Qld’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and ACT’s Andrew Barr are now the only remaining ‘Covid’ leaders

Only Queensland’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and the ACT’s Andrew Barr remain of the nine state, territory and federal leaders who ‘led’ us through the Covid years.

Seven gone, two to go.

The departure of Daniel Andrews leaves only two – Queensland’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and the ACT’s Andrew Barr – of the nine state, territory and federal premiers who ‘led’ us through the Covid years.

Throw in the sainted Jacinda across the ditch, that makes eight gone of the ten from what used to be called Australasia.

Only two were directly sacked by voters – Scott Morrison, of course, and SA’s Stephen Marshall.

A third – Gladys Berejiklian – was ‘sacked’’ so to speak, by NSW’s anti-corruption commission; but her successor Dominic Perrottet got the boot anyway from voters that would all-but certainly have also been directed at her proverbial butt.

Furthermore, both the departed Jacinda and the clinging-on Palaszczuk would have/will likely be similarly ousted by voters.

If Jacinda had and Annastacia does stay to their respective elections.

With Ahern, NZ’s election to be held in quite exquisite coincidence on October 14. With Palaszczuk, October next year, if she stays – or survives – as long.

My bet is she will take the ‘hint’ from Andrews.

By the bye, we should know the NZ result just around as the referendum polls close on this side of the ditch.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Picture: Dan Peled / NCA NewsWire

The day promises to be a replay of – the somewhat more extended - Brexit and Trump saga in 2016; with voters in both cases, on both sides of the respective ditches, the Tasman and the Atlantic, declining to take the advice of the mixed assorted respective elites.

So, in essence, every one of the nine Australian (ten Australasian) ‘Covid leaders’ – except for the solitary case of Barr, and perhaps WA’s Mark McGowan – will have been either directly sacked or ‘prompted’ to leave by voters.

That adds up to a pretty sweeping – and damning - judgment on their performances through Covid.

Barr is of course utterly unsackable in an electorate that feeds off the public teat, and had least to fear from the very real costs of the Covid responses.

The Prime Minister refuses to have a proper accounting of the Covid years; except to narrow the focus of any inquiry onto the alleged errors of his predecessor and political opponent.

He should note that 26m Australians are having ‘their own inquiry’ – and judgment call – anyway. Because this is a sordid political exercise that could blow back on him and his government; and if so, hopefully big time in 2025.

The political responses to Covid and the wild spending have left huge fissures across the community and across the economy, along with very big bills still to pay.

Those fissures though have been ‘papered over’ by two things that have kept the economy running strongly and poured tens of billions into especially the Federal and WA budgets, and also into Queensland and NSW, and even to some extent Victoria.

They are the booming demand for our coal and gas and iron ore, and the immigration surge.

But the huge population leap carries huge – future - costs.

And ask yourself, how long will the resources boom last, even if we are prepared to let it? Aren’t coal and gas evil?

Originally published as Qld’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and ACT’s Andrew Barr are now the only remaining ‘Covid’ leaders