Reform must continue beyond economics to social policy

The Australian Liberal tradition has always been progressive. It recognises the individual, their creativity and their right to choose.

The time has come to recognise the benefits of our progressive, liberal society and embrace them for all. Our rich and diverse culture demonstrates our tolerance and acceptance of change. Although we sometimes despair in our differences of culture and geography, any comparison to the violence, tension and instability of similar developed nations is a reassurance of our strength.

Liberals must match their progressive economic policies with progressive social policies. If the Party of Menzies believes that government should reduce its involvement in the market and in an individual's economic affairs, then this must be matched with a reduction in government's role in our personal lives.

A truly progressive liberal agenda must address issues such as multiculturalism, euthanasia, equal age of consent and drug law reform. In all of these we must apply the test of John Stuart Mill, that of exchanges between individuals based on free will, and the mutual toleration of different moralities.

We should recognise that human dignity and respect for the individual allows each of us to determine the point at which we can end our lives when faced with a terminal illness. It is surely the ultimate expression of individual choice.

We can no longer sustain a system where the age of consent for sexual relations discriminates between males and females based on sexual preference. If the state has no place in the bedroom; then it has no place in discriminating against homosexual males on the basis of age.

As a society we must address drug usage and drug law reform with an open mind. We gain nothing from criminalising addiction instead of treating it. We must be brave enough to experiment with solutions to drug addiction that recognise the failure of criminal law to stem the tide of drugs. Drugs are an evil in our society, but it does not follow that those who are addicted to them are evil too. We must accept Menzies’ challenge as Liberals to be "willing to make experiments" in addressing this issue.

And we must fully embrace the benefits of a multicultural society. Australia's immigration story is the most successful in the world. Our tolerance and acceptance of different cultures and people is a major factor in our tolerant and peaceful society. We should spend more time celebrating cultural harmony than fuelling minor divisions.

The Liberal challenge is to be relevant to the new generation of voters, who have grown up in a modern, tolerant, progressive Australia, and who expect an economically progressive government that respects the consumer's right to choose in an open and competitive market.

But they also expect a progressive society that respects the individual's right to choose how they live their life in a free and tolerant community.

We must ensure that all our actions in government and our policies in opposition are consistently liberal, not a hybrid of economic liberalism and social conservatism. This uneasy combination dilutes the Australian Liberal tradition and confuses our message.

The community will reject a conservative social policy, just as it rejected a conservative economic policy. Change is demanded now, and we must deliver it.