CANBERRA - A handful of independent and Green MPs who will decide the make-up of Australia's minority government were set to begin talks on Tuesday to decide whether to support Labor or the conservative opposition's bid for power. Latest counting gives Labor and the opposition conservatives 71 seats each - with 76 seats needed to form the government - but poll experts predict both will end up with 73, leaving three independents and a Green MP holding the balance of power. "Let's draw breath and wait for the numbers to come in ... and then get down to some policy issues," said independent Rob Oakeshott, indicating the political limbo would last until a final result is declared, which may take 10 days. There were no talks yet scheduled with Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard or opposition leader Tony Abbott. Bookmakers say Labor is favorite to govern with a handful of independents. At stake in the election is the fate of Labor's planned 30 per cent resources tax, a $38 billion fiber-optic broadband network and a future carbon price which the power sector says is needed to ensure continued investment. c Standard and Chartered Bank's regional economist Simon Wong said the mining tax was now dead, whoever ended up in power. "The mining tax is likely to be further scaled back or even scrapped, even in the case of a Labor-led minority," he said. "The debate over this issue in the run-up to the election proved to be a key factor that eroded Labor's initial lead, and is likely to be too heavy a political burden for the incoming administration to bear." Abbott said he could run a stable government, in contrast to tensions in the Labor Party, and said he would offer "serious roles" to the independents. He declined to say if he would change any policies, and noted the result could still take some time. "No-one should expect that this will be a speedy process. The counting itself still has a long way to go," Abbott told reporters. Oakeshott has called for parliamentary reform and a unity cabinet in which politicians across the political spectrum put aside rivalries and join on issues that would unite the politically-fractured nation. News cartoons made light of his idea, showing Abbott and Gillard standing arm in arm, surrounded by flying pigs and fairies, and with an Irish leprechaun standing beside Greens lawmakers at the end of a rainbow with a pot of gold.
