NSW: Carr enjoys himself, Brogden gets set for generational mood shift

AAP General News (Australia)
12-11-2003
NSW: Carr enjoys himself, Brogden gets set for generational mood shift

By Jim Hanna, State Political Correspondent

SYDNEY, Dec 4 AAP - Forget Canberra, Bob Carr's real ambition is Washington DC.

On a recent bus trip, the NSW Premier had journalists in stitches with a convincing
impression of a tour guide in the US capital.

Legs astride at the front of the bus, Mr Carr pointed left and right as he reeled off
spontaneous, yet voluble descriptions of DC landmarks - until the driver asked him to
sit down so the bus could go.

Mr Carr has enjoyed himself immensely this year.

After holding his huge parliamentary majority at the March 22 election, he took the
chance to implement contentious social reforms, launch a revealing book culled from his
personal diaries and indulge in cameos in that long-running saga, the federal Labor leadership.

It's no secret Bob Carr would love to be prime minister or, better still, foreign minister.

But he knows the circumstances to move to the federal stage are no longer suitable.

Why give up the security of ruling NSW for at least three more years for another stretch
in opposition - in cold, unforgiving Canberra?

But he's enjoyed the next best thing to being in power federally - flattering speculation
(and polls) about a move to Canberra during a virtually untroubled third term as premier
of Australia's biggest state.

March 22 cemented Mr Carr's massive parliamentary majority, ensuring he had plenty
of electoral capital to leave behind a political legacy.

His first two terms were marked by a social conservatism increasingly common in the
modern day Labor Party.

But with a third (and possibly fourth) term safely in the bag, Mr Carr decided it was
safe to test the community's tolerance on potentially divisive social issues.

In May, he deftly sold equalising the age of consent for homosexual males as a piece
of legal housekeeping, ensuring objections were kept largely to fringe conservatives (on
both sides).

That same month, he announced a four-year trial to allow the medicinal use of cannabis
to relieve chronic suffering.

Patients would gain access to medical cannabis through a new Office of Medicinal Cannabis.

Later in the year, the government announced the controversial Kings Cross heroin injecting
room trial would continue for another four years - in other words, it will be up for review
once the 2007 election is safely out of the way.

All of these issues would have had their genesis before March 22.

But there was no way a cagey operator like Bob Carr was going to give the opposition
any chance to run a scare campaign during an election.

Mr Carr's handling of potentially perilous issues this year also showed an increasing
surefootedness.

His decision to present the Sydney Peace Prize to Palestinian activist Hanan Ashrawi
generated opposition from the coalition and sections of Australia's Jewish community.

But Mr Carr won the day when he took that criticism head on by pointing out his 30-year
support of Israel.

Privately, he is buoyed by the positive reaction he's received from ordinary members
of the public to his stance.

The same head-on strategy seems to have worked with the increased poker machine tax rates.

Despite a well-funded, professionally coordinated campaign by the clubs, the government
seems to have lost little public support by raising gaming machine tax rates on registered
clubs with the biggest turnover.

In fact, one television campaign that threatened to personally target Mr Carr was mothballed
after he took on its creator, advertising guru John Singleton, in the media.

He even managed to please the state's farmers - not exactly a typical Labor voting
constituency - on the contentious issue of clearing native vegetation on their land.

A $406 million package will pay farmers to set aside more land for conservation, plant
more native trees and manage their land sustainably.

And what of the NSW opposition?

Given the demoralising election loss - its second big loss in a row - it's a mark of
John Brogden's leadership the coalition has held together as well as it has, and even
landed a few punches on some ministers.

Questions are still being asked about standard of health care at public hospitals,
the whereabouts of the trouble-plagued Millennium train and gun violence on Sydney's streets.

But Mr Brogden faces a huge task to get the coalition ready for government while it
spends at least three more years in the political wilderness.

Much is being made of the generational change federal Labor is going through with the
relatively youthful Mark Latham now at the helm.

At 34, Mr Brogden is eight years younger than Mr Latham and has followed a similar
career path in terms of cutting his teeth in ministerial offices.

But whether he too can tap into the mood for a generational shift depends on whether
voters think Bob Carr - who will be 59 at the next state election - is getting on and
it's time for a fresher face.

Mr Brogden has three years to convince them, but no time to waste.

AAP jph/jc

KEYWORD: YEARENDER NSW POLITICS

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