Policies, Principles and Philosophies
of the National Civic Council

THE NATIONAL CIVIC COUNCIL STANDS FOR

Patriotism which requires an adequate level of defence, an independent foreign policy and economic sovereignty;

The small unit in agriculture, business, public administration and unions and opposition to monopolies and cartels;

Judeo-Christian values which provide the foundation on which our society is built;

The family, not merely for moral reasons, but because families are the most effective deliverers of most welfare services;

Accountability of governments to parliaments and parliaments to the people, and the equality of all before the law;

Rigorous education which (a) values the acquisition of knowledge as well as the processes of learning and promotes intellectual excellence and disciplines (such as history, philosophy, advanced mathematics and physics) abandoned by modern educational theorists; and (b) provides the base of knowledge necessary for every person to participate fully as a member of society; and

The dignity and worth of every person and recognition of life from conception to death.

Values. Support for policies which reinforce traditional values and opposition to policies and practices which negate or undermine these values.

Individualism.The rejection of policies and ideologies based on individualism which destroy us as a community and society.

Foreign debt. Elimination of the foreign debt which threatens our economic independence.

Public Assets. Ensuring that 'selling off the farm' does not place Australia's interests effectively in foreign hands.

Affordable bank loans for capable small businesses, primary producers and home buyers.

Currency controls. The restoration of control over money flowing into and out of Australia to ensure we retain control over our economy.

Family support. By restoring meaningful economic support (i.e. homemaker's allowance) and ensuring every family has a full-time breadwinner.

Parental roles. Recognition of the role and responsibilities of parents and supporting and buttressing that role.

Children. Support for policies which recognize the importance of children and enhance their well being.

Divorce. Opposition to easy divorce laws.

Lifestyles. Opposition to ideologies antagonistic towards traditional families and to the acceptance of lifestyles which undermine family values as legitimate alternatives.

Government's economic role. Governments having a positive interventionist role in ensuring economic growth and full employment whilst rejecting the economic rationalist view that society is just a mass of competing individuals whose interests are best served by unbridled free market competition.

The disadvantaged. Support for policies to assist those who through no fault of their own are disadvantaged to live a dignified life and to develop their skills and talent to their potential, but opposition to people taking unfair advantage of the taxpayer and to policies which discourage people from developing their sense of self-worth and their skills and talents.

Decentralism. Supporting devolution of responsibility for the provision and delivery of public services to the smallest unit of government possible.

Law. Recognition of the supremacy of a single legal system (e.g Aboriginal customary law does not have the same status as the common law or legislation), and rejection of the idea that all cultures are equal.

Encouragement of people to know about their roots, their culture and their origin, but not at public expense.

Democracy. Support for the system of government based on an executive (cabinet and the bureaucracy) which is answerable to the parliament rather than an executive which dominates the parliament through the party system and control of party meetings, and an independent judiciary which is responsible for administering and interpreting the law.

The environment. Acceptance of our obligation not to squander the resources we have inherited and to leave them in good condition, but opposition to treating trees and animals as being equal to human beings.

Foreign policy which is independent but based on Australia's being part of the Western alliance.

Adequate defence which requires a sufficient level of spending. (Currently defence spending is below 2 per cent of GDP at the same time as defence spending in the region is increasing and the technological advantage Australia has enjoyed over nearby countries is being eroded.)