The Independents are the saviours of the National Party

The Blowfly was delirious recently and started pondering the future of the National Party.

Delirious because many political pundits believe the Nationals have no future-----due to the rise of the Independents in our hung Parliament!

The Independents have, in fact, had the reverse effect on the National Party.

They have guaranteed the National Party’s future! Bear with my thinking on this one.

Let’s assume that you are a National Party ‘hack’ in Tony Windsor’s seat of New England.

You thought that Ian Sinclair was God-incarnated. Your father had a photo of ‘Black Jack’ McEwen on the mantle-piece and he would genuflect before it on his way to bed each night.

But more than a decade ago an Independent took ‘ your’ seat.

You can still remember that election night. You went to bed crying. You were afraid the sky was going to fall in.

This was no ‘normal’ Independent either.

‘Normal’ Independents are indifferent about their political allegiances. They simply want what is best for their constituents no matter which side of the political spectrum has the levers. They wear no political allegiance and can badger each side of politics on the basis that, one day, their vote might be needed.

Windsor, however, was a ‘disaffected Nat’.

This Independent hated the National Party because they had done him in the eye. This hatred was reciprocated absolutely by members of the party.

Then one day this Independent found himself in a position of influence in a hung Parliament. You had hoped that, with soil on his boots, he would give Tony Abbott the gong. You were wrong and again you went to bed crying.

He then committed treason. He voted for a carbon tax.

Not that it was going to affect you much! But Tony Abbott said the sky would fall in (and he is an honorable man) and so did your other main source of information about the world, Alan Jones (who is also an honorable man).

Your red-necked mates were similarly alarmed! They relied on the same two information sources.

But then the ghost of ‘Black Jack’ McEwen appeared to you in dream and urged you to muster the troops. Branch meetings started filling up again and enthusiasm for getting rid of this heathen, Windsor, was high.

And help came from an unexpected quarter. Windsor himself!

During this term in the hung Parliament every man and his dog wanted to ‘see Tony’ and curry his favor. He was, sadly, human. He could only cope with so much.

Windsor’s communication with his electorate slid. Phone calls were not returned. Letters and emails were not answered. Even from his campaign team! He didn’t turn up at sheep sales and never shouted the bar. He resisted talking to those who disagreed with him.

Those who were disenchanted with the previous National Party member began to be disenchanted again with the Independent.

And, like John Howard, Windsor seemed totally oblivious to the need for succession planning.

So the Independent ‘brand’ was destroyed by one of its creators.

The Blowfly recalls the words of Adams: “Success has made failures of many men.”