‘Abstinence works’: Reason Treasurer Jim Chalmers gave up alcohol
Treasurer Jim Chalmers tried “no beers on a school night” or “one or two at a wedding” but it didn’t work so he gave up booze altogether.
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Treasurer Jim Chalmers has revealed he hasn’t had a drink in two years after giving it “a really good nudge” for a quarter of a century.
The Queensland MP gave up drinking during the pandemic and admitted he found abstinence easier to manage and more straightforward than having a drink here and there.
Speaking to columnist Peter FitzSimons, the Treasurer said he felt like it was good advice.
“It’s going well, and it’s been two years since I had a drop of alcohol. I read that chapter in your book – on you giving up alcohol – six or eight times now, and that was pretty decisive advice for me,’’ Dr Chalmers said.
Asked if he missed it, the Treasurer said he felt he had already had “a lifetime” of drinking and it wasn’t something he ever regretted or wanted to change.
“Not like I thought I would. I mean, I started drinking in my mid-teens and for the next 25-plus years I gave it a really good nudge,’’ he said.
“I feel like I fit a lifetime of normal consumption into a shorter period. And so for me, it made a lot of sense to give it away.”
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He agreed that abstinence was easier to manage than moderation.
“Totally. I’ve tried before to say “no beers on a school night” or “one or two at a wedding”, that kind of stuff. That doesn’t work for me. Abstinence works,’’ he said.
Dr Chalmers isn’t the first politician to give up alcohol.
Former Prime Minister Bob Hawke famously didn’t touch a drop of alcohol when he was PM.
“He gave up drinking in 1980 when he went into parliament, and when he was prime minister he was drinking non-alcoholic wines and all that sort of thing, but as soon as he left office, he went back on the grog,” his political contemporary Graham Richardson told news.com.au.
“He could have never become prime minister if he carried on drinking the way he was.”
Mr Hawke once explained why it was so important he gave up the beers.
“I said to myself, ‘If you are going to become prime minister of this country, you cannot be in a position where you can make a fool of yourself in front of the country’,” he said.
Dr Chalmers also spoke of the toll of politics on family life, conceding he had not realised in the beginning the sacrifices it would involve for family life.
“I didn’t because I’d seen its possibilities, and it was something that I had been working towards for a really long time,’’ he said.
“And back then, it wasn’t fully apparent to me what it would be like to say goodbye to my wife and kids and leave home on a Sunday afternoon to come to parliament, until I was in that position.
“It’s the only downside of politics. It’s the only thing that makes you think about whether you’re doing the right thing; whether it’s worth it.”
While he considered running for the leadership in 2019, he ultimately did not enter the race and believed that the Labor Party had made the right decision.
“Well, for one thing our youngest was about five months old, and it was a choice between being away three or four nights a week as shadow treasurer, or being out seven nights a week as leader,’’ he said.
“It would have been a contest, but you only want to take part in that kind of contest if you’re sure of it. And I had my doubts.
“Most importantly of all, I thought Anthony would be a good leader and a good prime minister. I think the party got it right. We chose someone who’s obviously going to be a really good prime minister, and I’m hoping to be a really good treasurer in his government.”
Asked if there was a Kirribilli agreement – a reference to the secret pact between former prime minister Bob Hawke and his then Treasurer Paul Keating to hand over the leadership, Dr Chalmers reportedly laughed and said “No!”.
“I think like any political friendship or political partnership, it has good days and bad days,’’ he said.
“But for quite a while now it’s been good days. And I’ve known him now for almost 20 years. When I was knocking around the parliament in other roles, I spent a fair bit of time with him. I liked his company. Obviously, when you’re having a think about whether or not to run for the leadership, that probably puts a strain on things, but for a really long time now it’s been absolutely terrific. And I’m proud of him.”
Originally published as ‘Abstinence works’: Reason Treasurer Jim Chalmers gave up alcohol
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