The week that was

Party turmoil in Victoria and Queensland, state and territory seat entitlements for the next federal parliament determined, and more polling on attitudes to demonstrations in the United States.

After a particularly eventful week, a whole bunch of electorally relevant news to report:

• The last official population updates have confirmed next month’s official determination of how many seats each state and territory will be entitled to in the next parliament will cause the abolition of seats in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, and the creation of a new one in Victoria for the second consecutive term. Antony Green offers detailed consideration of how the redistributions might look, suggesting Victoria’s will most likely result in the creation of another safe Labor seat in Melbourne’s outer north-west, while Western Australia’s could either mash together Hasluck and Burt in eastern Perth, or abolish the safe Liberal south-of-the-river seat of Tangney, with knock-on effects that would weaken Labor’s position in Fremantle and/or Burt.

• In the wake of the 60 Minutes/The Age expose on Adem Somyurek’s branch stacking activities on Sunday, Labor’s national executive has taken control of all the Victorian branch’s federal and state preselections for the next three years. Steve Bracks and Jenny Macklin have been brought in to serve as administrators until January, and an audit of the branch’s 16,000 members will be conducted to ensure that are genuine consenting members and paid their own fees.

• Ipsos has published polling on the recent demonstrations in the United States from fifteen countries, which found Australians to be supportive of what were specified as “peaceful protests in the US” and disapproving of Donald Trump’s handling of them, although perhaps in slightly lesser degree than other more liberal democracies. Two outliers were India and Russia, which produced some seemingly anomalous results: the former had a strangely high rating for Trump and the latter relatively low support for the protests, yet both were uniquely favourable towards the notion that “more violent protests are an appropriate response”.

• The Tasmanian government has announced the periodical Legislative Council elections for the seats of Huon and Rosevears will be held on August 1, having been delayed from their normally allotted time of the first Tuesday in May.

In Queensland, where the next election is a little over four months away:

• After floating the possibility of an election conducted entirely by post, the Queensland government announced this week that the October 31 state election will be conducted in a more-or-less normal fashion. However, pre-poll voting is being all but actively encouraged, to the extent that Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath says there will be an “election period” rather than an election day. This will mean “more pre-poll locations, longer pre-poll hours, and more pre-poll voting days in the two weeks prior to the election”.

• The Liberal National Party opposition was thrown into turmoil last week after the Courier-Mail ($) received internal polling showing Labor leading 51-49 in Redlands, 52-48 in Gaven, 55-45 in Mansfield and 58-42 in inner urban Mount Ommaney. The parties were tied in the Sunshine Coast hinterland seat of Glass House, while the LNP led by 52-48 in the Gold Coast seat of Currumbin, which it recently retained by a similar margin at a by-election. Frecklington’s supporters pointed the finger at the state branch president, Dave Hutchinson, who was reportedly told by Frecklington that his position was untenable after Clive Palmer hired him as a property consultant in January. The party room unanimously affirmed its support for Frecklington on Monday, as mooted rival David Crisafulli ruled out a challenge ahead of the election.

• The Queensland parliament this week passed an array of electoral law changes including campaign spending caps of $92,000 per candidate and limitations on signage at polling places. The changes have been criticised ($) by the Liberal National Party and Katter’s Australian Party, who complain that union advertising will now dominate at polling booths, and that the laws was pushed through with indecent haste on Tuesday and Wednesday.

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.

1,922 comments on “The week that was”

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  1. C@T
    I put that down to people viewing others through their job title and in many cases these people are good at saying what others want to hear.

  2. Hey Nath, why don’t you just have an avocado breakfast for $75 bucks. You wank in à new dimension. I am nath and I vote for the LNP.

  3. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-06-22/former-high-court-judge-sexually-harrassed-several-associates/12381236

    https://www.smh.com.au/national/high-court-inquiry-finds-former-justice-dyson-heydon-sexually-harassed-associates-20200622-p5550w.html

    One of his former associates, Rachael Patterson Collins, told the Herald that Mr Heydon’s “actions had real and terrible consequences” which led her to abandon her plans to become a barrister.

    Chelsea Tabart, another former associate, said she too left the law because “the culture was broken from the top down”. She felt she would not be safe “from powerful men like Mr Heydon even if I reported them”.

    https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/former-high-court-justice-dyson-heydon-accused-of-sexual-harassment-20200622-p5552l

    https://www.sbs.com.au/news/inquiry-finds-former-high-court-justice-dyson-heydon-sexually-harassed-associates

    And many other newspapers and news services are reporting on it.

  4. BB

    So, in this instance you believe the women even though there were no witnesses to the sexual assualts?

    Are you a fucking idiot for real Horsey, or just pretending to be one?

    The High Court has held a formal investigation and produced a formal report and apology. The investigation was carried out by Vivienne Thom, the former Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, who interviewed a dozen witnesses, several of whom complained at the time, in writing, as well as making contemporaneous diary notes.

    This ain’t some confused choir boy with no witnesses, harking back 30 years.

  5. BB

    True re formal inquiry so their accounts can not be disputed. But I wasn’t thinking of the Pell case.

    As you were.

  6. I see Pegasus has already mentioned Howard appointed conservative former HC judge Dyson Heydon has been found by an inquiry to have sexually harrased six women. How tainted are his rulings now? The “great loner” on court was the sole dissenter in several judgements.

    I note the list of his accomplishments and ties to conservative politics also fails to mention he was on the selection committee that gave young academic star Tony Abbott a Rhodes scholarship. How lucky!
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyson_Heydon#Application_for_recusal

  7. As Bill said, this is the finding of a formal inquiry run by an experienced inquirer. Is there any constitutional impediment to a trial?

    I think the finding says something rather detestable about the whole Sydney Liberal old boys club. Misogyny seems to run deep in that bunch.

  8. If the Heydon thing was as well known as is being suggested, it’s a massive fail by the media to have not exposed this earlier.

  9. There is a good discussion on Heydon at the Maurice Blackburn site. This cuts to the core issue:

    ““At the time that this sexual harassment occurred, Dyson Heydon was in his 60s, a conservative judge, a prominent Catholic and a married man,” Mr Bornstein said.

    “The women he employed were in their early 20s and often straight out of university. He was one of the most powerful men in the country, who could make or break their future careers in the law.”
    https://www.mauriceblackburn.com.au/about/media-centre/media-statements/2020/investigation-upholds-sexual-harassment-complaints-high-court-judge-dyson-heydon/

  10. Bushfire Bill says:
    Monday, June 22, 2020 at 5:55 pm
    Lars, showing his naivety now…

    What about people who renovate their houses whilst on workers compensation? Do you think they ought be untouchable?
    When you’re put on suspension with full pay, allowances and accrued leave, with entitlements, pay rises and long service seniority all progressing, for 22 months, 12 of them without any communication – verbal or written – at all from the employer, then you’re allowed to do anything you like with your time away from the workplace.

    It’s THEIR problem, Lars, not the employee’s. Look it up, idiot.
    ___________________________________
    This is what you say, how about posting the report (with names redacted) so we can make an independent judgement of what really went on in the NSW Health affair?

  11. sprocket_ says:
    Monday, June 22, 2020 at 6:31 pm

    Lars, you failed to answer the enquiry yesterday – why do you post on this site?
    _________
    You don’t think Lars should?

  12. Tony Abbott’s mates

    1. Father Nestor
    2. Alan Jones
    3. George Pell
    4. Dyson Heydon

    I suspect a pattern of befriending here

  13. Lil’ Green Pony has the shits that there isn’t an obvious anti Labor angle to this story:

    “ imo anyone who thinks Heydon is the only powerful man using his position to sexually assault women is kidding themselves.”

  14. Bushfire Bill : –

    Previously identified conflict with :

    NSW Health
    Centrelink
    Media Organisations
    Charities
    Churches

    Not to mention an unpleasant misogynistic attitude in many of his remarks to women with whom he disagrees on PB.

    There is a pattern of anger or inability to resolve conflict on bb’s part here Pegasus. Troubling….

  15. Andrew_Earlwood @ #1537 Monday, June 22nd, 2020 – 6:34 pm

    Lil’ Green Pony has the shits that there isn’t an obvious anti Labor angle to this story:

    “ imo anyone who thinks Heydon is the only powerful man using his position to sexually assault women is kidding themselves.”

    …and another exerting frustrated tones of inadequacy

  16. William, Lars is always so very interested in everyone else’s business, I thought it polite to enquire ever so humbly about Lars’ business.

    But if she chooses to ignore, fine by me.

  17. [How tainted are his rulings now? The “great loner” on court was the sole dissenter in several judgements.]

    The minority opinions are of no consequence because they are not rulings

  18. Blobbit says:
    Monday, June 22, 2020 at 6:26 pm
    If the Heydon thing was as well known as is being suggested, it’s a massive fail by the media to have not exposed this earlier.

    ————-

    The media is corrupt ,if this was an Gillard or Rudd appointment , every one would not be hearing the end of it

    The current labor leader would be hounded by the media to explain why Dyson was appointed

  19. The demand for covid testing was very high today according to family members who got tested due to having symptoms.
    Hopefully it will just be the common cold.
    Will know in a couple of days.

  20. [A few years ago, was at a posh SCG Test cricket lunch seated next to Dyson Heydon.]

    Carlton must somehow have been ambushed to have been at this posh event.

  21. Sprocket

    I’m not gonna burn it at that cost.

    What about all the other publications?

    What’s Rodney Cavalier doing in all of this sing his praises at the time of the publication?

  22. Heydon’s lawyers – “Our client says that if any conduct of his has caused offence, that result was inadvertent and unintended, and he apologises for any offence caused.”
    Some apology! And it seems to accept that there has been questionable conduct,

  23. Local 9 news getting around to Heydon. Standard shock horror approach but unaccountably no mention of his extensive links with the liberal party of Australia. Can’t think why.

  24. Question need to be answered By Abbott

    As Prime Minister and Minister for women ,if Abbott was aware of Heydon being involved in this behaviour ,why was he appointed

  25. Leroy
    https://www.watoday.com.au/national/high-court-inquiry-finds-former-justice-dyson-heydon-sexually-harassed-associates-20200622-p5550w.html

    High court inquiry finds former justice Dyson Heydon sexually harassed associates
    By Kate McClymont and Jacqueline Maley
    June 22, 2020 — 4.29pm

    Former High Court Justice Dyson Heydon, one of the nation’s pre-eminent legal minds, sexually harassed six young female associates, an independent inquiry by the court has found.

    A Herald investigation has also uncovered further allegations from senior legal figures of predatory behaviour by Mr Heydon, including a judge who claims that Mr Heydon indecently assaulted her. The women claim that Mr Heydon’s status as one of the most powerful men in the country protected him from being held to account for his actions.

    I know noting about My Heydon, but I can tell you that the stories I have heard from my female high-flyer legal friends suggest that such abuse os rife within the upper echelons of the law.

    As we have seen with medicine and science.

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