Critical Times

After the South Australian March elections Critical Times contacted Nick Xenophon for his comments about his spectacular vote.

CT : How does it feel winning 2.5 quotas in the March 18th elections?

Nick Xenophon : I’m not complaining! Given that I was written off by so many pollies and commentators, and the major and minor parties preferenced against me, it was a real victory for a community campaign.

CT : The major parties made sure you didn’t get their preferences, and you surprised everybody and surpassed Family First, Australian Democrats, Greens vote. Why do you think you did so well?

Nick Xenophon : Bill Clinton’s slogan for the 1992 election campaign was “It’s the economy, stupid”. For me it’s a case of focussing on real issues that affect real people, not just my core issue of gambling, but others such as asbestos, victims of crime, ETSA, petrol prices and sustainable development.

CT : Your political activism obviously resonates with the South Australian public, however it risks upsetting the ‘Big End of Town’. How far do you think you can go? And how successful do you think you’ll be?

Nick Xenophon : I’m just going to keep pushing the envelope for real reforms on a whole range of issues. I’d like to think with community support I can help achieve change on a whole range of issues. The fact that the Government recently announced changes to victims of crime policy is a win for the people I’ve been advocating for for years – I just hope changes aren’t just window dressing.

CT : Could you outline your position on the contentious issue of drug use. Do you agree there are two issues here; the political as well as the health imperative?

Nick Xenophon : Australia has a serious drug problem, as outlined by the UN World Drug Report, which shows that Australia has the highest level of illicit drug use in the OECD. There is a clear link between mental illness and drug use, and that’s why I believe we need to implement a system of drug rehabilitation based on Sweden’s, which is compassionate and well-funded, and gets results. For instance, the level of amphetamines use there is 1/40th of that of Australia’s.

CT : You preference the Greens over Family First due to the latter’s particular Christian position which you don’t entirely agree with, how do you rationalise the fact that Ann Bressington, your running mate, is an administrator of the Festival of Light?

Nick Xenophon : This is a disgusting lie, for which Ann deserves an apology. She gave evidence at a Federal Parliamentary Committee on Drugs several years ago, and the Festival of Light was double booked to give evidence at the same time. By being at the same table, Ann has been labelled as an FOL administrator, which is just plain wrong. I wish people would check their facts before they spread unfounded rumours.

Editorial Comment : On the last question of this interview Critical Times spoke again to Nick Xenophon. Nick pointed out that Ann Bressington has publicly stated she has never been and is not a member of the Festival of Light. The Critical Times team publicly acknowledges our error of fact in this regard . We apologise for the misrepresentation .