The poor priorities and inconsistencies of Anthony Albanese’s government are almost summed up by the political maneuverings taking place as we enter the last parliamentary session before the summer recess.

They are tangible proof of why Labor is failing in the polls in its first term in power.

On the one hand, Labor spent months telling us that their misinformation bill was a vital reform aimed at eradicating… you guessed it, misinformation in public discourse.

Yet Labor abandoned the bill once a united front lined up against it – the Coalition, the Greens, a plethora of cross-benchers representing the right and the left.

But he didn’t just walk away from what he once claimed was so important in the here and now.

He vowed not to pursue changes even after the election – if he wins – with Special Minister of State Don Farrell saying: “That’s it.”

I guess what was proposed must not be so important after all.

In truth, the proposed laws were highly subjective, poorly drafted, lacked consultation and transparency in their development, encroached on freedom of expression, and while one liked the idea of ​​muzzling opinion, they did not. did not go far enough to satisfy their supporters.

They were therefore thrown into the political dustbin, as they should be.

Anthony Albanese’s government has spent months telling us that his disinformation bill is a vital reform aimed at stamping out disinformation. He has now promised not to continue these changes even after the elections, in the event of victory. I guess it must not be that important after all

Submissions for public comment on the disinformation bill closed in September.

However, they were never uploaded or made public. I suspect the government wanted them hidden because they were so scathing.

It is so ironic that when Labor abandoned the misinformation bill, their political argument to justify this decision was fraught with untruths.

For example, they claimed that the Coalition and the Greens were in cahoots – even though their opposition to the bill was for diametrically opposed reasons.

The Greens said the bill did not do enough to stop misinformation, while the Coalition said it was an attack on free speech.

Equally questionable is the government’s approach to its proposed social media laws banning under-16s from platforms such as TiKTok and Reddit.

The government only opened public comments on the bill for one day. This is not how a good government takes consultation seriously.

Labor will succeed in pushing a ban on social media for young people through parliament because the Coalition came up with the idea before the government and plans to support the changes.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland is now pushing her bill to ban under-16s from social media. The government is also using questionable tactics to pass the bill.

The same will likely be true of campaign donation reforms, which have not even been submitted to a parliamentary committee for consultation and public comment. So much for a good political process on this front.

Meanwhile, no legislation will be passed soon to restrict online gambling or gambling-related advertisements, as was previously promised.

For what? Probably because Labor doesn’t want to upset the big media organizations who benefit from revenue streams from their advertising.

So what excuse did they use to justify the inaction and broken promise?

“This is very difficult and complex work that simply cannot be finalized in the remaining week of Parliament this year,” Minister Murray Watt said.

So are changes in social media use and laws designed to combat misinformation. Just like adjustments to political donations. Yet Labor has found ways to rush through these legislative processes when it suits them.

Such inconsistency is also evident when listening to Labor’s talk of concern for young Australians as it moves towards banning social media.

But the sound of crickets is all you hear when you ask the same politicians why they don’t act to restrict online access to violent and graphic pornography for minors.

All of the above highlights the political failures of this government.

This is proof positive that it is a bad government that does not deserve to be re-elected. Which does not mean that he will not be re-elected.

No first-term federal government has lost a re-election bid since 1931, so history favors Albo’s chances of securing a second term as prime minister.

With social policy storylines such as those mentioned above dominating the final sitting period, voters could be forgiven for wondering why Labor’s priorities are focused in this direction and not on the economy.

On Wednesday we will receive the updated monthly CPI figures. We already know that inflation is higher than in other Western countries and there is no guarantee that interest rates will fall in the first half of next year. And this, despite anemic economic growth and a decline in real living standards.

You would have thought Labor wanted the focus of its final sitting week to be entirely on the economy and its plans to address the cost of living concerns that are hurting so many Australians.

Yet that’s not the aim at all, probably because Labor can’t say anything very positive about it as their fiscal policy parameters – spending too much – clash with the RBA’s monetary policy advice .