Labor will increase Australia’s foreign aid spending every year if it wins the next federal election and is set to pursue official recognition of Palestine.
Foreign policy votes held on the final day of Labor’s national conference in Adelaide on Tuesday will see a Shorten government work to more than double spending on overseas development assistance from its lowest levels in recent Australian history.
A series of backroom negotiations resulted in potentially contentious issues being resolved by party powerbrokers privately, part of efforts to finish the three-day meeting without a major fight on amendments to Labor’s platform.
Labor’s factions agreed to plans to introduce increases to bring the foreign aid budget up to 0.5 per cent of gross national income, from the current level of 0.22 per cent.
During the Rudd and Gillard governments, aid spending reached about 0.35 per cent of gross national income, before billions in cuts under the Coalition.
Foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong slammed the Abbott and Turnbull government record on aid and said Prime Minister Scott Morrison had put domestic political concerns before the national interest by floating consideration of moving Australia’s embassy in Israel to West Jerusalem.
“He made a decision to junk long-standing bipartisan foreign policy in a cynical attempt to win votes,” Senator Wong said.
“It was a desperate political tactic.
“It was a decision made against the long-standing advice of agencies, without cabinet consideration, and without properly consulting Australia’s partners and allies.
Read the article by Tom McElroy in the Australian Financial Review.