Truck Convoy Circles Australia’s Parliament Amid Rally
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard
Mark Graham/Bloomberg
Australia's prime minister Julia Gillard.
Australia's prime minister Julia Gillard. Photographer: Mark Graham/Bloomberg
(Corrects number who attended the rally in first paragraph of story published on Aug. 22.)
Convoys of trucks descended on Australia’s capital city today, circling parliament house amid a rally that attracted 400 people opposing Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s carbon tax and calling for another election.
The Convoy of No Confidence attracted trucks from as far as Rockhampton, 1527 kilometers (949 miles) away. Buses brought protesters from Melbourne in the southern state of Victoria. Organizer Mick Pattel, president of the National Road Freighters Association, said yesterday that 10,000 people enrolled for a protest in front of parliament house throughout the day. Police said about 400 people attended the rally.
“This government does not have a mandate, as it was formed with the support of individual politicians rather than being a government elected by the people,” Pattel said in a phone interview. “The only way we can solve the impasse is to have another election.”
The convoy opposes the government’s plan to charge companies for carbon emissions to cut Australia’s pollution. It is also protesting against the influence of the Australian Greens over the ruling Labor Party. The Greens, which have one member in the lower house of parliament and control the vote in the upper house Senate, helped Gillard form a government.
“Some 175 pieces of legislation have been passed by the government in the House of Representatives,” Transport Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters in parliament. “This government and this parliament are functioning well.”
Labor formed a minority government with the support of non- party lawmakers after the August 2010 election delivered the closest result in 70 years. Labor trails the opposition Liberal- National coalition in opinion polls. The next election is due in late 2013.
To contact the reporter on this story: Gemma Daley in Canberra at gdaley@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Peter Hirschberg at phirschberg@bloomberg.net
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