Rita Panahi: Opposition not landing any punches on Andrews
A good government needs a strong opposition. But right now the state opposition is giving Teflon Dan an easy ride despite his government’s constant broken promises and blunders, writes Rita Panahi.
Rita Panahi
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A week from Sunday marks the one year anniversary of the Victorian state election. One can safely say that if a poll were held next weekend Labor would win again in a landslide.
Dan Andrews’ government appears impervious to the fallout that follows political scandals whether due to gross acts of incompetence or deliberate malfeasance.
Since its rise to power in 2014 the Andrews Government has brushed off a number of major blunders with apparently little to no damage to the party’s support base.
Indeed, it has weathered with aplomb controversies that would have deeply destabilised and even destroyed other governments.
Teflon Dan’s talent for diffusing a crisis and diverting attention elsewhere is, it has to be said, impressive.
Nothing seems to stick to the Premier whether it’s broken promises about mass blackouts or broken promises about co-operating with police investigating the Red Shirts saga or broken promises about the billion dollar East West Link compensation.
It says something about the strength of Labor’s support that the systematic rorting exposed by the ombudsman at the heart of the Red Shirts scandal, the ongoing law and order issues, the energy policy chaos, the Country Fire Association scandal and bizarre ideological fancies have not seen any significant drop in support.
This week we learned Victorian taxpayers would be forking out hundreds of millions of dollars more for major projects because of a funding blowout that has seen the cost of some projects more than double.
Construction costs on major projects have increased significantly with the M80 and Monash Freeway upgrades among transport development blowing out by $770.2 million in the past year, according to Herald Sun analysis published earlier this week.
In the case of the M80 Ring Road, a project costed at $233 million in 2016, it is now expected to cost more than $500 million to complete.
And those costs are expected to soar even further with leading consultancy firm WT predicting more “tender price escalations” this year with a seven per cent jump in Victoria, the highest of any state.
A big part of the price explosion is the demand for materials and labour that multiple government projects require, distorting the market and driving prices up.
Of course that also had an impact on non-government developments requiring concrete, steel and manpower.
One could argue it was completely foreseeable that jam packing multiple infrastructure projects into a short period would see prices soar, but a key part of Labor’s success in Victoria has been its big picture planning and implementation.
People are willing to overlook little things, such as the apparent misuse of taxpayer funds, that saw 16 Labor MPs investigated by police, if they can see level crossings removed, a metro tunnel being built and freeways getting much needed extra lanes.
Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan was unapologetic about the cost blow out.
“The cost of not building is far too great — and we make no apologies for delivering the road and rail projects that will keep our city and state moving,” she said.
But it’s not just the infrastructure spend that is at the heart of Labor’s success.
The Victorian Opposition has been too weak for too long, rarely laying a glove on the Andrews Government.
A good government needs a strong opposition. Without a viable alternative snapping at its heels, a government can become complacent.
It can go off on bizarre frolics, such as changing legislation to allow Victorians to identify as a different gender every year on their birth certificate or removing laws that reduce the police’s ability to control lawless protesters causing havoc in the CBD.
A complacent government can also take its eye off the ball when it comes to providing Victorian households and businesses with reliable, affordable energy or ensuring the outcomes in education and health reflect the investment made by taxpayers.
On Tuesday the Premier drolly sledged Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien during debate about the government’s plan to end logging of old growth forests and phase out native timber logging.
“This one needs a protection zone. Where’s his protection zone?” quipped Andrews.
O’Brien, Liberal deputy Cindy McLeish and Nationals leader Peter Walsh have thus far been ineffectual in holding the Andrews Government to account.
The Opposition has been largely missing during ideological fights and has done little in prosecuting its case that Labor is mismanaging the economy.
It needs to work harder and be bolder if it is to have any hope of keeping Labor accountable.
As it stands, Teflon Dan would be re-elected in a heartbeat.
Whether he’s signing highly questionable deals with the Chinese government or spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars on promoting his Facebook page, Andrews is flying high.
Rita Panahi is a Herald Sun columnist.