I spent over 40 years in the Australian defence force. Our lack of preparedness concerns me | Chris Barrie

It is time Australian governments started to listen to experts when it comes to climate change and pandemics

The past 18 years has been a period of significant disengagement and disinterest by the community in Australian political affairs. The political shenanigans described in Malcolm Turnbull's recent book A Bigger Picture ought to be a wake-up call that as our political leaders have jostled for the right to exercise power from the PM's office, time has been a'wasting in finding appropriate solutions for the challenges Australia must face over the next three decades. It is time for us to hold our governments to account for the quality of their governance.

Until the end of last year, we had blindly turned away from doing anything to address many of the challenges that have been laid out by science and respected commentators. Bigots in our media and parliaments have held sway and prevented much from being done. The result has been a lack of preparation to deal with the serious issues we confront.