Time for Australia to have a fixed term election system

Comments on Malcolm Colless “Kevin Rudd to strike while numbers are hot”, 9/06/2009, http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25607086-5015019,00.html

The point of the article just makes a mockery of the current federal election system. It highlights the stupidity of the current system and how out of date it has been.

It is high time to reform that system to remove the lazy and opportunistic options available to the governing party and to have a fixed term federal election system.

A fixed term will put hard and necessary constraints on any governing party to work harder to address any issues faced the government of the day. That will be good for all Australians.

While any governing party would not like to lose the political convenience available under the current system, all the parties should agree before the next federal election that Australia should and will have a fixed term election cycle, either three or four years.

I am not sure whether the 1000 or so 2020 ideas gathered at the Australia 2020 meeting last year has included the reform to the federal election system or not. Hope it has been. But the Rudd government’s choice of ideas for funding and implementation among the 1000 ideas did not include this one, clearly.

The media and commentators should voice this simple but very important reform and push it urgently onto the political agenda. They should take it as their responsibility and obligation to do so. If you people do that, you will be applauded for your contribution to a better national welfare.