Essential Research: sports rorts, ICAC, Australia Day

The latest from Essential finds majority support for removing Bridget McKenzie, but with a third saying they haven’t been following the issue.

Essential Research has not allowed the long weekend to interrupt the fortnightly schedule of its polling, which continues to be limited to attitudinal questions. Conducted last Tuesday to this Monday from a sample of 1080, the most interesting question from the latest poll relates to Bridget McKenzie, whom 51% felt should have been stood down by the Prime Minister. Only 15% felt he was right not to do so, while a further 34% said they had not been following the issue. The question included an explanation of what the issue involved, which is always best avoided, but the wording was suitably neutral (“it is claimed she allocated $100million to sporting organisations in marginal seats to favour the Coalition”).

The poll also finds overwhelming support for the establishment of a federal ICAC – or to be precise, of “an independent federal corruption body to monitor the behaviour of our politicians and public servants”. Fully 80% of respondents were in favour, including 49% strongly in favour, which is five points higher than when Angus Taylor’s troubles prompted the same question to be asked in December. Also featured are yet more findings on Australia Day, for which Essential accentuates the positive by framing the question around “a separate national day to recognise indigenous Australians”. Fifty per cent were in favour of such a thing, down two on last year, but only 18% of these believed it should be in place of, rather than supplementary to, Australia Day. Forty per cent did not support such a day at all, unchanged on last year.

Note that there are two threads below this one of hopefully ongoing interest: the latest guest post from Adrian Beaumont on Monday’s Democratic caucuses in Iowa, and other international concerns; and my review of looming elections in Queensland, where the Liberal National Party has now chosen its candidate for the looming Currumbin by-election, who has not proved to the liking of retiring member Jann Stuckey.

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.

2,092 comments on “Essential Research: sports rorts, ICAC, Australia Day”

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  1. Simon @ #148 Thursday, January 30th, 2020 – 9:13 am

    As a bonus, it looks like Morrison didn’t consult China either over his evacuation plan. He’s not broken his habit of delivering brainfart after brainfart.

    Yet another demonstration that Morrison is psychologically incapable of handling a national emergency.


    Re Q&A from memory the mayor of Bega Shire Council is also a Lib and was the one that called the residents of Cobargo a bunch of ferals after their less than enthusiastic reception of the PM. I’m guessing the audience is going to be well vetted, because its going to be either an LNP love in, or an all-in brawl. I don’t think the ABC is doing itself a service showing either.

    Too be fair, Winston Peters makes it clear, in the Guardian article I linked, that it was the consular officials on the ground in Wuhan who are responsible for sorting out the logistics of evacuating the Oz and NZ citizens.

  2. For the lawyers out there; if the police investigate something but decide not to take it to court, is there an avenue of appeal to that decision? Is there an ombudsman or external police unit that can investigate if the decision not to proceed was undertaken correctly or corruptly?

    On a different topic, when can we expect the AFP to decide if Angus Taylor has questions to answer on doctoring Sydney Council documents? Or can we assume Morrison will be able to hide behind the ‘under investigation’ line during first few parliament sittings.

  3. “Morrison: ‘The rules were followed, the guidelines are a separate matter’ ”

    Reminds me of “The operation was a success, although the patient died.”

  4. Simon Katich @ #155 Thursday, January 30th, 2020 – 9:27 am

    For the lawyers out there; if the police investigate something but decide not to take it to court, is there an avenue of appeal to that decision? Is there an ombudsman or external police unit that can investigate if the decision not to proceed was undertaken correctly or corruptly?

    On a different topic, when can we expect the AFP to decide if Angus Taylor has questions to answer on doctoring Sydney Council documents? Or can we assume Morrison will be able to hide behind the ‘under investigation’ line during first few parliament sittings.

    Not a lawyer, but isn’t that a role of civil law?

  5. It appears Insiders is following Q&A by stacking the couch with Liberal stooges…

    Nikki Savva, ex media staffer for Peter Costello and Murdoch writer
    Phil Coorey, the only journo to address Morrison as ‘PM’
    Renée Velleiras, don’t know anything about her, but is employed by the Courier Mail

  6. For the lawyers out there; if the police investigate something but decide not to take it to court, is there an avenue of appeal to that decision?

    Not beyond an internal review or pressuring through representations – the prosecution arising from the death of Mulrunji Doomadgee on Palm Island operated in that way, ultimately.

    Is there an ombudsman or external police unit that can investigate if the decision not to proceed was undertaken correctly or corruptly?

    For sure

  7. If Morrison won’t answer direct questions from the media, perhaps the tactic should be not to ask him any questions at all. Just imagine the reaction if, at yesterday’s Press Club lunch, (or at any press conference) not one journalist stepped up to ask a question. I don’t think he would handle it very well. Even better, would be if they all stood up at the same time and turned their backs on him.

  8. Ronzy @ #161 Thursday, January 30th, 2020 – 12:35 pm

    If Morrison won’t answer direct questions from the media, perhaps the tactic should be not to ask him any questions at all. Just imagine the reaction if, at yesterday’s Press Club lunch, (or at any press conference) not one journalist stepped up to ask a question. I don’t think he would handle it very well. Even better, would be if they all stood up at the same time and turned their backs on him.

    I guess throwing shoes would be out of the question …

  9. ItzaDream @ #162 Thursday, January 30th, 2020 – 9:38 am

    Ronzy @ #161 Thursday, January 30th, 2020 – 12:35 pm

    If Morrison won’t answer direct questions from the media, perhaps the tactic should be not to ask him any questions at all. Just imagine the reaction if, at yesterday’s Press Club lunch, (or at any press conference) not one journalist stepped up to ask a question. I don’t think he would handle it very well. Even better, would be if they all stood up at the same time and turned their backs on him.

    I guess throwing shoes would be out of the question …

    Don’t you have to leave them in the cloakroom these days?

  10. @lizzie

    (if not already answered)

    lizzie, there are female lyrebirds in the photo. They are slightly smaller, and don’t have the long lyrate feather plumes, but tail feathers roughly the same as their body length. The male ‘lyres’ are about double body length.

  11. Milmerran. Locals say that the proposed Inland Rail Route will cut right across the Condamine flood plain and will be a disaster. “Why would they create another natural disaster when there are already enough to deal with?”

    Senator Murray Watt
    @MurrayWatt
    ·
    25m
    White hot anger with the Federal Govt on display at Inland Rail Senate Inquiry outside Toowoomba yesterday. This is National Party heartland but residents & landowners being ignored by a party too distracted by their own rorts and scandals.

  12. C@tmomma says:
    Thursday, January 30, 2020 at 10:53 am
    …which seemed to prompt, now known to be untrue rumours even parlayed by certain contributors on PB (and you’ve got to wonder WHY they did it and WHERE they got the information from and for WHAT purpose they chose to retail the lie on PB?), that the devastatingly-effective Mark Dreyfus, who called for the investigation, was going to pull the pin and cause a by-election so soon after the federal election.

    I think it was nausea-inducing nath or LvT who first introduced that lie to PB, from memory.
    ________________
    I believe it was WB who first raised on PB the possibility of Dreyfus going by linking to an AFR article. But by all means, don’t let the known facts intrude upon your delusions and fantasies.

  13. Gavin Mettam
    @metgav
    ·
    13h
    Didn’t realise how much @tafensw funding had been absolutely gutted over the last 20 years until I found out I couldn’t do a short photography course anywhere within 500km from Armidale NSW. Oh and a 3 year art course costs $50K.

  14. Is there an ombudsman or external police unit that can investigate if the decision not to proceed was undertaken correctly or corruptly?
    For sure

    Thanks. Google says ACLEI in the AFPs case.

  15. Lizzie (herself quoting someone):

    Ms Arndt, in a lengthy interview with New Matilda,acknowledged she is not a psychologist or clinical psychologist, despite hundreds of representations to the contrary, nor has she ever been registered as either, anywhere in Australia. Ms Arndt also confirmed she is not a doctor, and has never obtained a PhD.

    Another interesting case is Bernard Salt: promoted in ‘The Australian’ and elsewhere as ‘Australia’s greatest demographer’ but apparently not a demographer (and hence excused from any requirement for numeracy…)

    Then there is Dr Bjorn Lomborg (BTW- autocorrect insists on calling him Bjorn Lamborghini) who is a “political scientist”, which it turns out is not a scientist and hence not subject to ordinary rules of scientific practice (it seems the Danish Science Society found that “political science” encompasses saying anything at all and on that basis approved his conduct).

  16. My little rant for the day.

    I know it’s now cemented into both written and spoken language but we never used to say “outside of” any more than “inside of”, “beside of”, “behind of”, “above of” or “below of”. It’s ridiculous.

  17. Ms. Arndt’s purported qualifications are to be investigated:

    It is not against the law to call yourself a psychologist or doctor or any other health professional but it is against the law to hold yourself out to be a “Registered” health professional. The question of what “holding out” entails will be relevant here

  18. Oakeshott Country

    Whether she is a registered psych is not half as important as the support she has given to various types of family violence, defending men as hard done by.

  19. Whoever (whomever?) at the ABC is responsible for assembling that QandA panel should be sacked.

    Hamish copping a lot of flack but expect that’s the hand he’s been dealt.

    Choosing Molan is a stupid decision and taints the much vaunted “new look” show. Many now won’t watch according to twitter feeds which is a shame because Hamish is a star.

    Dumb dumb dumb.

  20. Kate

    I agree. Here is another opinion.

    Sophie Trevitt @SophieTrevitt
    · 1h

    JFC @QandA why are you putting Jim Molan on a panel abt bushfires? You don’t need to give air time to anti-science kooks. They spread dangerous, deadly misinformation. By having him on your program ~you~ spread dangerous, deadly misinformation. Stop it! #auspol #ClimateEmergency https://twitter.com/QandA/status/1222640562030800896

  21. Doubtless, like William’s analysis of the sports rorts shows, plonking disease reffos on CI was thought to be very clever. It post hoc ‘justified’ the waste of hundreds of millions spent on bastardizing a single family. It muddied the water about medical repatriation nicely. But was it, like the sports corruption, too clever by half?

    The Coalition continues with its haplessness in the face of national emergencies. There are all sorts of mixed messages over the past week. One was Hunt saying that the disease was not spread peeps-to-peeps. This had been falsified before he announced it. Another has been a mishmash of messages relating to sending children to schools.

    And then there is this:

    1. (The chinese vote appears to be be decisive in several fed electorates.)
    2. Most inbound potential nCoV19 reffos will fly in under their own steam.
    3. They will be checked on arrival and be given various messages. These messages will vary from the treatment of the Chinese basketball team (immured for a fortnight) to, it is OK to go to school (and possibly infect others by being an asymptomatic shedder) but, if you get the sniffles, please let us know.
    4. Apart from the disease-laden rubs, here is the political rub: most of the Wuhan nCoV19 refugees to be flown in by the Feds will be chinese.
    5. Plonking Fed-flown chinese disease reffos on CI sends a remarkable message to both chinese and non-chinese Aussies.
    6. Forcing them to pay for their flights ditto. The ‘real’ aussies who had to return to Mallacoota to pick up their cars got a free flight from Melbourne so to do.

    nCoV19? Morrison does it again on the national stage: bad policy, bad politics, and twice as expensive as it should be.

  22. Bettina Ardnt described Robert Potter as a good bloke according to that New Matilda article.

    I did cases against Robert Potter. He was a hebephile who used his position as a scout master to befriend pubescent boys, identify which ones were from broken families and then ply them with booze and porn before sexually abuse them.

    One victim thought Potter loved him only to see Potter move on when he neared majority triggering a suicide attempt.

  23. I trust someone on Q&A asks Molan how you do a fuel reduction in a rainforest.
    Rainforests burned for the first time since 1788 from Queensland to Victoria.

  24. Canberra’s authorities have announced that they have saved the Orroral Valley tracking station site.
    Actually, they should have announced that they nearly burned it down.

  25. With such blasphemous and heretical talk I think we can expect the Coalition Government to restart its jihad against Industry super funds.

    Industry superannuation funds want end to super tax breaks that favour the rich

    Tax concessions for superannuation that overwhelmingly favour the rich need to be overhauled, the powerful industry super fund lobby has told Treasury.

    https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jan/30/industry-funds-want-end-to-super-tax-breaks-that-favour-the-rich

  26. OC
    They are suppressing the truth behind that story by setting up a rumour about a fake alien and THEN discrediting the fake story.
    The REAL story is…

  27. Someone should ask Molan whether he regrets the depopulation of vast swathes of Australia that removed the massive annual fuel reduction burns carried out by the first nations. For free.

  28. Someone should ask Molan why, if grazing of national parks is the answer, 25,000 feral horses could not save their national park from being burned to the ground.

  29. Someone should ask Molan why, if forestry is the answer, there was no difference in fire behaviour in state forests and national parks.

  30. zoomster @6:52am

    One of my perpetual beefs as a candidate was that we weren’t given the information we needed to explain policies. Often we received briefing materials days after a policy had been announced. More commonly, we’d get a list of ‘talking points’, which basically consisted of one stock answer on the topic – nowhere near enough information to get you through a normal conversation, let alone a media interview or someone genuinely interested in the policy field.

    This confirms my observations. The Party is not nearly as thorough or professional as it should be. Yes, you need to keep your messaging simple. But you also need to back it up with in depth information. Not just for candidates, but for potential voters. Every flyer, every ad, should come with a link to a deep web resource – not just a link to a site with potted summary of policy. Those who are curious (and there are some) should have easy access to the real data and information they need. Where is Labor’s educational sub-campaign on underemployment, for instance?

    Doorknocking isn’t a policy selling exercise. It does swing votes.

    Oh I’m not criticising doorknocking in the heat of an election campaign. It does work. What I was referring to was more about gradually educating voters about basic facts, years ahead of the election. C@t pointed out that approaching people on the street can be difficult. My response to this is that you need to provoke a wider conversation within the community. Get them talking. Get them to come to you and make the focus individual issues (like new industries that come with renewables) rather than your Party. Plus you need to provide the backup and support to those within the community who do get it and do want to have the conversation with the less informed. You know lately I’ve been approached by several people who know me who are having arguments with their friends and want some useful resources. I’m happy to help out with hints and web links, but it’d be great if this sort of thing had the organisational backing of Labor.

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