When it comes to politicians we want more than PR on a stick

Australia's faith in major parties lowest in 70 years, with a growing number looking for an "authentic” connection.

Many Australian politicians now present a public persona more suitable for store-front windows. Picture: CONTRIBUTED

MUCH like the infamous tree falling in the woods, if a politician speaks does anybody listen?

It turns out the answer could very well be an emphatic "no”.

According to Bernard Salt, Australia's faith in our political leaders and big business is at its lowest point since World War II.

The public is turning away in droves, Salt said, instead seeking something "authentic”.

Bernard salt

In a striking coincidence this is the exact praise New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been feted with.

Here, though, politics is being PR-ed to death.

Now the party line trumps all.

Listen to the vast majority of Aussie politicians; you'll hear the line spouted so frequently you'll feel like an extra on a movie set listening to the 45th take of a scene.

You could turn it into a drinking game, but in some tiers it's now so bad you'd be dead within minutes.

Rum, brandy or scotch is always the fall back remedy. Picture: Samantha Elley

It's not uncommon to find yourself questioning whether you're watching an elected official, or a Kmart mannequin Geppetto decided to have some fun with.

And let's not forget that councils and governments are now being run and treated as big businesses, either.

The public is saying we don't want that.

But all we're being offered are people spouting phrases and messaging run through so many bureaucratic and PR layers it's become more sterile than a Fukushima fish.