First Among Equals (14 page)

In 2010 Turnbull considered leaving politics but was persuaded by former prime minister John Howard to stay on. In the federal election later that year Turnbull gained an 11 per cent swing and was promoted to the position of shadow communications minister. He was often at odds with the dominant conservative wing of the party on the issue of same-sex marriage and other social policy, including government intrusion into digital privacy. Turnbull was considered tech savvy and up-to-date on emerging businesss opportunities, plus he was seen as having a more nuanced approach to foreign policy than the often simplistic and aggressive style of Tony Abbott.

When Tony Abbott led the party to victory in September 2013 Turnbull became communications minister. Despite his public protestations to the contrary, Canberra insider gossip never left alone the possibility that he would one day challenge Tony Abbott, especially if the government continued to do badly in the polls. Turnbull kept his powder dry in February 2015 when a backbench revolt brought the leadership into question. His decision not to challenge
saved Abbott for the time being but put him on notice that unless he improved his leadership skills he would be gone before the year was out.

On 14 September 2015, after a thirtieth consecutive poll headed southwards and Abbott's popularity continued to slump, Turnbull struck. Coalition MPs had decided that Abbott had been given a strong warning about his leadership but had not heeded it. Despite the conservative wing's dislike of Turnbull, pragmatism triumphed over ideology and small-'l'-liberal Turnbull seized the day.

Of all the media coverage, the quirky tabloid in Darwin,
NT News
, seems to sum up Turnbull's rise best with its headline: ‘Rich dude becomes PM'. Turnbull was, after all, the wealthiest member of parliament until Clive Palmer was elected in 2013. Less kindly, Turnbull's enemies refer to him as the member for NetWorth, as the seat of Wentworth includes the most expensive real estate in Australia.

Turnbull's critics claim his ego and arrogance will bring him undone, as it did before. That remains to be seen. But what is clear is that the Liberal Party under Turnbull will move back closer towards the centre-right of Australian politics and, in the short term at least, will make life harder for the Labor opposition.

(2015- )

A
s Australia emerged from the first hundred years of Federation and crossed the threshold into the twenty-first century, it did so with a sense of pride and self-satisfaction with its many achievements. Yet while events such as the landing of the ANZACs and the war in the Pacific strengthened and united the nation, more recent events such as the
Tampa
crisis and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have challenged the country's traditional notion of national identity.

Following Federation, Australia, as a former British dominion, remained politically, socially and economically tied to the ‘mother country'. Cracks in the relationship first surfaced during World War II
when, faced with the threat of a Japanese invasion, Australia turned to the United States for help. As the country then approached the new millennium, there was a resurgent nationalism and the question of Australia becoming a republic was raised. Despite opinion polls clearly indicating that the majority of Australians wanted a republic, the 1999 referendum failed because of arguments over the type of model to be instituted. After the events of 11 September 2001 and the subsequent ‘war on terror', the question of a republic took a back seat as the country became consumed by more pressing concerns, most notably climate change and globalisation. With Howard's coalition government seen as out of touch, the Labor Party under new leader Kevin Rudd swept back into power in late 2007.

The quick-fire removal of Rudd, Gillard and Abbott by their own parties has produced a sense of leadership instability. Australia is in the midst of another great period of change as the economic outlook becomes uncertain after prolonged and remarkable prosperity. In addition, despite immigration, Australia's population is ageing. The rise of Asia, including China and its tensions with its neighbours, particularly Japan, raises new questions of security. Technological advances are shaking the old business models and structures.

According to polling research, the electorate feels neither of the main parties is properly addressing these fundamental changes. Politicians are seen as failing to define, encapsulate and offer a vision – something Turnbull has stated he is determined to address. For their part, politicians see their actions scrutinised instantly, intensely and incessantly through social media and other online media outlets. Old notions of political loyalty, especially of keeping quiet, are harder to enforce and the job of any prime minister will not get easier.

ACTU:
Australian Council of Trade Unions.

ALP:
Australian Labor Party.

ANZAC:
Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

ANZUS:
Australia, New Zealand and United States.

Assembly:
A new assembly commences after each general election. An assembly ends upon its dissolution of parliament by the governor-general, on the request of the prime minister, or upon the expiry of the maximum time it is permitted to continue by law (approximately four years). A general election then follows.

Cabinet:
The cabinet is the council of senior ministers who are responsible for managing the policy directions and business of the government. While the cabinet is appointed by the prime minister, who is also its chair, officially it is the governor-general who controls appointments.

Caucus:
A meeting held outside of chambers of the members of the House of Representatives or Senate who belong to the same political party, to elect leaders, discuss party policy on particular issues and determine tactics.

Double dissolution:
A double dissolution is the termination or dissolution of both houses of parliament (the House of Representatives and the Senate) and the calling of an election for all members and senators. The governorgeneral usually announces a double dissolution at the request of the prime minister.

Executive:
While it is the legislature or parliament that makes the laws, it is the executive that puts the laws into practice and polices them. The executive branch of government is therefore responsible for the administration of government business.

GST:
Goods and Services Tax.

House of Representatives:
The House of Representatives is the ‘lower house' of parliament. Members are elected from single-member constituencies, usually referred to as ‘electorates' or ‘seats'. Government is then formed by the party with the majority in this house.

Parliament:
Australia's parliament consists of three main elements: the Queen, who is represented by the governorgeneral; the House of Representatives; and the Senate. Parliament itself is bicameral, meaning that there are two houses: the lower and upper house. For a bill to pass it has to be with a majority vote in both houses in order to create a new law.

QANTAS:
Queensland and Northern Territory Air Service.

Senate: The Senate is the ‘upper house' of parliament and is also the ‘States House' as each state is represented by an equal number of senators.

SBS:
The Special Broadcasting Service, a television station which predominantly broadcasts foreign news and films.

UAP:
United Australia Party.

UN:
The United Nations.

US:
The United States of America.

BOOKS

Bolton, Geoffrey,
Edmund Barton,
Allen and Unwin, Sydney, 2000.

Brown, Wallace,
Ten Prime Ministers: Life Among the Politicians,
Longueville Books, Sydney, 2002.

Curran, James,
The Power of Speech: Australian Prime Ministers Defining the National Image,
Melbourne University Press, Melbourne, 2004.

Edwards,
John, Keating: The Inside Story,
Viking, Melbourne, 1996.

Fricke, Graham,
Profiles of Power: The Prime Ministers of Australia,
Houghton Mifflin Australia, Ferntree Gully, 1990.

Grattan, Michelle (ed.),
Australian Prime Ministers,
New Holland Publishers, Sydney, 2000.

Hawke, Bob,
The Hawke Memoirs,
William Heinemann Australia, Melbourne, 1994.

Holliman, Joanne,
Century of Australian Prime Ministers,
Murray David Publishing Pty Ltd, Sydney, 1999.

Hughes, Colin,
Mr Prime Minister: Australian Prime Ministers, 1901-1972,
Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1976.

Irving, Helen (ed.),
The Centenary Companion to Australian Federation,
Cambridge University Press, Melbourne, 1999.

Jaensch, Dean,
The Liberals,
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1994.

Johnson, Carol,
The Labor Legacy: Curtin, Chifley, Whitlam, Hawke,
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1989.

Johnston, Marjorie,
The Menzies Era, 1949-1966,
Longman Cheshire, Melbourne, 1987.

Kelly, Paul,
November 1975: The Inside Story of Australia's Greatest Political Crisis,
Allen & Unwin, Sydney, 1995.

WEBSITES

ALP, Australian Labor Party -
www.alp.org.au

Australia's prime ministers, National Archives of Australia -
www.primeministers.naa.gov.au

Liberal, Liberal Party of Australia -
www.liberal.org.au

PEO (Parliamentary Education Office) -
www.peo.gov.au

A

Abbott, Anthony John
3
,
154
,
155
–
160
,
166

Aborigines included in census
97
land rights
114
,
115
,
133

administration, government in
44

ANZUS security treaty
87

apartheid, opponent of
124

Arbitration Commission
18

arbitration system, federal
48
–
49

Asian immigration
114
,
124

asylum seekers
115
,
138
–
139
,
151

Australian Socialist League
42

Australian troops, deployments
61
,
74
,
87
,
90
,
92

B

banks, nationalisation proposed
83
,
84

Barton, Edmund
3
,
11
,
12
–
15

border security
115
,
138
–
139
,
151

‘Brisbane Line'
79

British House of Commons position
27

British loans
53
,
58

Bruce, Stanley Melbourne
45
,
46
,
47
–
49
,
65

C

Cairns, Dr Jim
119

Cameron, Archie
69
,
101

Canberra, development of
48

‘Captain's Calls'
159

carbon tax
149
,
151
,
158

caretaker prime ministers
3
–
4
,
102
,
120
,
123

Chifley, Joseph Benedict
80
,
82
–
85

‘Children Overboard Affair'
138
–
139

China, diplomatic relations with
118

coalition partnerships
22
,
68
,
69
,
70
,
101

Commonwealth Court of Conciliation
18

Communism
48
,
85
,
91

Connor, Rex
119

conscription
39
,
43
–
44
,
52
,
57
,
75
,
87
,
92
,
118

consultation, lack of
144
–
145
,
159

Cook, Sir Joseph
19
,
36
,
37
–
40

corruption allegations
152
credit squeeze
92
,
96

Curtin, John Joseph Ambrose
61
,
71
,
72
–
76

D

Deakin, Alfred
14
,
16
,
17
–
19
,
51

defence services, establishing
38

deposed by own party, prime ministers
2
–
3
,
6
,
70
,
129
,
132
–
133
,
145
,
146
,
152
,
159
–
160

Dismissal, The
117
,
119
–
120
,
122
,
123

double dissolutions
39
,
91
,
119

drinking

Curtin's drinking problem
73

Hawke admits problem
128

Hawke's world record
127

E

East Timor
115

economic development within Imperial framework
48

post-World War II
84

economic reforms
132
,
137
,
138

F

Fadden, Sir Arthur William
45
,
67
,
68
–
70
,
91
,
101
,
110

Federation
9
–
10
,
13
,
18