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It was fitting that on the same day the 2021 census was released - telling us how diverse we are, among many other things - the new MPs gathered at Parliament House reflected that diversity. Among those being inducted were MPs of Malaysian, Vietnamese, Chinese and Indian descent, as well as new First Nations members. With its newly enlarged crossbench and a rollcall of new MPs from many different backgrounds, we have a parliament that is a more accurate mirror to our nation - and that's how it should be.
If only Labor had twigged to that before parachuting Kristina Keneally over the top of Vietnamese Australian lawyer Tu Le into the seat of Fowler, a highly diverse Sydney electorate. Labor lost the seat to Dai Le, an independent and also a Vietnamese Australian. Voters chose someone they could relate to over a high-profile candidate party bosses thought could win the seat despite not living in the electorate. The message to all political parties - both from the election result and from the census - is that we are a diverse nation and we want that reflected in Parliament.
There's another lesson to be learned. Internal factional rivalry is a costly business. Sometimes it can be disastrous. Keneally's tilt at Fowler came about because Labor wanted to avoid a factional brawl between Keneally and her ALP right colleague Deb O'Neill over which of the two would get a winnable spot on the NSW Senate ticket. The party struck a deal to find a safe seat for Keneally and in the process ignored the community. Big mistake.
Political parachutes are always a gamble. The Liberals are still counting the cost of the disastrous decision by Scott Morrison in 2019 to run Warren Mundine over the locally preselected candidate Grant Schultz in Gilmore. The captain's pick decision split the vote between Schultz, who ran as independent, Mundine, Nationals candidate Katrina Hodgkinson and Labor's Fiona Phillips. What had been a largely safe Liberal seat since 1996 changed hands and at the last election remained by a few hundred votes with Labor.
The Liberal party is also still reeling from the disarray in its NSW division, one of Morrison's more dubious legacies. His interference in the local preselection process led to winnable seats being left without candidates until the last minute, not to mention legal challenges in the courts. It was no way to run a party and shook faith in the leader's ability to run the government. Why? It betrayed a disdain for the people who make up the party.
Politics in a democracy is as much about people as it is about power. The data revealed by the census will no doubt inform public policy. But if politicians are smart - always debatable - it will also inform politics. The census tells us we have evolved. Millennials are now equal in number to baby-boomers and a recent study we mentioned last week showed they voted on policy rather than political tribalism. We are less religious. We are no longer as Anglo-Celtic as we were.
If they are to survive, political parties will have to adapt to that changing human landscape. Digging deep into the data provided by the census will help parties better understand the people they want to vote for them. Ignoring the data is perilous.
HAVE YOUR SAY: What surprised you in the census data? What changes - positive and negative - have you seen in Australia in your lifetime? How important is it for political parties to listen to the communities they want to represent? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
- Angus Campbell's tenure as Chief of the Defence Force will be extended by two years as the Albanese government tries to avoid delays in the delivery of the next generation of submarines. The government has appointed a new team of service chiefs in a shakeup of the Defence Force's top brass, which comes amid the most "strategically complex" circumstances since the end of World War II.
- People who have had a COVID-19 booster shot are far less likely to die or be hospitalised with the Omicron variant. An Australian-first study on the effectiveness of coronavirus vaccines has found a third COVID jab provides two thirds more protection from death or hospitalisation from Omicron.
- Describing themselves as "resourceful women", the new independent MPs are "very hopeful" that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will compromise over curtailed parliamentary staffing arrangements that have enraged the expanded crossbench in the 47th Parliament.
THEY SAID IT: "It is the mark of a truly intelligent person to be moved by statistics." - George Bernard Shaw
YOU SAID IT: "Love him or loath him Clive Palmer sometimes got it right. He once remarked, 'the reason politicians often take poor decisions is that their advisers are second-raters'. Another real step in the right direction would be to cut the number of politicians, firstly by abolishing upper houses. Modern communications, the internet and jet travel have long conquered the tyranny of distance." - Ross
"Though I did not vote for Labor or the Greens I support the decision by the Prime Minister to restrict staffing entitlements (apart from four electorate officers) to one adviser (in lieu of the four that applied under the previous Coalition government). The only exception could be for members of political parties that might have one or two members elected to federal parliament, particularly in the Senate, that ran candidates in numerous seats across the country." - Peter
"Albanese has handled this (reducing independents' staffing) so badly. No prior consultation with independents evident. No softening context. Smacks of hard ball politics after promising better. Massive own goal." - Peter
"Albo has kicked an own goal for minimal gain. The Liberals are rolling on the floor. He could have consulted and discussed. He would have more support if he killed the Stage three tax cuts or put a windfall export tax on gas and coal. A fight he didn't have to have. He could have waited until the review was finished and legislate so that staffing came under the review tribunal. This will nobble him in the Senate as they will behave churlishly." - Nick
"In the spirit of making savings to help reduce the deficit, it might have been reasonable to cut staff from four to three, but cutting back to one makes all the previous talk about cooperation sound hollow. Besides, the savings made will be very minor." - Felix
"I was gobsmacked to learn how many staffer wages were allocated to independents. The community attitude is that there were too many snouts in the Canberra trough. The perception is that Morrison bought support by the largesse of increasing staff further. It can be argued that Albanese cut too deep but he certainly has to bring the wage bill back to at least the pre-Morrison era. Maybe Albanese is laying the groundwork for everyone to support an independent tribunal for such things." - Steven
"Albo has just fallen into the pit - stupid decision. Yes, staffing should be allocated by an independent body." - Bruce
"Thank you for the insightful perspectives on the 'foot shooting' decision to reduce the number of staff available to independent and minor party representatives in Parliament. Thirty per cent of voters chose to be represented by candidates who undertook to vote for what their constituents tell them is important, not on party lines. This includes voting on policy covering a broad range of local, national and international issues, the understanding of which requires research, reflection, consultation ... and time." - Greg