Can Bob Hawke save Kevin Rudd? Can the man who was so popular and led so much reform in Australia in the eighties help Kevin Rudd sell his mining tax today?
You couldn’t think of two more different Prime Ministers than Bob Hawke and Kevin Rudd, despite the fact both have enjoyed astronomical levels of popularity in the past. But it is perhaps the way that Hawke and Rudd managed the introduction of big reforms that seems to have really set the two apart.
So can Rudd learn from Hawke? Well Hawke’s former resources minister has told The Australian he has to , while The Age reports that Hawke could already be playing some role in negotiations with the miners.
Former Hawke Government resources minister Peter Walsh has told The Australian that Kevin Rudd should have taken a leaf out of his and Paul Keating’s books when they introduced the petroleum resources rent tax in 1984.
Walsh claims that Rudd’s consultation with miners this time round has been pretty woeful, and has gone as far as naming Rudd as the chief “obstacle” to better relations between the two parties.
Meanwhile The Age reports that the more Labor friendly Western Australian mining magnate Twiggy Forrest, has approached Bob Hawke to play a hand in negotiations between miners and Rudd.
Forrest has gone as far to say that Hawke “would love to get involved” in the process.
Surely the involvement of a former Labor leader who was Prime Minister nearly 20 years ago would be too much of an embarrassment for a man of Rudd’s pride? The electorate would then also ask the legitimate question as to why it’s now up to Bob Hawke to sell Kevin Rudd’s tax policy?
Still, pride can go by the wayside when you’re faced with the shameful prospect of joining the elite club of one-term Australian governments, and it’s not that rare for former politicians to get involved in big policy debates.
For his part Rudd was attempting to deal directly with miners himself yesterday, meeting with BHP Billiton boss Marius Kloppers. Yet, like a lover scorned, it seemed that BHP didn’t have much time for Mr Rudd, with the SMH reporting that BHP’s views on the tax are “unchanged”.
But The Australian’s Paul Kelly points out today that while brand Rudd as we know it might be dead, the Prime Minister is not yet doomed.
“Brand Rudd is damaged but it is absurd to think Rudd is finished. He has, however, entered dangerous terrain and there is a touch of desperation about Labor falling on Abbott’s persona and rekindling Work Choices as its saviour.”
Rudd is in Perth today hoping to have more talks with miners and will need every bit of that Bob Hawke fairy dust as he enters hostile territory.
Facebook Recommendations
Read all about it
Punch live
Up to the minute Twitter chatter
“@JoeHockey_MP: Expect #insiders to be a doddle tomorrow." @latingle @dwabriz& I can't agree whether to call u genius or genius AND saint.
@Rob_Stott ... But don't go to Awaba unless you're a local because they'll treat you like a subhuman
Some people are so worried re sexuality of others hard not to think they might have probs with their own . http://t.co/c2Lvg3FJP0
Recent posts
The latest and greatest
The Punch is moving house
Good morning Punchers. After four years of excellent fun and great conversation, this is the final post…
Will Pope Francis have the vision to tackle this?
I have had some close calls, one that involved what looked to me like an AK47 pointed my way, followed…
Advocating risk management is not “victim blaming”
In a world in which there are still people who subscribe to the vile notion that certain victims of sexual…
Nosebleed Section
choice ringside rantings
From: Hasbro, go straight to gaol, do not pass go
Tim says:
They should update other things in the game too. Instead of a get out of jail free card, they should have a Dodgy Lawyer card that not only gets you out of jail straight away but also gives you a fat payout in compensation for daring to arrest you in the first place. Instead of getting a hotel when you… [read more]From: A guide to summer festivals especially if you wouldn’t go
Kel says:
If you want a festival for older people or for families alike, get amongst the respectable punters at Bluesfest. A truly amazing festival experience to be had of ALL AGES. And all the young "festivalgoers" usually write themselves off on the first night, only to never hear from them again the rest of… [read more]Gentle jabs to the ribs
Superman needs saving
Can somebody please save Superman? He seems to be going through a bit of a crisis. Eighteen months ago,… Read more
Most commented