Chaos theory

You want to talk about chaos? Try living in a town with no doctor.

While Premier Rockliff warns that electing independents will lead to “chaos,” here’s what real chaos looks like:

This week, Ochre Health shut its clinics in Strahan and Bridport.

Not permanently. Just “for now.” Because they couldn’t find any doctors. Not one. No locum to fill the gap. No service. No backup.

Doors locked. Phones redirected. Patients told: sorry and good luck.
Tasmania isn’t at risk of chaos if people vote independent.
Tasmania is already living it.

This is the chaos.

In Strahan, the only clinic on the West Coast shut. In Bridport, the same story. And they’re not alone. From the Huon to the Highlands, rural and regional Tasmanians are losing access to healthcare — not because we don’t care, but because the system has stopped caring about us.

And while this happens, the major parties want to talk about “stability.”

Let me ask: stable for who?

Because if you can’t see a doctor when you need one, nothing else matters.

Not the stadium.
Not a tax cut.
Certainly not the party line.

Independents aren’t the problem. They’re the pressure valve.

When the system is failing — when public health, housing, education, and basic services are going backwards — of course people look for something different.

That’s not chaos. That’s accountability.

Electing independents like Tammy Tyrrell isn’t a protest vote. It’s a call for reality-based politics. It’s about electing someone who shows up to towns like Strahan and Bridport, listens to locals, and then holds the government to account when services vanish.

Independents have been pushing for better healthcare funding, more flexible rural doctor programs, and family-focused solutions like nurse-led clinics and stronger telehealth support.

They don’t need permission from a party room, a donor or a union to care.

This is what’s broke and what can be fixed

The fact that whole communities can lose access to primary healthcare, even temporarily, is a sign of how stretched Tasmania has become.

It’s not the fault of one government. It’s a long-term, bipartisan failure. And it won’t be fixed by electing more people who sit quietly and toe the party line.

It will be fixed when voters say, “enough.” When communities demand more than excuses. When Parliament stops being a battleground and starts being a place where people actually solve problems.

If you want chaos, look to an elderly couple in Strahan wondering who will refill their prescriptions this week.

If you want stability, try electing someone who puts people before party.

Independents aren’t the cause of Tasmania’s dysfunction.
They’re a consequence of it.

And if we get it right, they might just be the cure.