"however participation rates especially for working class was dreadful prior to Whitlam" What does that even mean. Up until the mid/late 70's you could leave school and pick whatever job you wanted. That could be an office job a factory job an apprenticeship. The choices were wide open. After the oil shock and inflation took off the world did change. Australia had only 11 million people at the time. No Whitlam achieved very little because just did not last. Malcolm Fraser was also a huge disappointment. The 80's was a decade of huge change...blah blah blah. I will conclude with this. Politicians are hugely over rated. They are generally reactive not proactive. That they are the centre of attention today is baffling. Whitlam did not change society at all. Society was already changing. Lastly Governments of all persuasions achieve NOTHING.....they are there to Govern for the people. They create a framework no more or less.
