Effective federal opposition leadership is needed

Comments on Paul Kelly “Liberal party making policy on the run”, 3/12/2009, http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/liberal-party-making-policy-on-the-run/story-e6frg74x-1225806340685

Unexpectedly Mr Tony Abbott was elected the leader of the Liberal Party last week and has become the leader of the opposition that ended the leadership of Mr Malcolm Turnbull.

Mr Turnbull is a very intelligent guy and was full of promises when he became the leader of the opposition a year ago. But he has made some serious political mistakes and errors in judgment.

Now that is all behind the Liberal Party and it is Mr Abbott's turn to make the opposition electable at the next election in less than a year's time.

I personally wish Mr Abbott every success; because the nation deserves effective opposition at the federal level to hold the government accountable and to be a force to make the government policies better than just the government wishes to be. Only an effective opposition can make it possible that the nation is governed in the best possible way.

However, with all respect to Mr Abbott, I am afraid to say that he is very unlikely to win the next election, simply because his political history and experience does not help him and is detrimental to his success as an opposition leader.

There is also a question that how long his leadership will last. It is also likely that once the liberal party realises the political inevitability, they will seek another more presentable leader to replace him before the next election. It will not be between him and Mr Turnbull, but someone else.

The summer break of the ffederal parliament will not give the opposition the opportunity to think the ETS as the government wishes, but to contemplate seriously its future leadership and the best strategy to win the next election, or at least to minimise the losses if it cannot win it.