Reason Party (Australia) Explained

Reason Australia
Leader:Fiona Patten
Foundation:22 August 2017
Dissolved:7 March 2024
Ideology:Civil libertarianism
Progressivism
Secular liberalism
Drug liberalisation
Website:reason.org.au
Country:Australia
Position: to centre-left[1]
Colours: Teal

Reason Australia, commonly referred to as the Reason Party or as simply Reason, was an Australian political party. Its leader, Fiona Patten, described the party as a "civil libertarian alternative".[2] Patten was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council as at the 2018 state election in the Northern Metropolitan Region, after formerly being elected as a Sex Party member for the same seat in 2014. However, she lost re-election in 2022.

Reason was registered at the state level in Victoria and New South Wales, as well as with the Australian Electoral Commission at the federal level.

The party was disbanded in March 2024.[3]

History

In August 2017, Fiona Patten announced the launch of a new political party called Reason Australia, in part born from a merger of the Australian Sex Party and the Australian Cyclists Party.[4] [5] [6] [7] In January 2018, the Victorian Electoral Commission officially changed the party's name from "Australian Sex Party – Victoria" to "Reason Victoria".[8]

In May 2018, the party applied to the AEC for registration for federal elections as "Reason Australia",[9] which was approved on 30 August 2018.[10]

In December 2019, the NSW branch of the Voluntary Euthanasia Party merged with the Reason Party, and changed its name to "Reason Party NSW".[11]

In December 2020 it was announced that Patten would enter a coalition with independent Mildura MP, Ali Cupper who sits in the Legislative Assembly.[12] Cupper ended the agreement on 13 May 2021.[13]

In February 2022, Jane Caro announced that she was standing as a candidate for the party for a New South Wales Australian Senate seat in the 2022 Australian federal election.[14] She was unsuccessful.

Patten was not re-elected at the 2022 Victorian state election, leaving Reason with no elected representatives.

Parliamentary actions

The party's main goal should they be elected was to establish voluntary assisted dying laws for Victoria. After a long process and a marathon legislative session, the bill became law on a conscience vote.[15] [16]

In 2017, Patten renewed calls for a pilot program of a safe injecting room in North Richmond, in response to a large increase of Victorian drug-related deaths in the last several years.[17] [18] In the first session for the Legislative Council of the year, she introduced the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Pilot Medically Supervised Injecting Centre) Bill 2017.[19] At the time there were regular overdoses in the streets of Richmond, and that number has been reduced significantly since the centre was opened, with various estimates about the number of lives saved due to the opening of the centre.[20] [21]

Policies

The party's policies include:[22]

Drug law reform

Cannabis

In regards to cannabis the party supports the following:[24]

Tax and churches

Social housing

Gambling

Health

Internet and media

Other areas

Electoral history

Victorian state elections

In addition to fielding candidates in a number of Victorian Legislative Assembly seats, the party stood candidates in all regions of the Victorian Legislative Council after 2017. In 2018 the party succeeded in re-electing Fiona Patten to the Northern Metropolitan Region.

ElectionEastern VictoriaNorth-Eastern MetroNorthern MetroNorthern VictoriaSouth-Eastern MetroSouthern MetroWestern MetroWestern Victoria
  1. of seats won
20180.81%1.18%3.37%0.70%0.85%2.00%1.15%0.92%
20220.74%0.99%3.61%0.81%0.45%2.02%0.81%0.71%
Victorian Legislative Council
Election yearNo of votes % of voteSeats won+/–Notes
201061,542 1.91 (#6)
201489,7482.63 (#5) 1Shared balance of power
201849,0131.37 (#9) 1Shared balance of power
202246,685 1.26 (#13) 1

Victorian state by-elections

*Chipp was endorsed by the party, but the party was not registered with the VEC at the time, as they were in the process of changing their name.

Links

The party has had some involvement in Glenn Druery's Minor Party Alliance.[33] [34] However, in the lead-up to the 2018 state election, Fiona Patten had a falling out with Glenn Druery due to his new conflict of interest as chief-of-staff to Federal Senator, Derryn Hinch, who was running candidates in the election and receiving favourable preferences due to Druery's private business dealings as the "preference whisperer". She claimed that he demanded that the Reason Party pay him money, or she would not be re-elected. Patten made an official complaint to the VEC, and Druery is now subject to an ongoing police investigation over this complaint.[35] [36]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Australian Sex Party becomes new 'Reason' party in attempt to capture centrist, disengaged voters. 22 August 2017. David. Martin-Guzman. Bendigo Advertiser.
  2. News: Sex Party hopes to make history and win an Upper House seat in state election . Herald Sun . Ashley . Gardiner . 15 November 2010.
  3. Web site: Prominent ex-Victorian MP rules out political comeback . The Canberra Times . 7 March 2024.
  4. Web site: Sex Party to change name to Reason Party, founder Fiona Patten announces. Willingham. Richard. 22 August 2017. ABC News. 25 August 2017.
  5. Web site: Australian Sex Party to become the Reason Party. Preiss. Benjamin. 22 August 2017. The Sydney Morning Herald.
  6. News: Founder of Australia's Sex Party Rebrands It the Reason Party . The New York Times. Jacqueline . Williams . 24 August 2017.
  7. Web site: The Australian Cyclists Party Closes (and promotes alternative broad issue party) . Bicycles Network Australia . 11 July 2019 . en . 4 September 2017.
  8. https://www.vec.vic.gov.au/media/20180116-ChangeOfAustralianSexPartyToReasonVictoria.html Change of Australian Sex Party to Reason Victoria
  9. Web site: Reason Australia . Notice of Application for Registration as a Political Party . . 16 May 2018 . 16 May 2018.
  10. Web site: Registration of a political party: Reason Australia. 30 August 2018. Notice under s 133(1A)(a) of the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. Australian Electoral Commission. 12 September 2018.
  11. Web site: 'New voices': Reason Party comes to NSW to revive push for assisted dying laws . Fitzsimmons . Caitlin . 29 December 2019 . .
  12. Web site: 2020-12-03. Victorian MPs Fiona Patten and Ali Cupper form unique coalition. 2020-12-04. abc.net.au. en-AU.
  13. News: Taylor . Matt . Mildura MP Ali Cupper splits with Reason Party . 13 May 2021 . subscription . Sunraysia Daily . 13 May 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210513103357/https://www.sunraysiadaily.com.au/4258421/mildura-mp-ali-cupper-splits-with-reason-party . 13 May 2021 . live.
  14. News: Curtis . Katina . 24 February 2022 . 'We're heading in precisely the wrong direction': Jane Caro chases Senate spot . The Sydney Morning Herald . 24 February 2022.
  15. News: Victoria set to make history as voluntary assisted dying bill passes Upper House. 2017-11-22. ABC News. 2018-11-06. en-AU.
  16. News: They keep going over the same ground again and again. NewsComAu. 2018-11-06.
  17. News: Heroin deaths prompt renewed calls for Victorian safe injecting rooms . ABC News . James . Oaten . 21 February 2017 . 3 February 2018.
  18. News: No government support for Richmond drug injection room despite community backing . ABC News . Benjamin . Preiss . Clay . Lucas . 7 February 2017 . 3 February 2018.
  19. State of Victoria . Legislative Council . 7 February 2017 . 37 . . Member for Northern Metropolitan.
  20. News: 140 lives 'saved' during first months of safe injecting room trial in Melbourne. 2018-08-31. ABC News. 2018-11-06. en-AU.
  21. Web site: '12 lives saved' in Richmond safe drug injecting room's first week. Booker. Chloe. 2018-07-06. The Age. en. 2018-11-06.
  22. News: Policies Reason Victoria. Reason Victoria. 2018-11-20. en-US. 20 November 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181120095548/https://reasonvic.org.au/policy/. dead.
  23. Web site: Fiona Patten: Continuing to refuse to allow pill testing at festivals is "immoral". 2018-12-31. 3AW. en. 2019-01-03.
  24. Web site: Drug Reform: Legalising Cannabis . Sinclair . Emma . 29 March 2022 . reason.org.au . 3 September 2022.
  25. Web site: Pokies more damaging than cannabis: Patten calls for gambling limits. 2017-11-28. 3AW. en. 2019-01-04.
  26. News: The Australian Sex Party wrote this devastating response to an anti-vaccination campaigner looking for support. Kimmorley, Sarah. 16 May 2016. Business Insider. 16 May 2016. 8 November 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201108131715/https://www.businessinsider.com.au/the-australian-sex-party-wrote-this-devastating-response-to-an-anti-vaccination-campaigner-looking-for-support-2016-5. dead.
  27. Web site: Professor Ross Fitzgerald » Blog Archive » Internet censorship remains part of Conroy's agenda. en-AU. 2019-01-03.
  28. News: Catholic Inc: What the Church is really worth. Vedelago. Royce Millar, Ben Schneiders and Chris. The Age. en. 2018-11-20.
  29. Web site: Time to end tax exemptions for religious groups: Sex Party. Preiss. Benjamin. 13 March 2016. The Age.
  30. Web site: Four Day Working Week . 29 March 2022 . reason.org.au . 3 September 2022.
  31. Web site: Priority Walking and Cycling . reason.org.au . 6 November 2022.
  32. Web site: Voluntary Assisted Dying . 29 March 2022 . reason.org.au . 3 September 2022.
  33. News: Bitter dispute erupts over Senate preferences in Queensland . Bormann, Trevor . 5 September 2013 . . 1 January 2015.
  34. News: Alliance of micro parties boosts odds for likes of One Nation or Shooters and Fishers gaining Senate spot through preferences . Wood, Alicia . 5 September 2013 . . 1 January 2015.
  35. News: Derryn Hinch's preference whisperer faces cash-for-votes complaint. News Line Australia. 15 November 2018. en-US. 16 November 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181116085400/https://www.newsline.com.au/2018/10/24/derryn-hinchs-preference-whisperer-faces-cash-for-votes-complaint/. dead.
  36. News: Derryn Hinch's preference whisperer faces cash-for-votes complaint. Preiss. Royce Millar, Ben Schneiders, Benjamin. 24 October 2018. The Age. en. 15 November 2018.