As the 42nd parliament is under way, Australia now has a left-of-centre government and a crossbench stacked with leftwing critics who hold enough seats in parliament to meaningfully affect the overall policy direction of the country. The strength of the left is bolstered by the fact that after years of climate inaction and divisive politics, the official opposition is a spent force with little credibility.
Many in the public will be hoping that the weakening of the Coalition signals the beginning of a kinder, gentler politics. Since taking office, Anthony Albanese has highlighted the importance of leading with compassion and decency. This commitment isn’t just a matter of personal style. The electorate has signalled that it is tired of warring politicians.
Still, it is unlikely that the relative calm of the first few months will continue for long. Even without the Coalition’s combativeness, the Greens, the teal independents and others on the crossbench, and a few members of Labor, will probably reject Albanese’s playbook.
As the nation witnessed when Grace Tame refused to smile in the presence of Scott Morrison, there seems to be an appetite for figures who challenge the status quo by rejecting respectability. Tame forced the nation to ask why she should be civil to someone who had presided over a political culture that was harmful to women and racial minorities.
In the last few years, the Australian parliament has been the site of an alleged sexual assault, a range of sexual dalliances carried out in places of business, and a culture of excessive drinking and sexual harassment. The newer members of parliament who were swept in on a wave of change want to rewrite the rules of play for an institution whose image has been battered by the sometimes aggressively sexist behaviour of an older generation of members. The Greens are already leading the charge. Max Chandler-Mather’s refusal to wear a tie for his swearing in, and his insistence that “I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised the Coalition care more about ties than people waiting years for social housing” may be a signal of what is to come – a focus on the issues rather than on decorum.
More substantively, in the last few weeks we have seen the Greens – joined by the teals – insisting that the 43% emissions target in the climate bill is a floor, rather a ceiling. The Greens have also raised questions about the proposed referendum that would seek to enshrine recognition of First Nations peoples in the constitution through a voice to parliament. In his Garma speech, Albanese called the referendum “a modest and gracious request” and went on to say “We’re appealing to the goodwill of the Australian people.” Some left-leaning critics see the initiative as not going far enough. They want treaty first, or some measure of guarantee that the process won’t be steeped in sentiment alone. But these critiques probably represent a minority view. The Uluru Statement has momentum and high-profile backing and, importantly given the state of race relations in this country and initial public support for the voice, it is difficult to see how any other process will gain support.
Beyond the specifics of climate or First Nations policy, a left-leaning parliament may offer us the kind of tactics used in the US by the likes of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush and other members of The Squad.
Some of the approaches they use are embodied in Lidia Thorpe. She is already a model of a new kind of politics – abrasive, performative and fully committed to blowing up the system. Her one-fisted “coloniser” pledge was a brilliant piece of political theatre that instantly went viral (it was carried in news outlets around the world). Thorpe may irritate as many people as she delights, but her conduct was a warning shot; a message that parliamentary politics won’t be smooth sailing.
Albanese may not get his wish for civility, but the contest between the new government – with all its good intentions and reformist plans – and the new crop of parliamentarian activists with a left-leaning mandate, will be thrilling to watch.
I can only hope that the robust exchanges to come deliver more than entertainment. If young people, poor people and ethnic and racial minorities in underserved communities are the better for the rigour, then civility be damned.
