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The Consequences and Impacts of Maverick Politicians on Contemporary Australian Politics

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The Consequences and Impacts of Maverick Politicians on Contemporary Australian Politics The Consequences and Impacts of Maverick Politicians on Contemporary Australian Politics by Peter Ernest Tucker Bachelor of Business (University of Tasmania) Graduate Diploma of Management (Deakin University) Master of Town Planning (University of Tasmania) Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Tasmania December 2011 Declarations This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for a degree or diploma by the University or any other institution, except by way of background information and duly acknowledged in the thesis, and to the best of my knowledge and belief no material previously published or written by another person except where due acknowledgement is made in the text of the thesis. This thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying and communication in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. Peter Ernest Tucker ……………………………...………………Date…….…………… Some material published and researched by me has been included and duly acknowledged in the content of this thesis, and attached as an appendix. Peter Ernest Tucker ……………………………...………………Date…….…………… i Abstract This thesis analyses the consequences and impacts of maverick politicians on contemporary Australian politics, especially Australian political parties. The thesis uses a case study methodology to argue that maverick politicians are one manifestation of an anti-political mood currently found in the electorate; that they provide parties with a testing ground to develop leaders, although maverickism and leadership are a difficult mix of attributes to sustain; that they can have significant influence on a party’s policy formulation; and that they form strong organisational ties within the party, centred on localism. The research is important because there has been little enquiry into political mavericks in the literature; although the term “maverick” is widely used in the media and scholarly work there is no consensus on what political maverick means, who political mavericks are or the consequences of their actions. This thesis sheds some light on those questions and helps explain the associated concepts of “celebrity politician” and “conviction politician” - concepts which are similarly poorly researched but widely used. ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank all at the University of Tasmania’s School of Government for their encouragement and assistance over eight long years. It is a relaxed, supportive and collegial place that values research and divergent views, and is a credit to all who work and study there. Principally, I acknowledge Associate Professor Kate Crowley for taking the time and interest in 2003 to encourage me to embark on a research degree. Thanks Kate, I made it. To Dr Richard Herr, until his retirement in July 2008 my supervisor and mentor, I owe a deep debt of gratitude for keeping me focussed and productive when often I was anything but. Richard, you always saw the positives in both me and the project at times when I could have so easily faltered. Associate Professors Marcus Haward and Richard Eccleston took over the supervision and without their persistence, humour and wisdom I would never have finished. Thank you both. I am also grateful to my friends and family who, through their consistent enquiry as to the thesis’s progress, kept me going because failure would have been too socially embarrassing for me. In particular, I am grateful for the love and support of my sister, Laura Hurd. Lastly, I would like to dedicate this work to my wife, Kerry, for her unflagging faith in me and her infinite grace. Without her, I can do nothing. iii Contents Declarations ............................................................................................................................ i Abstract .................................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................... iii 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background to the research ............................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research problem and questions ....................................................................................... 2 1.3 Justification for the research ............................................................................................. 4 1.4 Thesis structure and research methodology ...................................................................... 5 1.5 Limitations and key assumptions ...................................................................................... 6 1.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 11 2 The research questions ................................................................................................ 12 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 12 2.2 Political mavericks – simple rebellion? .......................................................................... 13 2.3 Insights into maverick success ........................................................................................ 21 2.4 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 34 3 Methodology and research design ............................................................................... 36 3.1 Case study method .......................................................................................................... 36 3.2 Methodological foundations ........................................................................................... 38 3.3 Data collection ................................................................................................................ 39 3.4 Case and chapter structure .............................................................................................. 41 3.5 The cases – units of analysis ........................................................................................... 43 3.6 Summary ......................................................................................................................... 50 4 The House: Harry Quick, Bob Katter and Petro Georgiou........................................ 53 4.1 Background ..................................................................................................................... 53 4.2 Research Question 1 ....................................................................................................... 61 4.3 Research Question 2 ....................................................................................................... 76 4.4 Research Question 3 ....................................................................................................... 83 4.5 Case study conclusions ................................................................................................. 105 iv 5 The Senate: Barnaby Joyce and Ross Lightfoot ....................................................... 108 5.1 Background ................................................................................................................... 108 5.2 Research Question 1 ..................................................................................................... 117 5.3 Research Question 2 ..................................................................................................... 128 5.4 Research Question 3 ..................................................................................................... 143 5.5 Case study conclusions ................................................................................................. 151 6 The Leader: Mark Latham ........................................................................................ 155 6.1 Background ................................................................................................................... 155 6.2 Latham to December 2003 ............................................................................................ 156 6.3 Research Question 1 ..................................................................................................... 160 6.4 Research Question 2 ..................................................................................................... 164 6.5 Research Question 3 ..................................................................................................... 170 6.6 Latham’s leadership, December 2003 to January 2005 ................................................ 175 6.7 Case study conclusions ................................................................................................. 185 7 Conclusions ................................................................................................................ 191 7.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 191 7.2 Research Question 1 findings ....................................................................................... 191 7.3 Research Question 2 findings ....................................................................................... 195 7.4 Research Question
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