Life on the West Island - Lone Wolf?

In a recent Quarterly Essay, respected senior West Island journalist Katharine Murphy provided a fascinating portrait of the history, personality and style of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Mr Albanese has often referred to his early life, sharing a modest housing commission flat with his chronically ill mother in Camperdown, inner western Sydney. You can take the boy out of the western suburbs, it is said, but you can’t take the western suburbs out of the boy. Albanese has lived all of his life in the western Sydney federal seat of Grayndler and his permanent place of residence remains there. He has been the local federal MP for more than 26 years and has a strong and loyal local following.

Albanese’s early life experiences greatly shaped his politics and beliefs. His mother suffered from chronic rheumatoid arthritis and from the age of around 10, Anthony was in loco parentis as her only carer. She had very limited use of her hands and feet and was in constant pain until, after almost 15 years of trying, Anthony eventually obtained effective surgery and ongoing treatment for her. To help pay the bills, Anthony took on a paper round when he was 12. After school, he sold copies of the afternoon papers at an intersection busy with peak hour traffic. He chose that unpopular location because he was paid $16 a week instead of the standard rate of $12.

Murphy reports that Albanese was a kid, forced to be an adult. As a child, he took full responsibility for the household and still retains a need to control his personal environment:

‘I had to plan,’ he says. ‘If I didn’t plan, my mum wouldn’t have food, we wouldn’t pay the rent.’ Even now, Albanese remains attentive to his material needs, preparing for all contingencies. ‘I’ve never run out of anything at home.’ I’m incredulous. Never? Come on. With a lifestyle as busy as yours? ‘Never,’ Albanese insists. “Milk, frozen food, coffee, toilet paper, food for Toto [his dog]. Here’s another example. I’ve never paid a cent in interest on a credit card. I pay bills before they are due even though that’s not an economically rational thing to do.’

The essay chronicles Albanese’s introduction to tough, left-wing politics and his steady rise as a champion of the poor and disadvantaged. He was an extrovert and an uncompromising debater, who was recognised within the Labor Party as a firebrand with potential to be a future leader. Murphy interviewed many of his contemporaries and political opponents about his qualities. Her conclusions are interesting:

He has the measure of ruthlessness that politics requires. But he is also loyal in a transactional business, so he has allies and friends in places you’d never expect. He cultivates people, and invests in long relationships. He’s tough, and wily, and calculating. But he can also be kind, often at just the right moment. He has mastered the art of active listening and mirroring.

Murphy goes on to analyse the way in which Albanese had to modify his natural “lone wolf” instincts to become a successful collaborative and consultative leader. He had always been a self-reliant person, confident in his instincts and opinions.

But when it came to taking on leadership, Albanese was advised by a powerful group of Labor frontbenchers that there needed to be greater emphasis on building a diverse and cohesive team and presenting a united front to voters. Katharine Murphy summarises the process:

Albanese attempted to evolve from lone wolf to collaborative actor. That’s a difficult transformation. The old dog for the hard road had to learn some new tricks. Albanese learned to create structures ensuring he maintained a stable bedrock of support. Albanese had to draw on a wider circle of advice. After so long in the trenches, after so many years having to push his way in and work three times as hard for every victory, Albanese needed to learn that leading the Labor Party wasn’t a hostile takeover or a solo act. Most colleagues wanted him to succeed; colleagues and subordinates needed opportunities to demonstrate their value.

Murphy concludes that Albanese has mostly completed this transformation successfully. His public standing since winning the election has continued to rise as he demonstrates his confidence in his ministers and his belief that communication and consultation are far better ways forward than conflict and division. She says that after 10 years of dog-whistling substituting for progress, people want government to work. He suspects that Australians want to be part of something: a story of recovery and rejuvenation.

Perhaps the last word should go to Anthony Albanese himself, as he looks to the future:

I see Labor as the natural party of government. We are the political movement that represents national progress and we represent the interests of the vast majority of Australians. We can work with business and unions. We respect First Nations people and multicultural communities. We embrace the diversity of Australia as a strength. We want to stand up for national security, not in a narrow way but in a way that promotes peace and security, including that climate change is part of security. We have an opportunity to really drive that home and to say, if you want that to continue, vote Labor.

Time will tell whether West Islanders believe that Albanese has moved from a lone wolf to an inspiring team leader. So far, the omens for him look positive.