Performance of the State Government goes south, new survey shows

It’s official – Premier Steven Marshall’s honeymoon period is over, according to an exclusive poll of more than 4000 South Australians. But it isn’t good news for Peter Malinauskas either.

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Premier Steven Marshall has seen a huge drop in support, with almost four in ten South Australians thinking he is doing a poor or very poor job, a new survey shows.

Results from the annual Sunday Mail Your Say SA survey also shows the number of people thinking Mr Marshall has done an excellent job, in his second year of Premier, has also dropped.

Mr Marshall ended 2019 on a high after getting credit for staying in the state during devastating bushfires and getting a controversial land tax bill through State Parliament despite a number of false starts.

However the State Government had to deal with unflattering employment, business confidence and population results and some backbench disharmony over a controversial mining bill.

The survey shows the number of South Australians thinking Mr Marshall is doing a poor or very poor job has jumped to 37.3 per cent of compared to 21.4 per cent 12 months earlier.

Just 4.5 per cent of participants in the latest survey thought Mr Marshall was doing an excellent job – compared to 12.9 per cent a year earlier.

Support for the State Government has also dropped from 38.6 per cent of South Australians saying they think it is doing a good or very good job to 22.3 per cent this year.

But the decline in support for Mr Marshall and his State Government, recorded in October and November, before the land tax debate was resolved, has not resulted in a significant uplift for his political opponent – Labor leader Peter Malinauskas.

Mr Malinauskas, who has worked hard to be seen as an alternative premier, recorded very little change in his performance ratings.

The Your Say SA Survey is an online survey conducted by the Sunday Mail to get the views of South Australians on a wide range of current issues.

Full results of the survey covering everything from public transport and infrastructure to jobs and education will be unveiled on Sunday.

Flinders University political scientist Rob Manwaring told The Advertiser a new year reset could be coming at a good time for the State Government and Mr Marshall.

“The honeymoon effect, that usually lasts about a year appears to be well and truly over for the Marshall government,” Dr Manwaring said.

“They need to get some runs on the board.

Dr Manwaring said a reshuffle, despite one being ruled out by Mr Marshall, could be a good opportunity to “freshen up the Cabinet and give it new energy.”

“By wiping the Parliamentary agenda clean you could see them try to get back on track,” he said.

Dr Manwaring said the State Government would be relying on a “calmer year than last year” in 2020.

He said the handling of land tax reform has been a real debacle for the government.

“Given the media prominence, and the way that it has alienated a number of people within their own base, you would say that has been a real problem for them,” he said.

Dr Manwaring said the government’s mantra of “under promise and over deliver” may not be working for Mr Marshall and his team.

“They are not like the old Labor government, making big signature policy initiatives or changes,” he said.

“But there could be a lingering question about what the Liberal Government stands for and what they have delivered for South Australia.

“A combination of these factors could explain the decline in support for the Liberal government.”

Mr Malinauskas, who became Opposition leader following the 2018 State Election, was regarded as doing an excellent or good job by 21 per cent of the South Australians surveyed – compared to 19 per cent last year.

Dr Manwaring said Labor are at a difficult point in the electoral cycle.

“They have not really managed to land a Ministerial scalp or a really significant damaging blow in the past year,” he said.

“Some of the wounds inflicted have been self-inflicted rather than from Labor.

“A question for all Opposition’s is ‘at what point do you unleash your full policy agenda and give a clear indication about what you stand for ahead of the next election?’

“It seems like what they are trying to do at the moment is what Mike Rann did many years ago, which was a Labor Listens exercise – were they try to get a better sense about where the electorate is at too.”

The questionnaire, that was hosted by Survey Monkey for 21 days from October 26 to November 15 2019, was filled out by 4,303 people.