Sunday 25 November 2007

How the Libs could win in 2010

CairnsBlog contributing writer Sid Walker, says the race starts all over again...


With the resignation of Peter Costello, the way is open for genuine renewal of the Federal Liberal Party.

I’m no Costello fan, but it is fair to acknowledge that nothing became him so much as his dignified and blessedly prompt exit today as contender for the Liberal leadership.

The obvious choice of new leader is Malcolm Turnbull. I believe he could win in 2010 - if he takes the Liberal Party in a radically new direction. It's a direction that would have been unthinkable until recently, but may now be possible given the dramatic global changes in progress and signs of growing environmental awareness in the business community.

Essentially, the greening of the Liberals is their only real choice if they want to regain power. Turnbull might just be able to achieve that. He shows more than a modicum of understanding of environmental issues and would clearly have presented a much greener agenda to the electorate on this occasion, had he been empowered to do so.

It is, of course, doubtful whether the residual Parliamentary Liberal Party will (a) support Turnbull and (b) support a decisive greening of the party’s agenda.

That’s a pity – ultimately for the nation - because we need major party consensus on the need for (genuine) sustainable development if it is to happen – and we’d all benefit from effective parliamentary opposition to the ALP’s gray policies.

One objection is that the Coalition with the Nats could fall apart if the Liberals go green. There are two main answers to that.

The first is that there’s plenty in a green policy agenda that would be welcomed by the bush vote. Old guard, vehemently anti-environmental Nats are on the way out too.

The second is that while Libs may feel they need the National Party, the reverse is true to a far greater extent. Without their coalition partner, the Nats are an irrelevant rural rump. Their chance of winning Senate seats on their own is lower than the Greens. I believe Turnbull could face down the old National Party guard and win.

An election in 2010 between a greenish Liberal Party and a greenish Labor Party could be a close run. Turnbull might just win. At the very least, he could give Australian voters a real choice between relatively sane options.

Indeed, capital G Greens might be able to take a break from largely unpaid activism and concentrate more on their own lives.

Ah well, we can but hope…

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

and will Turnbull make Workchoices "green" too?

Anonymous said...

The only 'green' Turnbull likes is the folding type that fits in wallets. He certainly didn't become a millionaire through his belief in brotherly love and fairness for all and least of all through his concern for the environment.

Anonymous said...

The comments by anons are the kind of comments I'd expect. They have some weight. But I think I'd rather take the analysis of Tim Flannery - or long-term activist Tom McLoughlin - over these rather predictable sneers that for all I know could be posted by Mrs Rudd. (Checked her bank balance recently, BTW?)

Seriously, I'm no Liberal Party fan. I've not met Turnbull and I also think Tim Flannery is more than capable of getting things wrong.

But anonymous sneers about Turnbull's wealth and Workchoices don't cut much ice - not when they are so obviously party-political in inspiration. Even Attila the Hun wouldn't run on Workchoices in 2010. That issue has been resolved.

A far more important matter at this time, IMO, is how we save what's left of the planetary environment and develop a environmentally sustainable economy. Resolving that will literally determine humanity's chance of a decent future.

A real competition over environmental policy will be an important part of turning around Australia's embarrassingly unsustainable economy.

In that context, if someone can propose a better option to Turnbull leading the Libs, please do.

Personally, I don't think an ALP 'One Party State' is the answer - but I hope I'm wrong about that, because we're coming perilously close to having one, de facto if not de jure.

Anonymous said...

Malcolm Turnbull is also a Republican and I think we should all be aware to his leanings in this reguard should he make the next Prime Minister or should that be President!

Anonymous said...

Malcolm Turnbull as President of Australia? VOMIT!

Anonymous said...

Turnbull is a far better choice than Abbott or Nelson. Nelson cant keep his foot out of his mouth...well nor can Nelson either !!

Anonymous said...

Ummm, I know that about Nelson...he who shot off his mouth about the Iraq war being about "safeguarding the oil" and that is why I think he would make the better Liberal leader!

Anonymous said...

Subject: Fw: Trevor the farmer









Trevor the farmer was in the fertilised egg
business. He had several hundred young layers
(hens), called 'pullets' and eight or ten roosters
whose job was to fertilise the eggs. The farmer kept
records and any rooster that didn't perform went
into the soup pot and was replaced.



That took an awful lot of his time so he bought a set of tiny
bells and attached them to his roosters. Each bell
had a different tone so Trevor could tell from a
distance, which rooster was performing. Now he could
sit on the porch and fill out an efficiency report
simply by listening to the bells.



The farmer's favourite rooster was old Gordon, and a very fine
specimen he was too. But on this particular morning
Trevor noticed old Gordon's bell hadn't rung at all!
Trevor went to investigate.The other roosters were
chasing pullets, bells-a-ringing. The pullets,
hearing the roosters coming, would run for cover.

But to farmer Trevor's amazement, Gordon had his
bell in his beak, so it couldn't ring. He'd sneak up
on a pullet, do his job and walk on to the next
one.Trevor was so proud of Gordon, he entered him in
the West Berkshire County Fair and Gordon became an
overnight sensation among the judges.The result.



The judges not only awarded Gordon the No Bell Piece
Prize but they also awarded him the Pulletsurprise.


Clearly Gordon was a politician in the making: Who
else but a politician could figure out how to win
two of the most highly coveted awards on our planet
by being the best at sneaking up on the populace and
screwing them when they weren't paying attention.

Anonymous said...

Re Brendan Nelson,
he has the personality of a door mat and is a good candidate for Paget's disease (thickening of the forehead area, no pun intended), but if you read it that way, OK then.
Definately not PM material.