On 19th July 2025, Independent Peter George was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly in electorate of Franklin.
Thanks to an exuberant campaign that attracted over 600 volunteers, Peter won the seat convincingly on first preference votes - the only candidate in Franklin to do so.
As a Community Independent Peter is accountable only to the people of Franklin, not to lobbyists, political parties or their corporate donors.
Peter is your Independent voice in Parliament. He wants to hear from you!
Mon, Nov 2:
D-Day (decision day) for the reintroduction or banning of the use of the antibiotic, florfenicol, in diseased Atlantic salmon pens in Tasmanian waters is getting closer as the marine heatwave is already pushing up water temperatures two or three degrees above average.
https://www.apvma.gov.au/news-and-publications/public-consultations/florfenicol-for-emergency-use-on-atlantic-salmon-261102
Thanks to everyone who helped fill the Public Gallery in Parliament last week we called on the government to stop the destruction of Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) by stripping it of resources.
Thanks, also, to MPs who backed me - including Labor, Greens and Independents, David O’Byrne, Kristie Johnston and Helen Burnet.
No thanks at all to Arts Minister, Roger Jaensch and former Minister, Madeline Ogilvie whose words of support for TMAG rang as hollow as an empty drum.
Helen and I fronted a media call afterwards.
Sunday, Nov 1:
Great news for the City of Clarence
The city’s new mayor-elect is Drew Jenner - and a more collaborative, dedicated and determined person to take on the role would be hard to find.
Drew’s a genuine independent who will work across party lines and political divides.
He’s committed to preserving and enhancing Clarence’s natural and human assets and I, for one, am looking forward to working with him … again … since Drew stood at last year’s state election as part of my independent group.
Thanks to all the dedicated TMAG supporters and staff who turned up for my Parliamentary debate on the future of an institution that is the guardian of our cultural and natural heritage - and the front door to our island and its history.
The battle is not just to reverse the cuts to budget and staff but to start rebuilding TMAG so that it can fulfil its statutory role and ensure more than a million artefacts are properly identified, recorded, stored for their day-to-day value and for posterity.
Hobart, Tues Oct 27:
One more (tentative) step towards the protection of Macquarie Harbour and our natural heritage.
Tasmania’s high Scientific Advisory Committee has recommended formally declaring the waterway a Critical Habitat for the endangered Maugean skate.
What does it mean?
@environmenttasmania and the Environmental Defender’s Office have requested for some time now that there needs to be proper intervention using State level protection so that the threat to the endangered Maugean skate can be managed - including managing the salmon industry’s impact on the waterway.
The downside?
This now goes into the hands of the bureaucracy and the minister - expect a good deal of pussyfooting around the salmon industry.
The attack on @helenhainesindi has shaken many of us.
Sadly, it was symptomatic of an insidious problem facing women in Australia and around the world.
In my adjournment speech tonight, I asked my parliamentary colleagues to reflect on how our words can have real consequences, and paid tribute to Helen’s leadership.
What a terrible shock to hear that Helen Haines, a good, decent, hard-working Independent MP has been critically injured in what first reports indicate is likely a politically motivated attack outside her Indi electorate office in Victoria.
Helen is a model for all of us who work in public office - Independent or otherwise.
Like most MPs, she’s a target of on-line vitriol and I’m echoing our political leaders in calling on everyone to dial down the vilification that can provoke acts of violence.
Hobart, Thurs Oct 15: Stop Press! Good news for Neil the Seal.
Like so many of his species, the Tasmanian global superstar, is very vulnerable to bird flu which has devastated colonies of his species around the world.
Well, plans are afoot to see whether it might be possible to make Neil the first of his species to be protected from this plague.
