Prime Minister Tony Abbott has used his weekly video message to remember the 70th anniversary of the Liberal Party.
The Liberal Party was founded in 1944, following conferences in Canberra and Albury that were convened by Robert Menzies. Menzies was a former leader of the United Australia Party (UAP). He had been effectively deposed from the party’s leadership in 1941. The UAP collapsed in the aftermath of its landslide defeat in the 1943 election.
Menzies brought together a range of community groups and political organisations that were opposed to the ALP and the government of John Curtin. The party was defeated in the 1946 federal election but was victorious in 1949. Menzies went on to serve a record term of 16 years as prime minister, retiring undefeated in January 1966.
- Listen to Abbott (3m)
Transcript of Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s video message.
This week marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Liberal Party.
On such an anniversary, it is right to reflect on what the Liberal Party has achieved for our country.
Back in 1944, the Party’s founder, Robert Menzies expressed his hope that the Liberal Party would change “the current of Australian politics.”
It has done that – and so much more.
The Liberal Party has helped to build modern Australia.
We’ve built infrastructure, fixed budgets, cut taxes, encouraged migration, expanded our universities, supported our Armed Forces, stopped the boats and presided over the longest stretches of job creation and real wages growth in Australia’s history.
And along the way, we’ve cleaned up just about all of Labor’s messes.
Though the times have changed since 1944, the Liberal Party has had a consistent philosophy: we stand for the citizen over the official, for the community over the state and for the family over everything
We believe in the aspirations of people – because as Menzies reminded us, it’s families and households, small business people and tradies who are “the backbone of our nation”.
Everything this Government is doing is for a strong, prosperous economy and a safe secure Australia.
We’re helping families to get ahead – and encouraging small business people to employ more.
We are cutting tax: the Carbon Tax is gone, the Mining Tax is gone and we are cutting company tax next year.
Jobs are being created: there are over 120,000 more jobs since the election.
Free Trade Agreements have been signed.
Environmental approval has been given to $800 billion in new projects and over 10,000 pages of unnecessary laws and regulations have been cut, to ease the burden on people.
The biggest infrastructure programme in Australian history is now underway.
And we are getting the Budget under control.
But this is just the start.
The Government’s Economic Strategy is about giving people freedom and more incentive to make the most of themselves. This is the best way to grow our economy and reduce the cost of living burden on families and on businesses.
For 70 years, the Liberal Party, along with our Coalition partners, the Nationals, have sought to build a stronger Australia with a better future.
On this anniversary, we rededicate ourselves to this task.
