Dutton sets out his case for votes

Unlike Anthony Albanese, Peter Dutton has been clear from day one on his support for Israel and the scourge of anti-Semitism following the October 7, 2023, terror attack by Hamas. And in a speech on Sunday, the Opposition Leader made it clear he intends to take a similarly firm stand across a suite of issues to take the challenge to Labor all the way to election day. Mr Dutton previously has described the 2025 election as a “sliding doors” moment for voters.

One direction leads to more of the same from Labor, which has raised tax collections and grown the public sector to make life more difficult for the productive economy. The other direction is a return to the core values that have defined the Liberal Party over generations.

Two lines from what was a lengthy speech by Mr Dutton sum up things well. “Australians are best served by smaller government, which gets off their back, supports free enterprise and rips up regulation,” he said. “The Albanese government has had the wrong priorities. It’s built bigger government to exert more power, instead of creating better government to empower citizens.”

Mr Dutton is proposing a return to Liberal Party roots of prudent fiscal management and policies of reward for effort to unleash the animal spirits and rebuild productivity. This is the ideological battle that must be put before voters.

Mr Dutton has identified the areas that need attention most. These include reforming taxes for business and individuals; restoring stability and certainty to superannuation; assisting small business through instant asset write-offs; cutting red and green tape; winding back Labor’s industrial relations laws; curbing the power of trade unions; and finding a way to restore the energy trilemma of affordable, secure and reliable power.

The challenge for Mr Dutton is to convince voters that he can deliver.

He has been able to draw on the strong foundations of Liberal orthodoxy to make the case. This is that family is the most important unit in society and business and industries, not governments, are the main source of enterprise and wealth creation. He can draw on his personal experience as a small-business owner and assistant treasurer under Peter Costello, as well as his time spent working at the frontline of immigration and defence as a minister to show he can deal with the vital issues of national security. Mr Dutton can also point to his years as a police officer in Queensland and investigator of organised crime, drug trafficking and sex offenders to deal with any suggestions that he is not in touch with the serious issues of family protection and security of women.

What voters want most is a proper contest about the issues that mean the most to them, and to know what the two leaders plan to do about them.