The saga of Senator Payman shines a light on how every elected representative deals with the issue of personal integrity. I do expect my local member to stay true to her principles, policies and responsibility to represent her electorate to the best of her abilities, with passion and vigour. For those who are part of a party, most of this is exercised in persuading party colleagues, and in the case of the Labor Party, it’s in a caucus behind closed doors.
She could, for example, have skipped the Senate vote altogether, something most senators do from time to time. She could have sought the advice of her Senate party whip about how a deeply personal issue should best be managed. Healthcare has been struggling to manage under existing budgets and heavy usage. Primary health care clinics, designed to alleviate pressure from hospital emergency departments are now under threat of funding reductions.
However, unlike the Coalition’s proposal that nuclear power stations be state owned, Labor should actually take a leaf from the usual free market position of the Liberal Party and instead offer legislative support to any investor or power company willing to build a nuclear power station in Australia that will be operated on a commercial basis.
Despite what Dutton says, nuclear power is much more expensive than renewables. The Australian Energy Market Operator has just released a report that says we can get to 2050 with renewables and gas . No need for nuclear. It states there may be a few days in the next few years where supply on extremely hot and cold days may be turned off for a few hours here and there. But from there, it is projected to be a smoother transition.