Although the Australian Defence Association (ADA) is intrigued by the appointment of Kevin Andrews as the new Defence Minister, the politics of national security and the military were far from the minds of Australia's advocacy organisations. Since former Immigration Minister Scott Morrison was given the Social Services portfolio, corresponding bodies like People with Disability Australia (PWD) and the Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) have speedily engaged with the media to publicise issues that they believe Mr Morrison needs to urgently address.
During Sunday's press conference, Prime Minister Tony Abbott voiced words of commendation for Mr Morrison, who he described as "splendid" and a "master" of difficult policies. Mr Abbott explained that the Minister called the "most powerful man" in Parliament by the Guardian, after his major changes to asylum seeker policy this year, is ideal for his role because there is "no finer advocate", and:
"The ministry for social services is essentially a ministry for economic participation and it is very important to have a minister of Scott's drive and competence in this role"
The first priority of the Coalition leader's "star performer" is the development of an "holistic families package" that will be introduced in the first half of 2015. Mr Abbott then emphasised twice the foundation of his government's agenda in the phrase, "getting a fair go, and trying to get people to give a fair go". According to the Prime Minister, this integral sentiment will form the core of the "fair dinkum" paid parental leave policy and childcare enhancements that are due to be contained in Mr Morrison's holistic package.
President of PWD, Craig Wallace, was articulate in his conveyance to the media of the central issues for disabled people in Australia, which followed a congratulatory expression toward Mr Morrison. Mr Wallace reminded reporters that 800,000 disability support pension (DSP) recipients is excessive and that Australia is one of the lowest OECD nations in terms of the number of disabled people in employment. Mr Wallace called upon Mr Morrison to formulate a "nuanced" approach that employs "all of the levers", whereby "not just sticks, but carrots" are part of the government's policies. Mr Wallace also criticised Mr Morrison's predecessor for a lack of consultation, and he urged the new Social Services Minister to make up for this aspect of the past.
Meanwhile, ACOSS stated that the government needs to listen now to the community opposition that arose after the implementation of its "harshest measures" so that it can create "fair and sustainable" welfare policies. The organisation cited the removal of social security payments for young Australians during the first six months of their unemployment as one of the particularly harsh policy changes.
The nation will need to wait until the new year to see whether Mr Abbott's "refresh and reset" initiative yields beneficial results for vulnerable and marginalised communities. Given the public farewell to late and influential disability advocate Stella Young in Melbourne on Friday, the government is well placed to deliver meaningful reforms that are based on direct consultation with those people directly affected.