Saturday 31 January 2015

Are conservatives irrelevant in the 21st century? - The AIM Network

Are conservatives irrelevant in the 21st century? - The AIM Network



Are conservatives irrelevant in the 21st century?














Are conservatives irrelevant in the 21st century? Jennifer Wilson reports.


The extraordinary Queensland election result saw former LNP Premier
Campbell Newman lose his seat, and the ALP chuck an unprecedented
Lazarus and rise, as gobsmacked as was anybody looking on, from its cold
political grave. Newman’s government lasted just one term, after the
largest win in political history by his party left the Queensland ALP
with just seven seats. Now the voters have seriously turned. You could
not make this stuff up.



In November, Victorians threw out their LNP government, also after only one term, and returned the ALP to power.


In NSW we have an election in March, and LNP Premier Mike Baird is likely apprehensive.


It’s early days, but what seems apparent at first blush is that
increasingly, Australians don’t care for the conservative method of
governance. In general, we don’t take to entitled, privileged bullies
fattening themselves and their besties at the taxpayer trough while
simultaneously stripping us of public assets, and grinding into the dirt
those who can least afford any further grinding. Unrestrained
self-interest does not go down well with the Australian public, it would
seem.



Neither do we take to blatant liars in our governments, nor to
arrogant, dismissive leaders who think power means they never have to
explain, and account for their actions.



As all of the above traits are endemic in the current conservative
personality, and as the voters aren’t willing to tolerate them for
longer than one term, the LNP state and federal may well be looking at
some time in the wilderness of opposition, having had a brief and
turbulent taste of their utter lack of relevance to 21st century
Australians.



The ALP ought not to become over-confident. All too often the party
has shown an alarming tendency to go along with what are essentially
conservative ideas, to the point where many of us have fallen prey to  a
chronic despair that has expressed itself in the phrase “There’s no
bloody difference between the two major parties.” There’d better be a
bloody difference, and if ALP politicians state and federal have any
sense, they will be taking a good look at resurrecting the party’s core
values, and listening hard to what voters are telling them.



Increasingly, voters appear to be willing to give governments only
one chance. ‘Til very recently, our attitude was to give them a second
go in a second term. We seem to be on the cusp of a significant change
in that attitude. This may well have to do with retribution. If our
major parties don’t give so many of us a fair go, why the bloody hell
should we extend that generosity to them?



For mine, it would be a great advancement if politicians were as a
first principle capable of remembering their job is to serve the people,
and not the other way round. I don’t know how many arses need to get
hit by the door on the way out before they grasp that fundamental
article of their job description.



This article was first published on No Place For Sheep.



Friday 30 January 2015

An in-flight message from Captain Australia

An in-flight message from Captain Australia



1,324 39



Captain A.Failure


Good afternoon Liberal Party voters and other lesser constituents, this is your Captain speaking.



Please listen carefully to this in flight (or fight) announcement.
You must ensure your seat belts are fastened, as any injuries you
receive will incur regular payments at your GP of varying amounts.
Furthermore, if you happen to become disabled your pension will also be
cut off if I deem you fit to work or if you are under thirty, and no I
don’t care if it’s terminal.




If you look to the left of the joy flight now, you may notice your penalty rates
flying out the window. Like the cabin crew I have around me, you shall
no longer enjoy those penalty rates care of Workchoices 2.0.




Should you be wanting to use the bathroom today, please note it is
currently out of action, filled with as much crap as I spun you
pre-election. This issue will not be fixed as I have forced tradesmen
(and indeed our own plumber) out on industrial action. Therefore, you
will need to hold for the rest of your flight. With the exception, of
course, of the working one up in First Class with my mate Gina, in which
case, by all means, help yourself.




You may notice the wings of the aircraft (stop looking at my ears, I
said the wings of the aircraft) cannot be sighted from your seats. This
is because our great land is girt by sea and I, for one, can swim. There
are life jackets for the rest of you, though if your surname sounds
foreign you’ll probably be sent to Manus Island for offshore processing.
There you will be free to self-harm or die in our care in accordance
with current government policy.






If you are wondering where we are headed today, please refer to your
ticket (or ballot paper). That’s right, we’re heading towards
sunny Social Darwinism.




In case of emergencies aboard this aircraft (which is going down
quicker than a Malaysian Airlines flight) please refer to the lights on
the floor. These are the sad remnants of a once great light on the hill,
now quashed and marred, by my team of cabin(et) managers.




If you happen to get hungry, unfortunately social services have
recently been cut so, no, you will not be able to eat. Furthermore, if
you gain a few kilograms on board, my fat tax will kick in so watch out
for all you would be tubberguts. Once again, please excuse those in
first class, including Gina, who is free to dig into the First
Class seaflood platter (care of Australia’s once Great Barrier Reef).  




For a bit of history about the great land towards which are headed, a reminder that we don’t actually have a history
before white civilisation and anyone who argues otherwise can leave
now. Please take in the scenic environment throughout our joy ride.
Sady, the air on this flight will not be safe to breathe for much
longer. Kudos to those who live near the coal mines and have already
noted this. You will note that directly in front of you there is an
oxygen mask for your children and any future generations.




You must now switch off your phone and social media — all electronic graffiti is being heavily monitored by ASIO.





Note: any efforts to locate what you need through freedom of information will prove fruitless.



If you do not like those around you today – or, more to the point,
they do not like you – spare a thought for myself and get over it the
way the Murdoch press is now over me.




To our female passengers [wink], we welcome you aboard (although we
are secretly wondering why you’ve left the kitchen), and we have baby
changing facilities and ironing boards for those of you in first class.
The rest of you should quietly remember that I am indeed your Minister for Women and White Ribbon Day ambassador and you will listen to me politely.




If at any stage things get too much for you, please hold the brace
position by placing your head directly between your legs. In line with
our new public relations policy, please refrain from sniffing the chair
in front of you. Instead it would be best to bury your head in the sand
while raising a huge sign about economic accountability and the future
viability of our nation.




Thanks for your patience while my cabinet crew (including those with sex appeal) ruin this once enjoyable experience.



We thank you for flying with Team Australia.



Your Captain, One Term Tony.



You can follow Naomi Fryers on Twitter @flurounicorn.

Thursday 29 January 2015

National Disgrace: CFMEU Forces Govt To Investigate $4 An Hour Foreign Workers | newmatilda.com

National Disgrace: CFMEU Forces Govt To Investigate $4 An Hour Foreign Workers | newmatilda.com



National Disgrace: CFMEU Forces Govt To Investigate $4 An Hour Foreign Workers



By Thom Mitchell and Chris Graham



The Bomaderry Ethanol Plant, part of the Manildra Group of companies
The Bomaderry Ethanol Plant, part of the Manildra Group of companies


And
you thought Workchoices was bad. Be grateful you’re not a foreign
worker doing construction for a company run by a BRW 200 Rich Lister.
Thom Mitchell and Chris Graham report.




The
Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) has forced the
federal government to investigate claims foreign workers at an ethanol
plant on the NSW South Coast have been working up to seven days a week
for as little as $4 an hour, while living in “cramped and degrading
conditions”.



The shocking revelations were uncovered by the CFMEU last week, at
the Bomaderry Ethanol Plant on the south coast of NSW. The site is owned
by the Manildra Group, a large Australian company and one of the
nation’s most generous donors to the three major political parties.



The Chairman of Manildra is Dick Honan, ranked 116 on BRW’s Rich 200
List. There is no suggestion from New Matilda Mr Honan had any knowledge
of the scam.



But the CFMEU believes the scandal may be just the tip of the iceberg
– National Secretary Michael O’Connor told New Matilda overnight that
the union believed the worker abuse was part of a nation-wide network of
exploitation, where foreign workers are being drastically underpaid and
subjected to appalling and illegal conditions.



Mr O’Connor has already notified federal Minister for Immigration
Peter Dutton of at least two other sites where foreign workers appear to
have been ripped off – at Narrabri in the NSW north-west, and at
Manildra (the town) in Central NSW.



Last week, the CFMEU discovered 29 Chinese and Filipino workers, who
are at the centre of the scandal, constructing a feed pellet mill at the
Bomaderry Ethanol Plant. They were employed under sub-class 400 visa
arrangements, and contracted to work at Manildra through a Taiwanese
company called Chia Tung Development Corporation.



“It was our members themselves who blew the whistle on it,” CFMEU
National Secretary Michael O’Connor told New Matilda earlier today.



“Organisers went to the job and the non-visa workers said ‘We think there’s some problems with these visa workers,’” he said.


“[A CFMEU organiser] investigated and found a whole range of award
breaches, conditions breaches, and issues with where they were staying,
along with a whole lot of other matters,” O’Connor said.



According to the CFMEU, the foreign employees have been working for
10 or 11 hours a day, up to 7 days a week and taking home between $40
and $100 per day, with virtually no workplace entitlements.



The workers have not received any form of allowances, including
penalty rates for overtime and weekends, and it appears they were not
covered by work insurance, the CFMEU said.



In a letter to Manildra Group, the CFMEU identifies a swathe of
alleged illegal activities, including pay deductions for living
expenses, meals and travel.



Concerns have also been raised over the “cramped and degrading” accommodation provided by the workers’ employer.


“[My understanding is] there was an average of three to a room,” O’Connor said.


Of the 29 workers, 13 were Chinese nationals, and 16 were Filipino.


“It looks like the Filipinos were being treated differently to the
Chinese workers,” O’Connor said, adding that the Chinese workers’
employer appeared to be holding their documents.



“Most, if not all, of the Filipino workers can speak English, so we
were able to communicate more effectively with them,” O’Connor said.



Mr O’Connor said skilled migration visas such as 457s often lead to the exploitation of workers.


“We’ve always put the view to successive governments that this is a regular occurrence, not a one off,” O’Connor said.


“Workers under these visa arrangements are vulnerable because they’re
desperate to keep their job and are worried about being kicked out of
the country.”



And that may be what happens to a separate group of workers also
discovered by the CFMEU over the weekend, in the north-west NSW town of
Narrabri.



The eight foreign workers, who O’Connor said “certainly look like
they were working for the same Taiwanese company” were evicted from
their accommodation over the weekend.



“It looks like an attempt to get them out of the country before the exploitation was discovered,” O’Connor said.


O’Connor has written to the Minister for Immigration and Border
Protection, Peter Dutton – the man responsible for temporary skilled
visa workers - calling on him to investigate the matters.



“We have now learned from the workers themselves that such practices
are occurring in other parts of the company’s operations throughout
Australia,” O’Connor writes in the letter.



“We are therefore seeking an urgent investigation by your department
into the operations of the Manildra Group across the country, as well as
any sub-contractors, including the Chia Tung Development Corporation
(their ostensible employers), and any migration agents associated with
the workers.”



Mr O’Connor said there appeared to be “a deliberately complicated web
of companies across the country set up to hide what is outrageous
exploitation of vulnerable workers”.



Mr O’Connor (pictured below) said he hopes the fact “the Manildra
Group has donated $285,604 to the Liberal National Party over the past
two years [doesn’t] prevent the minister from urgently stamping out what
amounts to modern day slavery”.



The union has offered to assist Minister Dutton with any investigations.


In a statement issued to New Matilda last night, a spokesman for the
Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Michaelia Cash
said the government had begun investigating the claims.



“The Government takes allegations of illegal exploitation and
underpayment of foreign workers extremely seriously,” the spokesperson
said.



“The specific allegations raised in relation to workers at the
Manildra Ethanol Plant in Bomaderry have been referred to both the Fair
Work Ombudsman and the Department of Immigration and Border Protection
for investigation.”



New Matilda was unable to gain comment from Manildra Group at the
time of press, however the company earlier issued a statement to the
ABC.



“The Manildra Group has a contract with Chia Tung for the supply and
installation of a pellet feed mill on the Manildra site at Bomaderry.
Chia Tung has provided their own construction employees,” the statement
said.



“Manildra Group has become aware of certain allegations made by the CFMEU about Chia Tung's treatment of its employees.


“We take this matter seriously and are making enquiries of Chia Tung as to the allegations.”


The Australian representative for Chia Tung, Alan Sinclair, declined to comment when approached by New Matilda last night.


Manildra Group has previously been at the centre of a major political
storm in 2003, after Prime Minister John Howard delivered a series of
generous subsidies to the ethanol industry via its then Employment
Minister, Tony Abbott.



Manildra remains a major supporter of the three major political
parties, having donated at least $3 million to the ALP, Liberals and
Nationals since 1998.



Despite its denials of any knowledge of the exploitation of the
Bomaderry workers, Manildra doesn’t appear to be completely out of the
woods just yet.



In his letter to Minister Dutton, CFMEU National Secretary Michael
O’Connor noted that the union had “already learned of a similar
situation at [Manildra’s] facility in Manildra itself, and will provide
more information as it comes to hand.”



And for the government’s part, despite the growing scandal, Minister
Cash’s office was last night standing by the foreign worker visa
program.



“The Coalition Government’s increased focus on compliance within our skilled migration program is producing excellent results.


“As detailed in the 2013-14 Annual Report, the number of sponsors
monitored in 2013-14 increased by almost 20 per cent compared to the
previous year. Furthermore, the number of sponsors sanctioned in 2013-14
increased by 68 per cent compared to the previous year.



“This is a clear indication of this Government’s strong commitment to maintain integrity in Australia’s migration program.”


But Mr O’Connor said the CFMEU believes that many of the workers
caught up in this exploitation scandal are on subclass 400 visas - “the
very visa that the government wants to expand to 12 months and make it
even easier for employers to get”.



“Instead, the government should stop employers like this from rorting
the system, banning the worst offenders from taking on migrant workers,
and put in place proper labour market testing to make sure that local
workers can get a start and don’t get undercut,” Mr O’Connor said.



* New Matilda will bring you a fresh update on this story later today.


Tuesday 27 January 2015

Knightmare on L-NP street: Abbott Government brawls now number 50

Knightmare on L-NP street: Abbott Government brawls now number 50



1,426 12



(Image by @JohnGrahamArt)


Open dismay among Tony Abbott’s ministers at his gong for
Prince Philip on Monday brings the issues on which senior Coalition
people are at each others’ throats to the round half-century. Alan Austin reports.




FIFTY ISSUES now split the Abbott Government. None of them is trivial. They all impact the capacity to govern.



They raise many questions the mainstream media is conspicuously failing to address.



Is this the most divided government in the Westminster world ever?



Are there fundamental contradictions within the Coalition which render effective decision-making impossible?



Were these unresolvable conflicts evident in Opposition, but papered
over by craven Canberra commentators committed to delivering Coalition
victory, however incompetent and divided its ranks?




When will these divisions lead to another leadership contest?



And crucially, is there any way this Government under any leader can
continue for another 20 months when the first 16 have been so abysmally
dysfunctional?




This list counts backwards chronologically, each with a link to details.



50. Knighthoods



Abbott's cabinet colleagues are reportedly publicly 'bewildered, angered and dismayed’ by his unilateral decision to knight Prince Philip.





49. Medicare backflips



Ministers committed to slugging patients more for medical care include Abbott, Treasurer Joe Hockey, Finance Minister Mathias Cormann, Small Business Minister Bruce Billson and former Health Minister Peter Dutton. Those against – who seem to have won the latest stoush – include new Health Minister Sussan Ley.



48. Drought assistance



Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce referred to colleagues as “the shits in cabinet” after they refused more aid for drought-stricken farmers last month.



47. Workchoices



Former Howard Government minister Peter Reith slammed Abbott for ‘not lifting a finger’ on industrial relations. Workchoices remains divisive within the Abbott camp.



46. Bishop to Peru



Abbott’s office vetoed Foreign Minister Julie Bishop attending the UN climate meeting last month. Bishop, according to a colleague, first “went bananas”, then went over the PM’s head for cabinet approval.



But she did not go alone. Abbott assigned climate change sceptic Trade Minister Andrew Robb as "chaperone".





45. Navy ships



The internal punch-up over the capacity of Australian companies to fill defence contracts led to a second ministerial sacking (after Arthur Sinodinos). Defence Minister David Johnston lost his job.



44. Scott Morrison to social security



Abbott copped a savage serve from respected Liberal elder John Valder on Christmas Eve:



‘Tony Abbott will never learn. His harsh and inhumane policies on
refugees, young people, the unemployed and so on have already (and
deservedly) earned him acute unpopularity. Now he appoints his henchman
Morrison to apply his blowtorch to all social welfare recipients.’





The former NSW and federal party president’s open letter concluded:



‘I have to say shame on you Abbott, Morrison and Hockey ... you will have dumped on the entire Liberal Party community.’




43. Direct climate action



The Nationals almost torpedoed the November legislation in bitter backroom brawls.



The Nats are reported to have told the Libs:



‘We’re loyal partners. We’re in the trenches together ... But don’t step over us again.’




The Nats reportedly said the Libs were "shitting themselves" over the threat.





42. Asia Pacific infrastructure investment bank



Trade Minister Robb and Treasurer Hockey persuaded cabinet to support China’s proposal for the new bank. Foreign Minister Bishop then used the cabinet's National Security Committee to roll the two men.



41. Burqa ban



The unseemly spat between Abbott and Speaker Bronwyn Bishop simmered
publicly for several days in October. The PM claimed he was unaware of
the speaker’s ruling to isolate women wearing burqas inside Parliament
House. Colleagues publicly challenged Abbott’s truthfulness.




40. Local v faction preselections



Former Howard government minister Jackie Kelly resigned in disgust from the Liberal Party during a bitter dispute over preselections.



She condemned



"... the corrosive control that self interested lobbyists have over the NSW Liberal Party."




39. ANU divestment



The National University’s decision to sell its fossil fuel shares sparked a heavyweight fight between Abbott, Hockey, Environment Minister Greg Hunt, Education Minister Christopher Pyne and Assistant Minister Jamie Briggs who opposed the sell-off and party elders John Hewson and Malcolm Fraser who supported the decision.



38. Anti-corruption



The proposal for a federal independent commission against corruption continues to divide Liberals. NSW Libs insist this is essential, while the Federal Libs are implacably opposed.





37. Renewable energy target



Scrapping the RET splits the cabinet. Greg Hunt, Abbott and others want it scaled back. Christopher Pyne, Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane and others want it to stay.



36. Youth welfare



The bipartisan parliamentary Human Rights Committee, chaired by Liberal Dean Smith, embarrassed the PM and treasurer, and exposed further divisions, when it found
that the May budget proposal to impose a six months wait for welfare
payments breached human rights. So did the proposed age criteria.




35. Abbott’s metadata decree



The August decision forcing telecommunications companies to keep
customers’ phone and internet records for two years dismayed, not only
industry and voters, but also Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull who had not been consulted.




According to The Age:



‘... to Turnbull it appeared to be a calculated effort by the Prime Minister’s office to humiliate him.’




34. Hockey’s arrogance towards the poor



Outrage was expressed within Coalition ranks at Hockey’s offensive comments following his failed May budget.



According to Fairfax:



‘... furious ministerial colleagues turned on the Treasurer over
comments they variously described as "stupid and wrong", a "bad example
of how to make a point" and "loose language".’







33. Racial discrimination



Abbott infuriated half his Coalition colleagues with his decision before the last election to abolish section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. Indigenous Liberal MP Ken Wyatt vowed to cross the floor to oppose any change.



Abbott then infuriated the other half when he broke that promise in August.



Former WA Liberal leader Bill Hassell condemned the backflip as



"... an unconditional surrender to narrow interest groups against the interests of the Australian people."




32. Anti-terror laws



Former Liberal federal treasurer Peter Costello mocked Abbott’s inept anti-terror response:



'Does the government believe there are leaders in our community
whose commitment to their fellow citizens and the values of a civilised
society is so weak they will not co-operate in preventing terror and
murder if section 18C is repealed? If that is the case we really do have
a problem.'





31. Team Australia



Former Liberal leader Malcolm Fraser blasted Abbott – not for the first time – over his "Team Australia" rhetoric. The ex-PM described Abbott’s language as "divisive”, “counter-productive” and “terrible”. Peter Costello joined the attack.





30. Bypassing the Senate



Coalition frontbenchers denounced Joe Hockey for threatening in July to slash funding outside the usual parliamentary process.



A senior Liberal accused Hockey of opening up another front for attacks:



"It was a gift to Labor … it was an own goal."




29. Hockey v Turnbull



Personal bitterness between Hockey and Turnbull was exposed in July with the release of the biography Hockey: Not your average Joe. The book quoted Hockey’s wife saying he would never trust Turnbull.



28. ABC top jobs



Bizarrely, the decision by the prime minister’s department to stack
the ABC with Liberal Party activists was taken without consulting the
responsible minister.




While Malcolm Turnbull withheld overt criticism, he confirmed he had been bypassed and admitted:



“... there is concern about politics in all of this."




27. Abbott’s sexism



Retiring Liberal Senator Sue Boyce described Julia Gillard's famous misogyny speech as “powerful” and “a brilliant speech”.



But she disagreed with the former PM labelling Abbott a misogynist:



“It would have been more accurate if she had called him a sexist."




26. Fuel excise Libs v Nats



National Party MPs were played for suckers over raising the fuel
excise when the Liberals pretended they wanted also to chop the diesel
fuel rebate. In a "deal" to "save" their precious diesel rebate, the
Nats agreed to raise petrol excise.




It worked. Liberals have since bragged about how they ‘played the Nats’.





25. Paid parental leave



Abbott’s colleagues are deeply divided over his pet scheme. Nationals Ron Boswell, John Williams and Barry O’Sullivan say they will cross the Senate floor to oppose it.



24. Asylum seekers



Former Liberal Party chief John Valder describes Abbott’s policies as ‘harsh and inhumane’.



Former senator Sue Boyce said



"I think the whole asylum seeker issue is sort of fraught with dog whistling." 




Malcolm Fraser claims Abbott has "destroyed the rule of law as we know it" by giving the immigration minister "dictatorial, tyrannical powers" over the lives of asylum seekers.



23. Liberal Party constitution



Federal ministers Christopher Pyne and George Brandis brawled openly in June over proposed changes to the party’s constitution and procedures for making changes.



22. Cutting science funding



Liberal ex-premier of Victoria Jeff Kennett condemned



“... removing money from science when we have a very good record
in science, whether it's medical, whether it's engineering, whether it's
the cochlear, whether it's CSL ... We can't afford to start sending out
messages, not only to the world, but to our young, that science and
engineering aren't two of the highest priorities.”





21. Unfair May budget



The punitive 2014 Federal Budget was vigorously supported by Abbott,
Hockey, Cormann and others. It was openly attacked by Liberal NSW
Premier Mike Baird and ex-Liberal leaders Malcolm Fraser, John Hewson and Jeff Kennet. Anonymous leaks from Coalition MPs confirm widespread internal dissent.






20. Lack of vision



John Hewson laments this glaring failure:



“There’s no clear, consistent message, other than, ‘We have to
cut and cut more just to get the budget numbers’, not with any reform
purpose. It’s unfair and it’s inconsistent. A bit of vision is what’s
really called for.”





Jeff Kennett agrees:



“I've always believed that leadership is not difficult, but
leadership requires simplicity, good people, a vision ... I'm worried,
terribly worried.”





19. ABC independence



Abbott attacked the ABC last January for reporting news critical of Australia’s military. Malcolm Turnbull openly repudiated the PM.



18. Saving SPC



Cabinet members Ian Macfarlane and Barnaby Joyce wanted fruit company SPC saved through a rescue package last January, as did local Liberal MP Sharman Stone. After an acrimonious fight, Hockey and Abbott knocked them all off.



Those are the latest 33 areas of conflict. The first 17 all arose within the first four months and were listed here at IA in December 2013.



Several of these, notably ABC funding, same-sex marriage and the power of Peta Credlin, have intensified since that report.





Retaining the original numbering, those issues were:



1. Same sex marriage



2. Cabinet solidarity



3. The Liberal club



4. Ministerial portfolios



5. Order to sack family members



6. Honouring Gary Humphries



7. Marginalising MPs



8. Peta Credlin’s power



9. Travel rorts scandal



10. School funding fiasco



11. Grain Corp sale



12. Holden closure



13. Badgerys Creek airport



14. ABC and SBS funding



15. Wage levels



16. Relations with Indonesia



17. Northern development



That makes an even 50 — in 16 months. Are there more to come? Almost certainly. Such is Australia’s doom.



You can follow Alan Austin on Twitter @alantheamazing.

Coalition MPs trail in eight out of 11 marginals as budget issues bite, poll says

Coalition MPs trail in eight out of 11 marginals as budget issues bite, poll says

Coalition MPs trail in eight out of 11 marginals as budget issues bite, poll says






  • Swing voters angry at Medicare copayment and university fees
  • ReachTEL survey will increase unease among backbenchers
See full poll data


Cormann denies tension over Abbott leadership









Tony Abbott

Prime minister Tony Abbott will try to reboot the government’s agenda
with a speech in Canberra next week. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP



Coalition MPs are trailing in eight of 11 marginal seats held by the
government, new polling shows, with swing voters turned off by the
government’s two key budget policies of a Medicare co-payment and
university fees.



The ReachTEL polling
was conducted in January for the activist group Getup. It shows
significant numbers of undecided voters in 11 marginal seats with strong
resistance to two issues: the Medicare co-payment and university
deregulation, both of which have yet to pass the Senate.



The polling was conducted on 21 January, after the government backed down on planned cuts to Medicare rebates for GP consultations shorter than 10 minutes but before the controversial decision by Tony Abbott to award Prince Philip a knighthood.


Advertisement
The
Coalition still plans to go ahead with what has been widely known as a
Medicare co-payment which effectively cuts the doctors’ rebate by $5 for
adult non-concession patients. GPs are likely to pass on the cost.



The poll results will increase the pressure on nervous backbenchers
in the government party room just as the prime minister is set to
deliver an important address to the National Press Club next week to
reboot the government’s agenda.



The poll surveyed 7,368 people, including 742 undecided voters, in
the seats of Barton, Eden-Monaro, Dobell, Reid and Banks in NSW, Petrie
and Capricornia in Queensland, Lyons in Tasmania, Solomon in the
Northern Territory, Hindmarsh in South Australia and Deakin in Victoria.



In the bellwether seat of Eden-Monaro in southern NSW held by Liberal
MP Peter Hendy, the Coalition is trailing Labor on a
two-party-preferred basis by 38.8% to 47.7%, with 13.5% undecided.



Among those undecided voters in Eden-Monaro, 66.7% strongly oppose or
oppose the government’s plan to introduce a Medicare co-payment. Of
those undecided voters, 53.8% said the co-payment would make them less
likely to vote for the Coalition at the next election.



Eden Monaro has swung towards the elected government since the 1970s.


In the provincial Queensland coastal seat of Capricornia, held by LNP
MP Michelle Landry, the Coalition is trailing Labor on a 2PP basis by
43.5% to 51.4% for the ALP. Already in the grip of a state election, the
polling results show the fewest undecided voters in any of the 11
electorates, at 5.2% of those polled.



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One
in three undecided voters polled in Capricornia said they were less
likely to vote Coalition as a result of the Medicare co-payment, while
38.9% said they were less likely to vote Coalition due to the
deregulation of university fees.



Also in Queensland, in the outer metropolitan seat of Petrie held by
Liberal MP Luke Howarth, the Coalition is trailing Labor by 43.7% to
50.4%, with 5.9% undecided.



In the Tasmanian electorate of Lyons, held by Liberal MP Eric
Hutchinson, Labor leads on a 2PP basis by 47.9% to 43.6%, with 8.5%
undecided.



While it is usual for there to be high numbers of undecided voters so
far out from an election, the co-payment and university deregulation
still loom large for undecided voters, eight months after the budget
that revealed the changes.



And four months before the next budget, the measures have yet to pass the Parliament.


Getup campaigns director Mark Connelly said the polling bore out the
distaste for the federal budget, which was widely seen as unfair by
voters.



“Australians are angry about these policies across the board, but
it’s especially strong among the swing voters who will decide the
outcome of the next election,” said Connelly.



“These policies are an attack on the Australians who do most of the
working and paying and living and lifting in our communities. It’s no
wonder Liberal backbenchers have been getting an angry earful about the
GP co-pay and university deregulation from their voters. Now these
numbers back up those backbench concerns.”