We’re about half-way between the weekly BludgerTrack and when I’m anticipating the next opinion poll, this being the period of pre-budget calm before the storm, and a new thread is wanted. So I’ve decided to hang this one off the latest ANUpoll survey, an exercise conducted by the Australian National University two or three times a year to gauge the public mood on a specific area of public policy, and track the salience of various issues over time. The subject of the latest instalment, which was conducted by phone from a sample of 1200 in February and March, is tax and equity in Australia. Among various findings on tax that would be familiar from those who follow Essential Research, the report also finds support for increased spending on social services at its highest level since the series began in 1987. The report also finds that, in spite of everything, 56% consider the existing system “moderately fair”, on top of another 4% for “very fair”, while 22% rate it “not too fair” and 18% “not at all fair”.
The survey also features regular questions in which respondents are asked to name the first and second most important political problems, out of a list that presently includes 27 options. To make this easier to interpret, I’ve condensed results into various categories, which are hopefully generally self-explanatory (particularly economy/budget, environment and better government – security/external covers wars, terrorism, defence and immigration, while services covers health and education and such). The progress of these results since 2008 is shown in the chart below.
From which a number of points are clearly worth noting. Concern about service provision mounted to giddy heights after the 2014 budget, but promptly returned to normal after Malcolm Turnbull became prime minister. The combined result for the various economic issues is at a low point in the latest survey, having peaked in the years immediately following the global financial crisis. Security/external and crime/society, which are largely conservative concerns, are on an upward trend. “Better government”, I’m guessing, was a popular response among Coalition supporters while Labor was in power, but is not a correspondingly popular choice for Labor voters now it’s the Coalition’s turn.
Lizzie
I was less impressed with Lenore Taylor’s opinion piece than many, because it again was a ‘plague on both your houses’ piece. Like every other commentator in the press gallery she refuses to take responsibility for giving Abbott and the Coalition a free ride to the 2013 election. Even the 2013 article that you cite was a swingeing attack on Rudd and Labor and only a brief mention of Abbott, let alone the conduct of the Coalition that brought us to the point of the heavy handed Manus approach. Yet, at the time a Coalition government was looming.
I posted this on the latest Taylor article:
“”DAVID CROWE
Millions of workers will be offered modest tax cuts that kick in on July 1 in a surprise budget move.””
Must have been talking to John Howard, that was his buying votes method!.
“We have numbers!” Not on my iPad we don’t.
Morning all
Re. The leaked tax cuts planned for July 1. Nice to give Labor a heads up so they can work out what they will do.
Also isn’t there a number of Medicare cutbacks planned for July 1?
Supporting the Coalition’s tax cuts will be, in effect, an agreement with the their assertion that “we have a spending problem, not a revenue problem”.
Yes.
Well said TPOF
[TPOF
Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 10:38 am]
Summed it up beautifully. Labor have been left no choice but to say “Me too” as a direct result of the LNP’s repeated attacks, that despite the complete lack of factual basis, have resonated through the electorate in the past. This is politics; and Lenore as a political commentator, knows this and should be spelling it out for the less informed.
[ Player One
Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 9:48 am
I wonder when the LNP will realize that Mal is just a useless waffler and that Abbott would have been the perfect man to lead this type of negative campaign? Abbott must be smacking his lips in frustration!]
I’m loving how they cant get anything right.
Well said TPOF
Musrum @ #50 Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 10:36 am
Thanks Musrum, all is now good on my desktop, pages, number on post, preview all working well.
pritu @ #53 Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 10:46 am
To use the Crikey Clear Comment Preview script, install in order:
Firefox
Greasemonkey
cccp
or:
Google Chrome
Tampermonkey
cccp
Well said jen
I assume your comment is getting a few thumbs up TPOF? Well said.
Mac desktop here. No problem with page or comment numbers.
You notice that Lenore has still not abandoned her Mal-Love. She adopts the usual shabby trick of saying they’re all as bad as another – forgetting that he’s the PM and, at least on Climate Change, his approach is scandalous.
Simon Katich @ Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 10:59 am
+1
More weekend fun from David Rowe.
TPOF
Just wanted to add my “thumbs up” to your response. Lenore Taylor is often lauded here as an unbiased (or even slightly Labor-biased) commentator. But this piece shows her to be no better than the rest of the (at best) lazy and (at worst) deceitful journalists we have in this country.
If labor introduces tax cuts that actually do something for middle-income earners (and the libs just help their rich mates) surely, that will destroy them.
Just found out what TPOF stands for 🙂 Gave you a arrow/thumbs up thing.
I’m starting to sniff the distinct waft of LNP defeat in the wind.
And when its epitaph is writ, it wont be because of Abbott v Turnbull, though that didnt help.
They were just bloody awful at governing. Always choosing stupid culture war over policy ideas.
Sub standard: why the $2,000 we are each spending on submarines will probably be a terrible waste.
AUSTRALIA is spending $50 billion to buy submarines. The biggest whack of money we’ve ever spent on a Defence project. It comes out at $2000 per person. And it’s probably a shocking idea.
http://www.news.com.au/technology/innovation/design/sub-standard-why-the-2000-we-are-each-spending-on-submarines-will-probably-be-a-terrible-waste/news-story/6922de6f6a72657c669fdc1a1248916f
Thanks for the ‘likes’. It’s something I feel very strongly about.
People of goodwill knew that unauthorised asylum seekers was the most wicked policy problem of all – and remains so. The Opposition was insistent on reopening Nauru because it would have been a huge policy loss of face for Labor, despite the fact that it was a proven hell-hole and the best official advice was that it would not work again. None of this was ever pointed up by the commentariat. I do not recall one single commentator who raised the obvious point that it was utter hypocrisy of the most evil kind to decry Malaysia as ‘inhumane’ while at the same time think that Nauru was fine. Because Nauru did not have an official practice of corporal punishment apparently. Even if people did go mad there last time and it was a 20 sq kilometre barely solvent hell-hole.
Labor tried bipartisanship. The Expert Panel report was a masterpiece of bipartisanship. A genuine attempt to address the issue while conceding points (and revised policy) to all sides. The Coalition and the Greens happily rejected the bits that did not conform to what they were promoting as the answer: the Coalition because it helped their election prospects; and the Greens because it kept their base happy and they were never going to be accountable for what happened anyway.
As for the ETS, the Coalition should have been crucified for both walking away from their central 2007 election policy and for reneging on an agreement that Labor had negotiated with them in good faith. Instead, the media were happy with both the outcome because it was great reporting fodder and, as a bonus, setting Malcolm Turnbull up as a martyr for his conscience. All good stuff to sell papers and get Walkleys but crap at educating the public in what should be real civics.
And then we see idiots like Chris Kenny (the only ‘journalist’ to get a visa to Nauru’) think that turning our attention to climate change even vaguely seriously is going to be a big winner for the Coalition because it will give them a chance to misrepresent Labor. Wow.
http://www.theage.com.au/environment/perilous-bureau-of-meteorology-boss-rob-vertessy-exits-with-climate-warning-20160429-gohwu6.html
So… what’s the plan to protect the countries farms and populace? Victoria’s much maligned desalination plant now seems like a stroke of genius, but will Australia require a whole lot more? What about flood levees? Can’t say we haven’t been warned. A fear campaign on an ETS? Pfft… this is a real fear campaign. How’d you like to die of thirst?
Oh look. It just so happens we suddenly have a national security problem so urgent that we have to run ads all through the election campaign to remind voters of how scared they should be.
Every day in every way, Turnbull gets Abbotter and Abbotter.
http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2016/turnbull-government-to-run-8m-national-security-ad-blitz-during-election-campaign-20160429-goiko0.html
Memorable? It was such a joke that it made it into our language. 😀
Running an AS scare campaign throughout the election campaign is despicable.
TPOF
The rejection of this still make me angry.
Saw those national security ads cropping up over the past few days … talk about obvious election ‘scare’ ploys. Plays into the faux “who do you trust?” meme …. which treats the electorate like stupid, terrified sheep.
Breaking news: an election is coming. Tony Smith seen in local shopping centre carpark.
One of his helpers came up to me and offered a little notepad “Would you like one of these?”
I glanced at it, saw his name and without thinking made a face and said “No, thankyou, in an obviously dismissive tone.
I’m not usually as rude. Now I’ve blown my cover!!
What I want to know is if there really is a security alert, where is my fridge magnet?
Tom.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/fridge-magnets-help-stop-terror-attacks-pm/2007/07/02/1183351111887.html?page=2
Tom.
Do tell. I’ve wondered for ages.
Terror ads, election tax cuts, unions boo!
The depth of innovation is scary.
Fridge magnets help make the outside of the fridge look as messy as the inside.
Or is that just me?
lizzie
Tony Pants On Fire
Or
Tons of Paper On Fridge
lizzie
Eternal vigilance.
Simon Katich
Are you a minimalist?
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-04-30/tax-relief-for-middle-income-earners-budget-priority/7372982
lizzie
As a minimalist, I am a complete failure.
Labor didn’t have to go Full Brutality on asylum-seekers in 2013. That’s entirely on them. You cannot absolve them of agency and responsibility.
Simon Katich
🙂 I feel uncomfortable in a perfectly tidy room.
lizzie
you would feel right at home at my place then.
I blame the kids; unfairly.
Tories Piss Off Fast
Simon Katich Saturday, April 30, 2016 at 1:14 pm
lizzie
As a minimalist, I am a complete failure
********************************************
or more minimal – As a minimalist, I am a flop
LaurieOakes
15h15 hours ago
LaurieOakes @LaurieOakes
Column: Malcolm Turnbull cannot run a scare campaign
lizzie, sorry I’m coming and going today.
As others have said TPOF=TonyPantsOnFire according to his guardian account.
It will have to be ToryPantsOnFire After TurnbullPantsOnFire is gone.
What will put an end to terrorism is the sort of fortitude displayed during the Blitz (by a large part of the population including GG’s mother as I understand it)
That is to say “is that all you’ve got” when people are killed (as inevitably they will be) and carry on living a 21st civilized existence. Or as is was said (to Hitler) at the time: “you do your worst, and we will do our best”…
Rather than being fearful, Australians and all civilized people should be filled with righteous anger that this sort of thing is still going on in this day and age. And it should be recognized that rather than being a Muslim problem, the Islamist problem—terrorism without purpose which therefore can only be solved by extermination—is fueled (somewhat literally) by wealth generated from oil with no requirement for work, leading to a generation of people with no meaning in their lives, some of whom thus turn to Islamism.
It is sometimes said that the West (and in particular the US) has caused this problem because it is after the (profits from the) oil. In fact the problem has arisen because the US (unlike its predecessors) failed to fully secure the oil for itself, allowing the locals to become spectacularly wealthy without meaningful effort (and derail the world economy into the bargain) and to leap from riding camels to being driven in Bentleys without the sort of development in civilization that usually accompanies such an increase in wealth.