ELECTION 2010: Independents hold 11th hour talks to pick government

It’s all come down to this. The three independent MPs who will decide whether Labor or the Coalition will form government are set to announce their intentions at a press conference scheduled for 3pm this afternoon – but Rob Oakeshott and Tony Windsor says they still have not decided who they will support.

Oakeshott, Windsor and fellow independent Bob Katter received final briefing documents from the two major parties at 9am this morning, and were set to hold final talks ahead of their press conference announcement.

The trio are widely expected to vote together, with Windsor making it clear that he wants to avoid a return to the polls.

“[The main issue is] can we put something in place that will last and work for a period of time?” Windsor told ABC Radio this morning .

“And obviously that will depend on the three of us talking together. What we all want to avoid, and I think the community as well wants to avoid, is a 75-all draw which would mean another election.”

Windsor also said he is leaning one way, but is yet to finally make up his mind – or tell his wife of his decision.

Oakeshott also said his final decision on his “wicked choice” remained up in the air.

“Hopefully there is a recognition this is an unnatural choice that the three of us have got to make.”

“I am doing all I can to quite genuinely have a stable Parliament for the next three years,” he said.

Regardless of which way they jump, Oakeshott, Windsor and Katter have already had a win on one key issue, after forcing Labor and the Coalition to agree to a program for parliamentary reform prior to announcing which party they will back.

The agreement is designed to improve the workings of the lower house. There will be time limits on questions and answers in Question Time, an independent speaker, rules by which controversial bills will be referred to committees and the establishment of a parliamentary budget office to provide official costings of policy proposals.

Getting the agreement before announcing their final decision is a shrewd bit of tactics from the independents, who are now guaranteed that whoever is in opposition will be forced to stick by the new rules.

As to which side is likely to get the nod this afternoon, perhaps we can take a cue from Nationals Senate leader Barnaby Joyce, who admitted this morning he is not confident about the Coalition’s chances.

“You get a sense that the momentum is slipping away from us,” he told ABC Radio.

SmartCompany will bring you all the news out of Canberra as it happens this afternoon.