John Hewson

“After such a decisive election outcome, soul-searching about what happened and why is only natural. One of the most conspicuous failures in the campaign was the role played by the media – they certainly tried to undermine our democracy.”

Former Liberal leader and columnist for The Saturday Paper John Hewson on what went wrong for the Coalition on election night - and what lessons the party should take from the defeat.

“Now that election day has finally arrived, it’s reasonable to ask: How much better informed are voters to make their choice? The campaign has certainly been neither a contest of policy ideas, nor of visions for our country’s path ahead.”

“Whether or not Scott Morrison can engineer the miracle of his second coming on May 21, he will leave significant negatives in terms of the Liberal Party and public policy in our country. The standard of political debate, and the respectability and responsibility …”

“Isn’t it reasonable to expect our political leaders to put our people first? It is instructive to recognise that the election campaign has spent most of its time on point-scoring against opponents, blame-shifting and gotcha moments. ”

“Morrison can argue that Albanese has never held an economic portfolio and can’t recall key economic data. However, Morrison would have to concede that his opponent is better able to manage industrial relations, with a Bob Hawke-like capacity to pull …”

“What a tragedy that the campaign is now ‘my scare is bigger than your scare’. We all have to fear that the more frustrated and desperate the major players get, the more they will resort to dirtier tactics and less substance in terms of what they would …”

“Despite the efforts of the media to discredit the independents’ movement, attempting to tag them as ‘fake independents’ and otherwise minimising their coverage, there should be little doubt that many conservative members sitting …”

“The clear message of the 1990 election was that disunity is death in politics. Bob Hawke easily capitalised on this truism to win a fourth term in office. The Liberal Party, meanwhile, had been torn apart by the leadership contest between John Howard …”

“The priority is simply winning. And it is not even about winning to lead, it is about getting the position and power but with little or no commitment to creating a meaningful future for our nation and its people. ”

“Talk about mixed messages on the economy. The government deliberately politicised the budget by moving it forward to March 29, so it could be delivered before a May election, and having set aside $16 billion in the most recent midyear economic statement …”

“We have now entered the territory where governments throw policy integrity to the wind. That is, we are in the final days leading up to the so-called caretaker period, which starts from the point that the election is actually called, and during which …”

“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 …”

“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 …”

“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. ”

“It’s rather odd that this government is running on the idea that people want the government out of their lives, yet they seem intent on doing the opposite and restricting individual choices. The Religious Discrimination Bill opens up other interesting …”

“There is no doubt that inflation was brought under control through the 1990s, but there is a real debate about just how much of that was due to the management of monetary policy compared with the impact of a host of other factors including, importantly, …”

“Before the pandemic, at most of my speeches to business and civil society groups, a question or comment was almost always made about why we don’t abolish state governments. The reasons were many and varied but all around a theme: a basic concern …”

“We have finally arrived. After an almost daily campaign since the 2019 federal election, we are just a few months short of the next one. Naturally, attention is turning to focus on Anthony Albanese and his opposition. From one perspective – namely that …”

“At the start of a new year, especially after such a tumultuous year as 2021, and in what will be an election year, it seems reasonable to take a look in the ‘too-hard basket’ to see what policy issues were missed, or deliberately ignored, …”

“There will not be a sustained economic recovery without a recovery of small businesses, and at this point they are on their knees. They are an essential element of the fabric of Australia and employ millions of Australians. They are the most innovative …”

“Scott Morrison has gone to great lengths to give his overall Covid-19 response an air of respectability by claiming to be acting on the basis of the science – ignoring his political manipulation of that advice and suggesting this is done with the …”

“Do not be surprised if Scott Morrison attempts a similar format in the coming election campaign; what I call a ‘trust and fear’ strategy. Essentially, Morrison will pose the question to voters, ‘Who do you trust to manage the pandemic …”

“Surprisingly to many, the Coalition has consistently maintained its poll lead over Labor on the question of who would be ‘preferred economic managers’. Although there are a host of other issues that will feature in the coming election campaign – …”

“Now the various independents’ movements are gaining genuine momentum in a number of key seats, having identified good, strong, community-based candidates and launching their campaigns for the next federal election, it is instructive to contemplate …”

“It has been a widely held perception that politicians can play fast and loose with the truth. As with those who sell used cars, they manipulate data and events to suit what they think will be to their short-term political advantage. Donald Trump elevated …”

“Is Scott Morrison’s latest slogan – ‘can-do capitalism’ – simply an overarching abrogation of his responsibility to provide good government in our national interest?”

“It has been demonstrated that incumbent state governments have been advantaged in their elections, but this sentiment is unlikely to be translated as support for the Coalition federally.”

“When will Scott Morrison and the Liberal National Party realise that three-word slogans are not a policy; indeed, they may not even be an effective way to deliver the desired marketing message? In the past two elections we were bombarded with ‘Jobs …”

“How often have you heard that we are a very egalitarian nation, and heard politicians claim that we have one of the most effective and fair social welfare systems in the world – yet inequality remains a significant political issue?”

“Clearly our universities found themselves in very precarious financial circumstances, but the government ruled out any form of direct financial assistance during the pandemic.”

“The latest development in New South Wales politics – the ascension of a new premier, Dominic Perrottet – may soon see the increased influence of the Catholic Church in matters of NSW government administration.”

“The ‘miracle’ growth rates in the Chinese economy have been slowing as the economy attempts some key transitions and tries to deal with important structural challenges.”

“Some in the Coalition act as if we can wait until, say, 2049 to then move towards net zero 2050, but all evidence suggests policy adjustments have to be front-end loaded if goals are to be achieved. ”

“A fundamental weakness of our democracy relates to the funding of election campaigns and other financial support of governments, parties and individual members of parliament. This needs to be a fully transparent and accountable process.”

“As with so much of Australia’s response to climate, it’s the states that are leading in terms of both emissions reduction targets and effective policy responses to the EV transition.”

“Voters are crying out for strong leadership on the big issues and for truth, integrity and accountability in government. There has been a massive loss of confidence, trust and belief in our politicians and in government processes in recent years.”

“One of the most compelling public policy initiatives globally over the past several decades, but unfortunately one of the most poorly implemented, has been privatisation. That is the concept of transferring business, industry or services from public to …”

“It’s taken a long time but the concept of the ‘greater good’ – the sense of a shared destiny, of shared interests, collective purpose, a common future – is finally returning to our politics. Largely this is the result of the need to build community …”

“It is difficult to understand how the government justifies setting the level of JobSeeker below the poverty line. It appears much of the government’s decision was based on the prime minister’s personal prejudice.”

“The pandemic has tested Morrison’s capacity for leadership, and he has been found seriously wanting. He simply hasn’t been able to rise above base politics, nor beyond what he considers to be clever marketing. ”

“It is most disturbing how genuine compassion has been lost from our national government. Even worse, they seem so shameless about it. Concepts of government responsibility, integrity and accountability are increasingly downplayed, even ignored. A sense …”

“Consider some of the most notable and concerning examples of ‘bad behaviour’, excess and the abuse of power and privilege of just the past couple of decades, which have seen an alarming erosion of ministerial responsibility, transparency and accountability.”