Editing History of Australia (section)

== Reform and reaction: 1972–1996 ==

===The Whitlam government: 1972–75===
[[File:E1276-8_PM_Australia_Whitlam_tone.jpg|thumb|[[Gough Whitlam]] and US President [[Richard Nixon]] in 1973. The [[Whitlam government]] was responsible for significant reforms, but went on to be [[1975 Australian constitutional crisis|dismissed]] in controversial circumstances.]]

Elected in December 1972 after 23 years in opposition, [[Australian Labor Party|Labor]] won office under [[Gough Whitlam]], introducing significant reforms and expanding the federal budget. Welfare benefits were extended and payment rates increased, a national health insurance scheme was introduced, and divorce laws liberalised. Commonwealth expenditure on schools trebled in the two years to mid-1975 and the Commonwealth assumed responsibility for funding higher education, abolishing tuition fees. In foreign affairs, the new government prioritised the Asia Pacific region, formally abolishing the White Australia Policy, recognising Communist China and enhancing ties with Indonesia. Conscription was abolished and the remaining Australian troops in Vietnam withdrawn. The Australian national anthem was changed from God Save the Queen to Advance Australia Fair, the imperial honours system was replaced at the Commonwealth level by the Order of Australia, and Queen Elizabeth II was officially styled Queen of Australia. Relations with the US, however, became strained after government members criticised the resumption of the US bombing campaign in North Vietnam.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Strangio|first=Paul|title=The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2, The Commonwealth of Australia|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2013|isbn=978-1-107-01154-0|editor-last=Bashford|editor-first=Alison|location=Melbourne|pages=145–7|chapter=Instability, 1966-82|editor-last2=MacIntyre|editor-first2=Stuart}}</ref>

In Indigenous affairs, the government introduced a policy of self-determination for Aboriginal people in economic, social and political affairs.  Federal expenditure on Aboriginal services increased from $23 million to $141 million during the three years of the government.<ref name="Haebich">Haebich, Anna; Kinnane, Steve. "Indigenous Australians". ''The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2''. p. 349</ref> One of the first acts of the [[Whitlam government]] was to establish a [[Aboriginal Land Rights Commission|Royal Commission into land rights]] in the Northern Territory under Justice Woodward. Legislation based on its findings was passed into law by the [[Fraser government]] in 1976, as the [[Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976]].<ref name="Haebich"/>

As the Whitlam government did not control the Senate, much of its legislation was rejected or amended. After Labor was re-elected with a reduced majority at [[1974 Australian federal election|elections in May 1974]], the Senate remained an obstacle to its political agenda. The government's popularity was also harmed by deteriorating economic conditions and a series of political scandals. Increased government spending, rapid wage growth, booming commodity prices and the first OPEC oil shock led to economic instability. The unemployment rate reached post-war high of 3.6 per cent in late 1974 and the annual inflation rate hit 17 per cent.<ref>Strangio (2013) pp 148–9</ref>

In 1974–75 the government began negotiations for US$4&nbsp;billion in foreign loans to fund state development of Australia's mineral and energy resources. Minister [[Rex Connor]] conducted secret discussions with a [[Loans Affair|loan broker from Pakistan]], and Treasurer [[Jim Cairns]] misled parliament about the issue. Arguing the government was incompetent following the [[Loans Affair]], the opposition [[Coalition (Australia)|Liberal-Country Party Coalition]] delayed passage of the government's money bills in the Senate, until the government would promise a new election. Whitlam refused and the deadlock ended when his government was controversially [[1975 Australian constitutional crisis|dismissed by the Governor-General]], [[John Kerr (Governor-General)|John Kerr]] on 11 November 1975. Opposition leader Malcolm Fraser was installed as caretaker prime minister, pending an election.<ref>Strangio (2013) pp 149–51</ref>

=== Fraser government: 1975–83 ===
[[File:John Fraser Prime Minister of Australia and Jimmy Carter during a state visit arrival ceremony. - NARA - 175240.tif|thumb|150px|left|[[Malcolm Fraser]] and US President [[Jimmy Carter]] in 1977.]]

The [[1975 Australian federal election|Federal elections of December 1975]] resulted in a landslide victory for the Liberal-Country Party coalition and Malcolm Fraser continued as prime minister. The coalition government won subsequent elections in 1977 and 1980, making Fraser the second longest serving Australian prime minister up to that time.<ref name="Primeministers-2011">{{cite web|title=Primeministers.naa.gov.au|url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/fraser/in-office.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110315143901/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/fraser/in-office.aspx|archive-date=15 March 2011|access-date=14 July 2011|publisher=Primeministers.naa.gov.au}}</ref> The Fraser government espoused a policy of administrative competence and economic austerity leavened by progressive humanitarian, social and environmental interventions. The government enacted the Whitlam government's land rights bill with few changes, increased immigration, and resettled Indochinese refugees. It promoted multiculturalism and in 1978 established the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) as a multicultural broadcaster. In foreign policy, the government continued Labor's friendly relations with China and Indonesia, repaired the frayed relationship with the US and opposed white minority rule in South Africa and Rhodesia. Environmental policies included banning resource development on Fraser Island and the Great Barrier Reef, creating Kakadu National Park and banning whaling. However, the government refused to use Commonwealth powers to stop the construction of the [[Franklin Dam]] in Tasmania in 1982 and the resulting grassroots campaign against the dam contributed to the emergence of an influential [[environmental movement in Australia]].<ref>Strangio (2013) pp 156–9</ref><ref name="Primeministers-2011" />

On the economic front, the Fraser government followed a "fight inflation first" strategy centred on budget cuts and wage restraint. Welfare benefits were restricted, the universal healthcare system was partially dismantled, and university funding per student cut. However, by the early 1980s economic conditions were deteriorating. The second oil shock in 1979 increased inflation which was exacerbated by a boom in commodity prices and a sharp increase in real wages. An international recession, the collapse of the resources boom and a severe drought in eastern Australia saw unemployment rise. The government responded with Keynesian deficit spending in its 1982 Budget, but by 1983 both unemployment and annual inflation exceeded 10 per cent. At the [[1983 Australian federal election|Federal elections in March 1983]] the coalition government was comfortably defeated by Labor under its popular new leader [[Bob Hawke]].<ref>Strangio (2013) pp 159–60</ref>

===Labor governments: 1983–1996===
[[File:(14) 1987 Bob Hawke, Moscow, meeting with Gorbachev (cropped).jpg|thumb|[[Bob Hawke]] with [[List of leaders of the Soviet Union|Soviet leader]] [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] in 1987. Hawke went on to become the longest-serving Labor Prime Minister.]]

The [[Hawke government]] pursued a mixture of free market reforms and consensus politics featuring "summits" of government representatives, business leaders, trade unions and non-government organisations in order to reach consensus on key issues such as economic policy and tax reform. The centrepiece of this policy mix was an Accord with trade unions under which wage demands would be curtailed in return for increased social benefits. Welfare payments were increased and better targeted to those on low incomes, and a retirement benefits scheme (superannuation) was extended to most employees. A new universal health insurance scheme, Medicare, was introduced.<ref name="NAA-2011">{{Cite web|title=Australia's Prime Ministers, Hawke in Office|url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/hawke/in-office.aspx|url-status=dead|access-date=11 April 2021|website=National Archives of Australia|archive-date=14 November 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111114204343/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/hawke/in-office.aspx}}</ref> The Treasurer Paul Keating oversaw a program of deregulation and micro-economic reforms which broke with the [[Keynesian economics]] that had traditionally been favoured by the Labor party.<ref>Tim Battin, "A Break from the Past: The Labor Party and the Political Economy of Keynesian Social Democracy", ''Australian Journal of Political Science'', July 1993, Vol. 28 Issue 2, pp. 221–41</ref> These reforms included floating the Australian dollar, deregulating capital markets and allowing competition from foreign banks. Business regulation and competition policy was streamlined, tariffs and quotas on imports were reduced, and a number of government enterprises were privatised. The higher education system was restructured and significantly expanded, partly funded by the reintroduction of fees in the form of student loans and "contributions" [[Tertiary education fees in Australia|(HECS)]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Walter|first=James|title=The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2, The Commonwealth of Australia|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2013|isbn=9781107011540|editor-last=Bashford|editor-first=Alison|location=Melbourne|pages=166, 179|chapter=Growth resumed, 1983-2000|editor-last2=MacIntyre|editor-first2=Stuart}}</ref> Paul Kelly concludes that, "In the 1980s both Labor and non-Labor underwent internal philosophical revolutions to support a new set of ideas—faith in markets, deregulation, a reduced role for government, low protection and the creation of a new cooperative enterprise culture."<ref>Paul Kelly, ''The end of certainty: The story of the 1980s'' (1992) p. 660</ref>

The government's environmental interventions included stopping the Franklin Dam in Tasmania, banning new uranium mines at Jabiluka, and proposing Kakadu National park for world heritage listing.<ref name="NAA-2011" /> In foreign policy, the government maintained strong relations with the US and was instrumental in the formation of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group. Australia contributed naval ships and troops to UN forces in the Gulf War after Iraq had invaded Kuwait in 1990.<ref name="NAA-2011" /><ref>David Lowe (2013) "Security". In Bashford and Macintyre (eds) The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2, pp 511–12</ref>

[[File:Opening parliament house 1988.jpg|thumb|left|Opening of [[Parliament House, Canberra|the new Parliament House]] during the [[Australian Bicentenary]], May 1988.]]

The government took other initiatives aimed at fostering national unity. The [[Australia Act 1986]] eliminated the last vestiges of British legal authority at the federal level. The [[Australian Bicentenary]] in 1988 was the focus of year-long celebrations with multicultural themes. The World Expo 88 was held in Brisbane and a new [[Parliament House, Canberra|Parliament House]] in Canberra was opened.<ref>Bashford and MacIntyre (eds) The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2, pp 178–9, 532</ref>

Strong economic growth, falling unemployment, an unstable opposition, and Bob Hawke's popularity with the public contributed to the re-election of the Hawke government in 1984, 1987 and 1990. However, the economy went into [[Early 1990s recession in Australia|recession in 1990]] and by late 1991 the unemployment rate had risen above 10 per cent. With the government's popularity falling, [[Paul Keating]] successfully challenged for the leadership and became prime minister in December 1991.<ref name="NAA-2011" />

The Keating government's first priority was economic recovery. In February 1992 it released the "One Nation" job creation package and later legislated tax cuts to corporations and individuals to boost economic growth. Unemployment reached 11.4 per cent in 1992—the highest since the [[Great Depression in Australia]]. The [[Coalition (Australia)|Liberal-National opposition]] had proposed an [[Fightback! (policy)|ambitious plan of economic reform]] to take to the [[1993 Australian federal election|1993 Election]], including the introduction of a [[Goods and Services Tax (Australia)|Goods and Services Tax]]. Keating campaigned strongly against the tax and was returned to office in March 1993.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Australia's Prime Ministers, Keating in Office|url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/keating/in-office.aspx|url-status=live|access-date=11 April 2021|website=National Archives of Australia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110315152244/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/keating/in-office.aspx|archive-date=15 March 2011}}</ref>

[[File:Paul Keating delivering the Redfern Speech at Redfern Park, 1992.tif|thumb|right|[[Paul Keating]] delivering the [[Redfern Park Speech]] on 10 December 1992]]

In May 1994 a more ambitious "Working Nation" jobs program was introduced. The Keating government also pursued a number of "big picture" issues throughout its two terms including increased political and economic engagement in the Asia Pacific region, [[Reconciliation in Australia|Indigenous reconciliation]], and an [[Australian republic]]. The government engaged closely with the Indonesian President, [[Suharto]] and other regional partners, and successfully campaigned to increase the role of [[APEC]] as a major forum for strategic and economic co-operation.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Day|first=David|title=Australian Prime Ministers|publisher=New Holland|year=2016|isbn=9781742579337|editor-last=Grattan|editor-first=Michelle|location=Sydney|pages=424|chapter=Paul John Keating}}</ref> A Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation was established and, following the High Court of Australia's historic [[Mabo decision]] in 1992, the first national [[Native Title Act 1993|Native Title legislation]] was introduced to regulate claims and provide compensation for loss of native title.<ref>Bashford and MacIntyre (eds). The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2. pp. 182, 353–4</ref> In 1993, Keating established a [[Republic Advisory Committee]] to examine options for Australia becoming a republic. The government also introduced family payments and a superannuation guarantee with compulsory employer contributions.<ref>Walter, James (2013). "Growth resumed, 1983–2000". In Bashford and MacIntyre (eds.). The Cambridge History of Australia, Volume 2.  pp. 167–8, 179.</ref>

Under the Hawke government the annual migration intake had more than doubled from 54,500 in 1984–85 to more than 120,000 in 1989–90. The Keating government responded to community concerns about the pace of immigration by cutting the immigration intake and introducing mandatory detention for illegal immigrants arriving without a valid visa. Immigration fell to 67,900 in 1992–93.<ref>Walter (2013). pp. 177–78</ref><ref name="Spinks-2010"/>

With foreign debt, inflation and unemployment still stubbornly high, Keating lost the March [[1996 Australian federal election|1996 Election]] to the Liberals' [[John Howard]].<ref>Day, David (2016). "Paul John Keating". In Grattan, Michelle (ed.). ''Australian Prime Ministers''. Sydney: New Holland. pp 432–4. {{ISBN|9781742579337}}.</ref><ref name="http">{{cite web|title=Primeministers.naa.gov.au|url=http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/keating/in-office.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202031451/http://primeministers.naa.gov.au/primeministers/keating/in-office.aspx|archive-date=2 December 2010|access-date=14 July 2011|publisher=Primeministers.naa.gov.au}}</ref>