In Search Of Good Government: Great Expectations & Political Amnesia

Finalist, 2016 Walkley Award for Long Feature Writing With the politics of rage and resentment dominating many Western nations, including Australia, Laura Tingle's calm, perceptive analysis is more relevant than ever. What has happened to good government? Can Malcolm Turnbull apply the lessons of the past to put things right? When leaders surf the wave of discontentment all the way to power, how do they deal with our great expectations? In her crisp, profound and witty essays, Laura Tingle seeks answers to these questions. In Political Amnesia, she ranges from ancient Rome to the demoralised state of the once-great Australian public service, from the jingoism of the past to the tabloid scandals of the internet age. In Great Expectations, Tingle shows how since the deregulation era of the 1980s, governments can do less, but we wish they could do more, leading to anger, frustration and disengagement. In Search of Good Government also contains a major new essay that analyses recent events under Turnbull's leadership and brings the story up to date.