Just in case the Government might run out of attack points in Parliament this week, Malcolm Turnbull has decided to exhume the rotting corpse of WorkChoices to see how badly it smelt.
WorkChoices
Guy Rundle: Did Harper’s Christianity influence his wage decision?
Does Harper’s Christianity shape his idea of how recovery should proceed?
Fair Pay: the perils of politicians appointing ‘independent’ experts
The Fair Pay Commission is a classic example of when politicians appoint independent experts, things often don’t turn out exactly the way they planned.
A mining boom for mining companies… not for anyone else
New research suggests the benefits of the mining boom were far smaller than believed.
Liberal mates milked millions from Howard’s ad bonanza
In the Commonwealth, you can’t use taxpayers’ money without appropriate authority and you can’t spend it without making sure taxpayers are getting the best value for money, writes Bernard Keane.
It’s time to redefine success
After a century of badgering from pinkos and greenies, captains of industry are grudgingly starting to accept that profits are not everything, writes Peter Vogel.
Costello overlooks his own unpopularity in memoir
Costello’s argument is that if John Howard had managed the transition issue better, Prime Minister Costello would now be calling the shots, writes Bernard Keane.
There are two million Australians out of work. That’s the truth.
The official unemployment figure are bunk, writes Marcus L’Estrange
Heather Ridout, the 21st member of Rudd’s Cabinet
Julia Gillard’s first task as Deputy Prime Minister back in December was to address the Australian Industry Group. Since then, the AIG’s CEO Heather Ridout has scored a number of important Government gigs, writes Bernard Keane.
Mungo: Thank you and good night, John Howard
If you have any doubt that the election of a Rudd Labor government has changed the country, consider this: a year ago, did you imagine that the Prime Minister would be sending an openly gay woman of Chinese ancestry to Bali, to ratify the Kyoto protocol on Australia’s behalf?
Nelson vs Turnbull: A battle on many fronts
Fighting Kevin Rudd and balancing progressives and conservatives within his party will be tough enough for Nelson. But he will find himself shadow-boxing with Turnbull as well, writes David MacCormack.
Generational change Coalition-style
So yesterday it was not a 50 year-old Peter Costello who became Leader of the Opposition but the 49 year-old Dr Brendan Nelson, with the 51 year-old Julie Bishop as his offsider. Not much sign of generational change there, writes Richard Farmer.
The Howard Government’s record of political appointments
The propensity to make controversial appointments to positions of authority in public agencies was one of the more contentious habits of the Howard government, writes Rebecca Harrison.
Mungo: The dubious legacy of John Winston Howard
John Winston Howard was Australia’s second longest-serving Prime Minister, presiding almost unchallenged over the political landscape for well over a decade. His time in government can not be dismissed lightly. However it can be dismissed heavily, so here goes, writes Mungo MacCallum.
Errington: Unity and policy the challenge for Howard’s successor
The fact that opposition leaders who take the party leadership from a defeated prime minister never make it to the top job won’t stop some ambitious Liberals putting up their hand this week. And whoever ends up in the leadership will have a difficult time, writes Wayne Errington.
MacCormack: The electoral gods must be crazy
The electoral gods have a wicked sense of humour, don’t they? They seem to have thoroughly embraced a version of Marx’s maxim that history repeats itself first as tragedy, then as farce, writes David MacCormack.
Reality check: Honey, I doomed the universe
Everything that can go wrong with the John Howard election campaign is going wrong so it would not be surprising to learn that the astronomers who may have unwittingly hastened the end of the universe by simply looking at it were using a Liberal Party telescope, writes Richard Farmer.
Comitatus: Andrew Robb, the Google Assassin
When Andrew Robb first went to the Google homepage in search of ALP candidate bios, did he press “Advanced Search”, or did he just go straight to the button marked “I’m Feeling Lucky”, muses Possum Comitatus.
Abjorensen: Too many variables to be sure of a Ruddslide
Despite a persuasively convincing imitation, the Howard government isn’t dead in the water yet. There are simply too many variables to be absolutely cocky about a large Rudd victory, writes Norman Abjorensen.
Kevin Rudd, growth and the ‘you too’ campaign
It’s not the narrowing, but nor is it annihilation. It is an election in Australia, writes Christian Kerr.
New Leadership – Fresh ideas for the future and so on…
Kevin Rudd articulates his vision for the future.
Abjorensen: Barnaby Joyce, Labor minister?
Assuming that Labor wins government on November 24, it will still face the prospect of a hostile Senate, writes Norman Abjorensen.
