What is the difference between the Australian Progressives and the Greens?
- There are more colours in the world than green.
- The Greens are an organisation that only represents a segment of society.
- The party isn’t appealing to a broad number of people beyond committed environmentalists.
- They have a very low voter loyalty base. Only 5% of the people that vote Greens are committed Greens votes. The other 95% are uncommitted and use the party for protest voting.
- The organisational journey from being a single-issue environmental protest group to a party of government is an impossible one.
- They are not the broad open modern party that we need today that fits within Australian systems of government.
Why not Labor?
- There are more progressive people outside the Labor tent than in it!
- The group represented by the Labor Party is becoming an increasingly small part of the society.
- The Labor Party was formed largely by trade union members, however unionised people only make up 14% of the workforce.
- It has antiquated organisational structures and hidden power bases.
- It has strong links to the fossil fuel industry.
Why not the Liberals?
- Traditionally the Liberal Party has had many progressive people in it, but this is no longer the case. The Liberals of the 2020s have been taken over by the conservative forces of the party.
- It has positioned itself firmly as the conservative force in Australian politics.
- It also has antiquated party structures that no longer work in the 2020s.
The Issue With Independents
- Independents have been a welcome change in Australian politics but can’t provide an option for forming executive government or for long term dependability.
- Functional, large, political parties are a fundamental part of the Westminster system of government.
- An increasing number of independents means that groups like the Labor Party are the only option for executive government. This would still be the case in a balance of power with a minority Labor government.