australia

Local ALP members on Brisbane’s southside had a chance to shape the Queensland Platform recently, with the first Local Policy Conference held since last year’s state election.

Meeting in South Brisbane, party members from across Griffith and Moreton considered a wide range of motions as part of the Party’s policy development process in the lead up to the state conference to be held in November.

Also, as part of the gathering, members got to hear updates from elected representatives of all three levels of government, including Julie-ann Campbell MP, Member for Moreton, Renee Coffey MP, Member for Griffith, Mark Bailey MP, Member for Miller, Joe Kelly MP, Member for Greenslopes, Di Farmer MP, Member for Bulimba, Barbara O’Shea MP, Member for South Brisbane, James Martin MP, Member for Stretton and Brisbane City Councillors Jarred Cassidy, Steve Griffiths, Emily Kim and Lucy Collier.

*Gianni speaks about improving affordable housing*

Julie ann and Renee spoke about the second term agenda of the Albanese government, highlighting climate action, housing and cost of living, with the state Labor MPs focussing on the first year failings of the Crisafulli LNP government – especially in the areas of health, education, infrastructure and services. The BCC representatives noted the ongoing neglect of the LNP led Council and its ongoing failure to deliver basic services across the suburbs of Brisbane.

*Karleigh talks to a motion supporting more women members*

For the rest of the day, the well attended conference focused on a large number of tabled motions as submitted by branches and rank and file members.

Some of the key highlights of the motions adopted included:
• supporting right to working for home legislation
• ending age-based discrimination in several industries such as retail
• better protections for whistleblowers
• increasing female membership in the Party
• supporting QCU’s Share the Care campaign
• making large corporations pay their fair share of tax
• establishing a network of mental health centres
• enforcing minimum rental standards and recognizing housing as a human right
• improving housing affordability and better support for the homeless
• improving the state’s rail network
• lowering the compulsory voting age for state and local elections to 16
• reviewing current mandatory sentencing provisions for children
• more equitable access to government services for all CALD communities
• supporting the Palestinian people by increasing aid and introducing sanctions on Israel
• establishing a National Rural Bank to serve rural and remote communities
• supporting increased community arts investment
• restoring crucial community spaces across Brisbane
• making university fees more equitable
• improving the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
• establishing an independent Animal Protection Agency.

*Rod speaks in favour of the Palestine motions*

There was a fantastic turnout from the Annerley Branch with several members speaking in support of various motions, including three Labor Friends of Palestine motions, which were sponsored by the Branch.

The adopted motions will now be discussed through the Party’s policy co-ordination council with those supported to be then debated at the ALP state conference in November, which will be held in Brisbane.

For more information about the Local Policy Conference, email info@annerleylabor.org.

The election result must have been a shock to all those who predicted that Anthony Albanese would only last one term. Here’s a few pointers why this did not happen.

His opponents opposed their key policies, even though they were designed to relieve the major issue confronting the electorate, namely, cost of living. They went off on a tangent about the wonders of a futuristic nuclear policy and temporary fuel excise relief. They believed Sky-after-dark and internal polling when they were telling them they were on track for victory.

When Albanese gave, he was accused of over-spending, by an opposition that had produced nine deficits in a row. They had also given billions of dollars of handouts during Covid to companies that did not meet the requirements to receive that largesse. Some never returned the money.

When Albanese tried to be level-headed about the war in the Middle East he was accused by the Greens of committing genocide and by the Coalition of being anti-semitic. He was vilified for lying by those who had turned a blind eye to sports rorts, robo-debt, killing the weekend and stealing our utes. He was pilloried for daring to say that Peter Dutton had deprived Medicare when an examination of the records of his time as health minister shows that that was indeed the case.

Last, but not least, Dutton’s party failed to encourage more women into politics. The Coalition has only about 20% female representation in the House of Representatives. Today Labor has a majority of women MPs in the lower house.

But the opposition is not facing an existential crisis. Such is the nature of a good democracy. Annastacia Palaszczuk was left with a coterie of 7 MPs and yet she came back to win government in less than 3 years. It is now up to a battered federal Liberal party to pick up the pieces.