Im sorry Jamie Clemens but its time you opened to the NSW Labor party branch up to more rank and file engagement. The unions might find a little bit more interest if they themselves continued their efforts to take democratisation seriously too. Far from diminishing the union voice in the party, rank and file balloting through pre-selections would take the role away from union leaders and hand it to those who really need the power....rank and file union members themselves AS party members. THEY are the ones who elect union leaders. The clean out of the party is needed. For electoral relevance...reform is necessary...period. NSW Labor Party secretary Jamie Clements has rejected a plea to allow the partys members to elect senators and Upper House members, but says he is open to other sorts of reforms including changing the way Senate vacancies are filled. Labor elder John Faulkner has written to party members in NSW urging them to agree to new rules which he says would stamp out corruption. It comes in the wake of disgraced Labor figure Eddie Obeids seventh appearance before the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) in Sydney today. He and his former Labor ministerial colleague Ian Macdonald have been expelled from the party along with Craig Thomson and Michael Williamson who have been sentenced to jail for defrauding the Health Services Union. Senator Faulkner wants a new rule obliging parliamentary representatives to act with integrity. He wants the selection of Upper House and Senate candidates taken away from trade unionists and conference delegates and handed over to party members. Mr Clements says he is open to the first idea but not the second. The matter in relation to integrity, Im going to have a very good look at and I think thats something we would all want to support, Mr Clements told the ABCs Capital Hill program In relation ... to the direct election of senators and Upper House members, I do take a different view to John Faulkner but I welcome the debate. NSW Labor has a very long history of electing very good senators ... including John Faulkner himself and Deb ONeill, Ursula Stephens, Sam Dastyari, Doug Cameron - all of these people are very good senators who have been elected under a system that is very old [and] part of our tradition. People are elected by our annual conference and I think that is something that I support retaining. But he says he is open to the idea of changing the way NSW Labor fills casual Senate vacancies. abc.net.au/news/2014-04-09/alp-secretary-rejects-faulkner-calls-for-reform/5378326
Posted on: Wed, 09 Apr 2014 06:18:22 +0000
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