Why the Global Goals Require Multi-Partisan Support

Image credit: Ricardo Williams

You’re probably thinking, “Multi-partisan isn’t a term often used in politics.”

And no, it’s not.

But bear with me while I explain.

It is common to talk about the need for bipartisan support on certain issues. While it’s true that if you have the support of both the Coalition and Labor, you can get policy passed in Parliament, it’s important to remember that there are other Parties who represent the views of the Australian voting population also.

Take Nick Xenophon and his team for example. In the last Parliament, Xenophon only had one Senator in Parliament – himself. There are now three Senators and one MP from the Xenophon Team. This is just one example of a swing towards a particular party.

Inherent in the 2030 Agenda is the promise to Leave No One Behind. This includes the views of particular political parties and their supporters, the voters who got them there.

So how do we achieve support from so many different people? How do we achieve support from everyone from the far-right to the far-left?

Leadership from the Prime Minister and his Coalition government is key. It was a Coalition-majority government who committed to the goals in September 2015, and a Coalition-majority government who now needs to show leadership towards the achievement of these goals. The good news is that the Coalition has has already made commitments to some of the targets of the goals, although not explicitly stated to be in accordance with the 2030 Agenda. You can see these in the 2016/2017 Budget and in the Prime Minister’s post-election address in July this year. Thanks to the campaigning efforts of the Global Goals Australia team, we were also able to secure a written commitment from Tony Nutt on behalf of the Coalition leading into the federal election this year.

The next key step is to secure the support of the Labor Party. Leading up to the election, we received a commitment to the achievement of the goals from Mark Butler on behalf of the Labor Party.

The next step is to get the two major parties to understand the importance of using this existing plan of the Global Goals to start mapping Australia’s future over the next 15 years and to start referencing policies in terms of these goals and their 169 targets.

Once we are working with Ministers, Shadow Ministers and portfolio holders on framing communication in terms of the goals and implementing policies and plans towards the achievement of the goals, we will be able to secure the support of many of the other parties and the independents. Of course, in the meantime, we welcome the support of all politicians.

This article was originally published on the Global Goals Australia Campaign website.

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