Jeff Kennett: It’s time to give Bernie the brat the boot
The way Bernard Tomic performed at Wimbledon last week was an embarrassment to his sport and his country, and it's time he was finally shown the door, writes Jeff Kennett.
Opinion
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Everyone in life is entitled to a second chance after making a mistake or worse.
But how many chances has Bernard Tomic been given by tennis authorities around the world?
Too many.
His performance and display at Wimbledon last week were a continuation of his bad sportsmanship, which is an embarrassment to the sport, to his country, and should be but is not an embarrassment to him.
Here is a young man who had the world at his feet, who sadly spits in the faces of those who have given him the opportunities he has enjoyed. Not only tennis authorities but the sports-loving public of Australia.
Tomic’s shocking and cavalier behaviour is made worse by the exemplary behaviour of Ash Barty.
Not only is Ash successful at her trade, it is hard to find a more self-effacing sportsperson as witnessed by her performance after her loss on Monday night at Wimbledon.
If the powers that be in Tennis Australia have any self-respect for their game, they should ban Tomic from all competitions in Australia over which TA has influence. It should then by that example use its influence to have the other tennis federations do the same.
Tomic boasts how much money he has made from tennis. Well, it is time he lived off that wealth but was disqualified from earning any more from the profession.
PEACE IN OUR TIME
While it is early days in Scott Morrison’s prime ministership in his own right, we have an unprecedented period of political calmness at the federal level.
Not since the early days of the prime ministership of Malcolm Fraser has the prime minister of the day not had to confront the undermining of a political rival from within their own party.
Fraser/Peacock, Hawke/Keating, Howard/Costello, Rudd/Gillard, Gillard/Rudd, Abbott/Turnbull, and Turnbull/Abbott.
The strength of Morrison’s electoral win, the clear and obvious support of his most senior ministers, his cleverness in leaving some of the senior ministers in their important portfolios after the election all provides continuity of administration which greatly assists the communities these ministers, in important portfolios, administer.
This is not to say the country does not face genuine challenges, particularly economic, but to have political stability in Canberra right now, regardless of the political party that forms government is a bonus for us all.
LOWERING INTEREST RATES, A RISK TOO FAR?
IN this column on May 29, I suggested that a lowering of interest rates by the Reserve Bank was a step too far. Of course, my suggestion was ignored, and since then the RBA has lowered interest rates twice.
Australia has now the lowest rates in its history.
If the RBA thinks such downward movements are going to stimulate economic activity, then I think they are sadly mistaken.
Worse, if young people think borrowing now at these low rates is a good idea, they should think carefully.
Importantly, their employment security should be the basis on which they enter into large borrowings.
Sadly, employment is never guaranteed! We are seeing a shrinkage of employment in the retail sector with many businesses closing.
So before anyone borrows for a house in this low interest rate environment, try to pay as much as possible off the purchase price to reduce borrowings to a minimum, and secondly, ask yourself if I lost my job how would I be able to meet my repayments?
The most important economic change in recent times has been the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority removing from banks the requirement they should assess a person’s application for housing funding against an interest rate of 7.5 per cent.
Clearly that is severely out of kilter with the current market; APRA has lowered that assessment basis to 2.5 per cent.
That will have a much greater impact on funds from banks being more readily available for housing loans.
The Federal Government’s tax package as passed by parliament last week will provide some genuine, but short-term stimulus to the economy, but will not in any way reduce the risks of borrowing today at record low interest rates.
MORE: EQUAL PAY AN OWN GOAL
We should not forget that consumer debt today is a massive $2 trillion.
Please do not get me wrong. Debt is not a bad thing. It can help us grow as families and businesses. But too much debt can be a risk too far.
Low interest rates might be good for those with capital, but they can be irresponsibly seductive for many if serviceability and sustained employment cannot be secured.
Jeff Kennett is a former Premier of Victoria and a Herald Sun columnist.
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