View from The Hill: What if Bill Shorten had become PM in 2019?

By Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

Politics is full of “what ifs?” As Bill Shorten prepares to exit parliament early next year, and Anthony Albanese may be on the path to a minority government, the question invites itself: what if Shorten had won the 2019 election?

At the time, it seemed to most observers the unlosable election – until he lost it.

Events would have derailed a Shorten government, to a greater or lesser extent, just as they did the Morrison government.

Shorten would have had to manage the COVID pandemic. He’d probably have had smoother relations with the Labor states during the…

Read complete article

~	Oscar: the tragedy and beauty of Wilde’s life, and an historic moment on the ballet stage

~	National parks and other protected areas often fail to conserve Earth’s forests, research finds

~	Australia’s new scam prevention draft is welcome – but it needs to be broader in scope

~	What is ‘health at every size’ lifestyle counselling? How does it compare with weight-focused treatments?

~	Iran sees 80% spike in executions two years after protests

~	A new play brings Trent Dalton’s Love Stories to the stage in a joyful and exuberant celebration of love

~	‘An ideas novel that’s not boring’: Rachel Kushner’s revolutionary spy novel reflects on our hurtle towards extinction

~	A ‘forever language’ – te Wiki o te Reo Māori marks 52 years of extraordinary progress

~	What would a second Trump presidency mean for the global economy?

~	Hidden craters reveal Earth may once have had a ring – like Saturn