The funny thing about Future Political Leaders is how few of them actually reach their supposed destiny.
Mal Brough was a Future Political Leader. His meteoric rise in Coalition ranks under John Howard — from parliamentary secretary to assistant treasurer and into the key indigenous portfolio, where he led the government’s radical response to child s-xual abuse in the Northern Territory — had colleagues touting him as a deputy leader and even a potential prime minister in a post-Howard era.
Even after losing his seat in 2007 the aura never went away. He began meddling in party affairs in 2008 and his return to Parliament seemed inevitable. Certainly, he just had to keep his hands to himself to take Peter Slipper’s place on the LNP how-to-vote card at the next election.
But Brough didn’t keep his hands to himself. He couldn’t help himself. As Bernard Keane writes:
“… he’s put all of that in danger with a remarkable display of poor judgment in not merely becoming involved in a campaign to damage Slipper — who could always be relied upon to damage himself, regardless of who else was trying — but then lying about it publicly. Even if he returns to politics, he’s damaged goods, and the former minister may find his stint on the backbench an extended one under a Coalition government.”
Another Future Political Leader falls.
Dutton is another one who is promoted as a future leader or talented politician . I have yet to see anything about him that would suggest either .
GeoM – don’t know who Dutton is but my first thought was of Peter Dunnuttin, the ex Qld walloper, who in a fit of petulance worthy of that long forgotten (deservedly) Liberal chancer in the checked slacks from Victoria in the 80s who jumped seats, following a redistribution to a nearby safe seat, the long serving colleague being dumped who then went to his supposedly endangered seat, won it and outlasted the gutless one.
So Dunnittin, in his pique announced he was resigning in …2009?10? but acres of OO newsprint was expended saying wotta waste of a future PM, he sulkily stayed on and now sits glowering behind MM, contributing nothing.
AR
My recollection is slightly different in that Dutton wanted a safer seat but the member already in that seat had no intentions of going anywhere . The LNP merger stopped him anyway .
Yes he’s another dud’n.
Your headline has one word too many. “Mal Brough’s future not so bright” should be
“Mal Brough’s not so bright”.
He has delusions of adequacy. In the lean talent pool of the Queensland Liberal and National Parties under John Howard, he was promoted as the least incompetent man available.
However his Ministerial fame is dependent on one controversial plank that may or not be effective in achieving much at all.
And he was a hopeless local member, achieving one of the biggest swings against him nationally to lose his safe seat (won back just 3 years later by a 19 year old).
Having lost his seat, he tried to become a mover and shaker. He became Qld Liberal Party President and vigorously opposed the formation of the LNP.
When he lost that battle he spat the dummy and stormed off to Victoria (and then managed to spend a vast amount of taxpayers money flying backwards and forwards between Brisbane and Melbourne on his Gold Pass for months on end).
When it became clear a seat in Victoria was not available, he returned to Queensland and kissed and made up with the LNP. He then started branch stacking in Fisher, dabbling in Local Goverment election there, and sabotaging Peter Slipper.
A brighter bloke would have stayed in Longman after losing in 2007, kept his head down, rebuilt local support, recontested and won the seat back in 2010. He could have been Opposition Leader by now.
Instead he showed his arroance, impatience, and his stupidity.