There will be no leadership spill, Premier-in-waiting Jay Weatherill insists
Sarah Martin and Daniel Wills
From: The Advertiser August 04, 2011 11:34AM
- SDA leader Peter Malinauskas denies being the king maker in Labor's power struggles.
Premier-in-waiting Jay Weatherill says he hopes for a smooth transition.
Labor MPs support states next Premier
Labor MPs have met for the first time since party powerbrokers told Premier Mike Rann it was time to go.
SA Premier Mike Rann has agreed to step down as Labor Party leader but only after a 'transition period.'
EDUCATION Minister Jay Weatherill, the Premier-in-waiting, has moved to quell threats of a leadership spill to remove Premier Mike Rann when he returns from India.
Mr Weatherill said this morning there would be no challenge when asked about comments from Legislative Council President Bob Sneath that Left-aligned MPs would call for a spill unless Mr Rann left office within weeks.
Mr Weatherill said there would be no challenge. He said Mr Sneath would be told to pull his head in.
"It is not really a proper approach and I will be making that clear to Mr Sneath," he said.
"Obviously, Mr Sneath is frustrated and he has expressed his frustration.
"People need to be patient and I need to be patient until Mr Rann returns from India."
Mr Sneath said all he had indicated was that he was prepared to sign a document calling for a spill.
Should Mike Rann stand aside immediately for Jay Weatherill?
Yes 61.08% (3097 votes)
No 21.22% (1076 votes)
Don't know 17.69% (897 votes)
Total votes: 5070
Would you vote for Jay Weatherill at the 2014 election?
Yes 40.01% (5350 votes)
No 48.87% (6535 votes)
Unsure 11.12% (1487 votes)
Total votes: 13372
"Now it's been brought on, it should be done quickly," he said.
Mr Sneath denied he was trying to blow up the leadership deal. He had always supported Jay Weatherill for the leadership.
"Once people tell the Premier he should be going then it should happen quickly," he said.
Yesterday, Mr Sneath said a spill would be necessary if Mr Rann decided to stay on, with only half a dozen signatures needed to call a special meeting of Caucus to install Mr Weatherill.
"It might have to be done that way, most of us would be hoping the Premier decides to go before the convention," he said.
"If that is not the case then certainly I would like to see a meeting of Caucus because we need to change the leadership. I would rather it was done by consensus.
"I would hope that somebody that the Labor party has served so well for so long would now do the best thing for the Labor Party and go before the convention. And if not, then the Labor party should be replacing him.
"Now is the time - what are we waiting for? We are waiting to let the Premier, who has been a good Premier, to go without a fight."
Another MP told The Advertiser yesterday that any prolonged transition would detract from the Government's position and advantage the Opposition.
"The Right have delivered the message, so let's do it," they said.
"There's one thing that you learn to do in the Labor Party, and that is count. Rann would be aware of the numbers.
"If he says 'I'm going to stay until December', then it is game on."
Another said Mr Rann would not go unless he felt a spill was likely, choosing to stay in office for the sign-off on BHP Billiton's Olympic Dam expansion, and possibly an announcement concerning an Art Gallery expansion.
"He will hang on until there is one (a spill)," another said.
"I think he will try to hang on, but I don't think he will be allowed to."
On Monday, Mr Weatherill ruled out a challenge, with the Government insisting the Premier will be allowed to go at a time of his choosing.
But Mr Rann is keeping his own counsel over the state's rolling leadership crisis and senior party members remain as much in the dark about his retirement plans as voters.
Another Labor source yesterday told The Advertiser the party was in a "holding pattern" until Mr Rann returned from the Indian trip.
He is expected to front a tense Cabinet meeting on Monday where he will confront Mr Weatherill for the first time since being informed of the pact to replace him as leader.
Labor insiders believe Mr Rann has come to a firm decision about his future and will return to inform the party of his next move, rather than discuss it.
On Sunday, Mr Rann said he had "several key projects that I should complete, including most importantly, the go-ahead for the Olympic Dam expansion" but did not nominate a date of exit.
Other sources have dismissed the likelihood of a spill saying the party was willing to give Mr Rann until late in the year to step down in a bid to deliver the desired "seamless transition".
One Labor MP said Mr Rann could continue to govern "for months" if he wished and the party would simply "make it work".
The Premier's office yesterday released a lengthy outline of his Indian engagements, which includes meetings with chief ministers of four states and business.
He has attended functions with Federal Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations Minister Chris Evans and met some of India's largest industrial companies, including The Hinduja Group, Tata Industries and Essel Mining.
Outgoing Upper House MP Paul Holloway, who retires on August 12, yesterday said the "bell has tolled" for Mr Rann.
"Just as I had to move on myself and make way, there comes a point when you have to go," he said. "That point for Mike Rann will be over the coming months.
"The time comes for every politician and the bell tolls for everyone eventually, but what I think we can do in the Labor Party is to handle these transitions as smoothly as possible."
