Milestones make easy headlines; the first 100 days has an air of history about it. So it's no surprise that social media carries Labor's self report card on its first 100 days. The first 100 days goes in a flash.
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It's a short enough time for everyone to not expect too much to have happened. There's no expectation of big substantive long-term achievements. It is unlikely there'll be more than 10 of these before we're three months out from the next election. As time passes, we will expect more substance. And as time passes, other things will happen that aren't very attractive.
Mistakes are the first that come to mind. The old saying "nobody is perfect" has cadence because it's true. Whether in the bureaucracy, in a minister's office or by a minister - you can be sure they'll happen. Criticising what's happened under a previous government is easy. Defending your own, maybe not so. Ministers have to defend each other.
If the minister responsible for the area or the actual mistake is a mate, defending them is easy. It is much harder when the person is in your mind a nasty piece of work who has always made your life difficult. Or when it's someone who many think only got their job because they are a mate of the prime minister.
Here's an example. There's a drama that's public, front page stuff in which a number of ministers have an interest. One of them mid crisis goes overseas and breaks the usual convention of not commenting on stuff at home whilst out of the country. The remarks made are either a direct lie or so calculatingly misleading as to be a lie by another name. You're one of the ministers involved. You see this report and know the media will be following it up. You're going to have to say something. What you can't say is "He's not telling the whole truth." It's not a rock and a hard place, it's a scalpel and a machete. Understandably you are deeply annoyed your colleague treats you like this and is allowed to get away with it. Tension builds. Brittle environments are not good. They weaken teams in a pernicious and silent way.
It was less so in the Howard government. But it happens. The preferred get to say or do things for which others would be carpeted, if not sacked. The first time or few times it happens you can shrug your shoulders, raise your hands in an Italianesque-type of acceptance that life has its annoyances. But as time wears on, the non-preferred get a bit sick of it. The "happy we won" team environment becomes more brittle.
Difficult as they may be, mistakes are generally manageable.
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Government however is not just going about calmly implementing your policies. The real world just keeps turning. Big problems land in your lap that are unexpected. They may well not be of your government's doing. COVID is an extreme example. The Bali bombing, the Port Arthur massacre, the September 2001 terrorist attacks are others. You can't easily plan for the unexpected.
Against the impending reality of big problems and big decisions, Labor's little red report card looks a bit limp. They give themselves a tick for supporting wage increases for many Australians. Seriously? It was their policy. They just put out a press release. No burning the midnight oil or working a sweat up there.
They say they've "Begun to fix the crisis in aged care". Beginning something is not an achievement. You can say that now but in 18 months or two years you'll need to see some real change. Worker shortages are not an easy fix. There's a biting reality that many Aussies just don't want certain jobs and that they don't pay well. Migration becomes an issue both for the unions and the skill level we are happy to bring in.
Another achievement listed is "Advanced a voice to Parliament" . Yes they have indicated the terms of a bill they propose to put to a referendum for an Indigenous voice to parliament. Whatever your views on that proposal, it is worth noting that millions of voting Australians have no idea what the voice in practice will mean. It's not much of an achievement .
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Recently former NBA star Shaq O'Neal was called in to support the proposed voice with Albo. It seemed a tad vacuous for Shaq to be supporting something in another country when he knows little about the history of the issue.
Hopefully he learnt from his previous ignorance in race relation issues. When asked about the then new Chinese basketball player in the NBA Yao Ming, he replied: "You tell Yao Ming, ching chong yang, wah, ah so." As so many people do when caught out, he said it was a joke. His fellow player accepted it. But I'm not sure it makes anyone think he's qualified to comment. Rumours of his support for a flat earth theory are equally concerning
The piece de resistance of this piece of social media is "Started building a better future". Talk about being a legend in your own lunchtime. It's just a load of baloney.
I think the card should read: "No sweat worked up yet. Will see form more clearly over longer distance."
- Amanda Vanstone is a former Howard government minister and a fortnightly columnist.
