• Senators Scott Ludlam and Christine Milne in Perth at the Greens WA campaign launch. Photo by Matthew Dwyer

Scott Ludlam is Australia’s insurance policy against a rampant Abbott government, says Greens leader Christine Milne.

Launching her party’s WA campaign Tuesday, Senator Milne’s language and tone all-but-conceded the Coalition would be in government after September 7.

She says the challenge now is to stop the Coalition gaining control of both houses of federal parliament—and that meant electing Greens to retain the balance of power.

With the Liberals polling strongly in WA, Fremantle-based Senator Ludlam faces a nail-biting time over the next two weeks to remain as WA’s sixth-elected senator in this half-Senate election. His chances depend on the Greens lifting their performance from their March 9 state election drubbing and on a good flow of preferences from Labor, minor parties and independents.

“Scott Ludlam returning to Canberra is what this election must deliver,” Senator Milne told a small crowd at Form Gallery in Perth’s Murray Street.

“There is no-one in federal parliament who cares more about the people and the environment.”

He was lauded for his advocacy for digital rights, renewable energy, indigenous rights and protecting the Kimberley.

by SOPHIE MITCHELL