“I stand ready willing and able to work with opposition parties regardless of their political hue, regardless of our political differences, if it’s in the best interests of the state,” he said at the time.<\/p>\n
“I’ve communicated that to [One Nation SA leader] Cory [Bernardi] directly.”<\/p>\n
High-minded civics, sure.<\/p>\n
A sign that Labor will make One Nation’s life easy in parliament? Absolutely not.<\/p>\n
Just ask new One Nation MP Jason Virgo.<\/p>\n
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One Nation’s Jason Virgo won the seat of MacKillop in a contest with the Liberal Party. (Facebook: Jason Virgo for MacKillop)<\/p>\n
The South East MP has just been put into a political bind by the government’s push to end the moratorium on fracking in his local electorate.<\/a><\/p>\n The 10-year ban was legislated by the former Marshall Liberal government in 2018<\/a> in response to community fears the gas extraction method would threaten groundwater and local agriculture.<\/p>\n Those community concerns have not dissipated, but neither has One Nation’s zest for resource extraction.\u00a0<\/p>\n Last month national One Nation party leader Pauline Hanson was spruiking “drill, baby, drill” on social media.<\/p>\n It leaves One Nation having to balance its traditional views with those of Mr Virgo’s constituents.<\/p>\n Peter Malinauskas (right) greets One Nation’s new MPs on the first day of parliament. (ABC News: Che Chorley)<\/p>\n Labor, which argues ending the moratorium can be done safely and is necessary to shore up gas supplies in the 2030s, will accuse One Nation and the Liberals of being energy hypocrites if they keep the moratorium in place.<\/p>\n “The Liberal Party and One Nation talk a big game when it comes to energy sovereignty and security \u2014 well, now they have an opportunity to prove it,” Mr Malinauskas said.<\/p>\n “Instead, I fear they may hide behind the veil of confrontation.”<\/p>\n But the level of community angst will be hard for Mr Virgo to ignore.<\/p>\n Naracoorte-Lucindale Mayor Patrick Ross said his “jaw dropped” when he heard the government’s plan, and he is already making his views known to the fledgling One Nation MP.<\/p>\n “I’ve made it very clear, and I know that other mayors in the seat of MacKillop have made it very clear, that first and foremost you must represent your constituents,” Mr Ross said.<\/p>\n Naracoorte Lucindale Mayor Patrick Ross says “fracking is a no go”.\u00a0 (ABC News)<\/p>\n “It doesn’t matter where the party may sit [or] One Nation may sit on resources extraction, you must support the people who put you into the parliament, and that is the constituents.<\/p>\n “And they will be very loud and clear to Jason Virgo that fracking is a no-go for MacKillop.”<\/p>\n An attempt at the middle path<\/p>\n Mr Virgo has already tried to find middle ground through the issue, calling for local consultation.<\/p>\n In a rare interview with 891 ABC Adelaide today, he said the moratorium was ending in 2028 so “there’s no need to push it through today or next week”.<\/p>\n One Nation’s Jason Virgo<\/a><\/p>\n Sixteen years before Jason Virgo won the SA seat of MacKillop for One Nation in the state’s south-east, he twice ran for parliament as an Australian Sex Party candidate.<\/p>\n “Our community down here really wanted the country cabinet to come down and listen to the concerns that are facing our region, and instead what we’ve had is a bit of a slap in the face,” he said.<\/p>\n Mr Virgo, who rejected that he was trying to walk on both sides of the street, said the eastern states should play a bigger role in gas extraction.<\/p>\n “Gas security is important and there is plenty of the state to drill for gas, we absolutely want gas,” he said.<\/p>\n “But what I would suggest is that the Labor premier needs to get onto his Labor mates in the eastern states and get them to start drilling their fair share.”<\/p>\n Liberal MLC Ben Hood, from Mount Gambier, made a similar call for consultation, while federal Liberal MP Tony Pasin told the premier to “frack off”.\u00a0<\/p>\n A second environmental battle<\/p>\n There are risks for Labor, too.<\/p>\n Ministers could face some fiery criticism as they try to explain their decision at a country cabinet forum in the South East tonight.<\/p>\n![\"Peter](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1c3b28884f288eef3d0fd468ea54391c.jpeg\")
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