If it was a fleet of the new Gonski Stealth Jet Fighters, then security and border protection would be the benefit.
If it was the Gonski High Speed Rail Link, running up the east coast, between Melbourne and Brisbane, then we would benefit from the convenience.
A Gonski Dam on the Ord River, would open up vast areas for cultivation and the subsequent benefit of increased food production.
Most Australians would see the value in paying 14.5 Billion Dollars for one of these Gonskis. That’s because we all understand what an fighter jet, rail network or a dam can deliver.
History has etched that in our minds.
Now the Gonski school funding reforms are different. It’s a complex issue to understand, let alone sell to the average punter.
There have been a number of newspaper articles written recently trying to articulate what a Gonski is. Here is the most recent one from SBS.
‘Selling’ has never been the strong point of the current government. They follow the polls when making policy decisions but don’t listen to the consumer when it comes to articulating their benefits.
They need a good advertising agency.
When the late, and very divicive, Maggy Thatcher came to power in 1979 she used the advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi to sell her agenda. They came up with the ‘Labour isn’t working’ poster.’ This very quickly and simply articulated the Tory message.
I think Julia could take a leaf out of Maggie’s book and hire a good ad agency to help sell the Gonski.
