Politics

Scott Morrison lies about the economy all the time. He can’t help himself. He tells big lies about transitioning away from fossil fuels and small lies about the role of his office in the way grants are directed to marginal seats.

It is most disappointing that natural disasters seem to bring out the best in the Australian people and the worst in our politicians and political processes. We see the enormous outpouring of goodwill from neighbours rescuing neighbours, the phenomenal clean-up and recovery efforts from the ‘mud army’.

A senior member of the government – a minister in Morrison’s cabinet – has begun contacting ‘like-minded’ colleagues by email to arrange meetings where they can discuss the crisis. One recipient says, ‘The last time this happened, the leader was toppled.’

In early September last year, in an audacious, tone-deaf act that would come to symbolise the political opportunism and bad faith with which the Morrison government has approached the development of the new National Plan to End Violence Against Women, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that the keynote address at the National Summit on Women’s Safety would be reserved for himself.

I am finding it difficult to accept that Scott Morrison is now so desperate to win a second term he is prepared to run a scare campaign in an attempt to frighten voters on national security, clearly against reason, hoping to wedge Anthony Albanese and the opposition. This is reckless, the worst sort of opportunism, placing his personal interests ahead of our nation at a time of such significant uncertainty here and globally, and perhaps doing irreparable damage in the longer term.

Scott Morrison’s isolation this week with Covid-19 is a pertinent metaphor for the political malaise besetting him. Always a loner, he is again friendless. This is a severe impediment for any chance he has of saving his government. If the opinion polls are any guide, it is a task increasingly beyond reach.

As an average, generally unengaged voter, where would you go to get a balanced understanding of the issues and policy choices to be made at the next election? More than usual, this question is a difficult one to answer.

Uncertain times are usually thought to favour incumbent governments, but that presumes these governments have retained more than a modicum of confidence among a majority of voters. Evidence is mounting that the Morrison–Joyce Coalition has failed to deliver enough to merit its survival.

Energy is on everyone’s lips. First, Australia’s two biggest energy companies announce they will retire coal-fired power stations early. Great news: this is what climate science requires. Then Brookfield Asset Management and Mike Cannon-Brookes make a stunning play to buy AGL and rapidly replace coal with clean energy. Also good.

COMMENT: The Morrison government’s new research funding will force universities to rearrange priorities and existing work so they can meet narrowly defined commercial interests.