John Howard

John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939), Australian politician and 25th Prime Minister of Australia, came to office on 11 March, 1996 and gained re-election in 1998, 2001 and 2004. He is Australia's second-longest serving Prime Minister, after Sir Robert Menzies.

Success, failure, success

After the Labor Party (ALP) under Bob Hawke won government in 1983, Howard was strongly attacked by the Hawke government for allegedly concealing the size of the budget deficit that the incoming ALP inherited from the Fraser administration. Howard contested the Liberal leadership but was defeated by Andrew Peacock, and he became Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Peacock was defeated by Hawke at the 1984 election and, despite a better-than-expected performance during that election (most commentators believed that Peacock would lose in a landslide), he began to worry that Howard was a potential leadership challenger. In May 1985 the insecure Peacock tried to remove Howard from the Deputy Leadership position, expecting him to challenge for the Leadership. The plan backfired when Howard merely stood again for the deputy's position, and won it. This put Peacock in an untenable position, and he resigned, leaving Howard to take the leadership uncontested.

Related Topics:
Labor Party - Bob Hawke - 1983 - Andrew Peacock - 1984 - 1985

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Howard described himself as "the most conservative leader the Liberals have ever had," and said that "the times will suit me." In addition to his economic views, he became known as a strong social conservative, supporting the traditional nuclear family against the "permissive society" and sceptical of the promotion of multiculturalism at the expense of a shared national identity: views he has toned down but not abandoned since.

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During 1985 and 1986, with unemployment rising and the economy stagnant, Howard appeared to be making ground on the government. But his dour and humourless style was no match for the charismatic Hawke and his flamboyant Treasurer, Paul Keating. Howard's chances of winning the 1987 election were destroyed when the arch-conservative Premier of Queensland, Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen, launched a populist "Joh for Canberra" campaign, temporarily splitting and discrediting the conservative forces. Hawke won the 1987 election comfortably.

Related Topics:
1985 - 1986 - Paul Keating - 1987 - Queensland - Joh Bjelke-Petersen - Joh for Canberra

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In 1988 Howard's position was weakened by controversy following a speech in which he claimed that Australia was taking in "too many" Asian immigrants. The Liberal Party has traditionally been unforgiving of failed leaders, and in May 1989 Peacock launched a surprise leadership coup against Howard. After a brief stint on the backbench Howard returned to the Coalition front bench, but his leadership career seemed to be over, particularly when Peacock lost the 1990 election and the Liberals turned to a new, younger leader, Dr John Hewson. When asked about the chances of his making a political comeback, he compared it to "Lazarus with a triple bypass".

Related Topics:
1988 - 1989 - Coalition - 1990 - John Hewson - Lazarus - Triple bypass

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Howard was an enthusiastic supporter of Hewson's economic program, with the Goods and Services Tax (Australia) or GST as its centrepiece. But when Hewson lost what was said to be the "unloseable" 1993 election to Keating, Howard was again passed over for the leadership, which in 1994 went to Alexander Downer. But Downer failed to make any dent in Keating's dominance, and in January 1995 he resigned. With the Deputy Liberal leader Peter Costello unwilling to step up to the leadership, the Liberals, having no-one else to turn to, recalled Howard, who became leader for the second time.

Related Topics:
Goods and Services Tax (Australia) - 1993 - 1994 - Alexander Downer - 1995 - Peter Costello

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As Opposition Leader, Howard branded himself as unassuming and cautious in contrast to Keating's flamboyance. He repudiated his earlier statements against Medicare and in favour of a GST. In a "small target" strategy, he consciously avoided enunciating a grand social vision in favour of an attack against Keating's "arrogance" and the "elitist" nature of his "big picture" politics - issues like foreign relations with Asia, Australian republicanism, multiculturalism and reconciliation with Aborigines - which, he believed, were distracting from ordinary voters' concerns and promoting pointless "navel-gazing". In his slogan "For all of us," Howard appealed to the widespread feeling that Keating had ignored mainstream Australia for the "special interest groups" - artists, feminist and indigenous lobbies, ethnic minorities and inner-city professionals. With this pitch, Howard won support from many traditional Labor constituencies (the "Howard battlers"). At the March 1996 election Howard had a sweeping victory over Keating and became Prime Minister, aged 56.

Related Topics:
Medicare - GST - March 1996 election

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