Will the government’s aggressive ad campaign on the ALP’s union-heavy front bench work in scaring off voters? Are unions harmful to Australia’s future prosperity? And should anyone with a union past be disqualified from high office?

We asked the Crikey Cabbie Panel: Are unions evil?

Con Vokalos, Adelaide: Some are, some aren’t. I reckon most are OK when they help workers with workers’ comp, but some union leaders can get a bit devious when it comes to getting workers wage rises. I don’t think [the government’s ad campaign] is going to work in turning voters off Rudd. Howard ought to start spruiking his own policies. As soon as you start slagging, people start turning off automatically.

David Bradley, Sydney: No, I don’t think they are evil. I’ve never met a unionist I can’t control with garlic and a crucifix. Isn’t the anti-union ad campaign a bit like the pot calling the kettle black – a politician trying to demonise a unionist? I think people see through that and I don’t think it will change anyone’s mind about how they are going to vote.

Bruce Tootell, Melbourne: No, not all of them. I’ve picked up a lot of unionists over the years in the cab and there are some who are sincere for the worker, but many of them are very fat. I’ve picked many of them up from long lunches. The higher up in the union they are the more they eat. If you were to ask me what the Liberals’ biggest weakness is, I would say they are terrible sales people. I equate being good at managing the economy with putting oil in your engine, topping up your water, and rotating all your tires. I would say someone who isn’t great at managing the economy is someone who makes sure the car is beautifully polished, puts some engine noise inhibitor in the car, and wears a fine suit while standing next to it. This government is not bad at putting oil in the engine, but I’m not so sure they’ve buffed the car. If they learned to buff the car, they’ve have a very good chance of winning the election.

Ross Nelson, Sydney: My personal opinion is that unions should be doing a better job of brushing their image up. The Liberal Party is painting them as the bad guys. People aren’t listening to Howard anymore. Eleven years of 18 year olds have come online and they’re the ones that seem to be most afraid of AWAs because they’re at the bottom of the pile. They’re looking to be able to afford a house and they just see Rudd as their only chance. Nobody listened to the hundreds of millions of dollars of government ads before the campaign began – they just drove everybody berserk. And now they’ve got six weeks of “experience” and “union bosses”, and people will get sick of that too, frankly. I think they’ll bore people into voting Labor.