It’s the Federal Budget the Albanese Government didn’t want to have. Just days before the Prime Minister was planning to swing by the Governor General’s residence, Mother Nature had other plans. Labor faced a far more fierce competitor than the Coalition – a natural disaster called Alfred. As the ex-tropical cyclone ripped through South East […]

The 2025-26 Federal Budget handed down on March 25 all but fires the starting gun of this year’s federal election. The Treasurer has a good instinct for fusing policy and politics and he’s set the Opposition Leader a formidable challenge for this budget reply speech tonight. If you consume either traditional or alternative media, you […]

It’s more than seven years until the Olympic flame is lit in Brisbane, but already we have a genuine contender for a gymnastics gold medal – Premier David Crisafulli for attempting the riskiest of dismounts under extreme pressure. After weeks of media reports, on March 25 the Premier confirmed on Queensland’s worst-kept secret – the […]

Some days you wake up and everything is rosy. Other days you wake up and realise you’ve got egg on your face. Time to fess up about some eggs… The title of my blog in November last year was ‘Feels like the last sitting week of the 47th Parliament’. I can assure you, at the time it […]

The debate quickly turned personal during the first 2025 sitting week of the Crisafulli Government, held last week. While the government continues to implement its agenda, Attorney-General Deb Frecklington tabled a report on former Treasurer Jackie Trad, and the opposition launched into questions about the appointment of incoming Under-Treasurer Paul Williams. Parliament will resume again […]

‘It’s time’ was the famous election slogan that swept Labor’s Gough Whitlam into power in the 1972 federal election, ending 23 years of Liberal-National Party rule. It’s time now for Anthony Albanese to call the 2025 election. Some political pundits predict the 2025 election may be called this weekend for April 5th, but the smart money is […]

There’s only one story in Australian politics right now. It’s the guessing game about when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will direct the driver of his C1 limousine up leafy Dunrossil Drive in Yarralumla to the iron gates of the Governor-General’s residence.  It’s a mere seven minutes from the Prime Minister’s driveway at Parliament House, but the […]

My father, Doug, was a successful politician for 27 years. When I entered Federal Parliament in 1996, he gave me one piece of advice: ‘Son, keep your mouth shut. More people talk their way out of parliament than talk their way in.’ Mark Twain put it more bluntly: ‘It is better to keep your mouth […]

The Queensland LNP has managed the transition to government well. It has enjoyed the brief honeymoon period often afforded new governments and made the most of the opportunity to point out the failings of Labor’s last term in power. But things are about to get real for Crisafulli and his team.  Monday marks 100 days […]