Globalisation and the Third Way

Talking about the benefits of education is one thing. Knowing how to deliver lifelong learning is a different matter altogether. It is tempting for Left-of-Centre parties to apply the old politics of statism to the needs of the new economy. This is a recipe for failure. A narrow reliance on public funding will not satisfy the resource demands of a learning society. So too, traditional industry policies are ill-suited to the dynamic nature of the modern economy.

Lifelong learning is an expensive exercise, especially once it becomes universally available. This task is beyond the financial limits of the state. It can only be achieved through the development of learning partnerships across society - mobilising extra resources from households, communities and corporations, as well as governments. Education needs to be the work of the nation, not just a handful of government departments. This approach is set out in my book What Did You Learn Today (2001). It is a Third Way program for Australia’s transition to a learning society.

New thinking is also needed in terms of economic policy. In the past, social democrats tried to plan, regulate and subsidise the development of industry sectors. In the new economy, this approach is likely to be counter-productive. It is a barrier to inventiveness and the open transfer of knowledge and technology. Public policy needs to shift to the supply side, to generating the right kind of economic inputs. This approach places a heavy emphasis on skills development, research scholarships and competitive market structures.

The great challenge of globalisation is to make it work for all citizens, to disperse its benefits as widely as possible. International economic governance and lifelong learning are essential to this task. I am incredibly optimistic about the things that can be achieved on our side of politics, once we modernise our thinking and policies.

I can never understand why so many on the Left are so pessimistic. Their only purpose in public life is the promise of a better past. They are more interested in the history of the 1980s than the possibilities of the Information Age. Ultimately, this is why the Third Way matters. It believes in a new era of progressive politics and most importantly, it knows how to get there.