One of my favourite songs at the moment is Stick Season, by the US artist Noah Kahan, which takes its name from the late autumn/early winter when the leaves have fallen in his home state of Vermont.  He describes it as “a really miserable time of year when it’s just kind of grey and cold”. As […]

SAS Group director Bernie Ripoll called last month’s federal climate “the winter of voters’ discontent.” From our perspective, the political winter is still well and truly here a month later. Federal politics has the Prime Minister caught in a whirlwind of over a dozen issues. To give you a taste, we have GDP growth, inflation, […]

Winter is traditionally a time to hibernate and take things a little slower. The sun is up later, as we are, and sets earlier. In politics, the winter break is normally a time to slow the pace, with politicians to be in their electorates and at home if not on an overseas delegation. But this […]

We find ourselves at the precipice of a heated and scrappy campaign, but for now, there is an eerie calm before the campaign proper starts. This gives you plenty of time to read our election brief, setting the scene for October’s poll. July saw the annual budget estimates take place, with the Opposition taking up […]

There’s a little-known but widespread pandemic that can overtake small sections of the population every three to four years. The most common warning signs of candidate-itis are feverish activity, difficulty sleeping, and permanently high anxiety levels. While there is no known treatment, the condition is demonstrated to end abruptly after election day. The SAS Group […]

I tend to do people’s heads in. It’s mostly unintentional, but sometimes for fun. I’m an Anglican priest and have been politically active since I was a kid. I grew up in the bush but have become urbanised with a ridiculous coffee order. I am a graduate of journalism, political science, theology, and the Australian […]

This period during the winter recess of Parliament can be a tough time for incumbent governments, particularly when its less than a year out from a federal election. During this time governments should be clearing the decks for an election,  be right on message, and out every day selling its achievements. For the Albanese Government, this […]

If the four-year election cycle were a horse race, we are now entering the final straight. David Crisafulli and his horse hold a commanding lead. It’s Steven Miles’ first time in the saddle and he’s behind but he’s riding a horse with a track record of winning state elections. The recent budget had every spending […]

Never is it truer than in the art of politics.  Peter Dutton’s first-strike nuclear energy plan and the economic fallout of rising inflation is causing rising tensions in the Government. Even the welcome release of WikiLeaks founder and former fugitive Julian Assange was not enough to distract the media from the reality that inflation was […]