TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER
THE HON JOHN HOWARD MP
DOORSTOP INTERVIEW
MEEWEN - VICTORIA
2 February 2001
JOURNALIST: Do you think that you’ve helped boost Fran Bailey’s chances of re-election by coming to this electorate, or do you think you might have actually done more harm than good at a time when you increased the petrol excise?
PRIME MINISTER: Well I’m not a political commentator. I’m a political participant and the question of the impact of my visits on electorates is a matter for you to write about and talk about. I don’t make those sorts of judgements. I think it’s completely ridiculous for someone in my position to give myself a report card. I don’t intend to do it and I never have and I’m not intending to do it in the future.
JOURNALIST: Speaking of petrol you laid down [inaudible] challenge to Mr Beazley this morning Prime Minister. What does that represent [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER: Well it’s very simple. He’s making political capital out of the excise increase. I simply say to him to have any credibility Mr Beazley you must promise that if you become Prime Minister you will cut petrol excise by 1.7 cents a litre.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible] private members bill [inaudible].
PRIME MINISTER: But that’s just posturing. He knows that that won’t be carried. I mean if he’s fair dinkum he will say a Beazley Labor government will cut petrol excise by at least 1.7 cents a litre. And until he makes that commitment he has no credibility on this issue. He’s just being once again policy lazy by trying to exploit the inevitable unhappiness of Australians with high fuel prices.
JOURNALIST: Why did you take [inaudible] the industrial relations record under the Bracks Government?
PRIME MINISTER: Why did I? Because there are signs, and one of them is clear in the legislation that is being delayed in the Upper House here in Victoria, there are clear signs that the Bracks Government is trying to unwind many of the industrial relations reforms of the Kennett Government and I think that is a bad thing for Victoria. And I make no apology at all for criticising those changes.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, [inaudible] figures show that 30,000 Australians can’t afford to buy food, and another 30,000 can’t afford heating in their homes.
PRIME MINISTER: Well I haven’t seen that report. But as well as speaking of a strong prosperous Australia I also said that we had a responsibility as a government to see that everybody got fair access to the national prosperity. I in fact acknowledged that not everybody was getting necessarily a fair share. I understand that and that is why the government has maintained a very strong social security safety net, and that is why we have no intention, despite what some of our critics have said, of weakening that safety net.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER: Well in the past we have argued a responsible middle course in relation to the living wage case. We have never argued, as have the employers, that there should be no increase at all and we’ll continue to take that sensible fair position.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, it’s emerged today that [inaudible] outside donations. The ALP [inaudible]. The Labor government here’s [inaudible] adopted this attitude towards [inaudible]. Are you suspicious of the connection between the two?
PRIME MINISTER: Look I’m not going to get into that. That’s a matter for local Victorian politics. People make donations to political parties and I don’t care to get involved in that.
JOURNALIST: Will you never ever freeze excise or roll back yesterday’s excise increase?
PRIME MINISTER: Well we don’t have any intention of changing the policy that was introduced in 1983 by the Hawke Labor Government which we continued of having half yearly adjustments according to price rises. That remains the policy and I explained this morning at a gathering I think you were present at Fiona, the reasoning for that. And I will just make the point again that Mr Beazley was a member of the government that introduced that system. He’s now just playing cheap politics with this private members bill which is nothing more than a tawdry parliamentary stunt. If he is really fair dinkum he will stand up and say a pledge that under a Beazley Labor Government we will reduce fuel excise by 1.7 cents a litre at least. And until he does that he really has no credibility on this issue.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER: Well I would hope that they are very good but that is a matter for the local pre-selection committee. I’m delighted that Russel has put his name forward. He’s quite an identity in the Ballarat district as well as being a very well regarded Australian sportsman. He’s a highly intelligent person, he’s got quite a personality. I wish him well and I thank him for the interest that he’s displayed. And I’ll work very hard to get him elected as the federal member for Ballarat to take Michael Ronaldson’s place. It’s a tough seat, everything’s tough in politics these days. You can’t anything for granted. Unlike Mr Beazley I don’t arrogantly assume that I will be in The Lodge in 12 months time as he did when he came back from holidays.
JOURNALIST: Would you describe skateboarding as vigorously un-Australian Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER: Vigorously un-Australian? No.
JOURNALIST: In relation to the [inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER: No I didn’t, well if I said un-Australian I didn’t mean too. It can be unruly I thought I said, well that’s what I meant to say. Well If I said un-Australian, I don’t regard skateboarders as un-Australian but I do think it is very unfair and disquieting and disturbing and threatening for elderly people sometimes when people ride skateboards down streets that elderly people use and I think that’s fair enough.
JOURNALIST: The [inaudible] banned [inaudible] public thoroughfares.
PRIME MINISTER: Well look I don’t like getting into the business of banning things. I’m not a banner. I’m am an encourager and a persuader and an advocate. I just think people should be very considerate of older people. We want our elderly people to walk the streets in freedom and freedom from fear and harassment and sometimes they can get sort of frightened and I don’t think that’s very nice.
JOURNALIST: The International Union of Pharmacology is outraged that a former drug lobbyist has been appointed to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee. Do you stand by that appointment?
PRIME MINISTER: Well I heard the letter from that body being read out over the midday radio current affairs program that the ABC has and I didn’t hear any expressions of outrage in that letter that was read out. I think your question is a bit of editorialising on what the letter actually said. I didn’t say that.
JOURNALIST: Well would you like to comment on what the letter actually said?
PRIME MINISTER: No. What I will comment on is how absolutely absurd it is to say that because one person out of 12 used to be an industry lobbyist that therefore the committee is being hijacked and corrupted and undermined. That is ridiculous. I’ve never heard anything quite as exaggerated for quite a while. The new people that are being put on the committee by the government are all highly qualified people. There’s a consumer representative and there’s now somebody who is one who’s had an association with the industry in the past and I don’t for the life of me see how those other 11 are going to be so overwhelmed and suborn by this new person as to represent a reduction in value of that committee. Look at the qualifications of the new people that have come on it. I mean these committees, the idea that you have to keep reappointing the same people year in year out basically says that there are only ever a small group of people who have the qualifications for this job. That committee will remain a world class independent body that will give independent advice to the Government as it always has in the past.
JOURNALIST: You mentioned the Basslink power system yesterday. What exactly do you propose to do?
PRIME MINISTER: Well what I propose to do is consider the expressions of concern that were put to me yesterday. That’s all I’m saying about it at present.
END
