Friday, May 20, 2022

Party Games 23/38 Rex Patrick Team

Rex Patrick initially joined the senate as a member of the Centre Alliance, replacing Nick Xenephon when he retired, but has since left the party and formed his own. 

His positions are a bit of a mix. Supporting net zero carbon by 2050 makes him better than some on the environment, but there's room for improvement. He's also good on government integrity, supporting the creation of an ICAC, better transparency on donations, although I'm unsure on his proposal that ministers need to pass a security clearance to be able to access classified information. My concern is that this gives a veto on ministerial appointments to the security agencies, taking that out of the democratic process. 

There's also a strong anti-China bent to Rex's positions, as well as strong support for South Australia, the latter of which I can't fault as he's a senator for that state. 

I'm not sure how he'll fare running on his own rather than as part of the Centre Alliance.

No comments: