Geoff Robinson

Australian Political History: Keating to Kevin07

The four books reviewed here address political change in Australia since the 1980s. They consider topics that range from John Howard’s political downfall to retirement incomes policy and contemporary Australian conservatism. Their style varies from contemporary political history to polemical journalism. I judge these works by two criteria. First, do they effectively synthesise the analysis of political, economic and cultural change into a coherent narrative that identifies the balance between structure and agency in the generation of change? Second, do these works encourage the reader to identify worthwhile questions for further research? Christine Jackman’s Inside Kevin07 and Peter van Onselen and Philip Senior’s Howard’s End both seek to explain the downfall of John Howard and the triumph of Kevin Rudd. Both books were criticised soon after their release by Larvatus Prodeo commentators as little more than a tedious recounting of known events and insider gossip that failed to consider the deeper reasons for Howard’s downfall (Bahnisch 2008; Kim 2008). This judgment is unfair. Political change may not be explainable solely in terms of individual motivations but the very existence of politics as an activity is dependent on the existence of men and women capable of acting with purpose (Bhaskar 1979, 32–6). Jackman provides a lively insider narrative of Labor’s roller-coaster ride from 2004 to 2007 and she makes some effort to engage with political ideas. It is Australian Journal of Political Science, Vol. 44, No. 4, December 2009, pp. 731–735