Narcissism as far as the eye can see

Morrison has enough on his plate. The Budget has been brought forward a week so that there will be time to debate the legislation meant to ensure supply in the event of Turnbull calling a double dissolution. Rumours are rife that Turnbull and Morrison are at loggerheads on a number of economic matters, their differences on increasing the GST and superannuation tax concession cuts in recent weeks have added to mutterings. Morrison seems hell bent on providing tax cuts to business whilst others want tax cuts to compensate for those entering higher tax brackets due to bracket creep. All Liberals seem to agree that there have to be cuts in benefits and services to the less affluent. All of this seems remarkably reminiscent of the 2014 Budget.

Turnbull is determined that the trigger for a double dissolution shall be the refusal to reintroduce John Howard's Star Chamber, the Australian Building and Construction Commission. It will be "an agency with draconian powers denying the right to silence or a lawyer of choice to anyone it deems worthy of investigation, it in fact has no powers of criminal investigation and acts in the civil jurisdiction but with the ability to impose massive fines for behaviour it deems unacceptable."

During the last week in March Turnbull announced he was intending to allow the States a certain percentage of income tax to help them pay the $80 billion in cuts to the health and education budgets forecast to be slashed by Abbott later this decade. Turnbull is even promising that in the long term he will allow them to raise or lower the rate of state tax in their state. Like a pompous headmaster lecturing spendthrift students he added that if the states raise their own revenue rather than relying on the Commonwealth credit card they will be more responsible in their spending on health and education. Such a lecture totally ignores the fact that the states did not create the $80 billion shortfall – it was Abbott and Hockey who created the hole.

Returning to pre World War II tax arrangements might look like excitement and innovation to some people, cutting services and funding to the less affluent might sound like a good idea to those rich enough to live at Point Piper, further decreasing the bargaining power of workers and unions might appeal to the super rich as a good idea; but if Malcolm Turnbull thinks these actions are the epitome of equity and fairness then he may be far more narcissistic than either Latham or Abbott.