Suchergebnisse

Considers the nature of the Australian Labor Party and Labor governments in the course of a critique of two books on the Party. Stresses the continuity in the ALP's pursuit of the interests of Australian capital when it is in office and its 'structural constitution', that is its distinctive relationship with the working class, especially through the union movement, and with the capitalist class. Evidence to support the analysis is drawn from the experience of the Chifley government during the 1940s, the Whitlam government during the 1970s and the Hawke government during the 1980s.

Gough Whitlam's father was one of Australia's most significant public servants. Deputy Crown Solicitor and Crown Solicitor at a time of great constitutional and international change, Frederick Whitlam maintained an unusually advanced perspective on the use of international instruments to protect rights and to expand powers of nationhood. Gough Whitlam's war‐time experiences in the Air Force, in particular during the referendum campaign to expand Commonwealth Powers to aid post‐war reconstruction, cemented these aspects as central to his developing notions of democratic citizenship. In his 1973 Sir Robert Garran Memorial lecture, fourteen years after his father had delivered the inaugural oration, Gough Whitlam acknowledged the influence of his father as a "great public servant" committed to public service and the developing institutions of internationalism: "I am Australia's first Prime Minister with that particular background". This paper explores "that particular background".I have never wavered from my fundamental belief that until the national government became involved in great matters like schools and cities, this nation would never fulfil its real capabilities.1

In this reappraisal of recent Australian political life, Paul Strangio and James Walter analyse the performances of five prime ministers (Whitlam, Fraser, Hawke, Keating and Howard) against the background of changes in the political system over the past three decades and assess the leadership style of a potential prime minister, Kevin Rudd. The authors argue that good democratic leadership requires robust institutions, including a fearless public service, a strong Opposition and alternative policy advice