Was the Hawke government ‘the gold standard’ for federal government in Australia? A stellar line-up of historians, social scientists, politicians and journalists sheds valuable new light on the policies, politics and personalities of the Hawke government and asks: What lessons can it offer in the art of reformist government? How do its legacies continue to shape Australian society?
Troy Bramston and Andrew Podger explain how Hawke masterfully managed the work of government and administration; Michelle Grattan and Meghan Hopper analyse how the government and prime minister dealt with the media; Frank Bongiorno shows how the Labor Party won four elections on the trot; while Marija Taflaga looks at how unprepared Hawke’s opponents were for their period in the wilderness. Bruce Chapman and Liam Byrne discuss the competing legacies of the Labor–Union Accords of the 1980s; Meredith Edwards and Carolyn Holbrook demonstrate that social justice and health reform were still possible in the context of fiscal restraint; Marian Sawer shows how women’s policy mattered; while Peter Yu recalls the major disappointments of the era for First Nations Australians. Gareth Evans and Ian Macphee offer their perspectives on the Hawke government’s legacies and impact; Barrie Cassidy and Craig Emerson share their recollections of the Hawke office; and Joshua Black shows that memories of the Hawke era were not so rosy in its immediate aftermath.
‘A thoughtful, readable collection on the ambitions, arguments, achievements and political courage of Australia’s best post-war government.’ – Judith Brett
‘This multifaceted diagnosis of Australia’s most revered government bristles with fresh insights and analysis. It is at once comprehensive in scope and yet brilliantly engaging. For anyone seeking to understand modern Australia’s achievements and shortcomings, Gold Standard? is the place to start. Editors Bongiorno, Holbrook and Black have thoughtfully augmented their own expertise with a panoply of writers, some with unique experience within the Hawke government. The result makes for a telling prequel to the policy challenges and political paralysis bedevilling Australia today.’ – Mark Kenny
‘The Hawke government was a winning government – the winner of big public debates it initiated, persuasively framed and mustered public support for, and the winner of four elections in a row as a result. It excelled at both the substance and theatre of politics. This book shows how easily its winning playbook could be carried over and adapted by today’s politicians to meet contemporary challenges with the deeper solutions Australians so clearly want. Compulsory reading.’ – Chris Wallace
‘This multidimensional analysis of Bob Hawke’s skilful distributed leadership – responsibility delegated to talented individuals pursuing disparate objectives, deliberation debated and contested within a disciplined reformist framework – reminds us that formidable challenges can be transformed into opportunities for productive change. It is the antidote for our troubled times.’ – James Walter
About the Author
Frank Bongiorno is a historian at the University of Canberra and the author of books including The Sex Lives of Australians: A History, The Eighties: The Decade that Transformed Australia, Dreamers and Schemers: A Political History of Australia and, with Nick Dyrenfurth, A Little History of the Australian Labor Party.
Carolyn Holbrook is a historian at Deakin University. Her latest books are Challenging Anzac: Stories that Don’t Fit the Legend, co-edited with Mia Martin Hobbs and Joan Beaumont (2026), and Australia Fair? Democracy, Bureaucracy and the Making of Modern Australia, co-authored with James Walter (2026). She is the director of the Australian Policy and History network and the Australian Health and History digital archive.
Joshua Black is a political historian, policy researcher and media adviser. His PhD on the history of Australian political memoir and autobiography was completed at the Australian National University in 2023. Josh has been a postdoctoral research fellow at the Australia Institute and a Palace Letters Fellow at the Whitlam Institute within Western Sydney University.
