Anthony Albanese - How long? -2-

[Ivelisse]

It's simply a Westminster convention. The leader who can command a majority in the lower house is the prime minister. In actual Westminster, the upper house was entirely unelected when Australia was formed. Therefore the convention developed that the prime minister should have a democratic mandate.

I think the reason the convention persists with our elected Senate is that:

1. The government seldom has a majority in the Senate
2. Senators could be seen as less democratically elected than MPs because MPs have to personally face their voters every 3 years, while Senators just get in via a party group voting ticket and get to sit there for 6 years.
3. The PM answers questions during Question Time and that just wouldn't 'go' when the majority of ministers are in the House of Reps.

If the majority party in the House of Representatives insisted on having a senator as leader the Governor-General would be obliged to make them Prime Minister

 

[Rob R]

Tip, you won’t get this from liberal or sky talking points. Keep up

Govt slashes spending on big four consulting firms by $890m

The Albanese government has slashed spending on big four consulting firms by $890 million since 2021-22.

www.capitalbrief.com

That would be good news but it certainly isn't apparent as a public service family in Canberra at least not in Defence which is what I am talking about.

Libs are far far worse by the way


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[AlwaysHawks15]

To me Jason Clare is the heir apparent

Clare flys under the rader but he's the most composed of all their senior cabinet. Very good orator who would be quite a good leader if given the opportunity. He gives Sussan Ley a bath every time they debate anything on TV which is a vote winner for me. He's definitely somebody who will move up the pecking order if anything was to happen.

 

[Rotayjay]

To me Jason Clare is the heir apparent

Now that you mention him, Clare has the most charisma of the entire current front bench. However, his position as Minister for Education (as opposed to deputy PM or Treasurer) makes it look like he is not next in line. However, Plibersek was very noticeably placed in the environment portfolio to sideline her.

I may seem to bang on about charisma, but in politics it matters. Primary school children can pick the winners of elections. As one speaker said in the 1965 documentary The War Game, technologically we are in the Atomic Age, but emotionally we are in the Stone Age.

Children Can Predict the Outcomes of Elections Simply by Looking at Candidates’ Faces

We are far more influenced by appearances in our electoral decision-making than we like to admit

bigthink.com

 

[Rotayjay]

If you look at apsjobs.gov.au, the federal government is hiring like mad. No doubt that is a correction of the LNP's artificial cap on the size of the APS regardless of population. It has probably helped keep unemployment down.

However, my concern is that the LNP will look at the numbers when they eventually get in and say 'We're going to reverse Labor's unsustainable growth in the APS - let's slash it and give the work back to private contractors [or let the work go undone].'

 

[Rotayjay]

The other pre-election sweetener might be free child care, which might end the subsidy wars. It's already heavily subsidised, and every time the government lifts the subsidy, the child care centres lift their prices. A 100% subsidy for all might help address that, and be a massive vote-winner for women because let's be real - the one who stays home if working is uneconomical is the mother.

So it won't be a 100% subsidy after all, but a flat fee will still be a massive vote-winner for people with kids or people thinking about having kids:

Albanese dangles childcare package in pitch to voters

Labor’s new childcare policy will not be legislated until after the election, making its delivery contingent on re-electing the government.

www.afr.com

 

[Richard Pryor]

Thinking a new leader will make the party better ignores how power in the party works I reckon

Exactly. The sense I get from Clare is he would do great if Australia did U.S. Presidential style elections, but doesn't have enough sway within the party to have any influence even if he did get top job, e.g. "Moderate Liberal" Malcolm Turnbull spending his entire Prime Ministership trying unsuccessfully to placate the right of the party.

 

[E Shed]

I'm starting to understand at a more visceral level how a complete madman like Trump got elected.

My fury at the growing realisation that the major party duopoly and placating big money has become more important than the principles the labor party was founded on makes me want to put a bomb under the whole system.

That Albanese would rather make legislation to perpetuate a system which will allow a soulless, moral black hole like Dutton to be elected than legislation to protect the environment or reign in gambling advertising when was gifted a massive mandate to do so by the electorate.

Turnbull's complete jellyfish flop was heartbreaking for me but Albanese's man of the people, I grew up up in public housing, oh what's that Gina? of course I'll roll over and have by tummy scratched by the mining industry, completely bottle it on any meaningful housing price reforml and completely capitulate to sports betting is quite simply, utter moral cowardice and betrayal.

At least here we have a strong movement of independents who appear to have more than just vested interest at heart.
The labor party will never get my vote again.

 

[Rob R]

If you look at apsjobs.gov.au, the federal government is hiring like mad. No doubt that is a correction of the LNP's artificial cap on the size of the APS regardless of population. It has probably helped keep unemployment down.

However, my concern is that the LNP will look at the numbers when they eventually get in and say 'We're going to reverse Labor's unsustainable growth in the APS - let's slash it and give the work back to private contractors [or let the work go undone].'

Recruiting APS is good but part of the large number of adds is readvertising because the senior staff in Canberra increasingly want all the jobs in Canberra so they are poaching from eachother a lot or getting no good applicants so they have to readvertise in what is a very small labour market. As an example, submarine agency has to keep readvertising and just takes anyone which isn't surprising given all the expertise and potential workforce reside in the other capitals and have little interest in moving to Canberra.

If we are going to grow the public service as we need, thousands of jobs need to go where the people and expertise are.

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[Vindicater]

I'm starting to understand at a more visceral level how a complete madman like Trump got elected.

My fury at the growing realisation that the major party duopoly and placating big money has become more important than the principles the labor party was founded on makes me want to put a bomb under the whole system.

That Albanese would rather make legislation to perpetuate a system which will allow a soulless, moral black hole like Dutton to be elected than legislation to protect the environment or reign in gambling advertising when was gifted a massive mandate to do so by the electorate.

Turnbull's complete jellyfish flop was heartbreaking for me but Albanese's man of the people, I grew up up in public housing, oh what's that Gina? of course I'll roll over and have by tummy scratched by the mining industry, completely bottle it on any meaningful housing price reforml and completely capitulate to sports betting is quite simply, utter moral cowardice and betrayal.

At least here we have a strong movement of independents who appear to have more than just vested interest at heart.
The labor party will never get my vote again.

Welcome friend.

I have had either the Liberals and Labor last and second last for the last ten years of elections.

 

[Rotayjay]

Recruiting APS is good but part of the large number of adds is readvertising because the senior staff in Canberra increasingly want all the jobs in Canberra so they are poaching from eachother a lot or getting no good applicants so they have to readvertise in what is a very small labour market. As an example, submarine agency has to keep readvertising and just takes anyone which isn't surprising given all the expertise and potential workforce reside in the other capitals and have little interest in moving to Canberra.

If we are going to grow the public service as we need, thousands of jobs need to go where the people and expertise are.

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Right-wingers hate this fact, but to run the modern administrative state, it takes a lot of public servants. Public servants are an easy target for the right: '****ing useless arseholes who wouldn't last a day in my business, I bust my arse and they're lazy with their 7-hour days' etc etc etc.

I've met some fairly incompetent public servants, but also highly intelligent and dedicated ones. There are plenty of useless and good people in the private sector too.

Even with AI and other automation, you need a certain number of public servants per capita to run a society in the way people expect it to be run. If you don't, the country is vulnerable to attack (Dept of Defence), you're waiting months to get on the dole (Centrelink) or processing Auntie Li's visa takes 20 years (Home Affairs). And the federal APS is dwarfed by the public sectors of the states. When the ideologues in the LNP cut the APS, they are actively screwing over all Australians.

 

[Rob R]

Right-wingers hate this fact, but to run the modern administrative state, it takes a lot of public servants. Public servants are an easy target for the right: '****ing useless arseholes who wouldn't last a day in my business, I bust my arse and they're lazy with their 7-hour days' etc etc etc.

I've met some fairly incompetent public servants, but also highly intelligent and dedicated ones. There are plenty of useless and good people in the private sector too.

Even with AI and other automation, you need a certain number of public servants per capita to run a society in the way people expect it to be run. If you don't, the country is vulnerable to attack (Dept of Defence), you're waiting months to get on the dole (Centrelink) or processing Auntie Li's visa takes 20 years (Home Affairs). And the federal APS is dwarfed by the public sectors of the states. When the ideologues in the LNP cut the APS, they are actively screwing over all Australians.

I think there are four factors that drive the perception of the public service.

1) The early 90s when there was colossal waste and massive savings to be had, the trouble is by the late 90s, in house options were actually cheaper due to reforms but weren't even given a chance.

2) People see public servants from the hq parts of departments in cafes, shopping during the day and don't realise for every bludger they see, there is probably ten public servants who don't have time to go to cafes and are probably eating lunch while working

3) For many valid reasons, Australians distrust Canberra and even though most public servants are not in Canberra they are associated with Canberra

4) Most of the big stuff ups are made by the pollies but they either directly or indirectly blame the public service eg. Public service said MRH90 Taipan is a stupid decision, some unknown person across the lake put jobs in a marginal Brisbane electorate first and billions of dollars and lives have been lost.



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[E Shed]

I think there are four factors that drive the perception of the public service.

1) The early 90s when there was colossal waste and massive savings to be had, the trouble is by the late 90s, in house options were actually cheaper due to reforms but weren't even given a chance.

2) People see public servants from the hq parts of departments in cafes, shopping during the day and don't realise for every bludger they see, there is probably ten public servants who don't have time to go to cafes and are probably eating lunch while working

3) For many valid reasons, Australians distrust Canberra and even though most public servants are not in Canberra they are associated with Canberra

4) Most of the big stuff ups are made by the pollies but they either directly or indirectly blame the public service eg. Public service said MRH90 Taipan is a stupid decision, some unknown person across the lake put jobs in a marginal Brisbane electorate first and billions of dollars and lives have been lost.



On SM-A136B using BigFooty.com mobile app

I think there was also, initially a perception that privatization might improve costs & efficiencies as per the Neo-lib manual but the reality of cronyism, the loopholes it allows governments to outsource and then cite commercial in confidence to duck accountability and the modern reality of captured governments, corporate collusion to rort market prices etc has set in and people are realizing it doesn't work like it promised on the tin and they're angry.

 

[Gavin Excell]

Here's something I've been wondering: Why can't a Senator be a PM?

Because they are unrepresentative swill

 

[MarcMaverick]

Because they are unrepresentative swill

I mean that could be said of both the upper and lower houses.

 

[AlwaysHawks15]

Now that you mention him, Clare has the most charisma of the entire current front bench. However, his position as Minister for Education (as opposed to deputy PM or Treasurer) makes it look like he is not next in line. However, Plibersek was very noticeably placed in the environment portfolio to sideline her.

I may seem to bang on about charisma, but in politics it matters. Primary school children can pick the winners of elections. As one speaker said in the 1965 documentary The War Game, technologically we are in the Atomic Age, but emotionally we are in the Stone Age.

Children Can Predict the Outcomes of Elections Simply by Looking at Candidates’ Faces

We are far more influenced by appearances in our electoral decision-making than we like to admit

bigthink.com

Education can become a big win for a government if they have the right policies, and that means whoever is in charge of the portfolio of selling what your doing they look good in the electorates eyes. Clare could be put into any portfolio outside of Treasurer and be quite competent. Reason why not Treasurer is because they already have quite a good communicator in Chalmers. The 3 strongest members of cabinet are Burke, Murray Watt and Clare IMO.

 

[Saint]

I think there are four factors that drive the perception of the public service.

1) The early 90s when there was colossal waste and massive savings to be had, the trouble is by the late 90s, in house options were actually cheaper due to reforms but weren't even given a chance.

2) People see public servants from the hq parts of departments in cafes, shopping during the day and don't realise for every bludger they see, there is probably ten public servants who don't have time to go to cafes and are probably eating lunch while working

3) For many valid reasons, Australians distrust Canberra and even though most public servants are not in Canberra they are associated with Canberra

4) Most of the big stuff ups are made by the pollies but they either directly or indirectly blame the public service eg. Public service said MRH90 Taipan is a stupid decision, some unknown person across the lake put jobs in a marginal Brisbane electorate first and billions of dollars and lives have been lost.



On SM-A136B using BigFooty.com mobile app

Point 4 is a big one. So many times I see a lot of good work behind the scenes (years of work) only for a pollie to come along and toss it all in the bin for a vanity project instead, or they gut the initial scheme so much that they shouldn't have bothered.

 

[Carn The Berries]

You’re not seriously blaming this bill getting through on Murdoch as well are you?

I'm about half way through a book that details Murdoch's (and others) manipulation of governments over the course of the last century.

It would not be beyond the realms of possibility that this law was ole' Rupe's idea...

 

[Gralin]

You’re not seriously blaming this bill getting through on Murdoch as well are you?

well they've been claiming credit for it in their own papers (along with bagging Albo for doing it of course)

social media is the enemy for legacy media and Albo is definitely pro legacy media

younger people get less and less of their information and news from legacy sources and in part this bill would be hoping to reverse that trend by locking them out of those alternative sources for longer

not just Murdoch but almost all legacy media ran very heavy pro ban campaigns bringing out all sorts of experts and parents to tell their stories

if you think media doesn't impact policy in any country then you probably haven't worked out why so much of it is owned by billionaires

 

[Del203211]

if you think media doesn't impact policy in any country then you probably haven't worked out why so much of it is owned by billionaires

I think it does for sure, but god it’s tiring seeing the same people blame everything on Murdoch. They all want it, and yet only Murdoch gets a mention here.

 

[Gralin]

I think it does for sure, but god it’s tiring seeing the same people blame everything on Murdoch. They all want it, and yet only Murdoch gets a mention here.

Murdoch is the worst of the lot though

he also set the model others have followed

imagine how tired of that people who don't agree with Murdoch are?

 

[Ghost Patrol]

I think it does for sure, but god it’s tiring seeing the same people blame everything on Murdoch. They all want it, and yet only Murdoch gets a mention here.

There's good reason for this. Who do you think destroyed Myspace?

 

[The Punter]

I think it does for sure, but god it’s tiring seeing the same people blame everything on Murdoch. They all want it, and yet only Murdoch gets a mention here.

Well, Peter Costello is no longer Board Chair at Nine Entertainment. Who else is there?

 

[MarcMaverick]

There's good reason for this. Who do you think destroyed Myspace?

TBF Myspace wasn't particularly user-friendly and its layout sucked. When Facebook came round, it rendered MS obsolete.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

If you look at apsjobs.gov.au, the federal government is hiring like mad. No doubt that is a correction of the LNP's artificial cap on the size of the APS regardless of population. It has probably helped keep unemployment down.

However, my concern is that the LNP will look at the numbers when they eventually get in and say 'We're going to reverse Labor's unsustainable growth in the APS - let's slash it and give the work back to private contractors [or let the work go undone].'

Why hire people when you can spend twice as much giving a contract to your mate who’ll do half a job?