Members want Labor to stand up for its values
Posted: Thursday, 6 October 2011 | By: Jenny McAllister
Published in The Australian, October 6, 2011
By Jenny McAllister
Twitter: @jennymcallister
Recent calls for Labor to move to the Left or Right of the political debate miss the point. The best thing the Australian Labor Party can do is stand its ground.
Labor needs to have confidence in its program and the courage of its convictions as it speaks to progressive and centre-ground voters.
Labor needs to win the legislative fight to put a price on carbon, finally overcoming years of cynical negativity from both the opposition and the Greens.
Labor needs to legislate the mining tax, which spreads the dividend of the mining boom, and then make the case for the transformative impact of our most important nation-building program, the National Broadband Network.
It is true there remain issues where there are divergent views within Labor, such as marriage equality and the treatment of asylum-seekers, just as there are divergent views in the community.
One thing is certain, the community doesn't view these as fringe issues: a Roy Morgan poll in August showed support for marriage equality is as high as 68 per cent. A Nielsen poll last month says 54 per cent of Australians believe asylum-seekers should be processed in Australia.
The centre ground on these issues is moving rapidly as community attitudes evolve. Labor's position also needs to evolve. And the best test for any position will be an open debate within our broad ranks. We should encourage people to join the Labor Party and join these debates, knowing that if and when Labor changes its policies on these issues, it shapes the nation. The Coalition parties have no comparable internal debate and the Greens party has no comparable influence.
Just as we needn't fear diversity in our membership, we needn't fear diversity in our support base in the community.
Labor should have the confidence to reach out to the broadest possible coalition of Australians. The best Labor governments have always done so. That was how we won government in 2007, with a coalition of working Australians and progressive voters seeking fairness at work and action on climate change. Critically, both groups supported both agendas, united under a broad vision for a better future for their children.
The same holds true in 1972 and 1983. Gough Whitlam had a broad agenda for social change that brought the party and the nation together to transcend the sectarian splits of the 1950s and 60s. Bob Hawke and Paul Keating used the Accord to marry economic progress with a renewed social compact, while initiating key reforms for women, indigenous Australia and the environment.
Labor's successes have always been underpinned by a clear vision for the future, delivering on contemporary demands for social and economic reform.
In all those years, the clear lesson for Labor is that we succeed when the diverse strands of our movement are united. Those who dismiss the contribution of progressive or centre-ground supporters miss this significant lesson.
One senior union leader was reported yesterday as saying that if a progressive woman were elected as Labor's national president she would have only minimal sway over party policy because "the moderates" in the Labor Party still had the numbers.
Factional leaders might want to worry less about a progressive woman winning the presidency and more about the sentiment of thousands of members and supporters who want a party that stands up for its values and moves towards grassroots campaigning.
Such sentiments are a direct challenge to party powerbrokers who exercise disproportionate influence with little scrutiny.
Measures aimed at reforming how our party works will be debated in December at our national conference. If they are adopted they will produce a Labor Party planning to grow, and determined to reach out to the community to engage with its supporters.
Julia Gillard in a recent speech to the Chifley Research Centre called for reform and laid out the challenge to the party to recruit 8000 members during the next 12 months. This is an essential first step in assuring Labor's long-term health.
At the core of the ongoing debate about Labor's future is a choice: are we a narrow party of political professionals or are we a broad movement dedicated to winning the support and trust of the majority of Australians?
I believe Labor must not just tolerate a diversity of views and beliefs but understand that the breadth of our movement is our greatest strength.