Liberalism in Australia

In Australia,liberalismhas a vast interpretation and a broad definition.It dates back to the earliestAustralian pioneersand has maintained a strong foothold to the present day. Modern-day Australian liberalism is the successor tocolonial liberalism,and has been compared toBritish liberalismfor its similarity. The primary representation (and political entity) of Australian liberalism is thecentre-rightLiberal Party of Australia.Unlike in theUnited States,liberalism in Australia, and the term "liberal",is often associated withconservatism.

Introduction

Some of the earliest pioneers of thefederation movement,men such asAlfred Deakin,came under the influence ofDavid SymeofThe Age.Other influencers of federalism includedSamuel Griffithwho, while initially seen as a supporter of thelabour movement,became partisan against theLabour movementwith his legal intervention in the1891 Australian Shearers' strike.While all of these men were generally self-described "liberals", their understanding ofliberalismdiffered substantially. At the time, Deakin was sometimes described as a "radical",and was disliked by both urbanconservatives,and thesquatting classof Australia. (However, Deakin was also consistently opposed to Labor, instrumental in the fusion of the centre-right parties, a strong supporter of theWhite Australia policy,and a prominent proponent of stronger trade and defence ties to the British Empire – a position that gained him admirers amongst tories in the UK.) The degree ofprogressivesentiments also varied from colony to colony: social liberals such asDavid Symewere prominent inVictoriawhile others were prominent inSouth Australia,for instance. At any rate, Australia's parliamentary institutions, especially at a national level, were brand-new, so it was difficult for anyone to be labelled "conservative" in a traditional sense.The two largest political parties, theFree Trade Partyand theProtectionist Party,could both loosely be described as "liberal" in the terms of the time. They were moderates with a strong belief in parliamentary institutions, financially orthodox and attached to theBritish Empire,with a distaste for radicalism. The third major political force was thetrade unionmovement represented by theAustralian Labor Party.The rise in popularity of the Labor Party became the major preoccupation of these two other parties.

In the early stages of the parliament, the Labor Party engaged in a partnership with the more radical Protectionists, but Labor's wide-ranging policies for social reform met with only lukewarm support from most Protectionists. Fear ofsocialismbecame widespread among the ranksof the establishment, and as the question of tariffs was settled, there was increasing pressure on the non-Labor parliamentary forces to unite in opposition to Labor.

The result was theFusionin 1909, composed ofJoseph Cook'sAnti-Socialist Party(formerly Free Trade Party), and conservative Protectionists. The Fusion soon began calling itself theLiberal Party,proclaiming its adherence toclassical liberalism.After Deakin's departure, the fervent anti-socialistJoseph Cookbecame leader of the party and it became the dominantright-wingforce in Australian politics.

The pattern of a non-Labor party defining itself asliberalrather thanconservativeand deriving support from amiddle-classbase continued to the formation of the present-dayLiberal Party,founded in 1945 and led initially bySir Robert Menzies.Malcolm Fraser,quoting from Menzies' memoir,Afternoon Light,described the decision to call the party "Liberal" in these terms,

We chose the word 'Liberal' because we want to be a progressive party, in no way conservative, in no way reactionary.

However, previous Liberal Prime Minister,John Howard,is reported to have described himself the most conservative leader the Liberal Party had ever had.

The "wet"(moderate)and "dry"(conservative)wings of the Liberal party co-operated fairly harmoniously,but in the early 1970s as conservatives started to dominate inSouth Australialiberals led bySteele Hallbroke off to form theLiberal Movement.In 1977, other dissident 'small-l liberal'forces led byDon Chippcreated theAustralian Democrats.

Contemporary Australian liberalism

From the early 1990s, socialconservatismhas characterised the Liberal Party's actions in Government and policy development.FormerPrime MinisterJohn Howardin a 2005 speech described the modern position:

The Liberal Party is a broad church. You sometimes have to get the builders in to put in the extra pew on both sides of the aisle to make sure that everybody is accommodated. But it is a broad church and we should never as members of the Liberal Party of Australia lose sight of the fact that we are the trustees of two great political traditions. We are, of course, the custodian of the classical liberal tradition within our society, Australian Liberals should revere the contribution of John Stuart Mill to political thought. We are also the custodians of the conservative tradition in our community. And if you look at the history of the Liberal Party it is at its best when it balances and blends those two traditions. Mill and Burke are interwoven into the history and the practice and the experience of our political party.

Federal "small-l liberals", such asJoe HockeyandMalcolm Turnbullwere Cabinet ministers in the Howard government.Christopher Pyne,George BrandisandBruce Billsonserved in the outer ministry. In 2018, members of this grouping made up the substantial majority of senior cabinet and ministry positions in the government of small-l liberal Turnbull. At the state level, "small-l liberals" have substantial influence particularly in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

The Democrats, fractured under the leadership ofCheryl KernotandNatasha Stott Despoja,moved to theleft.Party leaderMeg Leesformed the more avowedly centristAustralian Progressive Alliancein 2003. In 2002, Tasmanian Liberal candidateGreg Barnswas disendorsed following comments opposing Government action taken over theTampa affair.Barns joined the Australian Democrats, with the view of returning a strong liberal platform to the party.

Timeline

Timeline ofliberal parties

Protectionist(1887–1909) Free Trade(1887–1909) Liberal and Democratic Union(1906–1910) Liberal (Fusion)(1909–1917) Liberal Union(1910–1923) Nationalist(1917–1931) Liberal Federation(1923–1932) United Australia(1931–1945) Liberal(since 1944) Liberal Reform Group(1966–1969) Australia Party(1969–1986) Liberal Movement(1973–1976) New Liberal Movement(1976–1977) Democrats(since 1977) Libertarian(since 2001) TNL(2019–2023)

From Protectionist Party and Free Trade Party to (Commonwealth) Liberal Party

• 1880s: TheProtectionist PartyandFree Trade Partyare formed.
• 1906: The Free Trade Party is renamed theAnti-Socialist Party.
• 1908: The Protectionists and Anti-Socialists merge into theCommonwealth Liberal Party(The Fusion).

From Commonwealth Liberal Party and ALP dissidents to Nationalist Party of Australia

• 1916: TheAustralian Labor Party(ALP) expelsBilly Hughesand others. They form theNational Labor Party
• 1917: The National Labor Party merges with the Commonwealth Liberal Party to form theNationalist Party of Australia.

From Nationalist Party of Australia and ALP dissidents to Liberal Party of Australia

• 1929: Billy Hughes and others are expelled from the Nationalist Party of Australia. In 1930 they form theAustralian Party.
• 1932: The Nationalist Party joins with the Australian Party and several ALP dissidents led byJoseph Lyonsto form theUnited Australia Party.
• 1944: The United Australia Party merges with the Australian Women's National League and several other groups to form theLiberal Party of Australia.

From Australian Women's National League to Liberal Party of Australia

• 1904: TheAustralian Women's National Leagueis founded.
• 1945: TheAustralian Women's National Leaguebecomes part of the Liberal Party.

From state farmers' parties to National Party of Australia

• Early 1900s: State farming organisations form, includingVictorian Farmers UnionandFarmers and Settlers Association of Western Australia.
• 1913:Country Partyfounded by the WA organisation.
• 1917-1919: Other state farmers' parties form in Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and NSW.
• 1920: These farmers parties join and form theAustralian Country Party.
• 1932: South Australian branch merges with theLiberal Federationto become theLiberal and Country League.
• 1963: The Country Party's South Australian branch splits, the LCL losing Country Party affiliation.
• 1974: NT branch disaffiliates and merges with the NT branch of the Liberal Party of Australia (Liberals) to form theCountry Liberal Party
• 1975: Country Party changes name toNational Country Party(NCP).
• 1979: Country Liberal Party affiliates with NCP (also with the Liberals).
• 1982: NCP changes name toNational Party of Australia(NPA).

From Australian Liberal Union to Liberal Party of Australia in South Australia

• ?:Australian Liberal Union(ALU)
• ?: ALU affiliates with the Free Trade Party (later known as the Anti-Socialist Party)
• 1908: ALU affiliates with the Commonwealth Liberal Party as the Anti-Socialist Party merges to form it.
• 1917:Liberal Federationformed by merging the South Australian Liberal Union with the SA part of the new Nationalist Party of Australia. The Federation affiliates with the Nationalists.
• 1932: The Liberal Federation merges with the South Australian branch of theCountry Partyto form theLiberal and Country League(LCL).
• ?: The LCL affiliates with the Country Party.
• ?: The LCL affiliates with the United Australia Party (UAP).
• 1944: The LCL loses UAP affiliation with its end, and takes up affiliation with its successor the Liberal Party of Australia.
• 1963: The Country Party's South Australian branch splits, the LCL losing Country Party affiliation.
• 1974: LCL renames toLiberal Party of Australia (South Australian Division).

From Liberal Party of Australia dissidents to Australian Democrats

• 1966: TheLiberal Reform Groupseceded from the conservativeLiberal Party of Australia.
• 1969: The Group is renamedLiberal Reform Movement,thenAustralia Partylater that year.
• 1973: TheLiberal Movementsecedes from the Liberal and Country League in South Australia.
• 1976: The Liberal Movement rejoins the South Australian Liberal Party, but a minority do not rejoin and form theNew LM.
• 1977: The Australia Party and New LM join with dissident members of the Liberal Party of Australia, to form theAustralian Democrats.

Australian Democrats offshoots

• 1992:Janet Powellforms theJanet Powell Independents' Network.Dissolved in 1993.
• 2003:Meg Leesforms theAustralian Progressive Alliance.Dissolved in 2005.

From Country Party and Liberal Party of Australia dissidents to Country Liberal Party

• 1974: The NT branches of the Country Party and the Country Liberal Party secede from their parent parties and merge to form theCountry Liberal Party.
• 1979: The Country Liberal Party affiliates with the National Country Party and the Liberal Party of Australia.

Liberal Democratic Party

• 2013:David Leyonhjelmof theLiberal Democratic Party (LDP),alibertarianparty founded in 2001, is elected to the senate after receiving 9.51% of the primary vote in the state of New South Wales.

Liberal leaders

• Protectionist, Fusion:Alfred Deakin
• Fusion/Liberal Party:Joseph Cook
• Liberal Party of Australia:Robert Menzies–Harold Holt–John Gorton–William McMahon–Billy Snedden–Malcolm Fraser–Andrew Peacock–John Hewson–Alexander Downer–John Howard–Brendan Nelson–Malcolm Turnbull–Tony Abbott–Malcolm Turnbull–Scott Morrison–Peter Dutton
• Australian Democrats:Don Chipp–Janine Haines–Cheryl Kernot–Meg Lees–Natasha Stott Despoja–Andrew Bartlett–Lyn Allison

See also

• Christian politics in Australia
• Conservatism in Australia
• History of Australia
• List of political parties in Australia
• Moderates (Liberal Party of Australia)
• Politics of Australia
• Reason Party
• Socialism in Australia

External links

• Libertarian Society of AustraliaArchived2008-06-11 at theWayback Machine
• ABC Radio National's Hindsight - An attitude of mind and faith: liberalism in Australian political history
• ABC Radio National's Lingua Franca - George Megalogenis on the words 'liberal' and 'conservative'