Angus Taylor and Sussan Ley frontrunners to lead Coalition after federal election ‘bloodbath'
Dutton was defeated in his Queensland seat of Dickson by Labor's Ali France, becoming the first opposition leader to lose their seat at an election since Federation. The Coalition is also on track to lose key frontbench MPs including Michael Sukkar and David Coleman, as well as outspoken Tasmanian backbencher Bridget Archer.
Congratulating the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, on his 'historic' win, Dutton took responsibility for the loss and praised Taylor and Ley, the party's deputy leader.
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'It is not our night … and there are good members and candidates who have lost their seats, or their ambition and I am sorry for that,' Dutton said. 'We have an amazing party and we will rebuild.'
But Liberals warned traditional post-election blood-letting needed to include careful consideration of the party's future direction, including on key policies and its approach to prospective new voters. Others pointed to candidate quality as a challenge at successive elections.
One senior Liberal blamed the loss on poorly developed policies under Dutton and Taylor, saying voters had not been offered a proper choice on economic management.
'No economic narrative, no votes,' he told Guardian Australia.
Another Liberal speaking on the condition of anonymity said the most important struggle would be a fight for the party's 'soul' and said whoever emerged as the new leader should expect 'highly contingent support'.
One conservative MP warned Australian voters did not want hard right policies and rhetoric, blaming rightward moves since Scott Morrison's 2022 loss for Saturday's result.
Taylor, the shadow treasurer and member of party's conservative faction, has been considered a future Liberal leader but drew criticism from colleagues before the campaign started over scant policy offerings.
Taylor also struggled to defend plans to cut the federal public service by more than 40,000 people and to dramatically reduce Australia's overseas immigration intake.
Dan Tehan, the shadow immigration minister, won a hard-fought race in his Victorian seat of Wannon, defeating high-profile independent Alex Dyson.
He praised Dutton's leadership and thanked him for his service as a minister and opposition leader but was coy on whether he would contest the leadership.
Tehan called for a thorough review of the policies and campaign tactics which contributed to the Coalition's loss.
'With what has happened, you need time to consider, time to think and get an understanding of what has occurred,' he told ABC TV.
'You can't come out on the night of an election and say this is what you should have done, this is what you shouldn't have done. That is for the cold, hard light of day, then you have to analyse things and do it properly.'
Frontbencher Michaelia Cash nominated the shadow defence spokesman, Andrew Hastie, as her preferred candidate for leader.
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'Andrew's always been seen as leadership material … When you look at his background, former SAS, he is someone who comes with a great pedigree. He is someone that works, he does not take one vote for granted in that seat.'
Queensland senator James McGrath told ABC TV the Coalition must not adopt policies reminiscent of the US president, Donald Trump.
'It would be dangerous for my party, and I speak as a Ronald Reagan Republican and a George Bush Republican, speaking to Donald Trump's positions. We are a free-trade party and pro-Ukraine and we should continue to be centre-right.
'We must resist that path focus on where middle Australia is.'
The shadow finance minister, Jane Hume, said Dutton's loss was 'very sad' for the Liberal party. She has been mentioned as a possible deputy leader by moderate MPs.
Hume said she would start by rereading the review she co-authored into the 2022 election loss. She previously accused commentators of 'already reading the entrails before the chicken is gutted'.
'Peter is a very popular colleague among his colleagues … He is a very good man.'
Party sources played down reports Hume had begun consulting colleagues about who should succeed Dutton as party leader even before the defeat, insisting she was discussing the views of voters around the country ahead of election night coverage.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, appeared ready for a fight with Taylor, saying he should not escape blame for the Coalition's loss.
'I think Angus Taylor has been one of the biggest reasons why we have outperformed expectations, and I say that as his direct opponent,' he said on ABC TV.
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The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
‘Get over it': some middle America Trump supporters remain unfazed over Epstein files tumult
It has united luminaries of the far right, from media personality Tucker Carlson to activist Laura Loomer, from tech billionaire Elon Musk to congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. Typically unwavering in support of Donald Trump, all have criticised his administration's handling of files about the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But in towns and cities across the US, a more complicated and nuanced picture emerges, serving as a reminder that – like any other political constituency – Trump voters are not a monolith. Some of the US president's supporters are undoubtedly animated by the Epstein issue and urging Congress to push for greater transparency. 'It's the number one phone call that we get. By far,' Eric Burlison, a Republican congressman from Missouri, told CNN this week. 'It's probably 500 to one.' But others seem to be shrugging off the crisis as they have so many others that seemed to threaten Trump's political career. They remain fiercely loyal to a president they believe is delivering low inflation, strong border security and sweeping reversals of progressive policies. They are willing to take White House advice to 'trust in Trump'. That was the prevailing mood this week in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a former steel town and Democratic stronghold that swung heavily for Trump in last November's election. 'Trump is right about everything, no matter what he does,' was the blunt take of Teddy, 55, wearing a Stars and Stripes hat and sitting on a bench in Central Park in downtown Johnstown. 'Epstein – he's dead, that's it, it's over.' Did he have no concern that Trump's name is reportedly listed in the Epstein files which have yet to be made public? 'That's a bunch of bullshit,' said Teddy, who didn't want to give his last name. 'The world should move on, get over it.' Curt, 51, another Trump supporter in Central Park, who was recently released from state prison, expressed similar views. The only people who were in a nervous state about Trump's relationship with Epstein were Democrats, he said. 'Epstein was a piece of shit and got what he deserved. As for Trump, they haven't come up with any evidence that he actually did anything,' he said. Pennsylvania was crucial in tipping Trump over the line of 270 electoral college votes needed to win the White House. Rural areas in the west of the state responded especially favourably to his promises to bring back manufacturing, reduce living costs and drive out immigrants. Trump won Cambria county, which includes Johnstown, by 68% to Joe Biden's 31%. At the local Walmart, Pam, who also asked not to give her last name, said she didn't believe that Trump's name was in the files. 'Trump has morals – it may not seem like he does, but deep down he does. He wanted to protect the United States when nobody else did.' As for media coverage of the story, she said: 'My uncle was in the Secret Service. He used to tell me that everything you see on TV is what they want you to believe, not what is actually happening.' Trump has been under growing pressure from political friends and foes alike to release more information about the justice department's investigation into Epstein, a disgraced financier who officials ruled died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. After Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, promised to disclose additional materials related to possible Epstein clients and the circumstances surrounding his death, the justice department reversed course this month and said there was no basis to continue investigating and no evidence of a client list. That sparked an outcry from some of Trump's base of supporters who have long believed the government was covering up Epstein's ties to the rich and powerful. On Friday, Trump denied reports that he was told by Bondi in May that his own name appeared in the Epstein files. Yet interviews by the Guardian in multiple states found Republicans generally willing to give Trump the benefit of the doubt – and suspicious that he is the victim of a double standard. Gavin Rollins, a lawyer from Orlando, Florida, acknowledged disappointment in the way the administration's initial communications raised expectations but praised Trump for doing a 'phenomenal job' overall. 'I think on the Epstein thing, I wish things had been handled a little bit differently,' he admitted. 'I think the rollout was less than smooth. I would say that it's important but I also believe in giving grace to people and he's gotten so many things right.' Jeff Davis, the Republican party chair in Greenville county, South Carolina, accused the media of using the Epstein controversy to falsely portray a divide in the Maga (Make America great again) movement. He said: 'I think the Epstein issue is obviously critical and important but I think what most people care about is that the Trump agenda – the Maga 'America first' agenda – is being promoted. I think [Epstein is] being used as a distraction.' Davis added: 'We can walk and chew gum at the same time. They need to pursue the Epstein thing to the nth degree but I think most people are interested in the results of the things that the Trump administration is doing, as opposed to analysing this issue from the old days.' Sign up to This Week in Trumpland A deep dive into the policies, controversies and oddities surrounding the Trump administration after newsletter promotion Mary Smith, the party chair in Dickson county, Tennessee, said: 'If Donald Trump's name is linked to something, it's like a shark fest, whereas if it's somebody else's name attached, 'Oh, it's no big deal,' and it's swept under the rug. I get so tired of that whole focus on Trump.' Despite Democrats' efforts to keep attention focused on the Epstein saga, some are ready to move on. James Bennett, who runs a lumber company and is Republican party chair in Calhoun county, Alabama, said: 'As far as I'm concerned with Trump, it's about run its course. I know the Democrats are the ones out there trying to put gas on the fire, but you know, the fire's about out.' That may prove wishful thinking. Just 17% of Americans approve of Trump's handling of the Epstein case, a weaker rating than the president received on any other issue in a Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll last week. Among Republicans, 35% approve and 29% disapprove, while the rest said they are unsure or did not answer the question. Whit Ayres, a Republican consultant and pollster, draws a distinction between Trump voters who identify as part of the Maga movement and those attracted by his pledges to bring down inflation, juice the economy, close the southern border and tackle 'woke' culture. 'For the Maga group, this is a very big deal,' Ayres said. 'Many of them bought into all the conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein, whether it was the fact that he abused a bunch of kids and then covered it up or symptomatic of a widespread deep state conspiracy protecting elites and the privileged in general. 'For the other people who voted for Trump, it is disturbing but not as compelling as it is for the Maga crowd. They are more interested in whether he is going to be able to bring inflation down than they are in Epstein. That's not to say that Epstein is not a disturbing story for them, but it's more a matter of perspective.' Yet another survey published this week again challenged the conventional wisdom. An Economist/YouGov poll found that Republican voters who identify as 'Maga' were more likely to approve of how the president is dealing with the Epstein investigation (56%) than those who do not (38%). Overall among Republicans, 45% approve and 25% disapprove, with the remaining 30% unsure. One such Maga voter is Mike Boatman, 57, who has attended about a hundred Trump campaign rallies, including the one last year in Butler, Pennsylvania, where the then Republican nominee survived an assassination attempt. His faith remains unshaken. 'I'm backing President Trump,' said Boatman, an independent contractor from Evansville, Indiana. 'He knows more than what we know about the situation. There's more important concerns for me than the Epstein files. 'There's so much that President Trump needs to get done. He's got three and a half years to get it done. Don't get me wrong, I'm against paedophiles and whoever has done that with Epstein should be punished. But there's more important things.' Still, the story continues to dominate headlines and put heat on Republicans in the House of Representatives. They went on recess a day early to avoid holding a vote on releasing Epstein material. Mike Johnson, the House speaker, insisted the Epstein case is 'not a hoax' despite Trump using that very word. The president has been defiant, describing supporters hung up on the issue as 'weaklings' who were helping Democrats. 'I don't want their support anymore!' Trump said in a social media post. This week, he sought to distract his followers by making the baseless claim that Barack Obama and his officials fabricated intelligence reports to assert that Russia interfered in the 2016 election, accusing his predecessor of treason. Next he might try something even more extreme to change the narrative. Reed Galen, president of the Union, a pro-democracy coalition, said: 'My real fear is that he gets us into some sort of Wag the Dog thing where all of the distraction isn't working so he decides to throw up some gigantic bright, shiny object that gets us all in trouble.' But otherwise Galen is sceptical that the Epstein scandal will have far-reaching political implications. 'To me, the flip side of this is: what difference does it make? I shouldn't say that as a means of diminishing the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein or the pain of his victims. I'm looking at this from a purely electoral perspective. 'He's not going to leave office. The midterms are 15 months, 16 months away. Do I think this is fodder for the left and the media and even the true Magas who are like, 'What's happening?' Yeah. Do I think that ultimately, a year from now, we'll be talking about this? Hard to believe.'
The National
12 hours ago
- The National
Miriam Margolyes 'disgusted' by Labour's complicity in Gaza
In an exclusive interview with the Sunday National, Margolyes said the UK Government was supporting "evil on a grand scale". The 84-year-old British-Australian actress, who is Jewish, has previously shown her support for Gaza, having recently signed a letter calling for change in the BBC as a result of its reporting on Israel and Palestine – but she has rarely spoken to the media about her position. Miriam Margolyes (Image: Impressive PR) Margolyes said that while she had always been a Labour supporter, the UK is currently in "a right old mess". "I think it's about as low as it's been, certainly in my lifetime," she told the Sunday National. READ MORE: My family starves in Gaza while the world watches. We must keep speaking up "They've forgotten what Labour is about. I don't recognise any of the people, I don't recognise what they want, I don't share in their hopes. I feel very, very depressed about the political situation, I really do." Margolyes highlighted the UK Government's "ghastly" position on a number of issues, but was particularly "concerned" about Gaza. She said: "Because I'm Jewish – although not a believer in it – I do care very much about what happens to Israel and to the Palestinian people. And that is where I think we've gone terribly wrong. "I think the Labour Party should have made more sanctions against Israel, and stopped this nonsense about antisemitism. "Of course, there is antisemitism, there's always been antisemitism – nobody likes Jews, they never have. "But this is about Israel and the actions of Israel, it's not about Jews." (Image: Fatima Shbair / AP)Margolyes went on to say that when she sees "that people who have nothing now – who have no home, no food, no medicine, no hope – are being hounded from place to place by an immensely powerful opposing power, I know that it's wrong". "I don't have to think about it, I know that evil is happening on a grand scale, and my country is supporting and helping it," she told the Sunday National. "I'm shocked and disgusted and dazed by this, and I don't understand why everybody isn't, I really don't see why people allow this horror to take place. "It's completely, completely wicked." READ MORE: Scottish community-owned island announces full boycott of Israel Margolyes acknowledged that she often receives criticism for speaking on political issues as an actress, but maintained that "it's not about me as an actress, I'm thinking about it as a person". "I try and raise awareness when I think something is wrong. And I am absolutely bloody certain that what Israel is doing is wrong, wicked, indefensible," she told the Sunday National. She continued: "For 80 years, they have tried to destroy the spirit of the Palestinian people. They have failed conspicuously. "If they think that bombing and killing young children, and herding people from place to place, if they think that's going to build loyalty towards Israel in Palestinians, or stop them from being their enemy, they are quite wrong. "They are building – ensuring – hatred every day. "Of course, I have to speak about that. I'm a human being, it's about being a human being. Keir Starmer, and that long drink of a fellow Jacob Rees-Mogg, and Nigel Farage, they've all forgotten how to be human." Margolyes added as an aside: "Everybody thinks that I'm a comedian, and that I'm a bundle of laughs. When there are things to be laughing about and have fun with, I'm happy to do it. But God Almighty, it's difficult now, isn't it?" 'I would vote SNP if I lived in Scotland' WHEN Margolyes spoke to The National last year, she revealed that she would welcome Scottish independence. One year later, her position remains the same – and she has revealed who she would vote for if she lived in Scotland. "I like the way that the SNP politicians talk about Scotland. If I lived in Scotland, I would probably vote [[SNP]]," she said. "I don't live in Scotland, but I hope that they do very well in the elections." Margolyes will be returning to Scotland next month for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with her show Margolyes And Dickens: More Best Bits. Miriam Margolyes (Image: PA) The show is split into two parts: A deep-dive into the world of Charles Dickens, who she describes as "the art in my life", followed by an open-floor Q&A. Margolyes expressed her love for the Fringe, having first come to the festival when she was around 10 years old, but stressed that it was becoming harder for young people to attend. She said: "It's all so expensive. I'm very lucky because I've become well known, so I've got a production company that's representing me. I don't have to do anything, I just have to deliver a show and go on stage and do it. READ MORE: Comedian cancels Fringe show over 'terror' charge bail conditions' "I don't have to do what I did have to do when I first came, which was to go round with leaflets, begging people to put them up in their restaurants and launderettes and on their windscreens, begging for attention, trying to talk to journalists. "It's hard for young people to get going. I think that there should be a kind of, not exactly a levy, but people like me who've got money, we should put aside a lump sum to help young people find a place to live, so that life can flourish and that they don't dwindle and die because they can't find a place to perform. She concluded: "It's the young that give it the majesty and the miracle, it's not oldies like me. It's the young: They're the people that astonish and delight." Margolyes And Dickens: More Best Bits is at the Pentland Theatre at Pleasance at EICC, August 9 to 24 at 6pm.
The Guardian
20 hours ago
- The Guardian
If the economics of broadening or lifting Australia's GST are challenging, the politics are horrendous
When Jim Chalmers declared we needed a national debate on reforming the economy to drive the next generation of prosperity, he scolded the media for its penchant for playing the rule-in-rule-out game. The irony is that from his high horse, the treasurer had almost certainly ruled out one major change: lifting or broadening the GST. If Chalmers is being disingenuous when he suggests nothing is off the table at next month's talkfest – and he absolutely is – then he should have ruled out changes to the consumption tax from the very start. Many economists argue that lifting or broadening the GST is an essential ingredient in any reform package that fundamentally improves the efficiency of the tax system. More GST revenue can pay for cuts to income and company tax rates, for example. This shift provides a structurally more stable tax revenue base, and sharpens incentives to work and invest. Labor as a party, however, is fundamentally opposed to changing the tax on consumption on the basis that it hurts poorer Australians. Sign up: AU Breaking News email And the worry about fairness is real. New analysis by the ANU's Ben Phillips shows that the GST is 'highly regressive'. Phillips' modelling shows the bottom fifth of income earners pay 5.4% of their income on consumption taxes. That's more than twice as much as the top 20% of households, where GST accounts for 2.6% of disposable income. Broadening the GST to include the things currently excluded – such as fresh food and education – makes the tax even more regressive. Phillips finds consumption taxes as a share of household budgets climbs to 7.9% for the lowest incomes, and 3.5% for those at the top. 'I think equity concerns are spot on,' Phillips says. 'There would have to be a complicated new approach to compensation for lower and middle income workers to make it politically feasible. 'We would be relying on there being some substantial economic gains from increasing the GST, and they are probably relatively modest.' If the economics of broadening or lifting the GST are challenging, the politics are horrendous. The first hurdle is the most obvious: the states get the revenue, while the commonwealth cops the heat. Even if the Albanese government could agree with its state and territory counterparts to share the proceeds, there is also the issue that the GST distribution system has been fundamentally undermined by the obscenely generous deal with Western Australia, the country's richest state. As such, a bigger GST pile without getting rid of this distortion would simply exacerbate what Saul Eslake has called 'possibly the worst public policy decision of the 21st century'. Which begs the question: can we get meaningful tax reform without lifting the GST? Ken Henry, who authored a major tax paper in 2010 and is considered the country's high priest of reform, argues that 'tax reform cannot be done piecemeal; a big package will be required'. He recently told The Conversation's Michelle Grattan 'it would be better not to constrain the reform process by ruling out the GST'. 'Having said that, I do think it's possible to achieve major reform of the Australian taxation system without necessarily increasing the rate or extending the base of the GST.' Such reforms could be paid for via higher taxes on natural resources, and on wealth and savings – both on capital gains and income from that capital (think property investments and superannuation). Chalmers' narrative for the reform roundtable apparently leans into Henry's view around some kind of tax 'grand bargain'. But again, the treasurer's ambition is much more narrow. He has famously described his approach to reform as 'bite-sized chunks', and defended his policy initiatives since coming to power as 'modest but meaningful'. In fact, the most obvious next steps for Labor when it comes to tax is reforming the treatment of family trusts, and introducing a road user charge to replace dwindling fuel excise revenue. Whether we need another roundtable to get there is an open question. Viva Hammer, who played a key role in designing America's immense Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, had some advice for policymakers. Speaking at a tax roundtable organised by the independent MP Allegra Spender, Hammer said the ambition should be 'to think about doing something better, and not something perfect, because perfection is for the angels'. Breaking it down to the lowest common denominator, the independent economist Chris Richardson's advice is 'let's just stop doing dumb things'. Speaking at the same event in Parliament House on Friday, Richardson said his number one 'dumb thing' is how we tax gas through the petroleum rent resources tax (PRRT). Australia over recent years has become a gas superpower. And yet, incredibly, the tax take has not changed at all, Richardson says. Labor's tweaks to the PRRT have not changed this reality – as Richardson says, the forecasts for revenue from this tax are a 'big fat nothing' in future years. 'Some people say you can't change because there would be some 'sovereign risk',' he said, referring to the claims that altering these rules puts off foreign investors and can choke off funding for the industry. 'Sovereign risk is where one side gets next to nothing across a long period of time, and our own stupidity has got us there, and we should do better.' Richardson believes we are also not charging banks enough for the implicit 'too big to fail' insurance provided by taxpayers. The two suggestions, he said, could raise $5-6bn a year.
