Where the bloody hell is the diversity of experience?
You might expect that the members of the next government would draw on a wide array of experience to run this country. Well you’d be wrong…. 45% of incumbent MPs and Senators spent the of their predominant portion of pre-parliamentary careers as lawyers, union officials or political operatives. And it’s 63% for Labor candidates.
- 63% of incumbent Labor candidates spent predominant portion of pre-parliamentary careers either as lawyers, union officials or political operatives.
- For the Coalition this figure is 29%
- There is no reliable data for non-incumbent candidates
A new website www.whothebloodyhellarethey.com has highlighted the shortcomings of both major parties in diversity of experience at the upcoming federal election.
A parliament that has a wide range of experiences will have greater insights into the challenges faced by ordinary Australians. Surely this is vital when making new laws.
A Whothebloodyhellarethey spokesperson noted ‘Where the bloody hell is the diversity of experience. Whilst both major parties are guilty of providing a group of candidates whose experience fails to reflect the careers and experiences of the Australian population, this is especially an issue for the Labor party.”
