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Book Review
| Susan Ryan and Troy Bramston, The Hawke Government: a Critical Retrospective, Pluto Press, North Melbourne, 2003. pp. viii + 512. $39.95 paper.
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| This book provides a very useful retrospective on the Hawke years. It covers an exceptionally wide range of issues, from economic management and industrial relations to women's policy and foreign affairs. Its contributors include a useful combination of players (eg Hawke government ministers such as Neal Blewett and Brian Howe) and independent commentators (such as Craig McGregor and Mary Kalantzis). However, it is noticeable that many of the established academic commentators on the Hawke years are not included (see John Warhurst's and Jim Chalmers' useful overview of the literature in Appendix 1). The volume makes a convincing case for the importance of the Hawke governments' reforming contributions across the policy spectrum, including areas of industry, women's health, the environment and education. This is particularly important since memories of the reforming Hawke years are often eclipsed by the more recent Keating ones. |
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While no hagiography (if one can imagine such a thing of a larger-than-life character like Hawke), the book's subtitle is slightly misleading. The criticisms made are generally very sympathetic ones. The most critical perspective is probably that of David Day, whose left-wing assessment of the Hawke government's relationship to its Labor predecessors is mercilessly lampooned by Hawke in the Foreword. Day is spouting 'fanciful nonsense' and setting himself up 'as a guardian of Labor virginity' (p. v). The silver bodgie obviously retains his powers of invective! One is reminded of Hawke's devastating jeer at Labor Party members who dared to argue against privatisation: 'I hope we are not going to have a troika of Australia, Albania and Cuba'. Patrick Dodson, Martin Mowbray and Warren Snowden criticise the government more gently than Day but make the telling point, in their chapter on Indigenous Affairs, that Hawke's model of consensus sometimes restricted more substantial changes being made (p. 309). Julian Disney points out the tensions between economic policy directions and securing the social safety net (p. 227), although Brian Howe argues that social justice perspectives won out over economic policy more than some commentators acknowledge (p. 252). Admittedly, some of the criticisms may be muted because the Hawke government's record seems so progressive compared with that of the present Howard government (see eg Mary Kalantzis' chapter on 'Immigration, multiculturalism and racism'). Some of the commentators who were players are also disarmingly honest in their assessments of their own record, such as John Kerin's acknowledgement of mistakes in Primary Industry Policy (p. 277). |
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One might have wished for more detailed analyses of the various Accord agreements, real wage cuts and the adequacy of social wage compensations. After all, Howard still pitches to the 'battlers' by claiming that his governments have delivered higher wage increases than Labor. A more detailed critique of economic policy, eg by someone such as Frank Stilwell, Tim Battin or Hugh Stretton might also have been useful. The critiques of the Hawke Government in areas such as women's policy (eg by Marion Simms or Marian Sawer) are also rather summarily dismissed (not surprisingly since the chapter is written by Susan Ryan). There could also have been a more detailed assessment of the Hawke government's place in the history of international social democracy. Nonetheless, the volume does provide a very useful account of the Hawke years and a wealth of information. |
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The book also provides unexpected insights on other matters, for example, Amanda Buckley's and Graham Freudenberg's perceptive comments on the changing roles of print and other media during this period (pp. 36–8; 90–91). Despite its length, the book is generally a good read. There are great lines such as Gerard Henderson's: 'I knew John Howard before he became a hugger' (p. 40) or Freudenberg's account of Gough Whitlam's assessment of their respective writing styles: 'Comrade, I am too inspissated. You are too dithyrambic. We complement each other.' (p. 92). Michael Gordon reminds us of Hawke's comment when (optmistically) predicting that Malcolm Fraser would face defeat in the 1977 election: 'The rams are shitting themselves at Nareen this weekend ... because he might come back as their master' (p. 23). Even vintage Latham seems relatively tame by comparison. |
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In the end, Bob Hawke gave up the crudities and the drink for the Australian people and for the Prime Ministership. Hawke transformed himself electorally into a loveable former larrikin vowing to heal the divisiveness of the Fraser years. He became one of Australia's longest-serving Prime Ministers. Whether one agrees with his government's economic policies, or not, there is no doubt that Australian (and New Zealand) Labor parties were path-breaking internationally in their attempts to forge links between neo-liberalism and social democracy. Hawke's Prime Ministership deserves serious study and this book is a useful contribution to it. |
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| University of Adelaide |
CAROL JOHNSON | |
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