If you knew that you were going to lose your job in nine months, what would you do?
Would you stick around? Would you start putting out feelers for a new gig? Would you make a public announcement confirming that you were in a toxic workplace and implying that you worked in a teetering house of cards that was about to collapse?
If it’s the last one then it’s an honour to be read by you, current and absolutely not future member of the seat of Chisholm, Julia Banks.
https://twitter.com/juliabanksmp/status/1034597677017718784
Banks has hitherto been significant for two reasons. One, she was the only Coalition MP to win a seat off Labor at the 2016 election, albeit by a skin of the teeth margin of 1.6 per cent after preferences.
Two, she was the MP that memorably claimed that she could live on the $40 a day currently meted out to our nation’s unemployed. Which, to be clear, she absolutely could not.
And now there’s a third, that she’s the first MP to announce that she’s out at the next election. And given the horror polls at the moment, it’s unlikely she’ll be the only one.
FIRST!
Craig Laundy, MP for the marginal seat of Reid, refused a frontbench berth after Turnbull was removed and is taking time to “consider what my future holds”.
Which isn’t far from the statement made by Julie Bishop after confirming that she’d refused a cabinet job under Morrison and that she wasn’t committing to anything beyond staying until the next election.
Expect more as the horrifying reality of the next election properly sinks in. After all, better to signal to the mining or energy industry that you’re open for board positions and/or lobbying gigs now.
After all, imagine if they were expected to live on only $40 a day?