Pauline Hanson and rightwing populists are cynically exploiting the frustrations of Australians who feel forgotten by government or left behind by poor education and job opportunities, Labor frontbencher Andrew Giles says.
Accusing One Nation and the Coalition of adopting cynical and reactionary tactics to win over frustrated and fearful voters, Giles says better education is critical to stopping disenfranchisement with government and a weakening of democracy in Australia.
The influential left faction MP and member of Labor’s national executive will use a speech at the McKell Institute thinktank on Wednesday to call better foundational literacy and digital skills for workers an “economic necessity” for Australia.
“It is also a moral and a democratic imperative that we ensure that everyone can make sense of a changing world and be enabled to make informed choices,” Giles will say, according to an advance copy of the speech.
Warning many voters were necessarily focused on immediate cost-of-living pressures, Giles says too many might struggle to see the path ahead for their own prosperity, especially as AI changes workplaces and upends traditional career trajectories.
“Skills and training is an equaliser as well as an enabler, equipping Australians, both young and old, to navigate a changing world on their terms, while giving us, collectively, the best shot at achieving our potential,” he says.
“One Nation and those in the Liberals and Nationals cosying up to them seek to exploit real sentiments of frustration in people who are, or sense they could be, being left behind.
“Without offering anything by way of vision, much less policies for the future.”
The comments come as One Nation surges in opinion polls before electoral tests including Saturday’s South Australian state election and the 9 May Farrer byelection.
Last month’s Guardian Essential poll found nearly 60% of Australians would be open to voting for One Nation at the next federal election, including nearly half of those currently backing Labor.
One Nation was polled at 22% of the primary vote, just behind the Coalition on 26%. Labor’s primary was 30%.
The opposition leader, Angus Taylor, and the new Nationals leader, Matt Canavan, have both moved to put economic prosperity high on the agenda for Coalition policy ahead of the next federal election.
Giles argues One Nation and the conservative campaign group Advance are seeking to exploit real sentiments of frustrations, while the Coalition is adopting tactics from populist and far-right parties in the US, UK and Europe.
He accuses Liberal frontbenchers, including Andrew Hastie and Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, of adopting the “divisive rhetoric of imported culture wars”.
Giles will use the speech to say he is determined to put in place policies to support Australians dealing with the disruption caused by rapidly advancing technology, including AI.
Employers who bring workers along on the changes will reap the greatest rewards, he argues.
“Because workers need confidence that they are not just training their own replacement but are contributing to the business’ ongoing success,” he says.
As the Albanese government’s skills and training minister, Giles has carriage of Labor’s free Tafe policy. It has seen more than 742,000 new enrolments and almost a quarter of a million course completions so far.
Research by the Scanlon Foundation released last year found just 37% of respondents believed the federal government could be trusted to do the right thing by the Australian people all or most of the time.
But its annual report on social cohesion found people who perceive strong connections in their local areas and actively participate are more likely to be happy, to have a greater sense of belonging, and to believe that most other people can be trusted.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: theguardian.com
