Labor’s hegemony was an aberration matched only once in Australian history by a similarly brief period of conservative rule in 1969 and 1970. Projecting recent trends forward would see the defeat of the Bligh Government in Queensland next year, the Rann Government in early 2010 and the Rees Government in NSW in early 2011.

West Australian premier-elect Colin Barnett has today unveiled a 17-member cabinet featuring three Nationals MPs and an independent, Liz Constable. The Liberals formed a minority government this week after gaining the support of the Nationals in the state’s hung parliament.

Colin Barnett’s administration is barely ready for government. Whle the front bench will include some talented performers, for the most part the Liberal Party has spent the past 3 1/2 years as a rabble. However the soon-to-be-minted premier is a substantial figure and will now carry the all-important gravitas of incumbency.

Labor’s hold on every government in Australia ended when state Nationals leader Brendon Grylls told a packed media conference that his party would form an alliance with the Liberals, their traditional political partners, to form a minority government. Until last week’s election, no Liberal leader had won a state poll since 1997.

Three state and territory Labor governments are at the heart of the storms buffeting Australian politics. New South Wales’ economy is shrinking and last week its government imploded spectacularly. The Northern Territory Government mismanaged the crisis of child protection in indigenous communities that led to the federal intervention last year. And the West Australian Government is on the verge of losing office after an opportunistic and cynical election campaign.

With the outcome of the Western Australian election in doubt and upheavals in New South Wales, the aftershocks of the weekend’s ruptures in the Labor Party will be felt in Canberra. But other parties also have their problems. From coast-to-coast Labor governments to coast-to-coast confusion has taken a mere 10 months.

Resurgent Liberal leader Colin Barnett, who put aside plans of retirement to contest the election, will meet Brendon Grylls today, in order to try to lock in the four seats the Nationals are expected to win. Mr Grylls has promised to support the party most willing to back his “royalties for regions” plan.

The Nationals have made their royalties for regions plan the non-negotiable starting point for their support of either major party following Saturday’s inconclusive poll. Neither party is likely to be able to form government in their own right following a 6 per cent swing against the governing Labor party.

Nationals leader Brendon Grylls says he will form government with whichever party endorses his plan to earmark a quarter of the state’s mining and petroleum royalties for regional Western Australia. Earlier, Mr Grylls stated that he is not interested in the lure of the deputy premier’s job or a frontbench position in the new cabinet.

This week saw big problems emerge for the Labor Party in New South Wales and Western Australia, while federally the Nationals shrank even further with the loss of Lyne. In the Senate, Steve Fielding voted down the luxury car tax increase, while in the United States, Sarah Palin has garnered an immediate and positive reaction.