"The Opposition Leader would not be so keen on a plebiscite if public opinion polls showed a majority in support of a tax."

Congratulations! Your Bleeding Obvious Award is in the post.

Gee, I thought I must have accidentally got onto an ABC website, where I would expect to see such blatantly party political material. Published in the "public interest" of course, you understand.

I would love to see Plebiscites become more frequent and easily available.
sarnian,
I'm with you on that. One huge problem though, we'd need to educate the masses first to a sufficient degree to understand what they're voting for. It definitely, wouldn't work as at now.
I suggest the first plebiscite to be educating the education departments.

Of course, I'd rather non-binding plebescites were scrapped and replaced with binding referenda.

Well said, John.

I wonder how long Abbott can keep running all his stunts. Night after night he gets on TV with some silly thing after another and a trite slogan to boot. Why don't the "journalists" who work on TV call his bluff and challenge him?

How can he win over middle-class, middle-aged voters with such childish behaviour? AND the endless surf races, canoe marathons and so on. Do you job, and do your work as Opposition Leader, please.
The cartoonists have his measure, with the Herald's man (or woman) showing him as Popeye. There's no gravitas and little common sense.

And Gillard would have done far better to say "Polluters need to pay a tax". Fix it at 15 per cent or so and be done with it.

But I suspect the Government is delaying until the new Senate sits. Next week, I think.

Abbott wouldn't be doing as well as he did if the Greens showed more sense. They seem much too excited by their move into the Senate and seem too out of touch with majority opinion.

Incidentally there is something very nasty happening when Abbott, Mr Jones on the radio and the News Limited orchestra are all playing the same tune.... day after day.

all playing the same tune.... day after day.
Bronte,
What else can they do if the ALP doesn't want to wake up day after day.
It's like saying how come you keep taking that medication day after day when you're not cured yet ?