Political leadership: What’s that?

Voter disenchantment is now so high that some people within the Labor and Liberal Parties are openly discussing the possibility that in their present form, there is no room for them in a changing world. Young people in general, not just university students, are casting aside the old attitudes and looking to create new parties.

This is not a new idea. In 1991, I founded a political party in Canberra to contest the 1992 Territory election in the hope of encouraging young Canberrans to start looking at the future. Thus was born the Canberra Unity Party which fielded five candidates: A lady who has since become one of Australia's leading advocates for refugees; a former Labor Member of the Assembly prior to self government (sadly now dead); a young small business man; the young wife of a small builder; and myself – a retired and disabled pensioner and the oldest party member who could barely walk. In fact, I announced the formation of the party while in hospital following a major operation.

Unsurprisingly, it was difficult to get people to look towards the future because many of them did not want self-government and so were inclined to look at the Unity Party, which did, as upstarts. Suffice to say the party was unsuccessful.

But now, young people in particular, are demanding their policy ideas be listened to. And they also want policies that will help the wider community, not just policies to suit particular interests. What they do not want are policies that have been devised simply as tools with which to poke political opponents in the eye.