The upcoming Federal Election in Australia, scheduled to be held on May 3, 2025, is not focusing on several crucial issues: full employment, capital punishment for crimes such as murder, rape, and incest, dental treatment under Medicare (especially for the unemployed and age pensioners), reducing waiting times to see specialist doctors, and euthanasia for those suffering from incurable illnesses.
Australia enjoys beautiful sunshine, and most people are passionate about sports, particularly Australian Rules football and cricket. However, many Australians appear disinterested in politics, believing that most politicians are dishonest. Sadly, in a democratic system, we must rely on politicians—whether we like them or not—and this is a truth many Australians fail to appreciate. Ideally, civil servants would create policies and govern the country based on equity, fairness, and justice, but this does not occur in any nation, including Australia.
This cynicism among the mainstream population has led to a political class often made up of individuals who have not succeeded elsewhere. Compounding this issue is the lack of a high-quality public or district administration in Australia. This puts enormous pressure on politicians to govern effectively, despite inadequate support systems.
In my experience, having lived in Australia for 41 years, government departments are inefficient. For example, after losing my Australian passport, I paid $300 to have replacements issued for myself and my father within ten days. Seven weeks later, we still have not received them. This illustrates the lack of efficiency in Australia’s public service. Under former Prime Minister John Howard, the government removed examinations for public service recruitment and replaced them with interviews, increasing favouritism towards mainstream Australians. As a migrant Australian citizen with a PhD in British Colonial History, I was unable to secure policy work in the public sector, despite my qualifications, because I lacked influential connections. It’s about who you know, not what you know, especially in Australia’s current public service landscape.
There has also been a rise in stabbing-related murders. A person who commits murder at twenty may be released by forty, even after receiving a life sentence. Prisoners receive education, training, and healthcare, making prison life similar to house arrest. Many reoffend after release. I believe that reintroducing capital punishment could act as a deterrent for premeditated murder or violent crimes such as home invasions. Self-defence laws are another area neglected by all major political parties, including Labor, Liberal, and the Greens.
Australia must seriously consider the issues I’ve raised. One possible solution is to recruit retired civil servants from Britain and India to help rebuild Australia’s civil and district administration. Law and order have become major concerns, and effective administration is critical to resolving these problems.
While cost of living and housing are pressing issues, safety should never be compromised. No one should fear being stabbed while going to work, shopping, or engaging in everyday activities.
Hospital ramping and the shortage of hospital beds are also administrative issues. A competent civil service at both state and territory levels would greatly improve the healthcare system, in my opinion.
Moreover, departments such as Employment, Disability Services, and Aged Care should be run by the government rather than being privatised, as they are now.
Political parties should embrace Keynesian economics rather than the Chicago School model, which favours large corporations under the assumption that benefits will trickle down to the poor. This has failed. Unless the Federal Government takes direct control of employment creation, education, healthcare, aged care, public administration, law and order, and housing—and avoids privatisation—Australia will continue to suffer from poor governance at both federal and state levels.
