Brexit and Trump were no accident. Both campaigns invested heavily in “Big Data” to predict human behaviour. Their leaders then used populist tactics to convince voters they should reject new-age politics and embrace protectionism.
Those same tactics are now on the rise in Australia. Minor parties and independents are ratcheting up anti-government feeling and dissatisfaction with the political establishment by shouting simple slogans to complex problems.
That’s because populism is more a political logic than a policy program; a thin ideology which calls for kicking out the political establishment, but doesn’t specify the replacement.
On the latest political battleground – housing affordability – mainstream politicians are now trying to catch that same wave of populism. Across the country, both Labor and Liberal governments are in a race to the bottom on populist taxes that do nothing to fix housing supply or improve affordability.
It is the great peril of populism – dodging the critical reforms needed for prosperity, jobs and strong communities.
Feyi Akindoyeni gives the Keynote Address at Hunter Lunch on Thursday 6 April
THE RISE OF THE POPULIST: How Trump won and is Australia Next?
Media contact: Andrew Fletcher | M 0407 410 017 | E [email protected]