The final sitting day in the parliament yesterday provided a timely reminder that Labor has a long and illustrious history of finding itself in golden situations only to totally stuff them up.
Forget the next three years, Bill Shorten and Labor could turn the dumpster fire that is Canberra at present into an inferno that could engulf it and everyone in the general vicinity in less than 12 weeks.
In other, brighter circumstances it might be the kind of efficient service delivery the punters expect from government.
Presuming Shorten and Labor win the next election (and that requires a sizeable leap of faith if not logic after yesterday’s shenanigans), one can only speculate what disasters will come its way in government. My best guess is Shorten will do a Nick Greiner, establish a federal anti-corruption commission only to find multiple members of his cabinet and ultimately himself, ensnared in it, providing an alternative meaning to the term “conviction politicians”.
In what stands as an extraordinary political achievement, Labor managed to disappoint everyone across the political spectrum yesterday — people who vote Labor, people who don’t and people who were thinking of voting Labor but now probably won’t.
It was as if the tactics committee met, handed Shorten a ball-peen hammer and told him to belt himself over the head with it, on the basis that it would feel better when he stopped.
The telecommunications access and assistance bill became law yesterday, passing through the Senate 44 votes to 12, after being waved through the House with bipartisan support.
It is, of course, a bill of the government’s making. It is a disaster, created by legal minds with little or no apparent expertise in technology. The problems with it are numerous but the biggest lies in the fact the law would require technology companies to target a single device or small number of devices, but only in a way that does not introduce a “systemic weakness” that impacts all users.
The techs I have spoken to say this is all but impossible and may lead to tech companies feeling obliged to leave the country rather than run afoul of this putrescent law. One of our most prolific and profitable industry sectors may leave our shores in droves. Well done, everyone. Throw another log on the dumpster fire.
The other major problem with the bill is it is yet another intrusion into the privacy of the citizenry. Predictably the response from the government and the opposition is of the tedious, “if you done nothing wrong, you have nothing to worry about” kind.
Labor’s favourite urger on Twitter, member for Gellibrand, Tim Watts, lectured a clearly unnerved Twitterdom on Tuesday night in an effort to bring some calm. “Wait and see our amendments,” the young MP promised. In the end Labor dropped its amendments altogether and waved the bill through.
It is a dreadful piece of law and by Labor’s own admission will need to be amended early next year, leading to the obvious question, and one that remains unanswered, why wave it through the lower house at all?
Timidity and cowardice
The old maxim that any day when the political debate turns to border security is a bad day for Labor seems to have Bill Shorten and his front bench spooked.
Labor is everywhere and nowhere on this issue. Jelly nailed to a wall.
Timidity and political cowardice are never far away with this mob.
The day started with Prime Minister Morrison facing a humiliating defeat in the parliament, with Labor and the Greens supporting a crossbench bill which would leave the decision on refugee repatriation to Australia entirely in the hands of those with medical expertise. Instead it was Shorten and Labor who were left pink-faced in embarrassment as the bill was filibustered to within an inch of its life in the Senate.
Everything Labor sought to achieve did not happen and everything it did not want to happen came to pass.
News reports today indicating Labor has softened its policy stance on refugee policy lends strength to the prevailing view that Labor is soft on border control while Shorten et al have simultaneously upset Labor voters who were hoping for a more humane policy response.
Faced with the prospect of multiple triumphs in the parliament in the morning session, all Shorten could do was lament the scoreboard at the end of the day. Win-win had become lose-lose.
As the House adjourned for the Christmas break, it was difficult to determine who felt more relieved — Scott Morrison or Bill Shorten. The only good news for both men is the parliament will sit so rarely in the New Year, they may as well call in the caterers and hire out both chambers for weddings, parties, anything. Maybe a funeral or two.
The focus in recent times has naturally been on the Morrison government and its travails. There appears to be no way out for the government, that is until we pause and turn our gaze to Bill Shorten and the Labor opposition.
And when we do, we are drawn to the conclusion that it would be madness to underestimate Labor’s capacity for political self-harm.
This column was first published in The Australian on 7 December 2018.
“Coal-fired capacity made up nearly 70% of the capacity retired in 2018, totaling about 11,800 MW, despite efforts by the Trump administration to ease regulations on emissions from coal-fired plants.”” The amount of coal-fired capacity retired in 2018 more than doubled the amount from the year before, when about 5,000 MW were shut down.”
“This is the equivalent of 70% of total Aussie coal power capacity. The US had NO power or price issues at all.
By contrast, we have shut down 6.5GW of coal output over five years:And this paltry sum has all but destroyed our political economy. Why? Coal power converts to gas easily and cheaply and is much lower in emissions. We instead sold all of our unconventional gas to Asia at huge losses. That is the ONLY reason we have ANY decarbonisation or price issues in energy”
Trainee treasurer Recessionberg,.Classic! despite all the economic indicators he says he will deliver a “surplus” budget. Of course the “surplus” would be in the next government term not this one. All indicators are pointing to an economic downturn except for at coalition headquarters? No surprises fair dinkum. Recessionberg classic!
I’m not sure a national register for sex offenders is the way to go. Perhaps sex offenders should be required to report to police if they are visiting or moving to a new location. Basically having their information available to police or have a penalty imposed.
Oh yes the planet is cooling PFFFT Not.
https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/the-stunning-chart-revealing-australia-s-record-breaking-run-of-rising-temperatures-20190110-p50qk1.html
Some info on 5g
https://www.howtogeek.com/340002/what-is-5g-and-how-fast-will-it-be/
Still requires Fibre for back haul. Copper does not cut it. Face it JS your coalition put politics over the National interest. It is the coalition only setting. Just like copper they are out of date and badly need replacing all over the country and will continue needing replacement for decades to come until they are completely removed for the country to meet its full potential.
But isnt China getting out of coal? That’s what we are continually told on this blog by some.
https://endcoal.org/2018/09/tsunami-warning/
This is also informative……..
Ben Potter, Australian Financial Review, October 16, 2017:
Oliver Yates and the former ACT (Labor) Deputy Chief Minister Simon Corbell … have set up Clean Energy Derivatives Corporation to raise $250 million to back contracts with wind farms and solar farms … The Victorian and Queensland (Labor) governments have announced about $3bn of reverse auctions for renewable energy … and the ACT (Labor-Greens government) is a long-established player … having kicked it off when Mr Corbell was chief minister.
Corbell was never Chief Minister
It says deputy chief
Read the last sentence again
Follow the money. Always follow the money. Big Green is here and there is a motsa to be made. Stuff the little man!
Ex-Macquarie banker Oliver Yates, chief executive of the government’s $10 billion Clean Energy Finance Corporation until April … is the independent director of several emerging renewable energy companies.
Some gossip:
On a Skybus to the airport the other day we stopped to pick up this rather bedraggled looking passenger. Long curly , oily, unkempt, thinning hair, scruffy cords – and talking assertively on his mobile. He was difficult not to notice. Anyway we all disembarked at Hobart International (I was only going to Melbourne). My flight was ready to go but lacking one passenger and the announcement comes- ”If Mr Peter Slipper is on board please make yourself known to the cabin crew” !!
He hadn’t yet boarded but duly arrived under the curious eyes of all the passengers. Maybe he hadn’t finished the wine tasting in the Qantas lounge? But oh dear – what a fall from grace – he was on a Jetstar flight – at the back 🙁
What is O’Dwyer doing about this? There is something very wrong in workplaces in this country. Unfortunately KOD supports the employers at every turn. Just look at her use of taxpayer funds to support the bordering on corrupt labour hire industry.
https://www.theage.com.au/business/workplace/hope-to-god-you-don-t-get-thirsty-maccas-warns-workers-about-breaks-20190109-p50qbu.html
I think BS has form in putting the employers and the unions ahead of some of the lowest paid workers.
little milton I did not mention bill shorten if that is who you are referring to. I noted the current minister KOD continues to use taxpayer money to support companies exploiting Australian workers. You continue to show your true colors. For you it is about supporting a toxic ideology which attacks the vulnerable over the National interest every time. No surprises. You remain part of the problem in this country.
yeh, no, I mentioned him and will add the unions as being happy, like Beaconsfield Bill, to rip off the lowest paid and exploit the workers for their own purposes.