Anthony Albanese is struggling to keep his head above water as he prepares for one of the toughest weeks in his 27-year political career when parliament returns on Monday.
Clinging to the side of a political life raft buffeted by a resurgent Peter Dutton, the 60-year-old is gasping for clear air to get the government’s agenda back on track before Christmas.
Residual damage from the voice referendum defeat, a 13th interest rate hike, four consecutive overseas trips and criticism of Labor’s handling of immigration and border security have pummelled the Prime Minister.
Dutton has seized on a horror few weeks dominated by poor political management and leadership by Albanese. Labor MPs are increasingly nervous about the government’s standing and focus.
The list of missteps include the PM’s obfuscation over whether he raised the Chinese sonar incident with Xi Jinping and response to the High Court ruling on indefinite detention and scramble to legislate emergency powers.
The first boat to make landfall after breaching Operation Sovereign Borders exposed another weak point for Labor.
Deep cuts to infrastructure projects, kicking the can down the road on stopping kids from accessing pornography, concerns over security checks on almost 900 visas granted to Palestinians, the response to ugly scenes of anti-Semitism and Chris Bowen’s taxpayer-funded guarantees supporting 32GW in new renewable energy capacity have left the government vulnerable to attacks.
Dutton is cashing in on a trifecta of traditional Coalition safe zones – boats, economic management and national security.
As Albanese fights to reclaim traction ahead of summer, Dutton will use the final days of parliament to heap pressure on the PM’s leadership and response to the cost-of-living crisis.
While there are question marks over Albanese’s ability to steer Labor back on course, there are concerns inside the Coalition that Dutton’s recent political success won’t be converted into substantive policy that wins back voters who abandoned the Morrison government.
Albanese, who held a cabinet meeting in Canberra on Monday and a full ministry meeting in Sydney on Tuesday, will need to rally the troops and score some political wins over the next fortnight.
After an extended honeymoon, there are serious rumblings inside government ranks for the first time since the 2022 election. Sheeting responsibility for the nation’s woes on to the Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison governments is wearing thin with voters.
Amid warnings of fires and cyclones over summer, Albanese needs to get on the front foot, accept responsibility for mistakes and be more agile in shifting Labor’s policy priorities.
Albanese, who some criticise for salivating more on politics than policy, will next week seek to convince his caucus that the government will recover from its bumpy post-referendum performance and be match fit for the run home to the 2025 election.
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