The Art of Coalition

<p>Despite being described as 'a remarkably successful partnership' by John Howard and a 'triumph of trust' by his counterpart Nationals leader and Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson the art of coalition government is a delicate (and sometimes difficult) balancing of policy politics and personalities. The relationship between the Liberal and Nationals parties ensured the Howard Government's stability and provided a solid foundation for its legislative program between 1996 and 2007. While the Coalition partnership has been pivotal to Australian politics since the Second World War under the Howard prime ministership - despite occasional tensions - the two parties changed key aspects of Australian life through gun control telecommunications and taxation reform and balancing the budget.</p><p>In <em style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0)>The Art of Coalition</em> Tom Frame Zareh Ghazarian Linda Courtenay Botterill Paul Davey Joel Fitzgibbon Tony Abbott and others convey the complexities of maintaining a strong political partnership and the importance of trust in an effective coalition.</p><p><strong style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0)>'This book is a valuable account of one of the successes of the Howard era - Coalition relations in office - with contributions from participants and commentators. It is more illuminating than ever given the more recent experience pointing to deepening difficulties between the coalition partners.' - Paul Kelly</strong></p><p><strong style=background-color: rgba(0 0 0 0)>'There are few aspects of the government I led that have been more consistently overlooked in academic scholarship than the highly effective coalition between the Liberal and National parties. This collection of perspectives is a timely reminder of the importance of consensus and co-operation in the pursuit of the national interest and the public good.' - John Howard</strong></p><p><br></p>