Dear Potential National Secretary,
You are proposing taking on this role at an interesting time for our party, a time when we are widely perceived as having ‘lost our way’, both federally, and in several states.
In Sydney last Saturday, a rank and file meeting of around 300 people voted for four specific reforms:
- Implementation of the public recommendations of the Faulkner, Bracks and Carr Review, without any watering down of its key recommendations
- Direct elections by the rank and file of a range of Senior Party Officials, including General Secretary
- That Delegates to Conference from unions are to be chosen by union members
- That as an anti branch stacking reform members must pay their own membership fees.
The full text of the motions is below, and is available at
https://ouralp.net/2011/03/26/the-core-motions/
Can the rank and file count on your active support for these specific reforms, and for Party reform in general?
As potential National Secretary, what is your vision for the future of the ALP, and how do you expect that future to be realised?
Regards,
Neil Reilly, Kiama Branch
Samantha Bell, Bomaderry-Nowra Branch
Richard Bournes, Springwood Branch
Harry Johnston
Trevor Davies, Darlington Branch
Barry Nielsen, Kings Cross Branch
Phil Drew, Leichhardt Branch
Geoff Collins, Narooma Branch
Eric Snowball, Glebe Branch
Virginia Nightingale
Sacha Blumen, Kings Cross Branch
Amy Haddad, Black Mountain Branch
Trang Nguyen, Glebe Branch
Rory O’Connell, Ashfield Branch
Donald Townsend, Keilor Downs Branch
John McCutcheon, Kiama Branch
Eric Dearricott, Kyneton Branch
Ben Aveling, Alexandria Branch
1. Endorse the 2010 Review and demand it be implemented in full
We endorse the findings of the 2010 National Review and demand that its Recommendations be implemented in full.
2. Direct elections for Admin, General Secretaries, Presidents
The structure of State Conference shall be changed so that the following positions are filled by postal ballot of the rank and file membership of the party and the rank and file membership of all affiliated unions, with each constituency having a 50% weighting in the final outcome:
- President, Senior President and Junior Vice Presidents
- General Secretary and Assistant Secretaries
- All elected members on the Administrative Committee
3. Union delegates to Conference to be chosen by direct election by union members
That representation at State Conference by each affiliated union shall be conditional on the union selecting its delegates to Conference by direct election by the members of the union.
4. Anti branch stacking
That all members must pay their own membership fees direct to head office. The only exception is for immediate family members under the age of eighteen. Members paying a concessional rate must provide a photocopy of their concession card with payment.
Our ALP 
Well it is about time the PM stood back and took a deep breath and made a pragmatic decision, that, in the current climate change we are enduring showed vision understanding and authority.
George Wright should be a great asset once again to the ALP and the people of Australia for his ability to address and go to the heart of the issues and come up with strategies, and more importantly decisions leading to results that are in the best interest of the citizenry and the ALP.
The work he did with Combet on work choices was not as publicly acknowledged as it should have been and I for one am very happy with this appointment.
It should also be a warning to those who have been in the business of destabilising for the sake of personal and factional power and influence to pull their heads in.
I hope George will be a strong advocate for change systemically and structurally so that the ALP and its members can clearly define what it is to be a Labor Party again and implement policy that is reflective of those ideals.
Would be good if he could address your next forum and has the authority to coordinate the upcoming conferences in line with the review agenda and the calls from the rank and file.
Good Choice Julia and well done George for coming on board.
Kevin Boyd
Secretary Bellinger River
Just listened to philip adams podcast of the rebuild the party show. didanyone notice when Andrew Leigh spoke up admitting he had been a political advisor no one else said anything? Also when they talked of Labor families?
Caviler was a staffer and union official before entering parliament. Diedre is of course the sister of fellow MP Laurie brereton.
But worst of all is the hypocrisy of the sainted Faulkner after barely two years in the outside workforce he started work for a NSW minister before transferring to the NSW ALP office to further his run for the Senate. Let’s complete the trifecta by pointing out that nepotisticaly he helped his then wife into a safe NSW state seat. (the very seat that verity firth lost to the greens) who is this bloke to give us advice on anything?