John Howard’s rule ‘better than last Coalition’: Tony Abbott

The Howard government was far more effective than the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison era because it had ‘character, convictions and courage’, Tony Abbott says.

John Howard’s government had ‘policy tensions’ and ‘personal rivalries’ but they ‘played by the rules’ and put the country first. according to Tony Abbott. Picture: Jason Edwards

Tony Abbott has urged the ­Coalition to recognise that the Howard government was far more effective than the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison government because it had “character, convictions and courage” and a unifying policy agenda that its senior ministers implemented.

“The next generation has to accept that the Howard government did better than us, and to work out why it succeeded better than we did so that our public life might be better now on,” Mr ­Abbott said.

Tony Abbott. Picture: David Caird

“Essentially, the Howard government flourished because it had character, convictions and courage. Or to be more specific, it had a policy agenda that all its senior members just got on with.”

Mr Abbott, a minister in the Howard government and prime minister from 2013 to 2015, said the Howard government had “policy tensions” and “personal rivalries” but they “played by the rules” and put the country first.

“They were in it more for the country than for themselves,” he said. “Their arguments were about issues, not about personalities. The cabinet almost never leaked. Until the very end, there was no destructive ‘backgrounding’ by ministers of journalists.

“The ‘progressives’ did not campaign against the ‘conservatives’ and vice-versa, or at least not at senior levels. The Howard-Costello pecking order and the strongly ‘centre-right’ nature of government (or ‘economically liberal but socially conservative’ as Mr Howard put it) was all-but-universally accepted.”

The most recent Coalition government, in contrast, was marked by leadership instability with two prime ministers – Mr Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull – being challenged and forced from office, factional divisions, policy blunders and backsliding, before tumbling to minority government and then defeat.

 

The assessment by Mr Abbott of his government and those led by Mr Turnbull and Scott Morrison is included in a new book edited by David Lovell and Andrew Blyth, The Art of Coalition, published by UNSW Press.

While Mr Abbott wrote that the Howard government had “more substantial characters” and a “stellar” record of achievement, he was nevertheless critical of several policies, such as adopting the renewable energy target, banning nuclear power and baking in “long-term spending on the back of short-term revenue”.

Contributors write about the history of the Liberal and Nationals (formerly Country Party) partnership and canvass ­issues such as gun law reform, privatisation of Telstra and the merger of the two parties in Queensland.

Mr Howard and John Anderson say there was a deep well of trust, respect and unity between the Liberals and Nationals between 1996 and 2007 that underscored the success of their government. “I would call it a remarkably successful partnership of people with common values and shared determination to do the right thing by the country and having an eye to remaining in power because you cannot implement your common values without being empowered,” Mr Howard said.

Mr Anderson said ministers were courteous, allowed to have their say and left “grandstanding” and “puffery” behind to unite in support of the Coalition agenda.