Newspoll: 53-47

The Australian reports the latest fortnightly Newspoll has Labor’s two-party lead at 53-47, up from 52-48 last time. Both parties have dropped a point on the primary vote, Labor to 39 per cent and the Coalition to 40 per cent, with the Greens steady on 12 per cent. Kevin Rudd’s personal ratings are now those of a political mortal: his approval is steady on 50 per cent, but his disapproval has crept up another two points to 40 per cent. Tony Abbott’s dicey ratings have improved, his approval up three to 44 per cent and disapproval down two to 37 per cent. Rudd’s lead as preferred prime minister is down from 58-26 to 55-27, equalling a poll conducted during Malcolm Turnbull’s brief honeymoon as the narrowest margin since the government was elected. Further questions on other leadership options and climate change produce results consistent with what we’re seeing elsewhere. Full tables here.

Author: William Bowe

William Bowe is a Perth-based election analyst and occasional teacher of political science. His blog, The Poll Bludger, has existed in one form or another since 2004, and is one of the most heavily trafficked websites on Australian politics.

2,732 comments on “Newspoll: 53-47”

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  3. Does anyone else notice that when Tony Abbott runs out of things to say he blurts out things about his and Mrs A, and his daughters sex lives.

    As a woman this is very creepy.

    Is he trying to have a pissing competition – look how much of a man i am?? Epic Fail.

    YUK

  4. [Sky news’ Lib stooge female reporter talking up ‘garrett job on shaky ground’ and says Libs will have him under pressure with questions when parliament returns next week.]

    As Kerry O’Brien says – they’re all young and cheap labour in newsrooms around the country. They wouldn’t know if their backside was on fire.

    Garrett will answer everything thrown at him. Hunt can rave on all he likes about 19 warnings but, from what I heard yesterday, many of them came from Garrett’s office anyway. Loved the applause and cheers Pete got at the CC. Not a mention by Trioli this am but she gave good dorothy dixer to Briggs about Libs on top. He told her he’d been in Victor Harbour and they are all behind Tone. It left Trioli smiling.

    It’s probably already a Lib seat but I’ll go and have a look.

  7. #2612
    [ So you think sex is more enjoyable after a conversation about sex and Tony Abbot. You sick bastards.]

    In the sex industry that type of thing is called KINK.

    There are a lot more people into it, than you would imagine.

  9. Yeah GP, but I don’t really need to know about Abbott’s sex life. (*blech* Just typing that made me a little nauseous.)

    And what a revelation!!! The guy enjoys getting it on! Wow, do people know that sex is fun?!! I’ll spread the word!

    Between the budgie smugglers, the chauvinism, and now this over-sharing regarding his sex life…. Abbott is sounding a lot like Borat. Without the charisma.

  14. No 2656

    I find it amusing that we’re the sex maniacs in light of the salacious revelations about Della Bosca, Thomson, Rann and Orkopolous on your side of the fence.

  20. Thankfully Della Bosca, Thomson, Rann and Orkopolous have the good sense to realise no one wants to hear them talking about their sex lives publicly.

  23. [Oooh Abbott = Borat. I like that, I think I’ll forward it to ALP Hacks Head Office. I feel a TV ad coming on…]

    Actaully Swannie mentioned it in QT on 4 Feb:
    [It is fantasy land. The Leader of the Opposition is going around dressed like Borat and the shadow finance minister is living in the Stone Age—Barnaby Rubble, getting out his rock abacus and embarrassing himself at the National Press Club.]

  25. [Psephos – I’m having trouble finding the electorate which includes Victor Harbor, SA.

    Who is the member please. Which party?]

    Mayo, Jamie Briggs.

  28. [Nooooooooo! Not the mankini!!!!]

    You know, confessions, I reckon old Tone would just love to front the cameras in one. The poor bloke is obsessed, it seems.

    Dingbat – yep, I know the area well having visited last year – damn awful new subdivisions stretching everywhere and all complaining about no water and I expect it to be a Lib member but just curious as to who it is.

    Spent our honeymoon there too in the 50s – unseasonably freezing cold weather for April so it was a lot of fun!!

  31. Thanks guys – I’m surprised it’s Mayo. I didn’t realise it extended that far.

    So Briggs was saying on Agenda that the people in his electorate were on the bus with Tone and it turns out that it’s his own mob. Derrrr. I was thinking he might have been talking in a Labor electorate.

  32. No 2673

    The Labor party is hardly an authority on dress sense given the poorly-fitted suits Rudd wears on a daily basis. Heck, at least Keating had taste in that regard.

  34. [You know, confessions, I reckon old Tone would just love to front the cameras in one. The poor bloke is obsessed, it seems.]

    He’s an attention-seeker alright. The comparison was made recently between him and Peter Debnam with the budgies, but I don’t recall Debnam obsessing so much about sex. I really do have the greatest of sympathy for Tone’s family.

  41. Glen Stevens has joined Ken Henry in pointing out that Barnaby Joyce is wrong on debt:
    http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/19/2824514.htm
    [“There are few things less likely than Australia defaulting on its sovereign debt – we never have, there’s never been a default by this country, I don’t think there’s ever been a default by any of the states,” Mr Stevens said.]

    Also, lest some forget when the ABC reports things favourbale to Labor, there is a good story here pointing out the embarrassing details of how the Abbott publicity stunt on the Princes Highway ay have created the truck near-miss:
    http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/18/2823083.htm?site=thedrum

  42. No 2686

    lol – the thing is, I find it rather embarrassing that the PM, who earns in excess of $350,000 per annum, has no time to buy a decent suit. He finds time to blab on Sunrise though.

    That said, Abbott has troubles making a proper tie-knot.

  45. Sorry to post a large slab of text, but here is what Garrett actually said rather than what Nudes Ltd said he said:

    [SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO COMMONWEALTH ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS

    The Government today announced a series of changes to the administration of the environmental programs to boost safety and improve environmental performance.
    These changes are aimed at boosting safety for households and safety for the workers whose employment is funded by these important environmental programs.
    The changes announced by the Government today include:
    o The establishment of a new household Renewable Energy Bonus Scheme to replace the Home Insulation Program and the Solar Hot Water Rebate.
    o Significant changes to the Green Loans scheme to boost the effectiveness and sustainability of the scheme.

    The changes announced today will ensure the Government continues to help householders and business contribute to Australia’s efforts to transition to a low carbon economy. The changes announced today put householders back in charge of the environmental products installed in their home. These changes will benefit good green businesses and are bad for the shonky operators who have begun exploiting this market.

    A new household Renewable Energy Bonus scheme

    A new household Renewable Energy Bonus Scheme will assist households save money on power bills and reduce their carbon emissions.
    This new Scheme will replace the Home Insulation Program and the Solar Hot Water Rebate Program both of which have been discontinued as of close of business today. The Government’s focus is on the safety of households and tradespeople who will both benefit from the operation of this new scheme.
    Under the household Renewable Energy Bonus scheme households will be able to receive a rebate for the installation of ceiling insulation or a solar hot water system or a heat pump. $1000 rebates will be available for ceiling installation and solar hot water systems and $600 rebates for heat pumps systems.
    The new rebate for solar hot water systems and heat pumps will be available for systems installed after today. This scheme will institute several key changes to the delivery of ceiling insulation including:
    o Householders – rather than installers – will claim the $1000 rebate directly through the Medicare system.
    o Introducing a new registration scheme requiring all installers to reregister, pay a cash bond, show evidence of meeting the training and skills requirements and provide certified quality assurance and occupational health and safety plans.
    o Introducing a strengthened compliance regime in concert with State and Territory occupational health and safety and fair trading authorities.

    It is intended that the insulation component of the Renewable Energy Bonus scheme will come into operation by 1 June. The Government’s objective remains to see insulation installed in up to 1.9 million homes, including those already installed under the discontinued Home Insulation Program, to be completed by 2011.
    The Government will also be commissioning an external assessment of the proposed implementation arrangements for the household Renewable Energy Bonus scheme and will continue to provide oversight to the scheme during its operation. This assessment will consider whether the arrangements and planned timelines proposed for the scheme’s implementation are sufficient to meet the Government’s expectations of safety. In relation the discontinuation of the Home Insulation Program, installers will have seven days to claim outstanding rebates for work completed prior to close of business today. The Government is prepared to consider appropriate transitional arrangements for legitimate industry participants and a hotline will be available.

    The Government attaches particular priority on the impact of this announcement on workers. Workers will have immediate access to assistance under the Government’s Compact for Retrenched Workers, meaning they will get immediate access to high level support, including access to retraining support and help in finding another job as quickly as possible. A hotline will be available for them too. The Government will continue to roll out an existing electrical safety inspection program of all homes that have had foil insulation installed under the Program. The Government will also be prepared to check as many houses as necessary which have insulation installed under the Home Insulation Program. The Government will also establish a new Home Insulation Program Review Office to handle all complaints and inquiries and immediately address risks created by unscrupulous operators and will appoint an independent reviewer to conduct a review of the Home Insulation Program design, implementation and delivery.

    Significant Changes to Green Loans Program

    The Government will help over an additional 600,000 Australian households tackle climate change through a re-designed and extended Green Loans program. That is on top of the 360,000 assessments already available under the program, of which more than 270,000 have already been booked nationwide. The re-design of the program will include:
    o the discontinuation of the less popular loans component next month to provide for the significant boost to assessment availability;
    o a new cap of 5000 assessors, allowing up to an extra 1200 trained assessors to contract with the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts;
    o a weekly cap of 15,000 assessment bookings and a daily and weekly cap per assessor of three and five respectively to ensure greater quality and a more even distribution of work for assessors right around the nation;
    o changed booking arrangements allowing only individual assessors to make bookings.

    These new arrangements will apply to the end of 2010.

    A new Green Start program

    The Green Start program will now commence from 1 January 2011. This Program will remain directed at helping low income households and those most at need improve their energy and water efficiency and help tackle climate change. The Program will also include a web-based assessment tool for all households.
    This Program will include in-home sustainability assessments, providing an ongoing pipeline of work for home sustainability assessors following the Green Loans program. Details of the program will be finalised in the coming months. ]

  46. Yeah, but Soc, the headline has positive connotations, to my reading:

    [Abbott leading by example on road safety]

    … And has only a tenuous connection with the gist of the article.

  48. I mean, most people in the public wouldn’t be aware that an Abbott media stunt caused a near-miss at a black spot. We tragics know all about it, but we’re the exception. Someone uninformed and coming across that headline would be led to believe that Abbott’s a good bloke, leading by example on road safety. A quite positive impression would be imparted, IMO, by the headline (which is as far as most people read, apparently).

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