Liberals in clover, lessons of leadership learnt

With Shorten staying put, Albanese can only dream of the job security enjoyed by the PM.

In the surreal Lewis Carroll world that is modern politics, the Australian Labor Party has passed Through the Looking Glass into distorted introspection and delusional analysis just as the Liberal Party has survived the Mad ­Hatter’s Tea Party and can stop the endless, disruptive changes at the top of the table.

On Thursday morning, two-time loser as opposition leader Bill Shorten was working hard to ensure there was a way back for him as leader some time in the “next 20 years” by limiting his contribution to the ALP loss in May.

On Thursday night, two-time winner (counting his technical win in 2010) as opposition leader Tony Abbott was thanking his ultimate successor, Scott Morrison, for a miracle win that could stretch Liberal dominance out for 20 years.

As Labor wrestles with the challenges of opposition after losing an unloseable election, it faces the ongoing prospect of Anthony Albanese having to look over his shoulder at a formidable former leader lurking in the ranks.

READ MORE: Paul Kelly: A tale of two Labors | Voters resented Shorten: Albo | Key findings from Labor’s review | Labor leader must quicken pace of resurrection

As the Liberals wrestle with the challenges of governing after winning the unwinnable election, the Prime Minister has no former leaders in the parliamentary party and the only person to stand against him, Peter Dutton, harbours no ambition after sparking the removal of Malcolm Turnbull.

After years in the wilderness, John Howard was able to come back to Liberal leadership and guide the Coalition to 11 years of government only after the feud between he and arch-rival ­Andrew Peacock was settled.

Morrison’s self-proclaimed “miracle” victory has provided him with more security than any other leader for more than a ­decade, with the Liberals learning the lesson that politics is about being in government and that stable leadership is necessary to win.

The NSW Liberal Party’s 1000-strong “tribute to Tony Abbott” was an emotional night of praise for one of only four Liberal leaders to bring the ­Coalition into government from opposition. But it was much more than that, not just for ­Abbott but also for the Liberal Party. The Liberals under Morrison are rehabilitating the standing of Abbott as a successful Liberal leader, as a conviction politician prepared to make tough decisions, someone who pursued strategic policy, was loyal to his colleagues and who, undermined from “day one”, deserved to remain in the top job.

The mass meeting of Liberals also demonstrated the strength and attraction of conservative values for ordinary Australians concerned about job security first, the strength of character of political leadership second, and then cultural/ideological issues. Labor is making this stunning discovery six months after a third election defeat and a ­continuing disastrously low primary vote.

There was personal vindication and defence of Abbott, who was framed by his opponents and subjected to “a vile campaign”. And there was a clear rapprochement between Abbott and Liberal hero Howard following some friction after Turnbull’s removal of Abbott.

Messages of unity came from Howard, Morrison, Abbott, Dutton and former deputy prime minister and Nationals leader Warren Truss and was “passed by acclamation”, as Alan Jones declared, by the hundreds of Liberals present who cheered defences of conservative policies.

Howard praised the remarkable qualities of Abbott as an ­opposition leader who promoted policies, cut through with a political message and connected with the public through unashamed conservative policies, particularly on immigration and border control. He gave particular praise to Abbott for having won from opposition and for gaining a total of 25 seats from Labor at two elections. “Tony was a great political winner,” Howard said.

The message for the gathered faithful from Howard was that the first duty of a leader is to win and that Abbott’s tenure had been “too short”. Howard did not say, as he has on other occasions, that the leader’s second duty is to keep the faith of parliamentary colleagues.

For Dutton, there was no mincing words — he praised ­Abbott’s leadership and said he had been undone by forces determined to undermine from day one. He went one further to make it clear Brendan Nelson had suffered the same fate from the forces supporting Turnbull.

Morrison was slightly more diplomatic, preferring not to bury Turnbull but to praise ­Abbott. Like Abbott, Morrison has finely tuned political skill, targeting Labor weaknesses the ALP itself could not see, forcing splits in the opposition over key issues such as mining and climate change and keeping his election messages simple, ­although not quite as simple as Abbott’s “stop the boats”.

Abbott’s own conclusion, gracious as his election night concession speech, was that he and Turnbull both “owed a debt” to Morrison for his miraculous win because had he lost, the Coalition governments since his victory in 2013 would have been seen collectively “as a bad government” and now there was the opportunity under Morrison’s unified leadership for the ­Coalition to go on collectively, perhaps to rival the success of the Howard-Costello government.

As Labor ponders its leadership, analyses its failure, continues to make errors by flirting with anti-job activists, prepares to dump policies once held dear and looks for a strategy, the Liberals have the luxury of learning the disaster of their Mad Hatter’s Tea Party from government.