Mike Baird plan to back down as allies warn on greyhounds ban

Former Queensland premier Campbell Newman: ‘Mike Baird is a good leader and a great Premier. This is a bad issue for him.’ Picture: Kym Smith

The Australian

12:00AM October 7, 2016
Sharri Markson
Samantha Hutchinson

Former Queensland premier Campbell Newman has urged NSW Premier Mike Baird to reverse his ban on greyhound racing, warning that the issue could cost him the premiership.

As senior Liberal sources told The Australian Mr Baird was now seriously looking at reversing the ban, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said he expected an open and frank discussion within the Nationals partyroom on the greyhound issue and “if changes need to be made, they should be made’’.

His comments came as Mr Baird’s former deputy and long-term NSW Nationals leader Andrew Stoner said the ban was a mistake that had cost the Baird government support in key rural areas.

Current Nationals leader Troy Grant is fighting to hold off a leadership challenge from angry MPs while Liberal sources said the backdown was being considered to save the Coalition agreement.

Mr Newman, who swept to power in Queensland on a vast majority but lost his job after three years, said left-wing animal rights groups had held too much sway over the Baird government.

He called for an end to the ban, announced in July, “because the greatest tragedy is if a competent person is not there to provide leadership”.

He called for an end to the ban, announced in July, “because the greatest tragedy is if a competent person is not there to provide leadership”.

“The alternatives are stark for the Baird government,” he said.

“Hold their ground and it will continue to gnaw away at them politically. Stick to their guns and it will hurt them, and hurt them, and hurt them.

“Or the Premier can look at some ways to actually regulate it properly. People will talk about backflips but he has the ability, the persona, to reverse this decision and effectively rebuild his and the government’s brand.

“Mike Baird is a good leader and a great Premier. This is a bad issue for him.”

Mr Stoner, who stood down as deputy premier in October 2014 and retired from politics, said the ban was hurting the government's standing ahead of a November 12 by-election in Orange in the central west where the government is fearing a savage swing.

“It’s a great shame a government with an outstanding track record on economic management and infrastructure delivery has gone so hard on an issue of relatively minor import to the state’s future, and is now in trouble electorally, particularly in Nationals seats, as a result,” he said.

Mr Grant, also the Police and Racing Minister, who was yesterday in Orange, faces an internal rebellion, with moves afoot to dump him at the Nationals partyroom meeting on Monday.

If he is overthrown as leader, the Nationals could support a Labor bill to reverse the ban on greyhound racing.

Others within the Nationals said they had considered lodging a bill to amend the legislation with a five-year extension to racing tied to a series of prescriptive targets for breeding and welfare improvements.

The bill would carry a sunset clause that would see the legislation dissolved in five years if the industry complied with the set targets.

Nationals MP John Barilaro, the Small Business and Regional Skills minister, is considered a leading rival to Mr Grant along with Local Government Minister Paul Toole and backbencher Kevin Humphries, who is considered an outside chance.

Senior Liberal sources said Mr Baird was seriously looking at reversing the ban, indicating it was not worth destroying the Coalition agreement over greyhounds.

As Queensland premier, Mr Newman took unpopular legislative decisions and lost government and his seat.

Unlike Mr Baird, Mr Newman tackled issues that were supported by the base of his party, such as budget cuts, axing 14,000 public servants and banning same-sex state-sanctioned civil ceremonies.
Mr Baird has risked political capital on left-wing issues such as protecting sharks, lockout laws and the greyhound ban.

“I think there are left-wing animal rights groups that have had far too much sway in the decisions of the government,” Mr Newman said.

He said greyhound racing was a “simple pleasure of life” for many Australians. “A lot of people like greyhounds and horse racing and trots, it’s just very Australian and very much steeped in tradition,” he said.

“ (The ban) is striking at really decent, hard-working, middle-class people, Howard-battler type people.”