Prime Minister Julia Gillard insists the economy and not Labor leadership speculation will dominate political debate this year and she is likely to be proved right, starting today with a too-close-to-call Reserve Bank decision on interest rates.
Parliament resumes this afternoon after the long summer break for what all sides are expecting to be another year of tough political fighting as the 2013 election edges closer.
But while the Prime Minister began the day buoyed by her best polling results in months, it was the cold reality of the economy she was at pains to highlight.
And as the nation waits for today's RBA decision on the official cash rate, the National Retailers Association has flagged the prospect of significant jobs losses in the retail sector.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday released December's retail figures showing a seasonally adjusted 0.1 per cent decrease in national consumer spending for the month.
The retail industry had hoped for a 0.5 per cent increase.
Treasurer Wayne Swan said yesterday customers ''would be rightly angry if their bank decided to withhold any cut''.
''Banks should think long and hard about taking their customers for granted,'' he said, pointing to new rules that made it easier for customers to switch if they found better deals.
Ms Gillard said that today's start to the parliamentary year would trigger a year-long debate on the Australian economy, but that it was in a strong position because of the government's decisions.
She said the debate had to focus on the approach each side of politics would take towards managing the economy.
''Between our approach of managing the economy in the interests of working people, or the approach of our opponents who are determined to slash $70billion out of services for working families,'' the Prime Minister said.
''It will be a debate between our approach in supporting jobs, just as we did during the global financial crisis, or taking the approach now being recommended by the opposition of not supporting jobs and particularly seeking to slash jobs in the car industry.
''It will be an economic debate between our plans for a clean energy future or the opposition's plans to rip tax cuts away from working Australians.''
Finance Minister Penny Wong also went on the front foot over the economy last night, claiming opposition finance spokesman Andrew Robb admitted he couldn't be certain a Coalition government would deliver a budget surplus in its first term. ''Surely this is the final nail in the coffin of the Liberals' economic credibility,'' she said in a statement. ''Tony Abbott talks about the hard decisions but his finance spokesman has admitted today that the Liberals won't commit to a surplus in the first term of a Coalition government.''
Asked on ABC television whether he could see a Coalition government delivering a surplus during its first term, Mr Robb replied: ''Well, it just depends. As I say there's so much uncertainty around the numbers.''
Yesterday's Nielsen poll had Ms Gillard ahead of Opposition Leader Tony Abbott as preferred prime minister 48 to 46, but it also gave Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd a 22-point lead over Ms Gillard as preferred Labor leader.
Mr Rudd has returned from assignment in Germany and attended yesterday's caucus meeting, but gave no report to the meeting.
The Prime Minister dismissed mounting talk of a Rudd-led leadership challenge, saying only that she dealt with him frequently as foreign minister and that with a lot of hard work Labor would win next year's election. But Mr Abbott said Labor's policies were flawed and that its minority government was a failed experiment. ''It's time for a prime minister who was chosen by the people at an election, not one chosen by the faceless men.''
Greens leader Bob Brown said voters were becoming more supportive of the nation's first female prime minister.
''There's a big swing around from the average punter in favour of Julia Gillard,'' he said. ''She is getting a rough time ... and quite a bit of the criticism is sexist and unfair and unrelenting, and the Prime Minister needs a bit of a break from that.
''The people of Australia are indicating she should have it.''
He repeated the Greens' desire for the Gillard government to serve its full term. ''She may not be the great visionary of political leadership in Australia, but [she's] very strong, very determined, and people are incredibly impressed with her ability to deal with what's been chucked at her. And so am I,'' he said.
But asked whether the party would support the minority Labor government in the event of a leadership change, Senator Brown said, ''That's so.''
Key crossbencher Tony Windsor, whose parliamentary support the Gillard government relies upon for confidence and supply, said Labor had much to talk about, including the national broadband network, action on climate change and the minerals resource rent tax.
''If a few people in the Labor Party want to throw that away, for their own short-term political positions, well I think that would be a bit of a shame,'' he said.
Industry Minister Greg Combet said the prime ministership should not be treated like a revolving door. ''What is important ... is to get on with the job of representing the people we represent and managing the economy well,'' he said.
Meanwhile, new Speaker Peter Slipper has plans for a regalia laden full procession at the opening of each parliamentary session.
But as reported in The Canberra Times on Saturday, it will likely not take place today because he wants to first announce his plans to the Parliament.
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