William Bartlett, Nation Review, September 22-28, 1977, p. 9.

John Singleton, the first chairman of the Workers Party, has resigned from the board of governing directors of the party. He is now actively involved in the promotion of the latest addition to Australian right-wing politics, the Progress Party.

The new party, which has similar aims to the Workers Party, was formed after the Workers Party refused to change its name to the less “socialistic connotated” Progress Party.

The national president of the Workers Party, Dr John Whiting, has issued a statement in which he repudiates claims that the Progress Party is the new name of the Workers Party. Whiting insists that the Workers Party continues despite the loss of most of its members, and that the Progress Party is a separate, autonomous group.

Whiting explained how the revolt occurred:

In January 1977 the executive members of the Workers Party in Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia decided to form three new autonomous parties. Queensland adopted the name “Progress Party” and dropped the constitution and platform of the Workers Party.

The Northern Territory adopted the name “Progress Party”, dropped the constitution and announced its intention of writing a new platform based on the Workers Party platform. Western Australia also adopted the name “Progress Party”, dropped the constitution but retained the Workers Party platform.

In March 1977 the policy-making body of the Workers Party in NSW also decided to form an autonomous “Progress Party of NSW”. It dropped the constitution of the Workers Party and announced its intention of “rewriting the platform”.

South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania remain the Workers Party with the same constitution and platform.

Mr Singleton, who was one (Whiting’s emphasis) of the founders of the Workers Party, has resigned from the board of the party, as have Dr Duncan Yuille and Mr Robert Howard who were also amongst the founders of the Workers Party.

The Progress Party’s first electoral test was in the recent Northern Territory elections. Singleton spent a week in the territory door-knocking with local Progress Party candidates and was pleased with the 10 percent of the vote that the party won.

The party’s campaign centred on the Fraser government.

According to Singleton, Fraser is a “bloody let-down”:

No one has ever been elected by such a massive majority to abolish the welfare state and give back incentive to make people work. He has done none of it. He made only one promise during his election campaign, to abolish the prices justification tribunal, and he hasn’t done it.

Even if you’re unemployed you can live like a king on the dole. We’d abolish the dole, and encourage people to work by reducing taxation. The government should only do three things — look after defence, the police and the law courts.

Whiting believes the Progress rebels have committed to mortal sin of Workers Party philosophy. They have compromised ideals (by changing the party name) simply to try to win more votes.

Singleton, however, disagrees:

Primarily it doesn’t matter what you call a political party, unless the name actively militates against the party, as the name the “Workers Party” did — because, despite what Dr Whiting might believe, voters en masse do not think about such philosophical subtleties.

With the loss of Singleton and his cohorts, the Workers Party faces a publicity crisis which threatens its existence.

Only in Victoria, where rebel tram conductor Paul Krutulis has replaced Max Newton as the party’s leading spokesman, does the future hold any hope.

Krutulis has been able to manoeuvre public opinion his way in his fight to avoid compulsory union membership. Coincidentally with the union confrontation, Krutulis was elected as the party’s Senate candidate in Victoria.

As well, Ms Jennifer McCallum has abdicated the presidency of the People Against Communism movement to Krutulis, saying that he was “the best person possible” to succeed her as Australia’s no. 1 anti-communist.

(Ms McCallum has retired to her Mt Eliza home to write a “no holds barred book on communism in Australia that’s going to knock a number of business people right off their seats”.)

Whiting has, however, left his options open. He says that he will be “working towards a new national organisation in Australia to embrace all those political parties and organisation that subscribe to the concept of limited government — a government that stands for true free enterprise and respect for individual liberty and peoples rights”.

If a new all-embracing party is formed, it is likely to be called the Libertarian Party, after the American party on whose platform that of the Workers Party is based.