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Labor and the 'empty ideology' of modernisation

By Tristan Ewins - posted Thursday, 5 April 2007


That the neo-liberal agenda harks back to an economic agenda and set of neo-classical economic assumptions which are older than social democracy itself is thought beside-the-point in the rush to “set up straw men”, and dictate the terms of debate.

In this debate, though, we should not accept the neo-liberal framework for debate, in which social-democracy is reduced to the “human face neo-liberalism” of the Third Way, and in which appeals to social justice are regarded as shibboleths to be demolished by “trailblazing”, “modernising” leaders.

And leading figures in the Right of the ALP should not, either, fall for the trap of adopting the mantle of “modernisation” without first thoroughly interrogating the premises of the neo-liberal agenda. Upon closer analysis, the “modernisation” agenda itself turns out to be a set of furphies rooted in Conservative ideology, and a desire to adapt to a “middle ground” determined by the opponents of social-democracy, rather than to actively shape the relative middle ground through real leadership in the public sphere.

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In summary, any policy which favours the private sector above the public; which valorises “the market” as the ultimate arbiter of all social and economic relationships and outcomes; which favours capitulation to corporate agendas to minimise tax, slash public expenditure, and minimise labour market regulation, is portrayed as belonging to the camp of “modernisation”. “Modernisation” has become a more positive way of portraying policies that, in the final analysis, are better categorised as being either shamelessly opportunistic, or as being the domain of the most committed neo-liberal and conservative ideologues.

There was a time, once, when the Left was more boldly socialist, and when the ALP Right represented the ideals of traditional labourism and social democracy with greater purpose and clarity. And there are some in the Right and the Left today who still wish to be standard bearers of the traditions of labourism and social democracy. They recognise that while political parties must adjust to changed circumstances, they must also wage a cultural struggle through the institutions and the public sphere to actively determine and shape the relative “middle ground” rather than simply reflect, and become a pale imitation of their Conservative opponents.

This being the case, what kind of policies should Labor adopt at its 2007 National Conference, and who is it who ought to be comprising the support base of such an agenda?

In the first place Rudd’s reported support for Public Private Partnerships should be scrutinised carefully. A scenario in which ownership of any new broadband infrastructure reverts ultimately to the public sector is obviously preferable to one which sees the ultimate and ongoing private ownership and control.

But in Victoria and NSW PPPs have been disastrous. They have not provided value for money, and have simply served to line the pockets of private investors. As John Quiggin has noted, the cost to motorists involved in constructing the Scoresby Freeway could amount to $7 billion over the long term: almost three times as much as if it was financed directly by government.

It is not only those on the Left of the ALP who are now beginning to recognise that PPPs represent an exercise in fleecing taxpayers, quite regardless of the ideology of “partnership” that underlies such projects.

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This, in turn, raises the question of why the ALP Federal Caucus has seen fit to privatise the remainder of the public shareholding in Telstra and appeal for private investment in order to finance the layout of broadband infrastructure. The aversion to debt - at all costs - is itself a costly shibboleth: one which undermines the provision of essential infrastructure, and leads to the adoption of costly PPP models of finance that simply do not provide value for money.

The ALP can afford to debt finance infrastructure, and it ought not to see itself as being locked into a neo-liberal economic framework in order to demonstrate its economic credentials. The Conservatives have quite demonstrably failed to provide the infrastructure that citizens and business all require, and Labor should not shy away from taking these arguments up to the Government.

The consequence of this, then, ought to involve moves to finance the re-socialisation of Telstra infrastructure, and to provide new broadband infrastructure through sustainable debt finance without resort to a PPP model.

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About the Author

Tristan Ewins has a PhD and is a freelance writer, qualified teacher and social commentator based in Melbourne, Australia. He is also a long-time member of the Socialist Left of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He blogs at Left Focus, ALP Socialist Left Forum and the Movement for a Democratic Mixed Economy.
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