An end of an era in Australian politics
Harold Wilson's line has become a political cliche - but it is still true: A week is a long time in politics.

And in the last week, Australia has seen the end of an era, the coming of a new generation, a rewriting of the political rule book.

Just over a week ago, the Liberal Party lost government, lost its leader, lost its deputy leader.

Australia's second longest serving prime minister, John Howard, didn't just see his government crash and burn, he also suffered the loss of his own parliamentary seat. The next day, the deputy Liberal leader and treasurer, Peter Costello, stepped down, saying he didn't want to lead the Liberals into the desert of opposition. He was quickly followed through the resignation door by the head of the junior member of the coalition, the National Party - the deputy prime minister, Mark Vaile.

As Labor's Gareth Evans observed after the first Howard victory back in 1996, going into opposition for politicians who have been at the very top, means exposure to a dreadful condition called Relevance Deprivation Syndrome. The microphones and the cameras move on as soon as the power leaves. In all the corridors at the rear of the parliament building this week, in front of all the ministerial offices, stood rows of huge garbage bins. The departing Howard ministry was shredding its way through thousands of documents - the last act of a defeated government as it leaves office.

Labor's win was clear. A six per cent swing, giving it an estimated 85 seats in the 150 seat lower house. The opposition coalition is predicted to have 63 seats, with two independents.

The Howard era is over. Welcome to the age of Kevin Rudd. Incidentally, let me offer a new definition of generational change. It struck your correspondent when considering the 50-year-old Kevin Rudd, that generational change has happened when, for the first time in your life, the new prime minister is several years younger than you are. And the new deputy prime minister. And the new opposition leader and the new deputy opposition leader. Thank goodness the new trade minister, Simon Crean, is 58 - there is still someone in cabinet I can be ageist about.

The changing gender balance is also noteworthy. In Julia Gillard, Australia has its first female deputy prime minister. When Kevin Rudd heads off to Bali in a weeks time for the UN climate conference, Australia will have its first female acting prime minister.

In a Rudd ministry of 30, there are seven women - an Australian record.

So, much has changed. One thing, though, remains - the extraordinary power of the leader. John Howard dominated his government. He was the centre of the government's success, and by staying too long, he became the reason for its failure.

Kevin Rudd enters office with more power, perhaps, than any previous Labor leader. He overturned a century of Labor tradition by announcing that he - not the Labor caucus - would select all the ministers in his cabinet. The caucus and the factional chiefs would have no say. Previously, caucus elected the ministry, then the prime minister distributed the portfolios to the line-up he was given by the party room. No longer. The presidential habits that marked the Howard era are set to continue in the Rudd era. Some things, in Canberra, will not change.

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