John Howard BLASTS Anthony Albanese after he vowed to govern like Bob Hawke if he's elected as Prime Minister

  • John Howard accuses Labor leader of showing a 'lack of confidence in himself' 
  • Former Liberal leader was responding to a speech given by Anthony Albanese 
  • Mr Albanese pledged to govern Australia in the style of Bob Hawke 
  • The Labor leader said he would adopt similar reforms to rebuild the economy 

By Miriah Davis For Daily Mail Australia

Published: | Updated:

John Howard has called out Anthony Albanese after he attempted to identify with the former prime minister's record on reform and vowed to govern like Bob Hawke. 

Howard responded to a speech given by Albanese on Tuesday where he pledged to reform the economy in the style of former Labor leaders and quoted a line used by Howard.

Albanese said he would take his lead 'from Bob Hawke and his successor Paul Keating' if he is elected Prime Minister, and called out Labor's big-taxing policies at the 2019 election, during a speech at the Australian Financial Review business summit on Wednesday.

The Labor leader also drew on a line used by former Liberal prime minister John Howard, that in the race for economic reform, you never reach the finish line.

'I agree. It's always a race — the race for improvement. But the current Liberal government has abandoned the field,' Albanese said.

Howard said he found the reference surprising. 

'Has there been an election where someone has said don’t elect me, elect a lookalike? It’s not really a vote for him but someone else. It suggests a lack of confidence in himself. The real question for someone standing for election as prime minister is what you intend to do and how you ­intend to do it. You don’t cite others unless you are sensitive as to how people see you as a leader and what you intend to do,' he told The Australian. 

Former Liberal prime minister John Howard (pictured) has called out Anthony Albanese after he compared himself to Howard and former Labor leader Bob Hawke

Former Liberal prime minister John Howard (pictured) has called out Anthony Albanese after he compared himself to Howard and former Labor leader Bob Hawke

Howard said as much as he admired Sir Robert Menzies he did not compare himself to the former leader while campaigning. 

'Albanese knows that he doesn't stand for anything substantial and he seeks security in identifying with others,' he told the news outlet.  

He said Albanese's comments suggested 'a lack of confidence in himself'.    

Howard responded to a speech Anthony Albanese (pictured) gave on Tuesday where he pledged to govern the country similar to Hawke and stole a line from the former Liberal leader

Howard responded to a speech Anthony Albanese (pictured) gave on Tuesday where he pledged to govern the country similar to Hawke and stole a line from the former Liberal leader

In his speech on Wednesday, Albanese pledged to adopt economic reforms reminiscent of the Hawke-Keating era to encourage profit and boost job creation. 

'The result was three decades of continuous economic growth,' Albanese said.

'(Hawke) brokered reforms that yielded benefits for all parties - not just better wages for workers, but stronger profits for businesses.' 

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