Muslims and farmers, everyone wants a piece of Labor
An unanticipated backlash in WA is the last thing the government needs, given the prospect of the creation of a pro-Muslim political movement targeting heartland ALP seats.
When the government moved last week to ban live sheep exports, it took a calculated risk that relatively few West Australians in a dwindling industry would be affected, and most were not Labor voters anyway.
What it may not have sufficiently considered, as it implemented its election promise, was WA’s fabled parochialism. As WA has shown before, an attack on one can be construed as an attack on all.
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Phillip Coorey is the political editor based in Canberra. He is a two-time winner of the Paul Lyneham award for press gallery excellence. Connect with Phillip on Facebook and Twitter. Email Phillip at pcoorey@afr.com
