This independent MP rose from thirty-year-old Armidale councillor to NSW parliamentary speaker. Now he plans to take on Tony Windsor for the Nationals. Frank Bongiorno looks at a politician who won’t stand still
14 Aug 12 Comments (0)The forty-third parliament: how’s it hanging?
The House of Representatives has its first Indigenous member and its first Muslim member. But female representation is stuck at around 25 per cent, writes Tony Smith
29 Sep 10 Comments (1)The fabulous fiftieth NSW parliament, and other minority governments
Every Australian state and territory has experienced a minority government over the past twenty years. Peter Browne surveys a surprisingly strong field
10 Sep 10 Comments (0)South Australia’s cabinet experiment
Minority government in South Australia produced a novel solution that challenged the way the Westminster system has worked in Australia, writes Norman Abjorensen
03 Sep 10 Comments (0)Rob Oakeshott: Why I became an independent
In this interview with Terry Lane, first broadcast on ABC Radio National’s The National Interest in 2002, Rob Oakeshott discusses why he joined the Nationals, and why he left
25 Aug 10 Comments (0)Rebels with a cause
The prospect of a minority federal government throws a spotlight on the quiet rise of a generation of independent MPs in state and federal parliaments. Brian Costar and Jennifer Curtin look at their motivations, role and significance
23 Aug 10 Comments (1)The parties’ democratic deficit
In a democratic system the parties themselves should practise internal democracy, argues Norman Abjorensen
10 Feb 10 Comments (0)The LNP’s traction challenge
History and geography suggest that Queensland’s Liberal National Party needs to think hard about its future, writes Norman Abjorensen
26 Mar 09 Comments (0)The early demise of social liberalism
The year 1909 saw a seachange in Australian politics, writes Norman Abjorensen on the anniversary of the fusion of the non-Labor parties
13 Jan 09 Comments (1)Country matters
Coalitions don’t work in opposition, so the federal Nationals would be better off going it alone, writes Norman Abjorensen
18 Dec 08 Comments (0)
