Fifty-five years ago, unionist turned Labor leader Arthur Calwell lost the second-closest election in Australian history running on the mantra ‘Labor puts people first’. Sound familiar?

Like Calwell, Bill Shorten plans to subsidise uncompetitive industries and run a budget deficit to lavish more funds on health and education.

But while Labor’s policies are still rooted in the 1960s, what has changed is the nature of the workforce Bill Shorten claims to represent.