The recent Queensland ALP Conference has consolidated Labor’s existing progressive agenda by adopting stronger positions in the areas of social equality, workers rights, the environment, education, health and community support. The annual Party Conference, held in Brisbane, was the first time in almost two years that delegates gathered together to revise and update the state policy platform.

During the conference, attendees heard that the state Labor government were establishing a $1.8 billion Queensland Jobs Fund Flexed that would ‘bring together a range of new and existing programs to make it easier for businesses to get started, to grow, to innovate – and create jobs’.

During the two day conference, delegates heard speeches from the Queensland Premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, Federal Opposition Leader, Anthony Albanese (both pictured) and Civic Opposition Leader, Cr Jared Cassidy.

However, the focus of the event was updating the state policy platform. Some of the key changes to the document were:

ENDURING LABOR VALUES

The Conference adopted an important policy amendment to ensure women’s rights were at the core of Labor’s policies and actions in government. This includes committing to reducing economic inequality, closing the gender pay gap, reaching equal representation in public, private and community sector leadership, and improving women’s health and wellbeing.

These amendments are seen by many in the Party as part of a much larger fight for women’s rights to be safe, respected and equal – at work, at home and in the community.

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Key policy changes included:
• enhancing the bargaining power of workers in the public sector by removing arbitrary Government policies that set down pre-determined wage positions;
• declaring our intention to work with Federal Labor to end the privatisation of social security by reinstating the previously abolished Commonwealth Employment Service; and,
• enhancing the safety of workers in the mining and quarrying industries by removing legislative barriers that stop Union officials from doing their job and keeping all workers safe on site.

LEARNING FOR LIFE

Key policy changes included:
• establishing an independent manufacturing skills organisation to drive the procurement and delivery of world class skills and training to support, develop and grow our manufacturing industry;
• improving the recognition of support staff in schools; and
• calling on both State and Federal governments to provide more support for vulnerable children at school.

HEALTHY LIVING

Key policy changes included:
• recognising the importance of public oral health services as a critical component of holistic patient care and wellbeing;
• providing more support for breast cancer patients, including the expansion of diagnostic services to improve early detection;
• requiring mandatory palliative care education for all Queensland Ambulance service paramedics;
• recognising the life-saving advancements made in HIV management, and ensuring Queensland continues to appropriately manage the medical and social impacts that can be felt by people living with HIV; and
• recognising problem gambling as a health issue.

CONNECTED COMMUNITIES

Delegates voted to address homelessness and housing support for at-risk groups and ensure that the government improves standards, increase stock, and improve investment in social housing – including a commitment that social housing includes renewable energy sources.

The Conference also supported important changes to local government, including ensuring greater transparency and integrity in local government elections, and better public access to Council proceedings.

REGIONAL AND REMOTE COMMUNITIES

Delegates supported a commitment to investigate a new cross border commissioner to better support our border communities, a firm commitment to better protect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural sites to avoid destruction like that seen at Juukan Gorge in WA, and supporting regional Queenslanders to access post-Secondary education by promoting TAFE and training.

Importantly, the Conference adopted commitments to ensure mining in Queensland meets world’s best practice in relation to planning, workplace health and safety, environmental management and rehabilitation. The platform also now includes a new commitment to support regional voices within our party and our parliamentary caucus.

OUR ENVIRONMENT OUR FUTURE

This year’s Conference supported a number of changes to ensure all Queenslanders have reliable access to clean, safe drinking water, including a commitment to investigate additional water storage and supply networks, and ensuring our urban water supply is resilient to increasing demand and the impacts of climate change including drought.

The Platform also includes important reforms to make sure we more effectively offset carbon emissions through environmental assessment processes, and boost community resilience and reduce flooding impacts by revegetating waterways and upper catchments.

A STRONG ECONOMY

Key policy changes included:
• preventing privatisation by stealth, by ensuring Queensland Rail workers continue to play an important role in repairing and maintaining Queensland’s train fleet;
• supporting an independent scientific body to review, examine and investigate resource industries at every stage of operation;
• supporting local jobs by ensuring local businesses and workers are in a strong position to benefit from Queensland’s infrastructure boom through the ‘Buy Queensland’ procurement policy; and
• ensuring public sector wage growth sets the standard across all industries and maintains pace with rising cost of living pressures as a minimum.

CARING AND SECURE COMMUNITIES

Key policy changes included:
• exploring the extension of support for kids who have been in care until they’re 26 to give them the best start in life;
• improving the proposed words on legislating the decriminalisation of sex work and supporting sex workers by working with police to ease discrimination and unfair practices;
• improving and strengthening the ALP’s commitment to voluntary assisted dying;
• strengthening responses to domestic and family violence through targeted responses to animal cruelty as a form of coercive control and violence;
• enhancing how welcome zones for refugees are initiated by government services to support refugees seeking asylum,
• improving police responses to domestic and family violence by establishing ‘family hubs’ for reporting domestic and family violence; and
• working towards drug law reform legislation by implementing the recommendations of the Queensland Productivity Commission Report.

CONFERENCE RESOLUTIONS

In addition to the Platform amendments, the Conference adopted several key resolutions covering a range of important issues. On the first day of the conference this included increasing protections for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage, ensuring Queensland’s water security, and protecting Queensland jobs by preventing privatisation by stealth.

The second day of the Conference saw some very passionate debate from delegates on a number of issues, with the following adopted:

Voluntary Assisted Dying: acknowledging the hard work done to date to see Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation introduced to Parliament, and calling on all Labor MPs to vote in favour of the bill.

Supporting a Strong Public Service: calling on the Queensland government to stop the practice of independent contracting in the public sector and lift the staffing cap.

Low Carbon Economy Plan: calling on the State Labor Government to continue creating good, secure jobs, protecting the environment, and investing in publicly owned assets. The resolution acknowledges that a ‘low carbon’ future of our energy and resources industries requires us to work with those communities most affected.

Channel Country Protection: calling for the protection of this precious landscape from shale gas exploration, including by consulting with local communities and Traditional Owners, and calling on the government to legislate protections.

Palestine: congratulating the Federal ALP for reaffirming their commitment to recognising Palestine, and condemning Israel’s ongoing annexation and occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Aged Care: calling for action, by implementing safe staff to resident ratios and bringing down the residential aged care waiting list.

Racial Vilification: commending Attorney-General, Shannon Fentiman, for the work that she is doing to strengthen Queensland’s racial vilification laws.

Sex Work Decriminalisation: commending Attorney-General, Shannon Fentiman, on referring sex work decriminalisation to the Queensland Law Reform Commission, and recognising that there is still work to do.

The next Queensland ALP State Conference is expected to be held by August 2022.

Branch joins Palestinian protests

There was a strong turnout from Annerley Labor members at the 14 May ‘Al Nakba’ protest and march held in the Brisbane CBD. Many members joined with their comrades from Labor Friends of Palestine to publicly support the Palestinian people who had recently been subjected to a series of attacks from the Israeli military and their extremist supporters.

Speaking at the well-attended event as MC, was long time Annerley Labor member and activist, Remah Naji, who soberly reminded attendees “…as you wake up in a warm bed with a roof over your head, remember your fellow humans in Gaza, who wake up to destruction and loss, and some don’t wake up at all”. Remah and other speakers eloquently outlined why the struggle for Palestine was a ‘struggle for all people who are resisting oppression and violence’.

In early May, Israel launched a vicious campaign of ethnic cleansing in occupied East Jerusalem, instituting a plan to forcibly evict some 2,000 Palestinians from the neighbourhoods of Sheikh Jarrah and Al-Bustan and replace them with Israeli settlers, in contravention of international law. As residents defended their lives, livelihoods, and homes, the Israeli state responded with brutality, attacking the Palestinian people in the streets and in their places of worship.

The 14 May CBD protest, one of the biggest pro-Palestinian events in Brisbane for some time, ensured that the plight of those in Gaza and the West Bank were strongly promoted to the public. A further rally was again held in Brisbane on 22 May.

A motion in support of planned boycotts of corporations that support Israel will be presented to the June general meeting of the Annerley Branch for consideration.

Calls for a ‘sustainable’ Party, eco-friendly initiatives

Members have supported a number of key environmental initiatives to be considered by the ALP, including a call for the Queensland Branch to initiate a plan to ensure that all future Party activities, events, meetings and conferences, including that of its constituent party units, are environmentally sustainable. Supporters of the idea believe that it will be instrumental in publicly demonstrating the Party’s environmental message. The Branch has since written to the State Secretary requesting the creation and implementation of such a plan.

Other initiatives supported by Branch members include:
• mandating a tree planting program across Queensland;
• addressing the continuance of plant species declared to be bio-hazards in Queensland;
• introducing an organic waste program in the City of Brisbane.
• a composting policy, including the encouragement of community gardens, to be included in the platform for the next Brisbane City Council election;
• encouraging the adoption of bio-plastics manufacturing in regional areas;
• requiring Queensland government agencies to employ a sustainability officer to oversee the reduction in waste.

The Annerley Branch is planning to propose these measures for the next round of state policy platform changes, due in 2022.

Toondah Harbour Development still faces criticism

The Annerley Branch has again expressed its ‘deep concern’ regarding the controversial Toondah Harbour development in the Redlands area. Members remain unconvinced that the development will not have an adverse impact on both the wetlands area (once declared as RAMSAR protected) and on the local koala habitat.

In addition, the Branch has voiced its alarm at the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) ruling in favour of the Queensland Government and Walker Corporation which has prevented the public release of the development agreement for the Toondah Harbour project.

In adopting a resolution that has been conveyed to the Deputy Premier, members have called on the Palaszczuk Government to reconsider its position on the suitability and sustainability of the proposed development and has urged a community based review on the use of priority development area’s (PDAs) across Queensland – a tool that was criticised by Labor when it was last in opposition.

Animal welfare review supported

The Branch has written to the State Minister for Agriculture, Hon Mark Furner, outlining its support for the recently conducted review of the Animal Care and Protection Act 2001.

However, the letter has also highlighted a similar review conducted in Victoria which resulted in proposed legislative amendments recognising that animals feel ‘pleasure, comfort, discomfort, fear and pain’ and introducing measures to reduce emotional pain suffered by animals.

The landmark Victorian example has been cited by the Branch as being in step with growing community sentiment and should be considered for legislation in Queensland. As a result, it has urged the Palaszczuk government to embrace this approach.

The Branch has also noted that although certain practices – such as property and stock fencing – may be outside the scope of the recent legislative review, it has called on the Queensland Labor government to consider the adverse impact of some types of fencing on Australian wildlife, and to develop guidelines for good practice that ‘minimise harm and risk to our precious native fauna’.

Public submissions to the legislative review closed 21 May.

ACTU report shows way forward on recovery

In an extensive resolution, Annerley Labor has supported a wide range of important measures to aid Australia’s lagging economic recovery. In lead up to the May federal budget, the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) released it’s ‘For a Stronger, Balanced and Inclusive Recovery’ report which highlighted the weaknesses in the current economic recovery, recommending a number of key government actions.

Included in the suggested measures outlining in the ACTU report were:
• arresting the record low wages crisis and the surge in insecure work, including advocating for a strong increase in the national minimum wage, lifting public sector wage caps, and making it easier for workers to bargain collectively for better wages and jobs.
• continued ‘JobKeeper’ for workers and sectors still in crisis.
• increased Government economic activity in the real economy, including an expansion of vital public and community services, and a sustained program to improve public infrastructure.
• major investments for the Aged Care crisis, and funding and a model linked to better staffing levels and quality care
• supporting public and community housing developments.
• strategies to support investment in key strategic industries.
• increased investment to transition to sustainable energy.
In particular, this Branch also supports the following suggested measures that demonstrate real commitment to gender equality and women’s workforce participation, including:
• free, universal quality early childhood education and care,
• 26 week Paid Parental Leave scheme available to be shared between parents,
• 10 days paid family and domestic violence leave in the national employment standards
• full implementation of the 55 recommendations outlined in the Respect@Work report, including obligations on employers to prevent harassment and the restoration and expansion of funding for domestic, family and sexual assault services.

The Branch has since written to local federal MP’s, Graham Perrett MP and Terri Butler MP, expressing its support for the ACTU’s suggested initiatives.