The COVID-19 pandemic has brought politicians together with in-fighting, factional disputes and partisan politics mostly swept aside to allow for swift implementation of policy.
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It's a show of prolonged unity not seen since war-time, experts say, but it's not going to last and it might not be in the country's best interest for it to continue.
Politics without the politicking
The global COVID-19 pandemic has focused politicians on the "core business" of health and the economy, federal member for Farrer and Environment Minister Sussan Ley says.
"Obviously there are lots of other issues that matter in politics, but these two central issues we have really dedicated our attention to and our efforts towards," Ms Ley said. "I've seen that incredible focus in order to get it right, as simple as that."
Her cross-border counterpart, Independent member for Indi Helen Haines, said faced with a global pandemic politicians couldn't afford to act in a partisan way.
"Without doubt we're seeing our political class come together in a way perhaps they haven't come together since war time," she said.
"It's highly appropriate that everyone should be on the same page with this in order to have a rapid and effective response to a public health emergency."
But scrutiny and disagreement are vital to democracy, Dr Haines said.
"Any government of the day, doesn't matter who it is, should and will be challenged by an opposition - that's how we conduct the Westminster system and I believe it will return to that," she said.
"It has given us all an insight into what it feels like to have a common purpose and bring the community along with us and I think our society will demand that of us more than ever," Dr Haines said.
For some people it's been a time of reflection and reconnection with family, home and a slower pace of life... but for some people it's been a horrendous time.
- Sussan Ley
Political scientist Dominic O'Sullivan, of Charles Sturt University, said it was unlikely the common ground would continue for much longer with disputes about recovery on the horizon.
"One of the things the government has done, with opposition support, is spend a whole lot of money," Dr O'Sullivan said.
"That means we're going to have a budget deficit for quite some time.
"We know that controlling the budget deficit has been accepted by both the Coalition and the ALP in recent years as a signifier of their credibility as economic managers."
How each party plans to tackle that deficit will highlight existing ideological divides, fracturing the current bipartisanship and forming a major election issue for coming years.
"Democracy exists to give us an ordered framework for settling those different opinions," he said.
Swift solutions and evidence
One of the most "radical changes" coronavirus has brought about, Dr Haines says, is a move to consensus decision making based on scientific evidence.
"It's actually changed politics in that we are having public policy led by evidence and expertise rather than led by a particular ideology," she said. "I don't anticipate that will necessarily be a sustained change."
Dr Haines said in contrast Australia's climate policy "has not been lead by evidence and expertise".
She said for those in public policy and the federal government, climate change appeared to be a less concrete or immediate threat.
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Ms Ley, who was appointed Environment Minister in 2019, disagrees. She maintains the government is acting on climate change, emphasising she and the government routinely accept expert advise on climate.
"There is no question the importance of science in everything to do with the environment," she said.
"Australia can't address climate change on its own given we're only 1.4 per cent of global emissions. We are playing our part."
In recent weeks, commentators have highlighted the swiftness with which the government was able to respond to coronavirus and queried why there hasn't been the same hurried response to homelessness, drought or climate change.
Ms Ley said said she would love complex, fractious issues to be resolved more quickly, but there were contrasting opinions on how best to tackle each contentious issue.
Dr O'Sullivan agreed the swiftness used to address coronavirus wasn't something that could be recreated in other circumstances where a multitude of complex solutions existed.
"With coronavirus, responding to it immediately and swiftly was agreed upon as a good idea, there actually weren't that many acceptable options," he said.
"But when you're talking about something like whether a budget should be in surplus and how quickly, there are many acceptable options and we need to think about them all.
"We need political parties to be prosecuting the cases for different options."
Looking forward and into history
Both Dr Haines and Ms Ley agree post COVID-19 more meetings will take place via video hangouts, which will ease the travel burden on politicians and allow for greater efficiency.
Ms Ley said the regular meeting of the National Cabinet had underpinned the success of the government's response and she would like to see it continue and expand into different issues.
Dr Haines and Dr O'Sullivan both said, overall, the government had responded fairly well in the crisis.
Though universities and foreign workers should have received support Dr Haines said.
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Dr O'Sullivan said the success of the National Cabinet would lead to a rethink of how different levels of government cooperate and Dr Haines said she would like to see the National Cabinet continue or a greater use of the COAG process.
The member for Indi believes politics will be changed by the pandemic.
"This is one heck of a wake-up call, I think the old ideologies of left and right don't hold in this," she said.
"The fact that a government that was pitching to have a budget surplus can so readily change tack to undertake the biggest spending in our history, shows that we can do business differently... I think we'll see a political class that is more prepared to take a different tack."
Ms Ley said every person would have a vastly different experience of lock down with some residents suffering financially after job losses, emotionally in isolation, or physically in unsafe homes.
"For some people it's been a time of reflection and reconnection with family, home and a slower pace of life... but for some people it's been a horrendous time," she said.
"I think people will look back and will appreciate the bipartisan spirit both government and the opposition worked together, and federal and state governments work together. I think they'll give us a tick of approval."