Contributed by Jim Hayes

Mining tycoon Clive Palmer and his United Australia Party pose as defenders of Australia against a corrupt political system dominated by the big parties. They don’t, and this is revealed by the move to deliver their preferences to the Liberal and National Parties in key marginal seats.

He might claim that some preferences will be Directed to Labor. Don’t be fooled. It will be the coalition that will benefit.

Some Liberal Party candidates in the seats in question will direct their preferences to the United Australia Party.

United Australia Party promotion does not match what it does

This is traditional Clive Palmer. He has a history of using politics to pressure for better business deals. The Liberal Party uses him and his millions to create a diversion that channels back the votes of the disaffected.

In this year’s election, those who vote for the United Australia party thinking they are voting for an alternative, will have their votes channelled back to help keep the Morrison government in office. Clive Palmer owns the United Australia Party. It does not belong to its members.

So much for representing an alternative.

This is corrupt politics. Corrupt because it is dishonest, used to gain personal advantage, and founded on the power of money.

Clive Palmer is often portrayed as a buffoon. The truth is he is smart and knows exactly what hew is doing. More then this. He has assembled a team that has its ear to the ground, knows what average Australians are feeling. They work to manipulate and use them. This is why much of what Clive Palmer and the United Australia Party says in terms of policy is hard to disagree with.

Australia does have a problem with a political elite that does not operate in the interests of the majority. The United Australia Party calls for an increase in funding for hospitals increasing the age pension by $180 a fortnight, and abolishing HECS debt for students. It calls for a maximum 3 percent interest rate on home mortgages, cutting income tax on all second jobs by half, and by 20 percent for those living in regions far from cities, to stimulate regional economies. The United Australia Party says it wants to make lobbyists holding positions in political parties illegal, and to stop censorship form the social media tach giants. They want to encourage the buying of Australian made goods.

All are worthy policies. But with Clive Palmer and the United Australia Party, they are a mirage used to manipulate an electorate that is losing faith in the political system, which will not be supported outside the election cycle. We can say this with confidence, because this is exactly what happened after the last federal election, when Clive Palmer helped the Coalition into government.

The United Australiar Party has made an election ad

Video from thejuicemedia

The only difference this time, is the manipulation of anti-vaccine feeling in a section of the Australian community, which has been made even angrier by government mishandling. Clive and his mates have been a regular feature at the “freedom” marches, using them to create a new political base, by pushing for a ban on lockdowns and domestic vaccine passports.

Palmer and his party demand the abolition of the National Cabinet. There is an aspect to this that is clearly undemocratic.

Most of those who are genuinely against mandated vaccines have good reasons to be. Adequate support has been absent, and an over emphasis on vaccines has neglected other aspects of fighting the spread of infection and benefited big pharmaceutical corporations. Adequate funding of the health system and rapid response systems have been neglected.

The pay paying of lip service to real needs does not make Clive Palmer and his United Australia Party all right.

Here are some of their less well-known policies.

Payment of the national debt is their number one priority.; This is to be achieved by cutting corporate and personal tax to reduce this as a means of raising government revenue. Partly replace this by a 15 percent mineral resource export tax. This would make Australia even more dependent on the export of iron ore, coal, and other mineral resources. It would also enforce new and drastic cuts to the funding of government services.

The United Australia Party wants to build a uranium mining and processing industry. It wants closer integration with the United States, economically and militarily.

Image by Dan Jensen

These are hardly distinguishable from the Coalition’s policies and designed to make more millions for Clive Palmer.

Clive Palmer and the United Australia Party offer no alternative. They are part of the same establishment, seeking to drive a dissatisfied Australia down a dead end and preserve the way things are.

Australia must not be deceived by this stunt.

If Clive Palmer were genuine about his claims, he would ensure that preferences are directed against the elite he claims to oppose. He would take up policies that genuinely lift the share of the average Australian in the wealth created in Australia.