Asides

WILD WEST: Labor pains to be sorted out in WA

The West Australian reports that the WA branch of the ALP faces federal intervention after a disastrous showing in the last state election. Patriots Senator Feeney and former Queensland ALP secretary Cameron Milner have been sent in to figure out what to do.

Labor Feds set sights on outgunned WA branch

14th January 2009, 15:00 WST

The WA ALP’s poor showing in the last two Federal elections and its failure at the last State election when few people gave a dysfunctional and talent-deprived Liberal Party any hope of toppling the Carpenter government have paved the way for Labor’s Federal executive to take over the WA branch of the party.
Armed with former senator Robert Ray’s damning report on the State election debacle, the party’s National Executive is believed to be concerned that opportunities for the next Federal election due in about 18 months could be lost if the State branch is allowed to stay in place.
Kevin Rudd’s Labor holds a 16-seat majority in Federal Parliament but appears to be at a high-water mark in Queensland and NSW.
Holding only four of 15 Federal seats in Western Australia, Labor believes it might be able to counter losses on the east coast by picking up the vulnerable Liberal seats of Swan, Cowan, Stirling and even Canning in WA.
Labor would also hate to lose the marginal Perth Hills seat of Hasluck won back by Sharryn Jackson at the 2007 election.
But to do that the local branch has to improve on its woeful recent election record and there are those in the party who believe only intervention by the National Executive to install campaign experience will make a difference.
“I would imagine it (intervention) will happen. The track record is so bad and with the exception of (former State secretary) Bill Johnston there’s been no changes to the personnel, they just haven’t improved,” said one Labor insider yesterday.
“The National Executive is likely to have people with better campaigning experience. Local knowledge is significant and helpful but being able to campaign appropriately and properly is the first principle.”
A national Labor figure told Inside State that intervention was a “last resort” but had not been ruled out by the Federal executive.
Inside State understands the Federal party has appointed two former ALP State secretaries, Cameron Milner from Queensland and Victoria’s David Feeney, now a senator, to make recommendations on the WA branch on the back of the Ray report and an earlier inquiry into the WA branch by former general secretary and now Senator Mark Arbib.
Both those reports were commissioned by the WA Labor Party but, according to Robert Ray, the WA branch completely ignored the Arbib document.
“Arbib produced a 50-page report and finished with six recommendations. Very few in the WA branch appear to have read the report, much less acted upon any of its recommendations,” wrote Mr Ray in his report.
“Whilst the tenor of the recommendations is Federal, there are implications for the State campaign. The very last recommendation about going on to an early campaign footing was clearly ignored to the detriment of the branch.”
The senior national source said intervention had not been ruled out and Mr Milner and Senator Feeney could yet recommend so to the National Executive.
“I don’t know what the recommendation will be but the party won’t rule anything out at this early stage, though intervention is an extreme scenario, but that’s not to say it shouldn’t happen,” said the source.
If Federal Labor did take over in WA, the local party’s governing body, the State Executive, consisting of more than 200 party delegates, would be suspended as would the 14-strong State Administrative Committee.
Despite the appointment of Mr Milner and Senator Feeney, new WA State secretary Simon Mead told Inside State that he had not heard any speculation about a Federal takeover of the local party.
“I wouldn’t have thought it (intervention) was any possibility whatsoever. I’m working very closely with the new national secretary (Karl Bitar) and we’re working very well together,” said Mr Mead, who took over from Mr Johnston after the State election when Mr Johnston won the seat of Canning Vale.
Mr Ray was particularly critical of WA Labor’s factional system, which he said was not dissimilar to the party in other States, “just more intense”.
“Its modus operandi incorporates hatred, patronage and revenge. Factional instability owes much to the Balkanisation of the party with up to five separate factional sub-groupings operating and the resultant shifting alliances. It resembles the 30 Years War,” Mr Ray said.
But at least one factional boss has rejected the Ray findings. Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (Shoppies) boss Joe Bullock, who controls the party’s Right faction, said yesterday Mr Ray was plain wrong in his finding.
“The factions in Western Australia have a very pragmatic, working relationship in the interests of the party and the idea that factionalism is somehow detrimental to the success of the party in Western Australia is a misunderstanding of the factional position in this State,” Mr Bullock said.
“I’m not sure there will be an argument about that on the national level, I think there might be some questions asked and questions answered.”
Labor has appeared outgunned in the fundraising arena at the last two elections partly because it has always struggled to match the Liberals in WA and partly because John Howard was such a strong fundraiser, turning up regularly for $10,000-a-plate dinners with select businessmen.
Recent electoral returns show that the WA Liberal Party raised about $7 million in 2007-08 compared with just over $3 million for Labor.
One national Labor player said yesterday that a bit of extra money at the last State election could have clinched one more seat, probably Riverton, and returned the Carpenter government.
“If we’d had the extra dough, we would have still run a second-rate campaign but the sheer numbers would have put us through,” he said.
But when Inside State asked whether Kevin Rudd would be emulating Mr Howard and coming to WA on fundraising missions in the future, Mr Mead said those decisions were up to the Federal secretariat. Which might just be a pointer to things to come.

ROBERT TAYLOR INSIDE STATE

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