What Glitters For Peter Costello?
July 31st 2008 22:52
Believe it or not, Australian politicians don’t earn that much money. I know, I know. They are tarred with an out of touch and elitist brush, but that is largely not to do with money rather than the cultural divide of living in a world of academics and bureaucrats. Those in Federal Parliament could by and large make more money in other professions. The light at the end of the tunnel for most politicians is that, if they keep their noses clean, at the end of their career in Parliament their high-profile will assist them in getting a well-paying job. For former Prime Ministers and people in important ministerial positions the speaking circuit alone can make enough money in a year to eclipse their usual salary. Case in point: Peter Costello. The man widely tipped to walk away from politics after he turned down the leadership on November 25 last year has turned down just the kind of offer that politicians look forward to.
The London-based World Gold Council obviously saw something they liked in the former Treasurer’s performance because they’ve just offered him $2.1 million to head up the corporation. One would think this was just the kind of thing Costello was waiting for before waving goodbye to politics and disappearing into the ether. Apparently not. Costello turned them down and so the whispers get louder: will Costello take a shot at the leadership? Is that what he is waiting for?
Well, no one has been able to ask yet. Because Costello is on holiday in Fiji with his wife Tanya, working on his tan. On the surface you could say that he is just taking advantage of a nine-week break in Parliament to squeeze in what is probably his first real holiday in 12 years. But if you look deeper, you could say he is enjoying the only holiday he will have for another few years. Because if the leadership whispers are to be believed, it’s going to be awhile before he can sit on the beach without a care in the world again.
There has been a question as to whether Costello really wants it. I mean, the polls say he is the best hope. The party seem responsive. But he has remained mostly silent on the issue, and after all: he stepped away from the leadership in the wake of the party’s electoral defeat. But in the last few weeks, the pieces have been falling into place. First the poll that came out saying Costello eclipsed his rivals as preferred leader. Then Brendan Nelson lost control of the party over the issue of climate change policy. Then he turned down the job offer. And now comes reports from people in the know that one of our greatest reasons for believing Costello would back down was actually a misconception. It was our understanding that Costello was under pressure to leave by his wife Tanya, who was encouraging him to take up a job much like that with the World Gold Council.
Not true. According to well-placed sources when told that her husband should stay in politics Tanya responded with a surprisingly candid “I think so too”. They say behind every man is a good woman that REALLY pulls the strings. And with Tanya on-side the door is open for Costello to go forward and claim his destiny with all the support of his family. It’s not a question of wanting the job itself; Costello has been coveting it through years of the Howard era. It’s a question of whether he wants to job in Opposition and that is the true test. As party leader Costello could through aside the image of himself as a dour economic manager and truly develop a public personality that could combat that of the media darling Kevin Rudd. And Costello could do it. He has a confidence and a humour about him that is needed to take on and rattle the smooth operations of the Rudd Government.
What is obvious, though, is that all that glitters isn’t gold for Peter Costello. For him, all that glitters is politics.
The London-based World Gold Council obviously saw something they liked in the former Treasurer’s performance because they’ve just offered him $2.1 million to head up the corporation. One would think this was just the kind of thing Costello was waiting for before waving goodbye to politics and disappearing into the ether. Apparently not. Costello turned them down and so the whispers get louder: will Costello take a shot at the leadership? Is that what he is waiting for?
Well, no one has been able to ask yet. Because Costello is on holiday in Fiji with his wife Tanya, working on his tan. On the surface you could say that he is just taking advantage of a nine-week break in Parliament to squeeze in what is probably his first real holiday in 12 years. But if you look deeper, you could say he is enjoying the only holiday he will have for another few years. Because if the leadership whispers are to be believed, it’s going to be awhile before he can sit on the beach without a care in the world again.
There has been a question as to whether Costello really wants it. I mean, the polls say he is the best hope. The party seem responsive. But he has remained mostly silent on the issue, and after all: he stepped away from the leadership in the wake of the party’s electoral defeat. But in the last few weeks, the pieces have been falling into place. First the poll that came out saying Costello eclipsed his rivals as preferred leader. Then Brendan Nelson lost control of the party over the issue of climate change policy. Then he turned down the job offer. And now comes reports from people in the know that one of our greatest reasons for believing Costello would back down was actually a misconception. It was our understanding that Costello was under pressure to leave by his wife Tanya, who was encouraging him to take up a job much like that with the World Gold Council.
Not true. According to well-placed sources when told that her husband should stay in politics Tanya responded with a surprisingly candid “I think so too”. They say behind every man is a good woman that REALLY pulls the strings. And with Tanya on-side the door is open for Costello to go forward and claim his destiny with all the support of his family. It’s not a question of wanting the job itself; Costello has been coveting it through years of the Howard era. It’s a question of whether he wants to job in Opposition and that is the true test. As party leader Costello could through aside the image of himself as a dour economic manager and truly develop a public personality that could combat that of the media darling Kevin Rudd. And Costello could do it. He has a confidence and a humour about him that is needed to take on and rattle the smooth operations of the Rudd Government.
What is obvious, though, is that all that glitters isn’t gold for Peter Costello. For him, all that glitters is politics.
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