The Australian Settlement

Values shaping the Settlement, Pillars & Policies, Demolition of the Settlement, A bit of History, 'Criticisms of the Australian Settlement'.

Paul Kelley's book, The End of Certainty (1992) looks through the 1980s which he says is an attempt to restructure the Australian political tradition. Moving into the 20th century consensus major policy directions  & themes - i.e. 'settle policy'. Certainty of established policies replaced by uncertainties of economic re-structure. Moved from an area of certainty to uncertainty.

Kelly's main points on the Settlement of Australia...

Australia was founded on; faith in government authority, belief in egalitarianism, judicial determination of wages, protection of industry and jobs, dependence upon a great power for security and finance & hostility to geographical location.

"This framework... is undergoing an irresistible demolition." ~ Paul Kelley 

There are values that exist alongside settlement that people should be aware of; that is a belief in the role of government, belief in fairness and equality, xenophobia.

Pillars of the Australian Settlement in terms of Public Policy:

• White Australia (restrictive immigration policy (very first law by Commonwealth Parliament - Immigration Restriction Act 1901), Immigration policy to ensure harmony and unity. 

"The unity of Australia is nothing, if that does not imply a united race. A united race not only means that its members can intermix, intermarry and associate without degradation on either side, but implies one inspired by the same ideas..." (Deakin, Commonwealth Parliamentary Debates, 12 September 1901, p.4807)Alfred Deakin

• Industry Protection - Tariffs on imported goods, Import substitution - not export-oriented policy. Tariffs protected Australian jobs and 'fair' wages, 1950s - 1970s - Australia and New Zealand had the highest manufacturing tariffs in the developed world. 
• Wage Arbitration - Judicial setting of wages and working conditions, system based on needs of the worker, wages adjusted to cost of living.   
• State Paternalism - Belief in government action (tradition of government owned enterprise), early social security measures (1950s - 1970s lagged behind Europe). 
• Imperial Benevolence - Geographical location required close security and trade ties with Britain (Basis of defence policy + trade and foreign investment policy), Empire changed in World War II from Britain to the United States (but subservience remained). 

Demolition of the Settlement - Fundamental political divide not Labor vs Liberal as they were both heading in same policy direction. The new divide is those who know the Australian Settlement is unsustainable vs those who fight to retain it. 

More history... 

Protection of Industry & Jobs - Arbitration, immigration controls, expansive system of tariff protection. Australian was a laboratory of social reform and democracy. 

Throughout the 1980s the market was turned into Liberalism, forced by international economic forces. 

Australia's traditional pattern of public policy shifted in the 1980s. Economic change included: End of industry protection, major tariff cuts, impact Tabo on social policy. 

Criticisms of the Aust. Settlement; Argument anticipated by others. 

Policies were not fixed - Chronologically misleading, White Australia was buried in the 1970s. Foreign policy subservience persists. 

Australian Policy = Search for balance between egalitarianism/equity and freedom/efficiency. 

1901 - 1983 - nation building. 

1983 - 2007 - efficiency, repairing the economy. 

2007 - 12 - Swing back to equity? 

Cf. Polanyi's 'double movement' theory: policy oscillates from free-market principles & economic re-structuring and mobilisation as a reaction to the excesses of market-driven policy. 

Open to criticism - But useful conceptual tool, explains the context in which Aust politics has evolved. Describes the dominant values of Aust public policy, and how they have changed.