Go Possum!

Sometimes i really have no idea what they are thinking. We’ll give you a 5 cent cut, but we’ll do nothing extra to address the underlying cause of the higher prices or try to move away from oil dependence.

KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: Next, the other question he was dreading: would he rule out a leadership challenge?

MALCOLM TURNBULL: This is the inevitable question and the inevitable answer and the inevitable answer is I don’t comment on the leadership other than to say we have a leader, his name is Brendan Nelson and he has all of our support.

KIRRIN MCKECHNIE: So journalists tried it another way.

RILEY, JOURNALIST: Perhaps I’ll go to a question of your former life as a merchant banker. With Nelson futures at 17 per cent and the Liberal Party at 41, at what point does a Party look at perhaps a hostile takeover?

Another of my ‘objections’ is the application of the term ‘luxury’. A Lotus Exige Sport 240 (list price $149,990-00) is certainly an expensive vehicle. But, is it a luxury vehicle? Most people (unless they are saddo, long-term motor sport enthuiasts / competitors like me who are happy to drive around in what is essentially a race car with number plates), if compelled to drive a vehicle like that (or any number of Ferraris) would kill to get out of them. They’re noisy, cramped, harsh riding, demanding, difficult to drive ‘monsters’ . . . hardly ‘luxury’ (for the Lotus, carpet is an option). Now, a Bently Continental GT or a Maybach . . . that’s a totally different proposition.

Thing is, too, I know plenty of people for whom their Lotus / Ferrari / Porsche / Maserlamborini is their only major asset. They’ve rejected the ‘whole house ownership in the burbs’ thing in order to buy what is — for them — essentially a fine piece of sporting equipment. It’s no luxury living on Vegemite sandwiches day to day so that you can afford to run the car at the next Ferrari Club track day. Gee, even a Subaru WRX Sti or Lancer Evo 10 cops LCT. Luxury cars? Try driving one between Sydney and Brisbane and see.

When the LCT first arrived on the scene back in 1980-something, the thereshold was about $28,000-00. That was close enough to Porsche money back then and would almost have bagged you two and a bit top-model Commodores. $57, whatever – 00 now gets you one VE SS Commodore and an invitation to the release of the new HSV. It does get you a Tarago, a Territory, possibly an FG Falcon Ghia but little else. True, it might get you almost three frugal tin and plastic boxes, built somewhere in Asia and bereft of much in the way of sparkling dynamics and actual quality . . . but they’re not really cars anyway: they’re fridges (or some other appliance).

The so called rebate would be swallowed up in about 6 weeks if the oil price continues to rise at the same rate it has done for the first 4 months of this year, and if the petrol companies decide not to profiteer, which would be somewhat unlikely. 6 weeks.

What a waste of time.

Spend a small handful of millions on an ad campaign giving punters tips on driving economically. Those who really want to spend less on fuel then have the information to do so voluntarily and those who don’t can continue contributing to revenue.

Seriously, most people, with a few fairly minor changes to their driving habits, would be able to drop their fuel bills by 10% (or more with a bit of effort) with no detectable change to their journey times. A far bigger saving than any government initiative can offer, without the substantial cost to the public purse.