Nothing showed the utter isolation of Anthony Albanese and his fellow Commonwealth leaders quite like their retreat on the final day of their gathering in the Caribbean.
asserted
Nothing → show → Caribbean
The leaders stepped onto chartered boats to reach a private island where they could talk at a luxury resort secluded from everyone else at the Commonwealth meeting in Antigua and Barbuda.
uncertain
they → step → Antigua
Albanese did not choose the venue.
asserted
Albanese → choose → venue
As prime minister, he was right to join the other leaders at a forum Australia has supported for decades.
asserted
Australia → join → decades
He did not stay on the private island – his hotel was the same seaside resort as his British counterpart, Andy Burnham – and he headed for the airport to get home as soon as the retreat was over.
asserted
retreat → stay → airport
But the gathering at Jumby Bay Island sent all the wrong signals about the Commonwealth leaders when so many of their citizens are suffering from declining living standards.
asserted
many → send → standards
And that is a problem for Albanese when the Reserve Bank says its latest interest rate hike will feel like a recession to many households.
asserted
hike → say → households
What possessed the Commonwealth to do this?
asserted
What → possess → this
The leaders were on an island where Oprah Winfrey is rumoured to own a private chateau.
asserted
Winfrey → rumour → chateau
A modern “cottage” at one of the hotels, with space for four people and a private pool, costs $US8200 per night (about $11,700) for those who want to book it for this Monday.
asserted
who → cost → Monday
You want to look out of touch to voters?
asserted
You → want → voters
The entire exercise highlighted the shocking waste of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, known as CHOGM, when so many people in its 56 member states live below the poverty line.
asserted
people → highlight → line
Yes, some Antiguans were glad to see the money flow into their small nation, but the gathering lifted their country’s population by about 5 per cent overnight.
asserted
gathering → see → cent
The talk about climate action would have ended quickly without the national desalination plant run from an electricity grid powered by diesel generators.
asserted
talk → end → generators
If there is money to be spent in Antigua, it could be spent on the roads, the schools and the homes.
uncertain
it → be → roads
While the beaches are every bit as beautiful as they look on Caribbean travel websites, the country is not wealthy.
asserted
country → look → websites
Who knows if the cash from hosting CHOGM will trickle down to those at the bottom?
asserted
cash → know → bottom
In any case, the country is hedging its bets on a search for supporters: the most impressive new housing in the capital, St John’s, is funded by China Aid.
asserted
housing → hedge → Aid
It is no wonder the UK Foreign Office commissioned a study after the last CHOGM, in Samoa two years ago, to think seriously about scaling back these meetings.
asserted
Office → commission → meetings
One top UK adviser involved in that review, Ben Judah, told Politico last week that the Commonwealth Secretariat was a “broken institution” and should take a new approach.
asserted
Secretariat → involve → approach
One idea in the Foreign Office review was to hold the meetings every four or five years, perhaps aligning them with the Commonwealth Games.
asserted
idea → hold → Games
That looks like an idea Australia could support.
uncertain
Australia → look → idea
The core Australian interest in the Pacific is already addressed at the annual Pacific Islands Forum.
asserted
interest → address → Forum
Sending prime ministers to CHOGMs in the Caribbean and Africa is not as important.
asserted
Sending → send → Caribbean
Albanese was, on balance, right to go to this Commonwealth summit.
asserted
Albanese → go → summit
Australia has played its part in the institution for decades.
asserted
Australia → play → decades
Albanese met Burnham as well as Canadian prime minister Mark Carney.
asserted
Albanese → meet → Carney
As Carney said earlier this year, middle powers should work together at a time when America is an unpredictable ally and the old global order is splintering.
“If we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu,” Carney said.
asserted
Carney → say → menu
That message could guide the Commonwealth to becoming more ambitious or useful.
uncertain
message → guide → Commonwealth
Even Carney, however, was prudent about how long he spent in Antigua: he flew in on Monday night and left on Tuesday night, skipping the retreat because he had to oversee a budget at home.
asserted
he → spend → home
Albanese should have been equally cautious about spending too much time away.
asserted
Albanese → spend → time
In a remark caught on camera, he told King Charles why he was there: because the King had asked him personally.
asserted
King → catch → him
Who in Australia would be any worse off if he had arrived in Antigua a day later and skipped the private island retreat at the end?
asserted
he → arrive → end
When the Commonwealth leaders issued their statement at the end of the gathering, it looked inconsequential.
asserted
it → issue → gathering
Unfortunately for Albanese and the government, he cannot skip the next few summits.
asserted
he → skip → summits
He has to attend the UN Climate Change Conference in Turkey, even if it would have been wiser to avoid co-hosting the event.
asserted
it → have → event
Then he has to fly to the East Asia Summit in the Philippines on November 16-18 and go on to the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in China on November 18-19.
asserted
he → have → November
All prime ministers face demands to spend more time on global problems, and most fall into the habit of travelling to more summits.
asserted
most → face → summits
But the political danger rises sharply when times are tough.
asserted
times → rise → ?
Albanese, caught in a mid-term slump with low growth and high inflation, already faces a backlash over his travel.
asserted
Albanese → catch → travel
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
