In a week of news dominated by sport, the IPCC Report was pretty much the only political story in town, climate change being the main issue for the first time in many, many months. The debate over whether Australia is doing enough and whether coal is a boon to humanity or a curse pushed Environment Minister Greg Hunt up to a very rare appearance in the top five, and also meant big moves for Greens Leader Christine Milne and Opposition Environment Spokesperson Mark Butler.

Controversial metadata retention plans, along with weighing in on News Limited’s editorial morals, pushed Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull up to sixth, while a growing backlash in the media about counter-terrorism laws moved Attorney-General George Brandis into the top ten as well. Independent Senator Nick Xenophon just missed out on the top ten after calling for a Royal Commission into defence force abuse allegations.

On the state political front, Victoria remains the main game despite a brief lull for the Melbourne Cup, as the election campaign moves into its last few weeks. The polls are still looking ugly for Premier Denis Napthine, who seems to be pinning his government’s hopes on a strong regional showing, while Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews remains fairly low profile even in his own state, fending off claims that he has the “backing” of James Packer.

Crikey Political Index: October 30 – November 5

 

A little more excitement this week on talkback as we once again heard a variety of sound scientific opinions about carbon dioxide, and also discussion on counter-terrorism laws.

Talkback Top Five

 

Prime Minster Tony Abbott moved lower still this week, climate change clearly not producing nearly as much heat and light as it once did on social media, although Greg Hunt tripled his usual score, and most of it not friendly.

Social Media Top Five

It’s been a troubling couple of months for horse racing in Australia, with a number of safety and welfare questions to be answered. Whether that will have any long term effect on the annual massive windfall for the industry that is the Melbourne Cup is another matter entirely.

Comparison of media mentions