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Whitlam's Children? Labor and the Greens in Australia (2007-2013

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Whitlam's Children? Labor and the Greens in Australia (2007-2013 Whitlam’s Children? Labor and the Greens in Australia (2007-2013) Shaun Crowe A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the Australian National University March 2017 © Shaun Crowe, 2017 1 The work presented in this dissertation is original, to the best of my knowledge and belief, except as acknowledged in the text. The material has not been submitted, in whole or in part, for a degree at The Australian National University or any other university. This research is supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship. 2 Acknowledgments Before starting, I was told that completing a doctoral thesis was rewarding and brutal. Having now written one, these both seem equally true. Like all PhD students, I never would have reached this point without the presence, affirmation and help of the people around me. The first thanks go to Professor John Uhr. Four and half years on, I’m so lucky to have stumbled into your mentorship. With such a busy job, I don’t know how you find the space to be so generous, both intellectually and with your time. Your prompt, at times cryptic, though always insightful feedback helped at every stage of the process. Even more useful were the long and digressive conversations in your office, covering the world between politics and philosophy. I hope they continue. The second round of thanks go to the people who aided me at different points. Thanks to Guy Ragen, Dr Jen Rayner and Alice Workman for helping me source interviews. Thanks to Emily Millane, Will Atkinson, Dr Lizzy Watt, and Paul Karp for editing chapters. Thanks to Bryce Roney for teaching me how to format and Ross Willing for lending me his library. And thanks to Professor Frank Bongiorno for offering warm advice and company across the project. The third thanks go to my parents, Leonie and Greg. Like a lot of children, I probably don’t express it enough, but you’ve both given so much for me. You fed my curiosity when I was young, sacrificed parts of your careers to raise me, and always offered a loving and confident foundation for the rest of my life. I should express that gratitude more. And finally, thanks to Naomi Brooks. Long distance from Sydney might have written off the first 6 months of my PhD, but the following 42 made up for it in every way. We’ve built a great life together in Canberra and you’re at the heart of it all. You edited my work, challenged my ideas, and kept everything together in the final few months. I can’t wait to edit your thesis in 2025. 3 ABSTRACT Over the past three decades, the gradual rise of the Australian Greens has transformed Australian politics. Where the Australian Labor Party once enjoyed parliamentary dominance over the progressive left, it now shares space with the minor party. At both the state and federal level, Labor has depended on Greens support to form government, and even more frequently to pass contentious legislation. After the 2010 federal election and its resulting minority parliament, the first in almost seventy years, the two parties signed a formal ‘Agreement’, with the Greens guaranteeing Labor confidence in return for policy demands and a great role in government. In the following three years, the Labor and Greens relationship received unprecedented public scrutiny. The Agreement and surrounding theatre became a major theme of the government – one amplified by Labor’s opponents. Focusing on this first federal minority experience, the thesis examines the Labor and Greens relationship in Australia. Across forty-one interviews with federal representatives, it sought each party’s institutional perspective on a range of issues. Was the formal Agreement an effective model for minority government, and did it serve either party’s interests? What were the defining institutional and ideological differences between Labor and the Greens? In the longer term, was a closer arrangement possible, and did either party desire it? On top of these questions, the thesis examined a number of difficult policy areas facing the minority arrangement – carbon pricing, refugee processing and mining taxation. While the research revealed a number of different perspectives, even within parties, it uncovered a productive, though often hostile parliamentary relationship; united by a series of shared values, but divided by different approaches to parliament, politics and pragmatism. 4 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 6 Whitlam’s children? ......................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER ONE ..................................................................................... 17 The two party system and its discontents, 1901-2007 ..................................... 17 CHAPTER TWO ..................................................................................... 48 Two left traditions ......................................................................................... 48 CHAPTER THREE ................................................................................ 77 Elite perspectives on the relationship ........................................................... 77 CHAPTER FOUR ................................................................................. 105 Beautifully ugly? Minority government, 2010-2013 ...................................... 105 CHAPTER FIVE ................................................................................... 131 Climate change and carbon pricing, 2007-2013 ............................................ 131 CHAPTER SIX ...................................................................................... 159 Asylum seekers and refugee politics, 2007-2013 ........................................... 159 CHAPTER SEVEN .............................................................................. 190 The mining tax, 2010-2013 ............................................................................ 190 CHAPTER EIGHT ............................................................................... 220 A ‘red-green’ coalition? The future of Labor and Greens politics ............... 220 CONCLUSION ..................................................................................... 245 “Certainly the impotent are pure” ................................................................ 245 REFERENCES ..................................................................................... 252 5 INTRODUCTION Whitlam’s children? On the 20th of October, 2014, Gough Whitlam, the former Labor Prime Minister, died at the age of 98. For Australians of a certain age and political persuasion, his death represented the end of an era. The occasion triggered an intense period of public remembrance, four decades after his ‘It’s Time’ campaign ended 23 years of conservative rule. Friends fondly recalled anecdotes and witticisms (how would Gough respond to meeting his maker in the afterlife? “You can be sure of one thing, I shall treat Him as an equal!”).1 Admirers compared Whitlam’s three vibrant and volatile years as Prime Minister to modern politics, with many considering the contrast unflattering to contemporaries.2 Modern Labor politicians took this comparison seriously, using the moment to reflect on their tradition and the purpose of their politics. If “like no other Prime Minister before or since, Gough Whitlam redefined our country”, as its leader Bill Shorten argued, his life possessed lessons for the current party.3 Tanya Plibersek, Labor’s deputy leader, invoked Whitlam’s ability to “inspire” an electorate.4 So too did Wayne Swan, the party’s former Treasurer.5 Chris Bowen, its current shadow Treasurer, pointed to more mundane and practical achievements, like extending sewerage to Sydney’s suburbs.6 At the end of a full day of these condolences and reflections - legislative business had been temporarily suspended - Labor MPs gathered at the steps of Parliament House 1 Stephens, Tony, (2014), ‘Gough Whitlam dead’, Sydney Morning Herald, 21st of October 2014, [online] http://www.smh.com.au/comment/obituaries/gough-whitlam-dead-martyr-for-a- moment-hero-for-a-lifetime-20141020-11931j 2 The Age, (2014), ‘His passing leaves void in world short of leaders’, 21st of October 2014, [online] http://www.theage.com.au/comment/the-age-letters/his-passing-leaves-void-in- world-short-of-leaders-20141021-3ikpf.html 3 Shorten, Bill, (2014), ‘Bill Shorten on Gough Whitlam’, Sydney Morning Herald, 21st of October 2014, [online] http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/bill- shorten-on-gough-whitlam-20141021-119hj3.html 4 Commonwealth of Australia, (2014), Parliamentary debates: House of Representatives: official Hansard, 21st of October 2014, pp. 11523-11524. 5 Ibid, pp. 11546-11547. 6 Ibid, pp. 11527-11528. 6 to collectively honour their former leader. As a caucus, the party walked the road to Old Parliament House, where they laid flowers in commemoration.7 Just metres from the flowers was the spot where, 39 years earlier, Gough Whitlam famously responded to his government’s dismissal - “well may we say ‘God Save the Queen’, because nothing will save the Governor General!” While Shorten portrayed Whitlam as a figure distinctly within his own political tradition (“Gough Whitlam loved the Labor Party and the Labor Party loved Gough Whitlam”) other politicians also mourned his loss.8 Christine Milne, the head of the Australian Greens, paid condolence on behalf of her party, describing him as a “larger than life figure
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