Energetic and talented Gillard has got too much in her plate

Comments on Ross Fitzgerald “Gillard loses her glitter”, 3/09/2009, http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26018293-5013999,00.html

Julia Gillard clearly has got too much in her plate to properly digest all of them. She is the deputy prime minister, the minister for Education, the minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and the minister for Social Inclusion. Her portfolios are too large for any person to manage, especially when the government has had to completely revamp industrial relations in Australia.

It may indicate a couple of things. One is that she is too obsessed with personal ego and reputation to show her talent and leadership skills and aspirations, and likes to micromanage portfolios. Having said that, I think her energetic approach and strong personal drive deserve credits.

The second thing may be that there is not enough talent in the Labour politicians in federal parliaments, so it might be worse to leave some of her portfolios in the hands of other incompetent people. We have seen quite some performance by ministers that are incompetent so far. Relatively speaking, Gillard has done a good job, although her heavy workload has shown up as an issue and some glitches have occurred.

Either way, it is a tragedy for Labour. Labour politicians need to live up to public expectations. If some of them have not got the relevant skills to manage a department portfolio, they need to learn and develop them. And do them quickly.

Gillard needs to give up some of her portfolios, so she can focus better on the job and tasks and manage them well.