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Australian Story: Aug 23

Monday night's Australian Story looks at one of the men who helped orchestrate Julia Gillard's toppling of Kevin Rudd.

Monday night’s Australian Story looks at Paul Howes, one of the men who helped orchestrate Julia Gillard’s toppling of Kevin Rudd.

This episode will put a face to one of “the faceless men.”

“Paul Howes has a lot riding on the election outcome. A Gillard victory vindicates him. A Gillard defeat would see him blamed, ostracised, victimised. His immediate future is very much on the line.” – Michael Kroger, Liberal powerbroker.

From teenage Trotskyite to the youngest ever leader of Australia’s oldest Union, Paul Howes is living a life accelerated.

Divorced from his parents at age 14 and a father himself by 20, Howes was elected to lead the Australian Workers Union at just 26 years of age. Now, at 28 after a meteoric rise, Howes faces accusations he has blood on his hands, as one of the so-called ‘faceless men who knifed a Prime Minister’.

A member of the factional right, Howes is alleged to have been the fourth and final ‘plotter’ to bring on the spill which saw Julia Gillard overthrow Kevin Rudd.

From his troubled childhood and teenage radicalism, to the front line of the Beaconsfield mining tragedy and forefront of the mining tax debate, Howes’ history and experience belie his age.

“I heard the rumours around the place at the time… ‘Too young,’ ‘The boy in diapers running the union,’ all that type of rubbish… I wasn’t perturbed by that. I mean, you don’t become the AWU National Secretary to win a popularity contest.” – Paul Howes.

This edition presents a candid portrait of the Labor wunderkind deemed a major force in the next generation of Australian politics.

It airs 8pm Monday on ABC1.

9 Responses

  1. I have just watched the ‘ Australian Story’ episode on Paul Howes and can only think both the ABC and Howes took a big risk. The profile on this man was far from subjective, but it did show who is really running the Labor party. Fancy having the gall, to talk about ‘Moral fibre’ and ‘Backbone’!! If Howes is the best the AWU can trot out, God help the Country. He seems to think that aggressive tactics in a Union dominated workplace allow him to denigrate a ‘Rhodes Scholar’ ( who has obviously done some reading of his own ) made some mistakes as well. The ABC would appear to want to forgive Howes but not Tony Abbott. It will be interesting to see how ‘the mentor’ Bill Shorten, reacts when the dust settles.

  2. No matter what he says or how you look at it he decided who should be the Prime Minister of this country and I find that deplorable. It’s a shame this episode wasn’t aired the day before the election think we would have a Liberal Prime Minister by now.

    God help us when he decides to get into politics.

  3. After watching the show tonight I am now convinced that if Paul Howes ever becomes a politician in the Labor Party they will never get my vote again. I fine it a disgrace that the vote of the Australian people means far less then one man’s grasp for power.

    This man is not only faceless but now shows himself to be spineless taking no responsibility for his actions.

    i have no respect for what the AWU now stands for with that quality of person at the helm.

  4. The regular debates with Michael Kroger left him desperate and weak. And now we know why after yesterdays endorsement of Gillard. “The boy in nappies!”.

  5. He was quite funny on the ABC election coverage last night. He was sitting beside that Libs, Concetta something-wells who was quite vicious and non-stop, and he just seemed sad at her, but managed to drop in a few funny cracks at her expense.

  6. I like this guy, watch hime debating Michael Kroger on the Today show every Friday, I can’t believe he’s only 28, he looks quite mature for his age 🙂

  7. He is a fascinating chap. I have been watching him particularly on Sky News where he regularly jousts with Peter van Onselen among others. Brash, arrogant and ambitious – great ingredients for public life and politics.

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