by KEVIN ANDREWS – WHEN he was prime minister, the Liberal Party’s John Howard regularly warned colleagues against hubris. I suspect that he was reminding himself as much as his fellow MPs.
Hubris was a cardinal sin for the ancient Greeks. It can take a variety of forms.
- Why were two planes of people required in the Hunter Valley for what was a political event?
- How many ministers and staff are required to make an announcement?
- The irony seems lost on Bowen who is telling Australians they should switch to electric cars and utes.
At its basic, it denotes excessive pride or dangerous overconfidence and complacency, often associated with arrogance. It can also involve the incapacity of working in common with colleagues.
There are signs of hubris amongst current government ministers, no more so than Federal Climate Change & Energy Minister Chris Bowen’s claims about electric vehicles.
REVELATION
The revelation that both the Prime Minister and the Energy Minister each took a RAAF jet from Sydney to Scone in the Hunter Valley, NSW, for a recent announcement is but the latest incident.
Previous examples of ministers taking government planes to sporting and entertainment events are well-known. They have not been confined to the current government.
The impression, however, is that ministers regard the RAAF as an almost-taxi service, which has been growing in the past months.
The excuse that a larger jet could not land at the Scone airport does not wash.
Why were two plane loads of people required in the Hunter Valley for what was a political announcement? How many ministers were required to make an announcement?
The fact that so many staff and others were on the flights is indicative of growing entitlement.
In addition to the flights, government cars were used to transport the ministers and staff from Scone to Liddell, where the announcement was made.
The irony of taking two fuel-guzzling jets to make an environmental announcement seems lost on Minister Bowen who is intent on telling Australians they should dispense their fossil-fuelled vehicles in favour of electric cars and utes.
The announcement – to subsidise locally manufactured solar panels – has drawn scepticism from leading economists.
How will locally-made panels be cheaper than Chinese panels made with slave labour?
The responsibility for using the RAAF rests with the Defence Minister, who must approve their use.
If the minister doesn’t exercise sufficient discipline, some of his or her colleagues will abuse the system.
There are occasions when a full RAAF plane will save the taxpayers money – compared to using commercial flights – if the travel is necessary for all the passengers.
But that is hardly the case in the recent incident, nor in some of the other examples of aircraft being used to attend sporting and social events.
CULTURE
The culture about these issues is set from the top.
There was a sense last year that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese couldn’t wait to jump onto a VIP flight to jet around the world.
The attraction is understandable: a private plane to himself and staff, complete with attendants and plentiful food and drinks. No need to bother with the ordinary travelling public when ensconced in a government jet.
These experiences are seductive, reinforcing a sense of entitlement. Before long, what was the appropriate use of services, because other means of transport were not available or convenient, became a regular expectation.
In certain situations, it is entirely appropriate for the Prime Minister to use an RAAF jet. The calls on his time are considerable.
EXCEPTION
My observation of previous prime ministers, however, is that they worked while flying. But Australia has never provided the RAAF planes to ministers as a matter of course.
In the past, their use was regarded as an exception where it was necessary and/or financially justifiable.
Too many recent instances breach these basic parameters. For its own sake, the government should review the use of the aircraft and re-establish strict and justifiable criteria.
A sense of entitlement is not restricted to some parliamentarians: it is evident in other sectors of the community.
As political leaders, however, MPs must demonstrate appropriate standards in the eyes of the populace.PC
I wonder if Bowen and Albo consulted Bronwyn Bishop about air travel issues before taking their flights to the Hunter Valley?
Piddely Issues :- this Labor govt is spending $trillions on magical solution to electric power supply including renewables which don’t work and people like Kevin Andrew’s get “space”
To criticise a plane trip ? If that ain’t a piddely issue I don’t know what is ?
Please inform the Northern Beaches Teal MP that power stations, in her latest publicity stunt nuclear Small Modular Reactors that the Liberal-National Coalition is considering, and by the way they still support coal fired power stations and turned to SMR because they would be a far superior emissions free option as compared to wind solar hybrid system, that power stations are not located on the coast to access water.
For example, the Hunter Valley NSW Liddell Power Station and nearby Bayswater Power Station have a water supply shared, and a coal mine.
So the Party of Teals masquerading as Independents are not well informed.
Quote:
There is such a glut in solar panels, the Financial Times reported that people in Germany and the Netherlands are using them as cheap garden fencing, even though the angle is not good for catching the sun. Though given that there is also a glut of solar power at lunchtime this is probably a “good” thing
Great time for the Australian Government to spend a billion dollars setting up a giant solar panel production industry, eh?
With exquisite timing the Australian Labor government has just announced a Solar Sunshot for Our Regions. It our Prime Ministers ambition for us to be a “Renewable Energy Superpower” twenty years too late. One third of homes in Australia already have solar panels, but only 1% were made here. The NSW State government will also lob $275 million to support the embryonic industry and workers, most of whom will presumably be doorknocking to give away the panels with lamingtons. After we finish building garden fences, we might be using them to build sheds and cubby houses.
The big solar rush is over…
The global frenzy to install solar panels has suddenly flattened out last year when it was supposed to be launching for orbit. The IEA estimated the world now has about 800 GW of solar panel plants. But demand for solar panels this year is only expected to be 402GW. The glut is so bad, the whole global solar panel industry could take half the year off to play golf and no one would notice.
In the media, everyone is saying “China has flooded the market”, but for some reason, no one wants to mention that the demand curve has suddenly slowed. The CCP has bet big on renewables sales and was probably expecting that rapidly rising curve to take off. Instead as interest rate rises clamped down on “luxury” spending people ditched their plans to install solar …….. ” JoNova website
A billion dollar research and development grant for Australian Made?
The existing Australian manufacturer is being subsidised heavily to supply as much as they can for solar “farms”, virtue signalling or otherwise fooling Australian taxpayer voters by Labor.
Nuclear emissions free utilising existing power station locations and main grid network is a far superior option to massive land area requirements and cost-benefit analysis Blackout Bowen won’t show us.