Monday, March 22, 2010

What Rudd and Gillard are stealing from their state Labor colleagues

Government.

Here's how I'm seeing it:

Australia traditionally elects Labor governments at the state level.

This is no accident. The states provide the services we need - schools and hospitals.

Labor actually believes in providing them, deeply, tribally. The other side doesn't, as much. And often says so.

So we elect Labor at the state level (almost all the time) and often elect the Coalition at the federal level safe in the assurance that our hospitals and schools will still be in good hands.

Rudd (with hospitals) and Gillard (with schools) have changed that.

It'll be good for them. A vote for Labor federally will be a vote for hospitals and schools.

And it will be good for the tax take, and (when the time is right) for a higher GST.

We will no longer be able to delude ourselves by voting for a low-tax party federally while voting for a full-service party locally.

Rudd has explicitly tied the GST to hospital funding. Soon enough we'll want an increase.

But back to the states. Rudd and Gillard are making it safe to elect Liberal or Coalition state governments.

We know our hospitals and schools will still be looked after.


Here's Possum: The safer the government seat, the much larger was the swing against the government

And Piping Shrike: By any normal criteria, the Liberals’ campaign was pathetic.


Related Posts

. Tuesday Column: The case for the states

. Election night tonight - go Liberals!

. We'll soon no longer be Labor coast to coast