Anthony Albanese, leader of the Labour Party in Australia ended nine years of Liberal/National coalition government by winning the 2022 Australian federal election held on 21 May 2022. His success ended the run of incumbent Prime Minister Scott Morrison who was seeking to win a fourth consecutive term for his coalition. Albanese was sworn in as Australian PM on 23 May after which he flew to Tokyo to attend the Tokyo Summit of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad). He became the fourth Labor leader since world war two to oust a Liberal prime minister.
The final tally of seats will take some time and it is not clear yet whether the Labour Party will receive an outright majority or not. The results seem to be more a rejection of the coalition rather than a groundswell of support for Labour, whose percentage of votes polled have seen a marginal decline. Nevertheless, the results are being described as a “seismic shift” in Australian politics as voters showed their preference for greater action for combating climate change and gender equality, while rejecting the aggressive brand of politics followed by the outgoing prime minister.
Rich deposits of coal, gas and minerals like iron ore laid the foundations for Australia’s prosperity for generations. But Australia is now on the forefront of the climate crisis. Forest fires, mass bleaching events at the Great Barrier Reef, severe droughts and record breaking floods have affected Australia in recent times and with the exacerbation of the climate crisis, are set to worsen in coming years as the earth warms up. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warned that Australia was looking at a future of worse climate disasters.
The ruling coalition was seen as holding out on action to combat climate change. The promises to focus on renewable energy were not borne out. PM Morrison even held a piece of coal in Parliament at one stage. Australia continues to rely on coal for most of its electricity. With only 0.3% of the global population, it accounts for 1% of global emissions.
Election also showed a swing towards Independents who campaigned on issues relating to the climate, with success for many first-time entrants to politics, known as teal candidates, who sought much larger cuts to emissions than either the Liberal coalition or the Labour Party and targeted traditionally Liberal seats with more green-leaning policies. The Greens also performed well. The outcome of the Australian elections are, thus, likely to be significant for planet earth, as Australia, long considered a laggard on climate action, could well take a lead on climate friendly action.
PM Morrison had seen a diminishing of his popularity amongst women and the indigenous people. He was perceived as lacking empathy in his response to allegations of assault on women in Parliament House. The Labour leader promised gender equality and to enshrine the voice of the indigenous people in Parliament. The role of money in politics was also ignored by the people as “Australia’s Trump”, the mining magnate who was said to have spent close to $100 million on advertising, remained unsuccessful.
The changes in Australia throw up some interesting questions. Following the victory of Democratic President Joe Biden in the US, the emergence of Labour in Australia, after the failure of the right wing to dislodge President Macron, could be interpreted by some as shifting winds of public opinion from right to left. While elections in the UK and India are some time away, the conservatives in the UK are at the receiving end of some negative press coverage, which comes together with a somewhat more confident Labour. In India, the ruling party has been able to overcome the vulnerabilities resulting from what was described as poor management of the pandemic and the resulting economic distress. Of late, though, excessive focus on religion has affected support amongst liberals and the youth. However, a weak and disparate opposition has so far shown its inability to dent the enormous popularity of the Indian PM.
Labour has underscored its commitment to the AUKUS security pact, struck by PM Morrison with the United States and United Kingdom and has voiced strong support for the Quad. The new Labour leader showed his commitment to Quad by proceeding for the Tokyo Summit soon after his swearing in, where he will meet his counterparts from the US, Japan and India.
Australia's approach towards China would, however, be watched carefully in the days to come. The Liberal coalition has suggested that Labor will be soft on China. Australia's relations with China deteriorated under the outgoing government, especially in 2020 when the Morrison government called for an investigation into the origins of Covid-19 and China responded with sanctions against Australian exports, including beef, barley, wine, and rock lobster.
Notwithstanding the official position, Quad countries would be attentive to the statements and policies of the new Australian leader to security and other issues.
