JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, how confident are you on getting Tony Blair on side on greenhouse gases?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'm very confident that Australia will go to the Kyoto Conference offering in a very constructive way to play its part but putting forward a proposition that protects the Australian national interest. My job is to look after Australia. Mr Blair's job is to look after Britain. Obviously, we come from somewhat different points of view on this issue and there is no point in pretending otherwise because Britain's circumstanccs art different from Australia's but I'll be seeing him this afternoon and I'm quite certain that. consistent with the capacity of our two countries to work things through, I'm quite certain that although we have different vantage points where appropriate we will agree to disagrce.
JOURNALIST: Do you think you'll be out on your own at CHOGM on the issue?
PRIME MINISTER: I wouldn't expect so, but at the and of the day it's not a question of whether you're out on your own or not, it's whether you're doing the right thing by Australia, and there is no doubt in the world that the stance that I am taking is in Australia's national s on that criteria and according to that benchmark that I choose to be nothing else.
JOURNALSIT: intres might support Australia's position?
PRIME MINISTER: the faintest idea. 1 don't think it's a qiiestion of lining up one supporting the I don't think that's the issue at all. The issuc is what is in the best interests of' , italia and I can just say to the Australian public that as Mrmc Minister I'll be iocating Australia's iterest. I'll naturally be doing it in a co-operative way and ir position includes making a very significant contribution to the reduction of jeenhouse gases but judge mec by what I do for Australia. not according to anything else.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, negative inflation. A good result. Any implications for interest rates, do you think?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, it was a magnificent result. I mean this is astonishingly good economic news. This is the lowest intlation rate in 35 years. Australia has a government which has got the fundamentals in the Australian economy right in a way that we haven't seen for or more yeart.. You have the best convergence of economic fuindamentals now. It bodes well for very strong economic growth and that's important for employment because if we can but through the 4 per cent growth figure, and this lays the foundation for it, then we Can start to sec unemployment come down because the passport to lower unemployment is strong growth and you can't have strong growth if you have inflationary pressures and we don't have them. This is a tremendous outcome for Australia and sends a very positive signal to the business community
JOLRNALIST: On interest rates?
PRIME MINISTER: on all fronts. Inm not going to speculate about interest rates, you know that, I won't do it. But you couldn't have a better inflationary situation. You have got a strong budget situation and our budgct position is very strong indeed. Thc dcisions we took in the first two budgets have mnade the ground work for a strongly growing Ausitralian econormy and I'm absolutely delighted. We took the hard decisions early. We've been criticised. We've been derided but we are now starting to see the fruits of thai fiscal rectitude and it is going to be seen in higher growth, fafling uncmployment and a much bctter output next year.
Thank you.
Ends