The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the collapse of the Soviet Union two years later were widely viewed together as a triumph for free market capitalism. Although Francis Fukuyama’s “end of history” prognosis attracted the most attention, the idea that there was no alternative to the market was widely held and it influenced politicians of many shades. Together with perceptions about the negative impact of globalisation on political choices, the almost universal support amongst political elites for the free market gives rise to a “vanishing” of Opposition similar to that described by Otto Kirchheimer in post-war Germany. In the absence of major political and ideological differences between mainstream parties, politics has become more stage-managed and superficial, with Oppositions reduced to trying to win power through the unpopularity of governments rather than the merits of their alternative policies. Although this paper focuses on the case of the Australian Labor Party, there is evidence of a similar process at work elsewhere.