The Long-Read Essay: How Labor governs

After its emphatic 2025 election victory, the Albanese Labor government entered the year with overwhelming parliamentary dominance and a clear mandate to govern boldly. On paper, it was a government with every advantage imaginable. Yet despite this strength, Labor has continued to govern cautiously – reluctant to take risks, overly attached to bipartisanship with a fractured Coalition, and hesitant to translate power into decisive reform. In this episode, we examine the growing gap between authority and action, and the political myth that a government’s “second year” automatically delivers bold change. Drawing on recent history and Labor’s own record so far, we ask whether 2026 will finally be the year of decisive reform – or whether Labor is waiting for a big bang that may never come. #AUSPOL 

The New Politics series of long-read essays, from our new publication, The Monday Essays.


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Song listing:

1. ‘La Femme d’Argent’, AIR.