The Labor Party in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) is holding its Annual Conference today just months before elections for the Legislative Assembly, reports the Austrlian Broadcasting Corporation. 

Criticism of various government policies, initiatives and forced changes suggests that the election will be a very close affair.  Amongst such contentious issues include key policy areas of health and education such as the cuts to teaching positions and changes to conditions that are arguably crippling the Territory’s teaching force and inflicting significant damage to morale within the profession. 

The ruling Labor Party had largely responded well to their mandate to govern; however, a growing reluctance to adequately and openly consult with the public on some matters has shown cracks.

The Smithsonian Institute in Washington, USA, has been praised by Australia’s Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin after it agreed to return the remains of 33 Indigenous Australians that were removed in the 1940’s. 

“These are remains from 33 Indigenous Australians that were taken to the United States and the traditional owners who are going to collect them believe the remains may include their grandmother, so it is a very significant collection,” she said.  (Source: ABC Online http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/07/26/2315450.htm )

Mr Mithen

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has reported that, in accordance with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s election promise, Australian combat troops are to be withdrawn from Iraq by “mid-2008″.  Around 1000 personnel will remain on non-combat duties.

Here is a link to the ABC’s article online: (Copy and paste link into your browser)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/01/2261770.htm

This links to a story from earlier this year regarding the pull-out:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/01/29/2148370.htm

Mr. Mithen

(Photo courtesy of ABC Website http://www.abc.net.au)

The previously ’safe’ New Labour seat of Crewe and Nantwich is now in the hands of the Conservatives in another sign from the electorate that Prime Minister Gordon Brown is in some deep, deep trouble.  He is, in effect, up that political creek without a mandate. 

The new MP is Edward Timpson who secured a swing of 17.6% to wrest the seat from Labour by a formidable margin of 7,860 votes (Source: bbc.co.uk/news). 

Tory candidate Edward Timpson won 7,860 more votes than his Labour rival – a 17.6% swing from the 2005 General Election. 

This clearly does not bode well for the Brown government; indeed Conservative Leader David Cameron hailed the result as the end of New Labour.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that a General Election will be an uphill battle for a government that will be close to 13 years in office. 

One need only compare this to the staleness apparent at the end of the Howard government in Australia after four terms in office totalling 11 years.  The parallels are evident in many ways.  Prior to Howard’s 2007 election defeat Australians had become reinvigorated by an Opposition Party that only a few short years ago was ‘un-electable’.  John Howard blew what was (at one point described as) a ‘teflon’ Premiership with negative campaining, targeted financial hand-outs designed to soften up ‘middle-Australia (who gladly took the money with one hand, while at the same time crying foul about fiscal mismanagement) and back bench pressure for a series of ill-advised legislative moves such as Work Choices. 

Sound at all familiar?  Brown has blown the initial good-will he had obtained after taking over from Tony Blair with the failure to call a General Election soon after his ascension to the top job, a series of poor policy decisions and ‘backflips’ (10p Tax Threshold) and subsequent rumblings from his back bench. 

First the London Mayoral and Local Elections on 1 May and now a ‘crushing’ by-election defeat.  Keep an eye on how Brown manouvers in an attempt to regain support for his ailing government.  It is certainly not game over for Brown, provided he can plug the policy gaps and re-assert his authority with the back bench and seize the public agenda for all the right reasons. 

Thanks to the ABC for the picture (www.abc.net.au)

Mr Mithen

Below is an interesting link to the Economist magazine website.  The article comments on Australia’s current economic and political state-of-play. 

http://www.economist.com/countries/Australia/profile.cfm?folder=Profile-Forecast

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) website has a wonderful section called ‘Unleashed’.  It contains (among other things) satirical videos related to politics and current affairs, not just in Australia, but also around the world.  In particular, Hugh Atkin’s posts deserve a special mention including his parody of ‘change’ as a major theme in the US Democratic Nominations and also his Castro video. 

For the thinking political junkie I suggest a look at some of Clarke & Dawe’s videos.  

It should be stressed that many of the videos are parodies! 

Here’s the link: http://www.abc.net.au/unleashed/

After eleven-and-a-half years in government the recently deposed Liberal/National Party (LIB/NAT) Coalition is experiencing post-election blues of the worst kind.  Not only were the conservatives subjected to a crushing defeat in late 2007 by a resurgent Australian Labor Party (ALP) which included Prime Minister John Howard losing his seat to Maxine McKew (only the second sitting Prime Minister in Australia to lose his seat, and the first in over 70 years), but the woes of the now Opposition have been exacerbated by a poll that shows a slump to 37% preferred party status.

In addition to this, the new Opposition Leader Brendan Nelson’s (former Education Minister and later Defence Minister) popularity has dropped further into single-digit figures from 9% down to 7%.  Contrast this to Labor Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s boost of 3% to 73% and you have a serious identity problem for the Coalition.  Excuse the cliche, but the leaders are literally ‘polls-apart’.

Of course,  after every big election win in Australia comes a period of grace for the newly elected government and an equally long (sometimes longer) period of soul-searching and wound-licking for the opposition.

The Rudd Labor government has already made good on some of its key election promises such as ratifying the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, holding regional Cabinet meetings and of course a long-overdue apology to Indigenous Australians over the ‘Stolen Generation’ issue.  (Note: The issue of the apology requires – and deserves, further detailed commentary.)  Rudd has promised to publish frequent ‘report cards’ on government performance as he launched his report on the first 100 days of the new government.  It will be very interesting to see how often these reports are released well into Rudd’s term.  Certainly worth keeping an eye on.  Will it be the same once the ‘honeymoon period’ is over?

There is genuine good-will and optimism in Australia between the government and the people who elected it which is a welcome and refreshing step for the Australian political landscape.  Let’s hope that it is not eroded through mismanagement and complacency – two ‘illnesses’ that popular governments can slowly contract with few outward sysmptoms.  Just look at the collapse of the once (seemingly) invincible Howard government.

Editor.

(Statistics courtesy of: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/04/2178807.htm)

(Photograph of Kevin Rudd: Courtesy of www.geelongadvertiser.com.au)