Subjects: fuel excise; rural and regional issues; roads funding; economy; Basslink project.
E&OE................................
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, did you have a look at the petrol prices at the station you stopped at this morning?
PRIME MINISTER:
I always look at petrol prices.
JOURNALIST:
Are you concerned about a backlash now that the new excise issue..?
PRIME MINISTER:
I understand that people don't like high fuel prices. They are high because of the high price of world crude oil. We looked very carefully before Christmas at the possibility of forgoing the February excise adjustment or doing something else, because the budget could not have afforded both. And we made a deliberate decision to put extra money into road funding - $1.6 billion - that's about $400 million a year - because we thought that was the better long term investment than a one off freeze in excise which amounts to about 1.5, 1.6 cents a litre. Now we did think about it because we do know that people don't like the high price of petrol. But we came to the conclusion from a long-term point of view that was a better investment. And that's why we took the position we did.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, one of your own members Trish Draper is saying that she's very disappointed with the excise rise and that she was last night trying to convince your office to overturn it. What does that say to the community when one of your own team is saying that?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well look I understand that different people have a different point of view. But it's always been the case that in government you think about things, you make a decision on what you think is in the best long term interests of the country, and that's what we've done. And we made that decision before Christmas and we've gone ahead with it. And we are now seeing money beginning to flow into local roads. This council area, the East Gippsland Council will get $6.6 million. And with a declining rate base it's a very valuable injection of money into this community for local roads that are very necessary. Now look in government you are faced everyday with making difficult decisions knowing that no matter what decision you take not everybody will be happy. We quite literally could not afford and nobody in government in our position could afford both to both spend more money on roads and have a one off freeze in excise. And we took the decision that putting the money into roads funding that was better. I mean a one-and-a-half cent a litre impact on the price of petrol could disappear and be swallowed up the next day by a fluctuation in the world price.
JOURNALIST:
What have people been saying to you over the last two days on petrol Mr Howard? Have they agreed with your decision or not, is there...?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well some people Michelle have raised it.
JOURNALIST:
[inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER:
Well some people have disagreed with us and some people have agreed with us.
JOURNALIST:
Some have disagreed strongly?
PRIME MINISTER:
Michelle, you've been asking them. You don't have to ask me. I mean look, some of them agree with us and some of them don't. But there's no point in sort of walking away from this. It's a difficult issue and we faced it before Christmas and we took a decision. And we think that it's a better long-term investment of $1.6 billion to put it into road funding. Now we made that decision before Christmas and in the end the real thing that will give people relief in petrol prices is a fall in the world price. I mean a one-and-a-half cent a litre freeze in excise is not going to give substantial relief.
JOURNALIST:
Will it cost votes?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that is for you to write about. You know that I don't set myself up as a political commentator. I'm a political participant and it's for you and others. We try to make those judgements, we try and make judgements about what is in the best interests of the people. We believe it's better, particularly for rural Australia, to spend money on roads than to have a one off excise freeze which would not have an enormous long term impact on the price of petrol.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, how would you describe the mood of voters, not just on petrol but other issues in these two key electorates over the last couple of days?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think they're very pleased indeed that I've come. They regard visits of this kind by the Prime Minister as very important and a very important opportunity to put their point of view. As always country Australians are very courteous and very nice people to meet. I think there's a deep generic respect for the job the government has done in managing the economy. There are concerns on particular issues. Some of them are concerns which they know they can't really hold us accountable for. And there are a variety of issues where they would like, as the Shire President said, the federal government to provide more. Now I expected that and I don't ever expect to visit a part of Australia where people will say to me - well we have, you know, there's absolutely nothing more we'd like from the federal government, everything is absolutely terrific.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, you were pretty optimistic about the economy today and again just now, what do you see as the consequences for the economy [inaudible] the latest interest rate cut in the US doesn't kick the American economy forward again?
PRIME MINISTER:
What I said a couple of weeks ago when I came back from holidays really still stands and that is there is a slow down in the United States and that will have an effect. What happens in the United States does have an effect on what happens not only here but all around the world. I'm not good enough, nobody is, to get really precise in terms of weeks and months as to when that starts to have an effect. I can only say to you that I expect economic management to be harder this year than last year. What is happening in the United States will have an impact on Australia but the fundamentals of the Australian economy still remain quite strong. And I think what I've said over the past couple of weeks have been realistic. I'm not being absurdly optimistic but equally I'm not going to start using panic language when it's not justified.
JOURNALIST:
[inaudible] what will happen to the extent of the social bonus you've been talking about?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I've been talking particularly in the past tense about the social bonus. I'm not saying there won't be more. But yesterday when I spoke of the social bonus I was really referring to things we've already announced. I noticed that it was perhaps given a slightly different twist by some. But I'm not ruling out something more that might fall into that category. But the point I made yesterday was that if we hadn't been in this strong budget position we wouldn't have put more money into defence and we wouldn't have been able to do a lot of those other things.
JOURNALIST:
Is the environment right for an interest rate cut Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that is a matter, Tom, for the Reserve Bank. I don't control interest rates and it'll be a matter for the Reserve Bank to consider.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister you said this morning that on your last regional tour people expressed to you concerns about health and roads and therefore there was money in the budget last year for health and roads. What concerns that have been expressed this time that you think might be upper most in the government's mind this year?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don't think either of those issues are sort of fully addressed but I think people recognise that we've tried to do something about them. There are no two things that stand out. It varies a little bit according to what community you're talking to. I've found on this occasion that there's quite an aggregation of individual areas of concern, and also as you heard from the Shire President recognition that the federal government has done quite a number of things. I mean I've just spoken to the members of the shire council and they presented me with a document which included requests for a number of pieces of support from the federal government. And they were also kind enough at the back of the document to express their gratitude for a long list of things that the federal government has done for the local community and I appreciate that. I mean it is a recognition that the council sees the government as listening to the concerns of people in electorates such as this, and trying where we can and where it's responsible to do something about it.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, what's your view on the Basslink project and has anybody today mentioned the gun issue with you?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, nobody's mentioned guns today, no. The Basslink, well there is concern about the pylons and I saw some people who are, you know, leaders of a group who are concerned about that and they put their concerns to me and I said I'd have a look at them. I understand why they'd rather there not be pylons. I mean they do and can look quite ugly. I understand that and it's really a question of balance.
JOURNALIST:
Are you sympathetic to them?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I listened carefully to what they had to say and I said I would go away, without making any promises, I said I'd go away and have a careful look. I'm not even sure off hand at what our capacities are. But I listened to them. You know in an ideal world it would be better if you didn't see those things, it would be better if they went underground. Of course. I mean that stands to reason. They're not attractive.
JOURNALIST:
Would you consider chipping in part of...
PRIME MINISTER:
Well hang on, I said I'd have a look at it. I'm not going to sort of get into the business of saying whether I will or won't chip in. I mean there is..everybody's got to play a part in these things and if community opinion results in a more expensive option being produced then obviously it can't on an open ended basis be picked up by the generality of taxpayers. But let me just work my way through that. And Peter McGauran has been very vigorous on this issue and has certainly made his thoughts very plain to me and to my colleagues, and I understand why - because they can be an eyesore. There's no doubt about that.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, did you notice the somewhat cheeky protest in Orbost?
PRIME MINISTER:
No. I heard about it. Didn't make much of an impression on me. I didn't know about it until I heard about it on the ABC.
JOURNALIST:
What do you think of that sort of behaviour?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well look, you know, the people of Australia will make their judgement about that kind of behaviour.
JOURNALIST:
Thanks.
PRIME MINISTER:
Just one thing before you go, on the question of petrol excise, I hear of course that Mr Beazley and Mr Crean are saying that they're going to sponsor a private members bill and how outrageous it all is. Well for them to be seriously listened to they should promise that a future Labor government will reverse today's indexation rise. And I don't think Mr Beazley can be seriously entertained on this issue unless he's prepared to commit a future Labor government to reverse it.
[Ends]