PM Transcripts

42
22 May 1997 TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER
THE HON JOHN HOWARD MP
DOORSTOP INTERVIEW, FAULCONBRIDGE, NSW
E O E
PRIME MINISTER:
( tape break) strongly to the view I have for a long time, long before anybody had
heard of Pauline Hanson or Pauline anybody. I've held the view for a long time that
the paradigms of the ' 50s and ' 60s no longer apply and the world has changed and
there is a link between high unemployment and high immigration particularly where the
balance is too heavily skewed away from skilled migration. And what we have sensibly
done is to reduce the overall level and to shift the balance. It's in the national interest,
it will relieve some of the unemployment pressure and I just disagree completely with
Mr Kennett but you can have those friendly disagreements on matters of high policy.
But I think he is wrong, I believe I'm right and that's why the Federal Government has
taken the decision and it's our responsibility to run immigration policy. We listen to
what the States have got to say, we take the decision and on with the job.
JOURNALIST: Can you give me an example of the sort of migrant community you're talking about
where unemployment levels
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh look, I'm not going to start naming individual communities because some smart
alec will then say I'm targeting a particular group. You know as well as I do that the
unemployment rates are very high within particular communities and it's not their fault.
In fact, maintaining the system we've maintained is probably doing them a great
disservice. But we've looked at this thing. It's got nothing to do with race, it's got
nothing to do with Hanson, it's got everything to do with a commonsense decision in
the interests of the Australian people.
ends