This piece by Georgina Downer was originally published on the 1st of January 2025 in the AFR.

New state party leader Brad Battin must offer a clear alternative to Labor’s high-tax, high-debt governance.

Victoria used to be the “jewel in the Liberal crown”. Liberal Premiers held power for 27 unbroken years in the mid-20th century.

In the early 80s this flipped, and Victoria became the “Massachusetts of Australia”, with the Liberals spending 31 of the last 42 years in opposition.

It’s lazy to say Victoria is a just left-wing state. The Victorian Liberals have failed to make a compelling case for why Victorians should vote for them.

In the 2022 state election, the Liberals were crushed by Labor, winning a paltry 28 seats to Labor’s 56 – a unicorn result for an incumbent lockdown government.

Brad Battin’s elevation to leader of the Victorian Liberal Party gives the Liberals an opportunity to show Victorians they are an inspiring alternative to the past decade of Labor State Government.

To do that, they must be united, and they must be bold. They need to move on from the recent infighting over Moira Deeming and take the fight up to the profligate and stale state government.

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To win, Brad Battin must channel Menzies and become the voice of families. Justin McManus
How can the Victorian Liberals turn their fortunes around? Robert Menzies’ legacy offers three key lessons.

Firstly, Menzies understood that disunity is political poison. The Victorian Liberals have squandered years on internal battles that only bolster their opponents.

Battin’s leadership must mark a fresh start. The readmission of Moira Deeming to the parliamentary party must be the last chapter of internal chaos.

Unity is more than an absence of conflict; it’s a public demonstration of focus and stability. Without it, voters will continue to dismiss the Liberals as unfit to govern.

Secondly, Menzies built the Liberal Party for the “forgotten people” — Australia’s middle class. These are the mortgage holders, small business owners, and commuters stuck in gridlock.

Menzies championed their aspirations, creating a golden age of economic growth and social mobility. Today, these forgotten people face grim realities in Victoria.

Victorian state debt is skyrocketing to an expected $228 billion or 25 per cent of the state economy by 2028. At the same time, labour productivity is the worst in Australia, and household incomes lag even Tasmania’s.

Victorians endure the highest state taxes in the country, from COVID and mental health debt levies to crushing payroll and land taxes. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate is the nation’s highest, and crime rates are climbing, with home invasions and car thefts on the rise.

Despite these failings, Labor continues to win because the Liberals fail to articulate a brighter, credible vision for the future.

Battin should rise above ideological squabbles and champion families in all their diversity.
To win, Battin must channel Menzies and become the voice of families. Victorians want affordable housing, quality education for their children, secure jobs, and safe neighbourhoods. To resonate, the Liberals need a policy platform that speaks directly to these concerns.

Thirdly, when Menzies founded the Liberal Party, he made it more than a collection of policies; he gave it a philosophy. His party was grounded in principles: individual freedom, private enterprise, personal responsibility, and opposition to socialism.

It’s hard to work out what today’s Victorian Liberals stand for. Battin has the chance to restore clarity and purpose.

Menzies recognised that the family was at the heart of the middle class. He spoke of homes — material, human, and spiritual — as the foundation of society. Battin should rise above ideological squabbles and champion families in all their diversity.

To win, the Liberals must be bold, and put forward values-driven policies. They should start with energy. Victoria’s bans on offshore gas exploration and onshore coal seam gas are economic self-harm.

By embracing nuclear power in the Latrobe Valley, where infrastructure already exists, the Liberals could position Victoria as Australia’s low-cost energy leader. Cheap energy would revitalise manufacturing and create jobs, offering a powerful olive branch, as Trump did, to union members.

Next, the Liberals must make Victoria the easiest place in Australia to do business. Red tape, excessive licensing, and punitive taxes stifle economic growth. Cutting these burdens would make the state a magnet for investment and entrepreneurship.

Victoria’s ballooning public service and wasteful infrastructure projects offer avenues for budget repair. By trimming bureaucratic fat and scrapping vanity projects, the Liberals could fund meaningful tax relief for struggling families.

Finally, safety is paramount. Battin, a former policeman, has the experience to address Victoria’s crime wave. Better policing and resources are essential to making Victorians feel secure in their homes.

The Victorian Liberals cannot afford to avoid tough conversations. Bold ideas may be unpopular with some, but the public is desperate for leadership.

Menzies succeeded because he combined clear principles with practical policies. He opposed Labor’s command-and-control tendencies but didn’t pander to big business.

Instead, he focused on the interests of individuals and their families rather than the Labor alternative which concentrates power with the state and collectivist ideals.

But first, Victorians need to know what Battin stands for. They need to see a clear alternative to Labor’s high-tax, high-debt governance. If Battin can embody Menzies’s vision and articulate a compelling path forward, the Liberals have a real chance to end their decades-long wilderness in 2026.