labor

For Labor in NSW, 2011 has been our annus horribilis. Labor members dusted themselves off from the election defeat and wondered what next. Here are my five thoughts for Labor as we turn the corner into 2012:

1.   The NSW Policy Forumwill shape what Labor Governments in NSW will seek to do. The Forum must be open, it must be transparent and it must be prepared to test and develop new ideas. Nothing should be off the table, but what finally is included must be rigorous, evidence based and the policy must resonate with people beyond the usual suspects.

2.   Community preselections are a way of involving more people and reaching out to supporters of Labor in our communities. The Party must work hard and put adequate resources into making sure we get this right.

3.   Direct election gives real power to party members and should be expanded. Direct election gave me the second opportunity in 22 years of party membership to actually cast a vote for candidates...and it was online. We need more.

I rise today to mark the very sad passing of Trevor Davies.  Today a community  - a community in the truest sense - gathered at Pitt St Uniting Church to bid farewell to Trevor Edward Davies. At the young age of just 55, Trevor died on 14 June 2011 of a heart attack.

His devastated family spoke of a beloved brother and an uncle for whom they cherished.

A man quick with a joke and a long and infectious laugh.

They told how as a teenager he had tried to revive his father after a fatal asthmatic attack.

They told of his undying love for his mother.

A man who always had something interesting to say -  just as he was always able to listen to the stories of others.