52 comments

1. Trish CorryOctober 31, 2019 at 6:45 am

   You are a rare person who has received his speech with keen interest, John. All over social media people are melting down attacking Albo over this speech. Why? Because he mentioned coal jobs.

   I have written about and argued about the privileged position of climate activists. I have taken them on head on, on social media for over four years now, day in day out. Advocating to protect jobs in regions has shown me a level of nastiness and hatred, I could never have imagined existed on the left of politics. From Greens, Labor voters, Labor members and union members I have engaged with online.

   For about three years, it has been Stop Adani and shutting down coal. Then last year the words “just transition” have been thrown around by climate activists like an empty, intangible, catch phrase panacea. I say that, because as an individual, I have engaged with thousands of people online, pushing them to say what it meant. The typical solutions in a nutshell were shut down coal and retrain people in renewables.

   No one advocating this had any idea of the complexity of industry in the regions and how coal mining affects everything. I mean everything. We don’t go through economic depressions in a down turn for nothing.

   What sparked my interest over the last few days, was here is Albo operationalising the empty intangible, catch phrase panacea “just transition” using a worker centric perspective, I have been arguing about for years now, and the same people I butt heads with are deriding Albo because he mentioned coal. Why? Because they have never taken the time to understand the regions they have targeted to be the martyrs and give up everything as they advocate this privileged position. Mostly, because after throwing about a concept of just transition, they don’t know what a worker centric transition looks like in practice as it smacks them in the ears. As someone who is largely hated by this cohort in certain spaces on the internet, Albo’s speech was music to my ears and my worker centric Labor heart.

   Thank you John.

2. John LordOctober 31, 2019 at 7:11 am

   Thanks Trish. When I read his speech I was amazed at the thinking. Here was a way forward that I had never heard before. It heard all the voices in the argument and satisfied them all. Albanese gave us a lot to think about. I can see why you are pleased also.

3. wamOctober 31, 2019 at 8:44 am

   A great read this morning plenty of hope and soap.
   Australia is saddled with left and right extremists that focus a negative aspect to the labor party brand. This sells and is exploited by the media.
   gogogo albo

4. Terence MillsOctober 31, 2019 at 9:00 am

   Albanese has pointed to inconvenient truths that the coalition don’t want to hear :

   We are a major global producer of iron-ore yet we manufacture very little in the way of rolled-steel or steel products such as cars and wind-farm towers : we just send the ore overseas to allow others to do the refining that we should be doing..

   We have significant reserves of Lithium, very much in demand for batteries into the future yet we export the ore untreated.

   We have significant reserves of copper yet we merely export the ore and allow other people to smelt it and add value and jobs offshore.

   We have entered an exciting era of renewable energy which, in a few years will see the bulk of our electricity coming from wind, solar and battery storage : we are on the cusp of seeing the internal combustion engine phased out and and replaced with electric vehicles taking with it atmospheric pollution in our cities and reducing our dependence on diminishing reserves of fossil fuels.

   And yes, we have considerable reserves of coal which will continue to play a role in our industrial processing and development but a diminishing role as we transition to cleaner more sustainable sources of energy.

   Albanese has to be bold in his future vision for Australia because you won’t get anything from the coalition whose priorities are religious protections, Union bashing and creating offshore gulags with inadequate medical care or future prospects for the inmates.

   We can do so much better !

5. New England CockyOctober 31, 2019 at 9:19 am

   @Trish Corry: I am a little amazed at your support for the coal lobby, both local and foreign owned multi-nationals, and wonder just how far any Oz government should take their support for this industry exporting the economic opportunities of future generations, my grandchildren.

   1). Do you support a free market in water trading across river valleys or limiting water trading to the source valley?

   Either way, 4/168 licence holders in the MDB hold 75% of the water allocations and the regular water market auctions are dominated by property-free “investment” speculators and mining corporations paying enormously huge prices for water to use washing coal, suppressing coal dust and extracting CSG. Note the absence of farm production in these results.

   2). Do you support governments using taxpayer funds to finance, often to 100%, the construction of private and public infrastructure dams, to supply water principally to mining activities?

   So the renewed interest by Barnyard Joyce and his cronies in the various “old” scheme of turning rivers west from the eastern seaboard to eventually flow into the MDB where the same 4/168 licence holders will benefit while the fishing industries, especially prawning, on the Far North Coast of NSW will suffer considerable damage is considered “sound economic development”?

   Or perhaps the coal corporations would like to follow the example of Costas Guyra Tomato Farm and be ‘gifted’ Malpas Dam, the Armidale drinking water supply, for growing tomatoes for export and the profit of overseas shareholders, so that Armidale residents could be permanently on Level 5 water restrictions.

   3). Does your apparent scorn of the job opportunities in the renewables industries allow for the about 50,000 jobs created in California by the various alternative energy systems? Meanwhile, in the NW mining regions of WA, giant radio controlled (RC) trucks are being trialled without drivers and controlled from Perth about 1500 km south, so those jobs will vanish when the RC systems are soon perfected.

   Presently, the US military presently control drones across the world from Virginia USA to Iraq and Afghanistan, to carry out assassinations too often of civilians.

   4). The economic fragility of regional urban economies is created by lack of government jobs as much as any other factor. Each government job supports about 3.5 private sector jobs. In our present world, there is no need for centralised government thanks to FTTP Internet connections. So, government departments may be geographically distributed according to their speciality,which would simultaneously decentralise government and create coal economic growth in urban regional centres.

   Maybe you missed the point; if you had breakfast thank a farmer.

6. johnoOctober 31, 2019 at 9:31 am

   Skimming through the speech I saw the word job many times but no mention of water. Does it grow on trees, maybe. Would Albo stop this continued deforestation across Australia.

7. Matters NotOctober 31, 2019 at 9:32 am

   Re:

   We can do so much better

   Indeed we can – so much, much better – but it will require a vastly different mind-set. A complete ideological about-face.

   The Nordic Nations should become our guiding ‘light’. Instead of handing control of resources to multi-nationals we should retain ownership and do the development work ourselves just as Nordic/Scandinavian nations do with regard to oil and gas.

   Look at the mistake we’ve made with our gas deposits (broadly defined) by allowing multinationals to develop the sites, send it overseas and make enormous profits and then being forced to buy back that same gas at world record prices. You’d think we would learn. That we would not make the same mistake with rare earths. Sadly no.

   Where is the vision?

8. Kaye LeeOctober 31, 2019 at 9:41 am

   It was a good speech and I think Albanese is a good man but the problem is that Labor has had infinitely better policies at the last three elections and it hasn’t cut through.

   Tony Abbott was hailed as a great Opposition leader, not because of any policies he had, but because of his relentless attacks. He didn’t have to be factual or present better ideas. He played the man or woman, ably assisted by the media. They play the fear and division game and, sadly, it works. Morrison is hailed as a Messiah purely because he won the election, not because he has any vision for the country.

   I don’t understand why Albanese would be attacked about coal. The only time he mentioned it was to say we need metallurgical coal to build wind turbines. Not even the Greens have suggested we stop mining metallurgical coal. But opening new thermal coal mines is madness. It would lead to job losses in existing mines and be counterproductive to the efforts we are making, and MUST make, to reduce emissions. New mining doesn’t provide jobs anyway as they ramp up automation. A construction job for twelve months does not offer a future.

9. totaramOctober 31, 2019 at 10:15 am

   “My thought for the day

   In the information age, those who control the dissemination of news have more power than government.”

   You omitted to mention how this applies in Australia today, although you did mention that the MSM ignored Albo’s speech altogether. So even though it was wonderful and showed good thinking, most people have no idea about it.
   What does Albo propose to do about that? I am all ears.

10. Trish CorryOctober 31, 2019 at 10:54 am

    New England Cccky:

    @Trish Corry: I am a little amazed at your support for the coal lobby,

    Well NEC I’m amazed to find out I support the coal lobby too. News to me.

    I support regional jobs. That’s very, very different to supporting the coal lobby.

    That’s the difference between Albo’s speech and empty rhetoric from the Greens.

11. Kaye LeeOctober 31, 2019 at 11:10 am

    “empty rhetoric from the Greens”?

    They actually have very specific policies about job creation and about managing the transition away from coal

    .https://greens.org.au/sites/default/files/2019-05/Greens%202019%20Policy%20Platform%20-Creating%20the%20jobs%20of%20the%20future.pdf

    https://greens.org.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/Greens%202019%20Policy%20Platform%20-%20Renew%20Australia.pdf

12. Miriam EnglishOctober 31, 2019 at 11:33 am

    Trish, perhaps you’ve been attacked on facebook or twitter or somewhere else I don’t go, but I do wonder… you’ve often insisted that people here attack you, but I’ve never seen any evidence of that. I’ve seen many people disagree with you, but not attack you. On the other hand I’ve seen you vigorously attack anybody who agrees with Greens’ policies. (Perhaps you mistakenly consider this an attack upon you. It is not.)

    Most people concede that coal for metal refining is necessary as things stand today (one day I expect we will use solar furnaces for that, but that day is not here yet). However it makes zero sense to mine coal for power stations, or for cooking, or for home heating when it is cheaper and cleaner to use renewable sources.

    Why should small communities of miners be privileged above farming, tourism, and the health of the world’s population? Especially when those mining jobs are temporary, given the massive rate of mine automation.

13. OPPOSE THE MAJOR PARTIESOctober 31, 2019 at 12:04 pm

    You over estimate the task at hand. ScuMo’s last election victory was not the miracle or as glorious as it has been hyped to be. The LNP have a 1 seat majority in the House of Reps. If Gladiou Lui’s election is declared to be invalid then a by election will result and given her tiny majority and her well publicised dodgy connections with China she will likely loose her seat. There goes ScuMo’s majority and we have a hung parliament. If Frydenberger is found to have breached s 44 The Constitution then ScuMo falls into minority gov at least until frydupberger is reelected at a by election. Problem for the ALP is by backing coal etc it might gain back some votes in a couple of regional nth queensland seats but it will lose the votes it has gained in inner city seats. They will win on the merrygoround but lose those wins on the swings. They do not have the policy basis or a leader that enables them to maintain or attract all the votes they need in the seats they need them. By appealing to regional queensland coal electorates, they lose inner city votes. That’s their primary dilema. Hydrogen is not the glorious future we are led to believe as it is extracted from water. In a droubt ravaged country where is all this water to come from? OPPPOSE THE MAJOR PARTIES. VOTE HARD LEFT FOR REAL CHANGE AND A FAIR GO.

14. Robin AlexanderOctober 31, 2019 at 1:45 pm

    I take from Albo’s speech about coal? He only wants to maintain the mines that produce “quality coal” used for manufacturing making steel etc! things as he said why import structures for wind farms when we have resources in our country we can make them right here! we have the perfect coal for steel making?I am older woman! But Albo has vision of manufacturing here in our country?will take time & money but why not! develop instead sending all overseas? Close mines producing unsuitable heat producing gradually? Start a new change! better outlook for Australia? US is doing it why not us! LNP will never? they love gravy train? big donations from all overseas investors! to lazy to change direction and gears?

15. Anon E MouseOctober 31, 2019 at 1:45 pm

    Albo is a smart bloke. People are underestimating him.

16. Trish CorryOctober 31, 2019 at 1:46 pm

    So the Hard Left is anti jobs and against protecting workers. What exactly does the hard left stand for? Poverty and bandwagons?

17. Trish CorryOctober 31, 2019 at 1:47 pm

    Spot on Robin!

18. PeterOctober 31, 2019 at 1:57 pm

    The speech was rubbish.

19. Trish CorryOctober 31, 2019 at 2:01 pm

    Whatever Miriam. You have no idea what you are talking about. While you think making assumptions about people and talking nasty about them as if they aren’t in the forum, and bouncing off others is fun. It’s not. Stop pretending disagreements on here do not get personal.

    You don’t need to be overtly swearing and aggressive to have the intent to demoralise a person and there is plenty of that, that has occurred towards me on this very issue of climate action. On blogs, Facebook and Twitter.

    All I have ever promoted is targeted investment in regions as we transition towards post coal and plenty of those arguments against that towards me, pin me as some coal loving right wing loser to put it briefly, when so many others sound like Margaret Thatcher screaming to shut down coal. Not giving a damn about anything that doesn’t affect them.

    Now Albo is operationalising similar time what I have been pushing, I’m just going to sit back and watch the light bulbs come on when they see what he means. Or maybe people so brainwashed about coal who never have taken the time to care about the negative impacts of their advocacy won’t ever get it. It’s those people who will be on the wrong side of history.

    Ps. AIMN forum isn’t my whole entire life. I’m hardly on here. It’s a huge world out there on social media for any that might want to be brave enough to take their arguments outside this forum as well and not judge everything by what you see in the comments section of this blog.

20. george theodoridisOctober 31, 2019 at 2:03 pm

    Speech maketh the orator. Deed maketh the leader.

21. george theodoridisOctober 31, 2019 at 2:15 pm

    I saw the words “hard left” but I see none of it in this country. Can anyone please illuminate – without using coal?

22. Michael TaylorOctober 31, 2019 at 3:31 pm

    My positions – which have been stated here (or elsewhere – are clear.

    I am a Labor voter. I will support Albanese (though I preferred Bill Shorten) and I have the right to be critical of him.

    I oppose coal.

    One of the fasted growing industries in the world is renewable energy, and it is where jobs of the future are. My step-daughter was entering the last semester of her PhD in molecular biology. She had been on study trips to China to see what they are doing over there to combat climate change. BUT THEN … in 2013 the LNP formed government and one of the first things they did was to cancel all funding to the university and the pin had to be pulled. How many future scientists were lost because of that? Those kids could have all had jobs in renewable energy, and their work could have created new jobs.

    One has to consider what is called “opportunity cost”. Applied to the coal industry here, the opportunity cost would be something like “how many jobs in renewable energy would it cost if we gave a hundred jobs in coal mining?” Sometimes the cost isn’t worth it.

    How much do I hate coal or the burning of fossil fuels? My next car will be electric. Our home has 23 solar panels and two solar batteries. We also, as an aside, grow much of our own fruit and vegetables.

    One only has to spend a bit of time in Europe and the UK to see how much they have embraced renewable energy, and how much better off the communities are because of it.

    Well they are my views. I am entitled to them. I won’t be roped into an argument because of them. I’m not being ignorant … it’s just that in three years nobody has come up with a better idea for me to grab hold of.

    Just so my position is clear, I will restate them: I vote Labor but would prefer Bill Shorten as leader; and I hate coal – not just because it is bad for the environment, but because it is robbing us of the opportunity to embrace cleaner, healthier, growing industries.

23. New England CockyOctober 31, 2019 at 3:45 pm

    @Trish Corry: An interesting strategy; ignoring the questions, failing to provide answers, then plain obfuscations and deliberate exaggerations to absurdity. Very much the strategy of an LNP troll in my experience.

24. totaramOctober 31, 2019 at 3:47 pm

    “Hydrogen is not the glorious future we are led to believe as it is extracted from water. In a droubt ravaged country where is all this water to come from? ”

    You seem to be unaware that “our land is girt by sea”. No one has proved that you can’t extract hydrogen from sea-water, even as we are able to extract drinking water from the sea. How anyone can be so one-eyed, I have no idea.

25. Kaye LeeOctober 31, 2019 at 4:43 pm

    No-one is anti-jobs. Instead of seeing the argument as jobs OR the environment, we should be looking at jobs FOR the environment.

    We need infrastructure construction. There is a shortage of health workers. We need people to deliver NDIS services, aged care and childcare. We need mine rehabilitation and habitat protection. Tourism, renewable energy, research into sustainable agriculture. We are on the verge of an electric vehicle revolution which will require supporting infrastructure and new mechanical skills. We need to support the arts more. Stop sacking public servants and open service centres in regional areas. More rehab facilities. Natural disaster mitigation and response. Efficient buildings. Public housing.

    Instead of arguing, we need suggestions. Coal is just a distraction. We need to assist coal-mining communities through the transition with reskilling, relocation, pathway to retirement or whatever is most appropriate for individuals. We could make reskilling courses free. We could offer incentives for new industries/businesses to open in regional areas. We could increase Newstart providing stimulus to small businesses in areas where unemployment is highest.

    totaram,

    Scientists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory developed a way to extract carbon dioxide and hydrogen gas from seawater to make fuel “by a gas-to-liquids process with the help of catalytic converters,”

    https://www.ibtimes.com/goodbye-oil-us-navy-cracks-new-renewable-energy-technology-turn-seawater-fuel-1568455

26. corvusboreusOctober 31, 2019 at 4:47 pm

    (I’m not a climate change denier, but…)
    The Great Barrier Reef is doing fine, in fact, largely due to the harmonious inputs of the coal mining, sugar farming and cattle grazing industries, the reef is probably in better shape than it has ever been before.
    A bloke who runs tourist cruises was telling me that the biggest real problem the coral is facing is that extremist greenies (particularly marine scientists) keep hurting it’s feelings by talking down it’s health, which they only do because they hate Queensland so much.

27. Kaye LeeOctober 31, 2019 at 6:09 pm

    Trish, I find it a bit rich you complaining about being persecuted on social media. Do you recall this conversation a couple of weeks ago on the AIMN facebook page in response to an article I wrote titled “Labor are losing their nerve”? If you want to convince people to agree with you, this is not the way to do it.

    Trish: Kaye is a Labor hating shill who only writes to appeal to the “Liberal and Labor are both the same and never question anything, as long as it’s bashing Labor, fan base” Anything I write positive about Labor she absolutely hammers to try to discredit. People like her want anyone in but Labor.

    Kaye: Trish, I do not hate Labor. I vote for them. You let your personal hatred of me colour your opinion which is a shame. I want Labor to improve and your assertion that I would prefer an LNP government just shows what ridiculous depths you will go to to express your hatred. The fight isn’t with me Trish. Nor is it with the Greens. Labor, and you, would do well to recognise the real enemy.

    Trish: I really am not interested in one of your condescending lectures on Facebook, as is usual from you on the blog site. You are one of the biggest perpetrators of how Labor is just as bad as the Liberals. You do your best to convince people how out of touch Labor is, support baseless arguments. Skew your writing to populist opinion rather than fact, yet you act surprised when they don’t win. so no. It’s got stuff all to do with my dislike of you as a person. That’s a seperate issue.

    Kaye: I agree with others that Labor’s policies have been vastly superior at the three elections they have lost. The answer is not to abandon your platform – it is to perhaps concentrate it better, sell it better, and refute the misinformation spread by the ad man. As for you not being interested in my “condescending lecture”, when someone suggests that I am a Labor hating shill who would prefer an LNP government, I feel I must object because that is total bullshit.

28. Joseph CarliOctober 31, 2019 at 6:10 pm

    What Trish said…..

29. RoswellOctober 31, 2019 at 6:33 pm

    What Kaye said …..

30. Peter DixonOctober 31, 2019 at 6:59 pm

    Albo was my local member for many years. I testify to his integrity and honesty. John Lord you have said it well in this : “What it had over and above more recent economic and social thinking was that it was devoid of spin and bullshit, bringing together the problems of the environment, economics, power, jobs, coal and business, both large and small and looked not just at the negatives but all the positives. What’s in it for us, he asked? Everything became an opportunity rather than a problem.

    He encapsulated all that had been argued for the past decades and laid a succinct plan to transform our economy and our thinking so that ahead we might see our future with eyes of opportunity.

    In other words, he spoke without bias; a speech born of sound thinking and a rational appreciation of all the problems and how the solutions can benefit us all for the better. …”

    Indeed, let us hope he can “campaign for a robust, decent political system that is honest, decent, and transparent. Where respect is the order of the day. A political system where ideas and foresight surpass ideological politics.”

31. Joseph CarliOctober 31, 2019 at 7:03 pm

    NOT what Roswell said!

32. Kaye LeeOctober 31, 2019 at 7:53 pm

    Squabbling is silly. We need to talk about ideas.

    Whilst I am cynical about new bureaucracies, I think Albanese’s plan has merit.

    “Jobs and Skills Australia will be a genuine partnership across all sectors – business leaders, both large and small; State and Territory governments; unions; education providers; and those who understand particular regions.

    And for the first time, I want this to be a data-driven exercise, working in real time with labour markets technology – such as Seek and LinkedIn – to drive real outcomes.

    Its functions will encompass:

    workforce and skills analysis;
    preparing capacity studies, including for emerging and growing industries;
    undertaking specific plans for targeted groups such as the regions, over-55 workers, and youth;
    and reviewing the adequacy of the training and vocational system.”

    If done properly, that could be really useful.

33. Miriam EnglishOctober 31, 2019 at 10:16 pm

    Trish, you get so angry… and over what? Nobody calls you a right-wing coal-loving loser. Why would you even say that?

    And where do you get the idea that the “Hard Left is anti jobs and against protecting workers”? Nobody here is anti-jobs and against protecting workers. You know that.

    Do you think that making over-the-top extreme statements will somehow support your point? But don’t mind me… I have no idea what I’m talking about.

34. corvusboreusNovember 1, 2019 at 5:57 am

    ( I’m not a climate change denier but…)
    I’ve spent the last 4 years going head to head against climate activists, arguing that their science based environmental concerns are merely a reflection of their privilege.

35. Trish CorryNovember 1, 2019 at 5:59 am

    What do you think happens when a regional woman, raises the issue of protecting jobs in coal areas on a social site full of Greens and angry climate activists and does this day in day out and challenges their empty rhetoric and disregard for regional jobs? Do you think we sit down and have a nice cup of tea and a chat? Do you think climate activists and stop adani crowd are all lovely people? No. So many of them are vile, ugly, nasty, hurtful and harmful, vindictive people. They do real targeted stalking and abuse. They make real nasty fake facebook pages to mock you. They inbox people and tell others you are a ‘fake account’ and to unfollow you. They report your account to try to get you suspended. They make tweets about you. They tell others to hate you. They spread rumours about you, they make snide remarks about you, plus being so terrified that one online harasser lived in my area and was attending the same political events that I stopped participating. You have no idea. The enviro left on Twitter in particular ON THIS ISSUE, are deranged.

    What do you think that does to a person when they are faced with that every single day online from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to bed, for years, not just from one person, but from many, many people. Every single time you click on a blue bird, there is something horrible being said about you in your mentions. Every single day for four years. Do you think it is fun? And you have the audacity to imply I’m being over the top? How dare you say “Its a bit rich” Do you think I deserve to be treated with such disgust and hate, simply for standing up against climate activists who want to shut down coal with nothing in its place (and YES they DO. Plenty say it is too late now for a transition).

    Do you think I wouldn’t keep going and put up with it, unless I am deeply, deeply concerned about keeping regions like mine viable? Under Albo’s plan – he is saying everything I have been fighting for. A worker Centric approach to climate change. To build up regions BEFORE the market decides it is done with thermal coal, so people are not pushed into poverty. He has made every upsetting and painful day fighting on this issue to keep regions viable and workers in work to keep them out of poverty, worth it.

    I haven’t read the comments on the other article yet, but I bet you are all saying how lovely you all are and include people you don’t agree with. HA!

    How dare you Miriam. How dare you Kaye. How dare you tell me what my experience has been. Joe can vouch for the shit storm that is climate activism on Twitter, but you always deride him too. So what is the point. The world doesn’t revolve around the commentary on AIMN or the cosy clique here and what YOU personally see. If you think climate activism is not THE UGLIEST topic argued about on social media in modern history, you all must be deaf and blind or don’t get out much.

    And Kaye. As I said to you on that Facebook post, I do not like you as a person, not even a little bit. So no point trying to shame me, but putting up something I said about you, that I will repeat any time. A bit rich playing the victim, when I point to your ongoing condescending lectures in that comment (which after years of, is why I don’t like you).

    Anthony will be a true working class Prime Minister if this is what he is kicking off with!

36. corvusboreusNovember 1, 2019 at 6:10 am

    (I’m not a climate change denier but…)
    I hate how you can’t complain about the increased incidence of destructive extreme weather events (eg floods) in Northern Queensland without some rabid greenie going on about climate change and sea level rise.

37. Joseph CarliNovember 1, 2019 at 8:44 am

    The nation needs “sledge-hammer” policies that bring back the foundations that support a nation and its peoples…NOT frivolous amusement policies and chaotic standards that erode the confidence of the nation…China’s ;”One Belt – One Road” is what I would call Sledge-hammer policy…a REAL futurist agenda that will secure its and the region’s future economic base..Australia should get rid of its “Reds under the beds” paranoia and join China in this initiative…THIS is where the real “HOME” of family / society structures reside…the rest..as Paul Keating would have it…is “camping out”!

38. Matters NotNovember 1, 2019 at 9:12 am

    This time around the ALP will have a set of policies designed to win government and at any cost. Good public policy is for yesterday. Today it’s about winning. A whatever-it-takes mentality, That’s the realpolitik.

    As for joining China in One Belt – One Road (OBOR) initiative, why would China entertain our participation? Not a chance. What could we contribute – apart from spectating? Besides on my trip to Sri Lanka (specifically Colombo), Chinese construction of roads, high-rise, ports etc proceeded 24 hours a day without any WH&S to be seen. No room there for Australian workers (including carpenters.) No strikes allowed either.

39. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 9:37 am

    MN,

    That is my concern too which is why I wrote the article Labor is losing its nerve. Up and coming Labor MP Clare O’Neil is paving the way saying being progressive is now viewed as elitist and political correctness has gone overboard. Shorten ally Kimberly Kitching goes ‘down pit’ to fondle some resources to prove she’s no climate change activist. Rather than explaining their good policies like removing excess franking credit refunds, they abandon them and say how can we be more like the people who won. Instead of leading, they seem to be reacting.

    I do have regard for Albanese. I hope he can pull it together without completely capitulating.

40. Matters NotNovember 1, 2019 at 10:01 am

    KL re – removing franking credits. That’s gone for some time. Now gun shy. Besides the policy lacked coherence. Not a principle in sight from their first announcement through their many iterations. How franking credits could be allowed for some super funds and not others was laughable. Only two nations left (NZ and Aust) that persist. Note also that many more companies are distancing themselves from 100% franking credits including one of the big 4 Banks which might signal a rush for the exits.

    Still can’t understand why the ALP aren’t waging an all-out war agin’ multinationals who tax avoid as a matter of course and it makes the franking credits look like small change. Look at Macron and the billions he clawed back from Google et al and did so in the face of threats from Trump. There’s no downside for the ALP in that avenue, while there is for the Government which would reveal their impotence. When in Opposition, keep throwing grenades over the fence – no responsibility. Gloves off time. Become a real Opposition. Wreck the place (well bits of it anyway.)

41. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 10:11 am

    Emissions increasing every year is another grenade that should be thrown regularly. There is one sentence that should be highlighted every time the quarterly emissions data comes out: “Australia’s emissions for the year to March 2019 were 0.5 per cent above emissions in 2000.” Show the lie!!

42. Matters NotNovember 1, 2019 at 10:46 am

    Suspect that Labor will now be very conscious of vote changer policies and am not sure how many of them there will be – come the next election. Seems to me that greenhouse emissions, funding for public education and the like are motherhood and apple pie policies – (everyone is for them – make you feel good – and who could be against them) but they are not vote changers in the whole scheme of things. Not so with franking credits which was a vote changer – (predictable and predicted and now recognised by Shorten et al but far too late.)

    Yes things like emissions (and lack of action) are very important in terms of brand recognition in the longer term, but are unlikely to sway an election result. Elections are won or lost in the heart not the head (and via the very emotional hip pocket). ‘Tis the emotions not rationality that wins the election day. Now if only Labor could develop a map with red arrows … lol.

43. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 10:58 am

    If I was a Labor strategist, I would be targeting young people. They are the ones who are suffering from inaffordable housing, huge debts for education, high unemployment and erosion of workplace conditions, the real threat posed by climate change, increasing inequality, high childcare costs, mortgage stress etc

    Get the young ones talking to their family and friends. Get them fired up about social justice issues. I really don’t think focusing on wealth creation is going to inspire young people other than Young Liberals.

    Our kids stir our emotions and we saw that in the marriage equality campaign. Most of us have relatives and friends who are gay.

    But we have to find a way to make the voice heard without alienating others and that is hard. Being polite about the facts isn’t working.

44. Matters NotNovember 1, 2019 at 11:17 am

    Re:

    huge debts for education,

    Now that’s a vote changer issue. Not only in Australia but across the developed world. TYT (in the US network) is banging on about the times public colleges were free when taxes were higher and governments had funds but now with low taxes – debts continue to mount. Enter Warren and Sanders from the Dems with promises of debt relief, free tuition and the like. Look at the Nordic nations who own their oil and gas and are able to provide free education up to and including Masters level not only for their people but also for anyone who wants to come from across the world.

    Now that’s a vote changer! That’s a vision! That’s innovation! Why – it’s even attainable.

45. johnoNovember 1, 2019 at 11:40 am

    MN, Did you say wreck the place ?
    
    I can just see Albo…. red boots of course.

46. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 11:45 am

    We could go further….or backwards if you think about it. Offer scholarships in identified areas of need.

    Back in the 1970s, I, and many others, won a Commonwealth scholarship where we received a small allowance to complete the last two years of high school. I then won a teachers scholarship which gave me a small allowance whilst earning my science degree – which was FREE. Means-tested bursaries were offered on the basis of academic potential rather than footballing prowess (though that did occur to a small degree too).

47. New England CockyNovember 1, 2019 at 12:24 pm

    @Kaye Lee: I think AP in Queensland had the correct strategy for winning elections; get out and tell the voters, face to face, what Labor will do and why the future for them and their kids will be better under a Labor government. What was the turnaround to Labor in that Queensland election?

    In New England our success at de-throning the incumbent nat$ has relied upon personal approval of INDEPENDENT candidates. We have been lucky since 1976 with the Late Bill McCarthy (ALP), and Independents Richard Torbay (1999) and Tony Windsor (2000).

    For the record, McCarthy won by 1100+ votes after some ballot papers got “lost” in the counting room; Torbay won over 70% on his first election, growing to 85% at his last election; Windsor was the first elected MP in 2000 with 62% of the primary vote.

48. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 1:31 pm

    NEC,

    I would put AP’s first win down to the Campbell Newman effect but her second win, in a state which voted federally to give 23 out of 30 seats to the Coalition, was extraordinary.

    I cannot fathom why voters in New England put up with Barnaby Joyce.

49. Miriam EnglishNovember 1, 2019 at 2:21 pm

    I’m so relieved our comments had the effect of calming Trish down. After all, she should know that whatever vitriol she receives on other platforms she will always be welcome here, even if not everybody agrees with her. (I haven’t met the person yet that everybody agrees with.) But here people are, thankfully, mostly civil. I’m glad she realised she didn’t need to resort to fury and insults.

    …at least I wish I could have said that.

50. Matters NotNovember 1, 2019 at 2:36 pm

    Re Annastacia Palaszczuk, daughter of Heinrich, the former MP for Archerfield and then Member for Inala.

    She was very, lucky to become Premier. Following the meteoric rise of Newman and the demise of Anna Bligh, it was thought that the new leader of the devastated ALP Opposition would be Vicki Darling (daughter of Elaine Darling, the former MP for Lilley who gave way to Wayne Swan – following a shady deal or two. A story that’s never been told). But shock, horror Vicki Darling also lost the unlosable seat of Sandgate to a candidate who was barely breathing.

    Annastacia Palaszczuk was metaphorically the last one standing. The Leader by default.

    Sometimes elections are won – sometimes they are both won and lost – and sometimes they are just lost. At the election when Annastacia Palaszczuk became Premier, it was because Newman lost big time. ‘Twas a miracle. But she grasped that opportunity and did rather well. But it will be even harder this time around.

51. Miriam EnglishNovember 1, 2019 at 2:51 pm

    Kaye, I think I’ve mentioned this before, but when I was handing out how to vote leaflets at the local voting spot the ladies in the next stand were LNP ladies and one was gushing, “I love the way Barnaby talks.” They went on, of course, but that was the essence of it all. They loved his mannerisms. There was no mention of policies, or philandering, or water corruption. I could hardly believe my ears.

    Later I asked one of them what they thought about the way water theft had affected farmers all down the Murray-Darling system. There were serious nods and murmurings and sympathy for the farmers, but no connection with Barnaby Joyce.

    One of the nice things about being in a country town is that we are all friendly, so I was reluctant to join the dots, to point out Barnaby Joyce’s crookedness in the water theft. I figured it would be unlikely to change their views anyway if they were already that shallow. [sigh]

52. Kaye LeeNovember 1, 2019 at 3:11 pm

    Miriam,

    That is a trait that the Coalition exploits. Labor and the Greens try to win on policies, the Coalition attack the person.

    I don’t want to have a beer with my MP. I don’t want to see them at every sporting event that goes on. I don’t want them wasting money sending me birthday and xmas cards with their photo on them.

    I want them to listen to the experts, prioritise the challenges we face, compare alternate approaches, and then communicate honestly with me as to why a certain path is in our best interests. They have the resources at their disposal to do that. Instead, they do what marketing people tell them to do.

    Sigh indeed.