Punching, prodding and blocking: the opposition's changing role in politics

Australian parliamentary politics has always had a reputation for a certain rough and tumble. In the 1850s, British economist William Stanley Jevons commented on the rowdiness of the proceedings of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. Some decades later parliamentarian John Haynes rained blows down on Paddy Crick in the parliament, affectionately known as the “bear pit”. In comparison, today’s parliamentary politics are a somewhat tame affair, with any aggression playing out verbally.