Ferguson Left

The Ferguson Left (also known as the "Soft Left" in New South Wales and the "Independent Left" in Victoria) is a political tendency within the Australian Labor Party. It was founded by Martin Ferguson, a former president of the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU). The Ferguson Left only exists in the New South Wales and Victorian branches of the party.

The tendency is ideologically centrist and seeks consensus with the Labor Right on policy objectives.

In New South Wales, the Ferguson Left is a minority sub-faction within the New South Wales Socialist Left faction. It was traditionally led by Martin Ferguson's brother, Laurie Ferguson. It commands the allegiance of the construction and general division of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and the small Plumbing Trades Employees Union. Its membership base is in south-west Sydney, including the federal electorates of Parramatta, Banks, Werriwa, Fowler and Reid as well as the state electortate of East Hills. Its membership base is also strong in Newcastle, including the federal electorates of Newcastle and Shortland and the state electorates of Newcastle and Wallsend.

In New South Wales, following the retirement of Laurie Ferguson, the Soft Left is led by New South Wales MLC Lynda Voltz.

In Victoria the Ferguson Left is a small sub-faction within the Victorian Socialist Left. It is led by federal senator Kim Carr.

The Soft Left was the dominant group on the Steering Committee in New South Wales until March 1989, when the Soft Left's Jan Burnswoods was defeated by the Hard Left's Anthony Albanese in an internal faction ballot for the leading position of Assistant General Secretary of the New South Wales Labor Party. The new Hard Left majority changed the name of the faction to the Socialist Left in November 1989, and in response the Soft Left split and formed a short-lived faction aligned with the Labor Right until it was forced to dissolve eight months later. Following Martin Ferguson's move to Melbourne to become ACTU president, the Soft Left was renamed the Ferguson Left. The large union United Voice supported the Soft Left until 2010, when it joined the Hard Left after a change of leadership and this has likely contributed to its declining influence.

The Ferguson Left reunified at the New South Wales, Victorian and national levels with the Socialist Left, after the retirement of both its key powerbrokers Martin Ferguson and Laurie Ferguson and its diminishing size and influence. It still holds important influence in New South Wales and to a lesser extent in Victoria.

In the Australian Labor Party leadership spill, October 2013 the support of the Ferguson Left for the Labor Right's Bill Shorten proved crucial to his victory over the National Left's candidate Anthony Albanese.

The Ferguson Left shifted votes in caucus to Labor Right's Bill Shorten to have him elected leader in the 2013 Australian Labor Party leadership election over Anthony Albanese. The slim majority Bill Shorten received in caucus, as a result of the small number of Ferguson Left votes, overpowered the rank-and-file who voted 60% for Anthony Albanese.

This occurred in the lead up to the 2015 Australian Labor Party National Conference, at which the Labor Right faction had lost its majority for the first since in 1984.

Federal members include Kim Carr, Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union National Secretary Michael O'Connor , Mark Butler, Maria Vamvakinou, Warren Snowdon and Brendan O'Connor. Past federal members included Martin Ferguson, Laurie Ferguson, Daryl Melham and Julia Gillard. It is now strongest at the state levels.

At the 2015 Australian Labor Party National Conference former Ferguson Left powerbroker Martin Ferguson was roundly condemned by the labour movement and a motion was carried condemning him for comments he'd made that they believe had damaged the party since retiring from parliament.