Is it time for a new approach to the ‘hot mess’?

A new poll has revealed that the Coalition is now leading on a two-party preferred basis, with 52 per cent support compared to Labor’s 48 per cent.

The poll, run by The Australian Financial Review/Freshwater Strategy, showed on Monday there has been a 1 percentage point swing towards Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and his team since the previous month, indicating a shift in voter sentiment and a tightening of the political contest.

This poll mirrors ifa’s recent, smaller survey, which highlighted a significant preference for the Coalition’s candidate for financial services minister over Labor’s current minister.

Among ifa’s 517 voters, 43.9 per cent were undecided, but 240 (46.4 per cent) favoured Luke Howarth as their preferred candidate for financial services minister, compared to just 50 (9.7 per cent) who supported the incumbent, Stephen Jones.

This big gap highlights a clear preference for the Coalition’s candidate over the incumbent, who, despite initial hype, has yet to live up to the promises made to the profession.

On the other hand, Howarth is a relatively unknown figure in advice circles, and as an opposition member, his role primarily involves critiquing the government’s missteps – a task that has been relatively straightforward of late.

Speaking at a Financial Services Council (FSC) event in Sydney in July, Howarth criticised the government for its sluggish pace on Quality of Advice Review (QAR) reforms, and voiced doubts about the effectiveness of the forthcoming tranche two.

The shadow minister made it clear that the Coalition believes the government should have jumped on Michelle Levy’s final QAR report with both feet, insisting that they would swiftly push for the needed reforms without wasting time reinventing the wheel.

But how qualified and trustworthy is Howarth, really?

Having been first elected to the seat of Petrie in Queensland in 2013, Howarth had made his way into an assistant minister role by 2019.

Under the final term of the Morrison government, he served as assistant minister for community housing, homelessness and community services for 18 months, and then as assistant minister for youth and employment services.

In opposition, he shifted across to the defence portfolio, serving under Andrew Hastie as both shadow minister for defence industry and defence personnel.

Despite a political background that’s light on financial services, Dutton earlier this year touted the new shadow minister’s keen grasp of one key truth: “small business is the backbone of the Australian economy”.

But Howarth isn’t exactly free of controversies. Namely, he made headlines a few times over his time in Parliament, notably when, early in his tenure as homelessness minister, he expressed his desire to “put a positive spin” on the homelessness crisis.

While it’s too soon to gauge the new shadow minister’s focus or stance on issues affecting advisers, whispers suggest he might not be as clued up on financial advice as he first seems. But one thing is clear – Stephen Jones has had his chance, and it remains to be seen whether he deserves another shot to fix the “hot mess” he’s left behind.