陆克文改革工党选举制度

Well, the Australian parliamentary Labor Party has today met here at theBalmain Town Hall. Today the Australian parliamentary Labor Party has made morehistory in Balmain. Today the Australian parliamentary Labor Party has decidedto democratize the party for the future. The party has decided also to makesure the Prime Minister who the people elect in the future will be the PrimeMinister the people get in the future. The Australian Labor Party has beenmeeting in this hall for the last 120 years. In fact, the Australian LaborParty has been meeting in halls like this around Australia for the last 120years.

Today, ALP has passed one of its most significant reforms tothe party in recent history. This reform brings us in July with the sorts ofmodels which have been embraced in the United Kingdom, Canada and the UnitedStates. These are reforms which will be welcomed by our 44,000 rankand file members across the nation.Each of our members now gets to have a say, a real say in the future leadershipof our party. Decisions can no longer simply be made by a factional few. Butthese reforms also extend beyond party lines. They will go to the Australianpublic itself. The Australian public now has certainty. Australians demand toknow the Prime Minister they elect is the Prime Minister they get, and that isunderlined by these reforms.

The changes that we have passed will see the federalparliamentary Labor Party leader elected jointly by the party membership andmembers of the FPLP on the following proportional basis. Votes by the partymembership is weighted at 50 % and votes by the federal parliamentary LaborParty weighted also at 50%. Election for leader shall automatically occurfollowing election where the ALP does not form government. Election for leadercan be called by the caucus secretary after any of the following events: upon theresignation of leader, the request of leader, or at least 75% of the members ofthe federal parliamentary Labor Party sign a petition requesting that anelection for a new leader be held on the grounds that the current leader hasbrought the party into disrepute. These changes were also needed if we willcontinue to be the party of ideas, reform and change as well as the party offearless debate.

We have also in our meeting today accepted three sets ofamendments moved by myself and seconded by, Anthony Albanese, the deputy PrimeMinister. And that is that the rule in terms of the leader of the opposition ifthe party does not form government. Under those circumstances, the leader wouldbe open to a future ballot, if there was a petition of 60% of the members ofthe federal parliamentary Party rather than 75% as this is the case for theparty when we are in government and the leader is Prime Minister. The secondprocedural motion that was put forward by myself and the deputy leader relatesto the closing of the day of nominations for the election of a leader. And thethird is that in the interim period between an election and such an electionbeing held for the party leadership, the deputy leader or the highest rankhouse representatives member shall act as the leader for the interim. I welcomethe fact that the federal parliamentary Labor Party has chosen to support theseprocedural amendments moved by myself and the deputy Prime Minister.

Friends, for the future, this is an important set of reformsfor our party. Across Australia, the great thing about Australian labormovement is that we are a party of the grassroots. We are at our best when arelistening to people right across the country, and we are at our best when weknow that the rank and file of our membership, all 44,000 thousands of themknow that they have an active say in the future direction of our party. Thisday forwards a good story to sell for across the country. I believe it is theright message for the party. It is the right message also to the country atlarge who have raised concerns about these matters in recent times. I repeatunder this reform we have implemented the single greatest reform in parliamentaryLabor Party, the Labor Party more generally in recent times. Not onlydemocratizing the party, but also ensuring that the Prime Minister that theAustralian people vote for is the Prime Minister the Australian people then get.

Of course this is a matter for us primarily, but also arelevant to the country at large. As well as in recent time, as well as this inrecent times, we’ve embraced another series of important policy directions.Last Friday, we made clear through the announcement with premier, primeminister Peter O’Neill from Papua New Guinea , and a new approach to the question ofasylum seekers. The rules have changed, and that is now legitimately thesubject of attention around the world which is precisely as we want it to be. Aclear cut message to people smugglers around the world. This month we’ve alsolaunched our landmark national disability reforms, disability care Australia ontrack to benefit tens of thousands, then hundreds of thousands, then millionsof Australians. Over time, they’ll ultimately peak in at this stage, based onour projections at about 460,000. We’ve also extended our better schoolsnegotiations under the better schools plan. We’ve received of course thesupport now, the government of Tasmania, the independent skilled association,and we are also into the conclusion of our negotiations with other sectors ofthe Australian Education Committee as well. We’ve also acted to scrap thecarbon tax, bringing forward the introduction of the emissions trading schemewhich will ease cost of living pressures for Australian families.

Friends, what I would say overall to all the Australians whohave been engaged with what we’ve been doing the last three weeks is we’ve beengetting around house in order with this major reform to the parliamentaryparty. I believe we have one of the most modern party structures in Australiagoing into the future. That’s as it should be. We’ve also been putting our bestfoot forward on key areas of policy, on the future challenges to our economyand our response to it through national competitiveness agenda, through to whatwe have done most recently, also in relation to asylum seekers, and of coursethe price on carbon. More works to be done, we will continue to do our best forthe Australian people, but I believe this is a positive day for the democracyin Australia, and a historical day for the Australian Labor Party and a greatday for Australian Labor Party members across our nation.