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True Liberal? The Record and Legacy of the Fraser Government, 1975-1983

Symposium Schedule

The University of Melbourne (Melbourne School of Government and Archives and Special Collections) and ÑÇÉ«Ó°¿â are delighted to invite you to a Symposium being held to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Fraser Government.

The Symposium will be held at ÑÇÉ«Ó°¿â on Friday 12 and Saturday 13 December 2025.

Questions about the event should be sent to the Chair of the steering committee, Dr Margaret Simons, at margaret@margaretsimons.com.au

Queries about the archival collections at the University of Melbourne should be addressed to Katie Wood at kathrynw@unimelb.edu.au

Photographer: Roger Scott (1944). Malcolm Fraser, Randwick Racecourse 1975, copyright courtesy Josef Lebovic Gallery, Sydney

Jump to DAY 2

Session 1: What kind of LEADER WAS MALCOLM FRASER AND WHAT KIND OF government DID HE LEAD? 

9.30 - 10.30am Address by Dr Denis White, followed by Panel Discussion Chaired by Georgina Downer

When he became Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser had long been characterised as an arch-conservative. Immediately after his 1983 defeat, his legacy and stature were attacked, and selective impressions of his record cultivated by both sides of politics. Fraser did little to defend himself or define the legacy of his government. The means by which Fraser came to power has been comprehensively examined. The record of the government – less so. This session asks: what kind of government was it, and what kind of Prime Minister was Fraser?

10.30 - 11am Morning Tea Break

Session 2: The Malcolm Fraser Collection

11 - 11.45am Discussion with participating Chair, Katie Wood

Fraser designated the University of Melbourne as the custodian of his personal papers, removing them from the National Archives in 2004. The collection consists of all Mr Fraser’s papers from both his pre-ministerial and post-ministerial activities. In this session, key records from the collection will be discussed to shed light on the man and the principles he brought to leading the Liberal Party.

Session 3: The culture of the Nation

11.45am - 12.45pm Panel Discussion Chaired by Ian Renard

What impact did the Fraser Government have on the cultural life of the nation? This session examines the record of reforms and initiatives, including the establishment of Artbank, the Australiana Fund, the completion of a long term project first conceived by Menzies – the building of the National Gallery of Australia, and the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). What is the legacy, and what should a contemporary liberal cultural policy look like?

Session 4: Australia in the world

1.45 - 3pm Address by Alexander Downer, followed by Panel Discussion Chaired by Professor Michael Wesley

Foreign policy was a central part of Fraser’s agenda, from opposing racism and promoting recognition of the developing world, supporting the US alliance, continuing Whitlam’s engagement with China and being the first Australian Prime Minister to endorse the principle of Palestinian self-determination. This session examines how Fraser saw Australia’s position in the world, and its relevance to the present day.

Session 5: Providing Sanctuary – refugees

3.30 - 4.30pm Address by David Furse Roberts, followed by Panel Discussion

The resettlement of 70 000 Indo-Chinese refugees in Australia during the Fraser years represented a watershed in the nation’s immigration history. Many of these refugees thrived in their adopted homeland. What led to this humanitarian policy, what is its legacy, and can Australia ever return to such an approach?

Session 6: the public service

4.30 - 5.30pm Panel Discussion, Chaired by Professor Emerita Anne Twomey

Malcolm Fraser was a strong supporter of the political neutrality and corporate memory of a career public service. He was also a fierce critic of the Canberra bureaucracy's culture when it isolated itself from public opinion. He developed further the Ministerial Staff system, and welcomed competing advice. In this session, two former secretaries of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet reflect on the record, and the lessons.

Session 7: the fraser collection announcement

5.30 - 5.45pm

Session 8

6 - 7pm Fraser Oration

Session 1: the first australians, then and now

9 - 10am Panel Discussion, Chaired by Inala Cooper

Fraser’s continued support for comprehensive land rights saw the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act become law in December 1976. In the years that followed, Fraser used all his powers of influence and persuasion to get state governments to follow suit with land rights – but he was only rarely prepared to overrule the premiers. How can we regard his record from the perspective of the present day? What is the unfinished business, and what should a contemporary liberal policy on Indigenous affairs include? 

10 - 10.30am Morning tea

Session 2: Monetary policy, the economy and productivity

10.30 - 11.30am Panel Discussion

The Fraser record on monetary policy, productivity and the economy has been hotly contested ever since he lost government. He introduced a more flexible management of the exchange rate, but opposed a float of the dollar. He set up the Campbell Inquiry, which was the basins on which the  reforms introduced under Hawke and Keating were built. The government also created a Department of Productivity and established an inquiry into technological change. Yet Fraser was characterised by many on his own side of politics as resisting reform. So what was he? A tory conservative or a reformer? And what is the legacy?

Session 3: Constitutional and Administrative reform

11.30 - 12.30pm Panel Discussion Chaired by Professor Michael Crommelin

The Fraser Government was the last federal government to achieve constitutional reform.  It secured the passage of three successful referendums, with one failure.  It also undertook major reforms in the field of federalism and administrative law, and started negotiations to cut Australia’s constitutional ties with the United Kingdom.  What caused the Fraser Government to be such a reformist government in the field of public law and why has no government since managed to match its success?

Session 4: Human RIghts

1.30 - 2.30pm Panel Discussion Chaired by Dr Phoebe Wynn-Pope

The Fraser Government established an independent Administrative Appeals Tribunal under a law of the Whitlam government, the Ombudsman, the Administrative Decisions (Judicial Review) Act and the Human Rights Commission Act. It ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in 1979. Since then, governments of both stripes have ratified international human rights treaties, but as the former chair of the Commission, Professor Rosalind Croucher has observed, little has been done to enact these instruments into Australian law, meaning they are not enforceable in Australia. What is the legacy of the Fraser Government’s aspirations on human rights? What remains to be done?

Session 5: Changing the face of the nation – immigration and multiculturalism

3 - 4pm Panel Discussion Chaired by Dr Phoebe Wynn-Pope

The last vestiges of the white Australia policy had been dismantled before Fraser came to power, but his government pursued a vigorous immigration policy and established institutions to promote harmony and social cohesion in a nation where an increasing number did not have Anglo-Saxon heritage. What are the lessons for the present day?

Session 6: What iS liberalism today?

4 - 5.30pm Panel Discussion Chaired by David Kemp

What does liberalism as a political philosophy and set of cultural attitudes mean in Australia today? What is its political and cultural significance? Why has the Liberal Party been abandoned by so many voters in recent years?