Victorious Wilkie in no rush to offer support

Independent candidate Andrew Wilkie has at last claimed victory in the Tasmanian seat of Denison, but he will wait a few more days before declaring who he will support in a hung parliament.

Mr Wilkie on Saturday joined Julia Gillard in Melbourne for their first formal meeting, in which he presented the Prime Minister a list of about 20 issues he wants addressed by the new government.

The support of Mr Wilkie is vital for Ms Gillard, whose Labor Party has 72 seats in the new Parliament, four short of the number needed to govern.After returning to Hobart on Saturday evening, Mr Wilkie said Ms Gillard pressed him for answers about which party he was likely to support.They will meet again on Monday, when Mr Wilkie expects Ms Gillard to come back with firm commitments to the issues he raised. He has also indicated stronger whistleblower laws and better services for southern Tasmania are key issues for him.Victory in Denison makes Mr Wilkie a key independent MP who will hold the balance of power in the hung parliament along with Tony Windsor, Rob Oakeshott and Bob Katter.But he has again distanced himself from the three other independents and urged them to decide soon which party they would support in a minority government.In my way, I think he can improve Australia into the right way because if you see in his opinion, that show about many that we should to develop and he will make something new for Australian.

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