E&OE...................................................................................................
LIEBMANN:
While the Prime Minister's regional tour has continued so too the
protests and there was another rowdy demonstration yesterday involving
people upset over a variety of issues including the GST, gun laws and
the environment. The Prime Minister nonetheless managed to stand up to
300 protesters in the city of Lismore.
This morning he is in Coffs Harbour and it's from there that he
joins us now. Prime Minister, good morning to you.
PRIME MINISTER:
Hello Steve. Good to be on the programme.
LIEBMANN:
Have you, Prime Minister, been surprised at the intensity of the anger
in the bush and what message do you bring away from this trip?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, Steve, let's call a spade a spade. Most of the demonstrations
of the past couple of days have been organised demonstrations. There's
been nothing spontaneous about them and they have come from what I might
loosely call the usual suspects. So I think it would be a huge mistake
to see the Nimbin people's demonstrations and the demonstrations
of some other people as being a spontaneous expression of mainstream opinion
in the bush. However, quite separately from the demonstrations and in
an entirely calm and sensible way people in the regions have expressed
their concern about a variety of things. There are some good stories in
the bush and there are some bad stories in the bush and we have got to
make certain we keep it balanced. But clearly a number of parts of Australia
are not doing as well as some of the capital cities. And part of what
I have been trying to do over the last week is to get an even better understanding
of that, to discuss ways in a practical achievable fashion that we can
over the months ahead do something about it. But I have stressed the limits
of what any government can do. We can't turn around the weather,
we can't turn around world commodity prices but we can influence
the level of Commonwealth Government services and we can influence the
States in relation to the level of their services.
LIEBMANN:
Just on the question of people in the bush not travelling as well as
people in the cities. Do you think the Reserve Bank should pay special
attention to the impact that interest rate adjustments have on our regional
communities?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I think the Reserve Bank has got to keep in mind the impact of
interest rate adjustments not only on the whole economy but also on elements
of it. Now, I don't want to get into a debate about the decision
that was taken a day or two ago, that was a decision taken by the Reserve
Bank exercising its independent freedom of movement in relation to monetary
policy. You can't have differential interest rates around the country,
you have got to sometimes adjust interest rates in a way you mightn't
want to in the long-term interests of maintaining a momentum of steady
economic growth and ensuring that inflation doesn't break out. I
mean, even after this interest rate rise, even after it's been factored
in, the average home borrower in Australia would be $266 a month better
off than he was when my Government came to power four years ago. So we
have got to keep a sense of perspective. Interest rates now are massively
lower and still will be after the half a per cent increase than what they
were when we came to office four years ago.
LIEBMANN:
I notice that Cheryl Kernot today is saying that the GST was a huge factor
in the interest rate rise.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, Cheryl's wrong.
LIEBMANN:
Do you think half a per cent though was too much?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I am not going to comment because it was a decision taken by the
Reserve Bank exercising its independent authority.
LIEBMANN:
Right. What about though then the Adelaide Bank which has gone and increased
its rate more than the half a per cent, by .7 per cent?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I haven't heard that and we have previously indicated, the
Treasurer has and I endorse it, that if banks go beyond the official rates
they...official rate increases that they could face some kind of surveillance
from the competition authorities. There's no justification for banks
going beyond official rate increases. Banks in this country are in a very
stable profitable position, and they have to understand that they have
social responsibilities.
LIEBMANN:
Prime Minister, later today you're going to meet some of the sacked
national textile workers in an add-on to your trip in Newcastle, and they
say they want some straight answers. Can you give them straight answers?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I can give them straight answers. I'll be telling them what
the Government is interested in as well as the question of entitlements
which is going to be considered in the Cabinet on Tuesday. I'll be
telling them that. The Government is also interested in ways and means
in which we can assist the retrenched workers retrain. One of the problems
of retrenchments of this size in a regional centre such as Rutherford
is that it is very hard to find alternative employment and I think this
is a classic case of where economic change which is unavoidable is hurting
people. And I think the community and the Government has a responsibility
to help people who are the victims of economic change. And I'm not
suggesting that you can hold back the process of economic change and reform,
but we do as a society have an obligation to try and give some help to
people who are hurt by economic change. And I'm very sympathetic
to be quite blunt about he plight of these workers or any other low paid
people who are suddenly retrenched, and are left begging for their entitlements.
I have to say to you I find that situation very hard and I don't
seek to defend it. Now we've got a find a way through it. The Labor
Party was in power for 13 years. They're crowing about the situation
now. They had 13 years to do something about a safety net of entitlements
and they didn't do anything. So they're right out of the game.
But I am sympathetic to these people and I'll be expressing that
concern and sympathy when I see their representatives today, and we'll
be discussing the matter in full in Cabinet on Tuesday. That is what I'm
going to be telling them.
LIEBMANN:
Okay. But does that sympathy run to the tune of, just finally, $3.6 million
because the administrators are saying your Government, they want or they're
suggesting your Government provide an extra $3.6 million to allow full
payment for the sacked workers? Will you do that and don't they deserve
it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don't think the administrator's in a position to give
any advice to the Government. The administrator is there to administer
the affairs of the company. And let's get one thing straight, the
circumstances that have led to this arising are not ones that can be laid
directly at the door of the Federal Government. I mean one of these things,
one of the last straws that broke the camel's back with this company
was the loss of a contract that it had with the New South Wales Police
Service for more than 20 years. I'm not saying that in normal competitive
processes the police service was obliged to keep the contract with the
one and the same company that it had for 20 years and in fact replace
it with a Victorian company. But I think it does mean that at least there's
some moral obligation on the part of the New South Wales Government to
be involved in this and I acknowledge the fact that the New South Wales
Government has said that it does accept some responsibility of being involved.
Look this is a difficult issue. We're trying to work out a solution
that's workable. It's no good people making a sort of stand
and deliver demands. Administrators shouldn't be making stand and
deliver demands. They should stick to their task which is to administer
the company. And the Government will for the first time be examining,
first time for any Federal government, examining some kind of comprehensive
approach to these problems particularly when they occur in the regions.
LIEBMANN:
Thanks for your time this morning Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER:
You're very welcome.
[Ends]