defeated Liberal South Australian government of Steven Marshall.
She said research showed Mr Morrison had turned some Liberal voters off voting for Mr Marshall.
“Scott Morrison was absolutely a drag on the Liberal vote here … I saw numbers that suggested that one in two South Australians – one in two – were less likely to vote for Steven Marshall when they were reminded that he and Scott Morrison were of the same party.”
