Political instability in Australia

Australia needs a strong government
by GDL

The advent of a minority government in Australia since 2010, has but brought instability in the country. Julia Gillard and Labor did not win the elections of 2010, but managed to govern with the support of independents Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshot.
Labor also had the support of the Greens. This support from the Greens were actually toxic as the latter cornered the government into passing the carbon tax legislation. Gillard promised before the elections that there will be no carbon tax under a government she leads but she later explained that she had no choice. Taxing Carbon is taxing our cheapest form of energy.

Since 2010, there has been political instability in the country. Each piece of legislation had to be negotiated with the independents and the Greens. Many times parliament has to resort to division of votes as there was no clear majority. It was rarely they "yes" have it or the "nos' have it.
Labor had to rely for the most part on the vote of disgraced Craig Thompson and made Peter Slipper, the rat, the speaker to be assured of staying in government.
There was also instability within the Labor party itself. Julia Gillard leadership was challenged twice by Kevin Rudd. The latest challenge resulted in major casualties which saw the resignation of ministers and parliamentary secretaries as well as the whips of government.During the past three years we have also seen cabinet reshuffled three times.

The polls have consistently shown that Labor is in decline but was still showing the unpopularity of Tony Abbott. This was some comfort for the Labor voters; but since Tony Abbott became the preferred prime minister, many saw this as the last straw. It became thus clear that voters have turned their backs on Labor and particularly not listening to Julia Gillard.

The demise of  Labor, besides these instabilities, has also been compounded by many bad decisions and policies starting from the days of Kevin Rudd and all through Julia Gillard's prime ministership. The list is long and exhaustive demonstrating thorough incompetence. Analysts rate Julia Gillard and her government as the worst in the political history of Australia.
This week highlighted the panic in the government ranks to the extent that many have already conceded defeat. This sense of despair was, however, the opportunity for Kevin Rudd to come in the forefront to boost the moral of the Labour supporters.
He made a show of force, mingling with the public to demonstrate that he is still the people's Prime Minster. He also urged his labour colleagues to stand up and fight against Tony Abbott.
This "show" of Kevin Rudd  has again cause for concern to the extent that a reputable journalist like Barry Cassidy of Insiders is saying that support for Julia Gillard has withered and it seems certain that there will be another leadership spill.(sic)
The eventuality of a  Kevin Rudd's return could see another cabinet reshuffle and a new date for the general elections which could be in August.The question remains if Kevin Rudd can repair the damages that he started, and amplified by Julia Gillard. While most analysts (like myself) think it is too late, that the game is over for Labor, others think that Kevin could help save some marginal seats.
Kevin or Gillard will not, according to all polls, be prime minister in September. Who will be the leader of the opposition is also not clear.
It is predicted that  Bill Shorten will be the next leader of the Labor party. We will soon find out.
Qui vivra verra comme le dit souvent mon ami Serge Felix.