I doubt anything will change: Labor will still be an unruly rabble, have a couple chucked out, get the poops, call the speaker biased and we are right back where we started.
I know nothing of Tony Smith so I'll cut'n'paste Pickering's thoughts.
LARRY PICKERING
SPEAKER’S ROLE A RETREAT FOR REDUNDANCIES
13 MINUTES AGO
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6 COMMENTS
Tony Smith has wisely indicated he will not attend Party Room meetings. This blog has been banging on for almost two years about Bronwyn Bishop’s attendance in the Party Room... and that it could be her downfall.
It drained her position of any semblance of independence and enraged the Opposition to where it was prepared to risk all to get rid of her.
Sacked by Tony Abbott as an insipid shadow performer, Smith had little hope of a future Ministry, yet has almost doubled his wage and perks in a luxurious self-contained unit in Parliament House.
As an uncontroversial and only mildly talented cleanskin he will bring an air of balance to the Chair that was at least seen to be lacking with Bishop.
The Speaker’s House unit is self-contained for a reason; the position should not be sullied by the rough and tumble of Party politics.
It is impossible to be privy to Government business in the Party Room and at the same time preside fairly over Government business on the floor of the House.
Tony Smith has fortuitously just flummed the best rort going in Parliament. All he needs to do now is to stay out of the Party Room and posh helicopters.
Bill Shorten is revelling in polling that continues to indicate that the Government is still on its L plates.
