CONTESTED GROUND: Lessons from the UK in political polarisation, generational dislocation and intergenerational warfare, with Ben Dullroy, Bravo Delta Advisory

Joint-capabilities
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By: Robyn Tongol

While Australia’s level of political atomisation is far from as bad as what is being experienced in the broader Western world, we’re not far-off. How we engage with generations of Australians will have dramatic ramifications for our national security in the immediate and longer term.

While Australia’s level of political atomisation is far from as bad as what is being experienced in the broader Western world, we’re not far-off. How we engage with generations of Australians will have dramatic ramifications for our national security in the immediate and longer term.

Following mounting political tensions across the Western world, with startling examples in the United Kingdom in recent weeks, Australia and Australians have been watching with bated breath as to how long it will take for those simmering tensions to boil over closer to home.

These undercurrents have served to combine with mounting intergenerational hostilities and competition over employment, housing and lifestyle opportunities, with younger Australians increasingly feeling like they were sold a bung deal.

 
 

Speaking with Ben Dullroy of Bravo Delta Advisory, host Steve Kuper unpacks the rising political isolation, tensions and, for the establishment parties of Australian politics, concern over the rise of populism on both the left and right of the political divide.

The pair detail the areas of comparison and contrast between Australia and other similar nations like the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, discussing emerging trends in the respective political discourse and agenda setting and what Australia can do to avoid the same pitfalls as some of our compatriot nations.

They also discuss the impact of immigration, declining employment prospects and one of the most overlooked aspects behind social cohesion – the dating scene and the intersections of social and cultural investment and national security.

Enjoy the podcast,
The Contested Ground team

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Listen to previous episodes of the Defence Connect podcast:

Episode 11: PODCAST: Defence Industry Development Strategy, Defence reform and Australians fighting in Ukraine
Episode 10: CONTESTED GROUND: Budget backlash – has Australia lost its political middle ground?
Episode 9: CONTESTED GROUND: Australia’s sovereign capability reckoning – why the system is no longer fit for purpose
Episode 8: PODCAST: Defence export ambitions, drone technology and defence manufacturing hubs
Episode 7: PODCAST: Offshore manufacturing, defence procurement and industrial resilience, with Philippe Odouard and David McLaughlin
Episode 6: SPOTLIGHT: Cyber warfare, autonomy and the future of defence, with Palo Alto Networks’ Tom Scully and MAJGEN (Ret’d) John Davis
Episode 5: CONTESTED GROUND: Fortune favours the bold – building a national security strategy for the 21st century, with Marc Ablong
Episode 4: PODCAST: Developing Australia’s ability to take a hit and keep fighting, with the honourable Andrew Hastie MP, shadow minister for industry and sovereign capability
Episode 3: PODCAST: AUKUS expansion, artillery manufacturing and Australia’s regional defence role
Episode 2: SPOTLIGHT: Building mass, capability and trust with autonomous and uncrewed systems, with Michael Mitchell, Elysium EPL director