opinion
Paul Bongiorno
religion July 13, 2019
Scott Morrison, prayers and Hillsong
Rapturous applause welcomed Scott Morrison to the annual Hillsong conference. Twenty-one thousand delegates bowed their heads as the prime minister led them in prayer for our nation – for veterans doing it tough, young people considering suicide,...
religion July 6, 2019
Faith and tax cuts as 46th parliament begins
In politics, so the wisdom goes, “perception is reality”. And this week, with the opening of the 46th parliament, the perception and the reality of the federal election hit home, particularly for the vanquished Labor Party. But for the victors, not...
ir June 22, 2019
The cost of Coalition tax cuts
The tax cuts impasse between the government and the opposition has opened the way for a familiar play from the senate crossbench. As Scott Morrison was basking in the warmth of a holiday in Fiji, it was the Centre Alliance senator Rex Patrick who...
economy June 29, 2019
Labor’s contortions on tax package
This weekend Scott Morrison is rubbing shoulders with 19 other world leaders at the G20 summit in Osaka, enjoying the status of Australia’s newly elected prime minister. It’s perfect cover for the softening economy back home. Before his departure,...
immigration June 15, 2019
All quiet on the Morrison front
Scott Morrison is assiduously doing nothing much of consequence. In fact, this week he appeared to have taken a leaf out of the opposition leader’s book and, like Anthony Albanese, is doing a lot of listening. He has apparently decided this is the...
environment April 27, 2019
Coalition takes water, presses on
His Labor opponents privately concede Scott Morrison is a much better campaigner than the deposed Malcolm Turnbull. And Morrison is taking full advantage of the unquestioning support he is getting from the dominant Murdoch papers around the nation...
economy April 20, 2019
Dutton serves as Labor’s Easter bunny
Being frontrunners in the election campaign, as confirmed by the latest Newspoll, has key Labor people nervous. They are uncomfortable with the almost universal expectation the election is theirs to lose or, worse, that Bill Shorten is already seen...
environment April 13, 2019
PM sets tone for May 18 election
The 2019 election campaign is off to an inauspicious start. The tone has been set by the prime minister, who admits he is the underdog and seems to have decided the best way to win over voters is to treat them like mugs, launching an absurd attack...
economy April 6, 2019
Coalition banks on infrastructure
“Scott’s giving it his best shot.” That was the generous assessment of one of the prime minister’s troops, who voted for him reluctantly in last year’s leadership coup. The prompt for the observation was the Morrison government’s first budget, a...
media March 30, 2019
Morrison gears up for last-ditch budget
The government is rushing at breakneck speed towards its date with destiny. On Tuesday night the treasurer will unveil the first budget of the Morrison government, which the polls suggest will almost certainly be the last fiscal prescription of the...
religion March 23, 2019
The Australian white supremacist who allegedly massacred 50 Muslims while they were at Friday prayers in Christchurch, New Zealand has recast the political debate in this country. The cowardly, hate-filled attack has shaken both nations to their...
