Labor Party wins Australian election

Labor Party wins Australian election - Times Online

Australia lurches left

Mr Howard's End

Rudd does it

These are the predictable headlines of the day. And so the democratic process sweeps Mr Howard into the history box and confines his future to be one of talk show fodder - or ambassadorial appointment - how about ambassador in the USA. It would not be unusual for the man who was able to pull resounding defeat out of the bag. One does wonder, if the chalice full of poison he now hands to his successor was not his final act. Denying Peter Costello the magic carpet on loan to Gordon Brown, hands over a party whisked away from office - it may be sheer bullying? It does give Mr Costello a chance to earn his leadership, unearned leadership is hard to reclaim as Mr Brown has found. It appears that you can take the reigns of power, but when you shake them too hard, the horses will turn on you. So political kamikaze by Mr Howard gives the most dramatic of recoveries available for Mr Costello when they hit the hustings. It gives Kevin Rudd a brief opportunity to impress but restricted by the fact that he has inherited the top of a wave of prosperity partly built on supplying uranium to China does not seem sustainable as a strategy. Or maybe it will not matter. Uranium has to come from somewhere and the USA can't afford to spend more on it.

And thus in defeat, Mr Howard forwards the democratic progress of his successor. It is a brilliant political death worthy of some deathly tome.

It is the end of an era for President Bush. His last cheerleader just retired. This could make the next year even more unpredictable.

It is almost a relief to see a woman voted into power in Australia, the new Deputy Prime Minister is Julia Gillard, a former lawyer.

Bob Hawke - Australia's last long serving Labor PM said that Mr Howard's attempt to reduce workers rights is repeating history in a "delicious irony".