At one time, law and order was seen by some as a sure-fire voter winner in elections - but that’s changing after a concerted effort by Victoria’s opposition appeared to backfire badly.
In a critique of federal influences in the rout of the Victorian Liberals, Ryan, a former vice-president of the state division, pointed to swings in seats “that are the cradle of the Liberal party”.
With counting still underway, the projected primary votes are 44.1% Labor (up 6.0% since the 2014 election), 34.8% Coalition (down 7.2%) and 10.4% Greens (down 1.1%).
Whichever party wins, Victoria’s new government will have promised the biggest transport infrastructure project in Australian history. So what are the promises and are they backed by proper assessment?
The Victorian state election presents opportunities and risks for the Greens – including whether they can transition from being a protest party to a major party.
SIFA claims it wants to ‘simplify, not weaken’ gun control laws in Australia. But it’s following the same playbook as the NRA in America – and hoping for similar results.
Politics with Michelle Grattan: Derryn Hinch on a national ICAC and the Victorian election
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The government is more likely to beef up existing institutions but Derryn Hinch, who has been a strong advocate for a national ICAC, says "that would be wrong."
All three groups are over-represented in the alleged offender population, with Sudan born offenders to a higher degree. But the vast majority of crime is committed by Australian born offenders.
Victorian Opposition leader Matthew Guy said under Premier Daniel Andrews, ‘Victoria has won the unenviable title as the state with the country’s highest rate of crime’. Is that right?
The key challenge in mental health is finding the political will and the financial and community resources to do what has already been described in thousands of pages and hundreds of recommendations.
In the election bidding wars, parties commit billions to transport projects, often before all the work needed to justify these has been done. More cost-effective alternatives hardly get a look-in.
Senior Research Fellow, The Centre for Independent Studies; Associate Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders, Macquarie University
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne