Exclusive: Labor’s deputy leader to accuse Malcolm Turnbull of going soft on right-wing populists in speech to Young Labor conference in Canberra

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Labor will never “go weak” on trading preferences with One Nation, Tanya Plibersek is set to tell party activists on Saturday.

In a speech at the Australian Young Labor conference in Canberra, Plibersek will accuse Malcolm Turnbull of going soft on right-wing populists and call for a progressive Labor agenda.

In the speech, seen by Guardian Australia, Plibersek traces three trends in politics: the decline in fortunes of social democratic parties; an increase in economic uncertainty and inequality; and an “increasing fluidity” in the Australian electorate.

Plibersek warns that Labor’s sister parties around the world, including Pasok in Greece, the Spanish Socialist Workers party and the UK Labour party have been “brought to their knees” and are “facing their own mortality”.

In the UK, she says, Labour has been “wiped out” in Scotland and suffered a “hostile takeover” by its leftwing leader, Jeremy Corbyn.

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“In the US, of course, we’ve seen a Democrat government that rebuilt the US after the GFC, and introduced life-changing health reforms, defeated by a candidate who no credible commentator initially thought could even win the Republican primary.”

Plibersek says Australia fared better than most after the global financial crisis, but after four years of the Abbott and Turnbull governments wages growth is at a historic low, inequality is at a 75-year high, there are 35,000 fewer full-time jobs, the triple-A credit rating is at risk and the deficit has tripled.

Plibersek says Australian voters are losing their traditional political allegiances and that, according to the Whitlam Institute, the modern electorate is “not so much swinging as fluid”.

Despite the need to be “alive to the risk of right-wing populism we should not overstate its appeal” nor “cosy up” to it.

Plibersek cites the fact that 95% of Australians did not vote for One Nation, and its support is lower than for the UK to leave the European Union or for Trump.

Hanson’s appeal should not be conflated with those electoral events of 2016 “as it affords her a legitimacy that she does not deserve”, Plibersek’s speech says. “We will not win support by going quiet on the things we disagree with. We must resolutely confront the racism, sexism and religious intolerance of the right.”

Plibersek notes the upcoming state elections in Western Australia in March, and in Queensland, due in 2018, and Labor’s need to fight both One Nation and the Coalition.

“Malcolm Turnbull has gone weak on One Nation preferences. We never will,” she says.

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On Wednesday, at the National Press Club, Malcolm Turnbull refused to weigh in on the question of whether the Western Australian Liberals would preference One Nation in the 11 March state election.

Turnbull said the Liberals worked with all parties in the parliament, including One Nation, and he respected every member and senator. “I am not a commentator on the political evolution of One Nation.”

The deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, has warned the WA Liberals against preferencing One Nation, citing the fact it would start a political fight with the Nationals, the junior Coalition partner.

Plibersek says Labor should meet the challenge “from the Left by embracing a sensible progressive agenda”.

She notes that the global narrative would be “very different” if Bernie Sanders were in the oval office after his good performance in the Democratic primaries.

Plibersek labels the Greens a “rabble” that cannot form government, but threatens to “fracture the progressive vote and prevent Labor forming government”.

Plibersek calls for Labor to appeal to people frustrated by politics through greater grassroots organising.

“We have to reach out to those people and learn from their ability to mobilise – just look at the recent women’s marches that shook the globe on Donald Trump’s inauguration.”



She says Labor’s task is to convince disaffected voters that “their place is in the Labor party where they can drive real change, rather than just shout into the void”.