Subjects: Sugar industry; Steve Martin; economy; visit to PNG; Michael Somare.
E&OE...........
PRIME MINISTER:
Well ladies and gentlemen, I';ve just had a meeting with the representatives of the canegrowers. I, and everybody in the Government is very conscious of how difficult it is for the industry at the present time. The world price of sugar is in a parlous state and I am very sensitive and very understanding of the importance of the sugar industry in a social sense to so many regional towns and cities in Australia, particularly along the Queensland coast. And we';ve had a Hilderbrand report that';s been presented to the Government, the industry has presented a number of proposals to the Minister and they';re being examined by him. We will hear a report on the state of the industry tomorrow from Warren Entsch and from Senator Ian Macdonald and we';ll be talking some particular decisions in relation to the submissions that have been put to us at a subsequent Cabinet meeting.
It is not easy, the industry is in a very tough situation, many of the growers face extreme economic hardship. Equally, it';s a rescue package that';s been put to us that is significant and we have to weigh that up with our other responsibilities. But I';ve assured the representatives that we';ll give a conscientious response, we';re sympathetic, we also have to always be hard-headed in relation to the interests of the taxpayer and try and get a fair mix of the two. It';s not easy but we';ll try and get that mix.
Now the president of the canegrowers may wish to say something, please feel free.
PEDERSEN:
Can I just say it';s been a pleasure to meet with the Prime Minister today, certainly the Government is very well aware of the plight of the sugar industry, we are encouraged by the attitude of the Government, that they will give serious consideration to the plight of this industry. We know that that will not be the for the next couple of weeks, before Cabinet has the opportunity to take a serious consideration of that. But we are very encouraged by the atmosphere which the Prime Minister sees the industry at this stage.
JOURNALIST:
So what did you say to the Prime Minister today?
PEDERSEN:
We';ve put to the Prime Minister the actual state of the industry, we';ve done that through many, much media campaign that we';ve had with the industry. We';ve put some submissions on an industry combined (inaudible) council and canegrowers to the Hilderbrand report which is being put together now as a submission to Federal Cabinet. So we';ve gone through all the issues, the Prime Minister is well aware of the state of the industry.
JOURNALIST:
(inaudible).
PEDERSEN:
The issue that we';re actually asking for is immediate relief to the sugar industry to get us through the situation we find ourselves in at this stage of $320 a hectare injection of cash funds. But it will be a very strong commitment by the industry if we are to obtain any of that to commence restructuring, which we already have actually done, commenced restructuring of our industry to make ourselves more competitive in the world market. But we';ve made it quite clear that the industry is very strong, we acknowledge our responsibility on being sustainable in the long term and we have commenced that track, but it';s going to take a few years to get us up more sustainable in the world scene.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, are you pleased to hear that the sugar industry recognises that there will have to be further restructuring if it is to get any further government assistance?
PRIME MINISTER:
I found today that the industry understands many of the realities involved and it';s a very difficult industry because it's been the life of so many of these towns, especially in Queensland. And it';s unimaginable to many people who live in these coastal towns that you wouldn';t have an industry, a viable industry, I understand that. On the other hand there are a lot of requests made of the Government for taxpayer support and you';re talking about here about a direct injection of money, you';re not talking about loans, loans don';t work in industries in this kind of situation because people are already loaded up to here with debt and they';re not interested in acquiring more debt, they want something more immediate than that. But there is a recognition that if there were to be any assistance from the Government it would have to be on the basis of a workable plan of restructure. Now we';ve got to work our way through that and I haven';t been able to make any specific promises except what I said at the beginning and that is that we';ll very very carefully consider what has been put and that';ll be considered against the background of my understanding over long years of coming to Queensland and talking to people in North Queensland, Far North Queensland, just how important the sugar industry really is.
JOURNALIST:
And how soon might you be able to give the canegrowers an answer?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh soon, but not tomorrow, at a subsequent but early Cabinet meeting.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister are you surprised by and what do you make of Steve Martin's resignation?
PRIME MINISTER:
I was surprised by his resignation. How did I react to it? I always thought Steve Martin was a pretty good bloke and I quite liked him and I think he';ll be a loss to the Labor Party.
JOURNALIST:
Without jumping into the role of political commentator, what do you read into it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Look, you';ll have to go and ask him that. I';m not a political commentator. I seek all my waking hours to persuade you to a particular point of view. Commentators, I know, never try and persuade people to particular points of view.
JOURNALIST:
(inaudible) sinking ship coming…?
PRIME MINISTER:
Look I didn';t say that. I just simply repeat that I always found him quite a good bloke. I think he';ll be a real loss to the Labor Party. He had ability. I thought he was a good campaigner and I wish him well.
JOURNALIST:
When is the most likely date for a by-election?
PRIME MINISTER:
I don';t know. That';s a matter for the speaker.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, can I ask you a general economic question. Do you think the Australian economy has seen the worst of the downturn and economic troubles in the United States…?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think it';s too early to make that judgement.
JOURNALIST:
There could be worse to come?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think it';s too early to make that judgement. The Australian economy is still fundamentally very strong, much stronger than most. But when an economy such as the United States goes through what it';s been through, it';s too early at this moment to say well it';s all been fixed and there is nothing more to worry about. I mean, the Dow has come back, but only a couple of weeks ago people had a different view. I think you';ve got to be very careful that you don';t start jumping to conclusions. So, I am fundamentally very optimistic about the future of the Australian economy and I have every reason to be. But we can';t pretend that we will be unaffected, completely unaffected, if there were prolonged weakness in the United States.
JOURNALIST:
Are you satisfied that all (inaudible) economic policies are properly geared at the moment to meet the challenges brought about by this situation?
PRIME MINISTER:
If you';re asking me to make a comment about interest rates, ask me another question.
JOURNALIST:
Regional question…(inaudible) off to Papua New Guinea tomorrow, as the US Government has recently given the Indonesian military $50 million to fight the war on terror. Does the Government have any plans to follow suit? And if so, do you think it';s appropriate considering the Indonesian military involvement in past human rights (inaudible) East Timor for example the murder of (inaudible).
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I won';t talk about the murder, the particular circumstances of that, I understand certain investigations and proceedings are under way. I understand why the Americans have entered into those arrangements with Indonesia. We don';t have any plans of that kind. We did sign a memorandum of understanding on anti-terrorism with the Indonesians when I was in Jakarta at the beginning of the year. And we have resumed, in a sensitive way, some military links with Indonesia. The question of what is happening inside Indonesia, of course, is a matter for the Indonesian Government and I don';t want to get into that. The fight against terrorism, inevitably, involves nations with a common hostility to terrorism, but with different political system working together.
JOURNALIST:
When Parliament resumes (inaudible) talking with the Democrats (inaudible)…?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I';m always ready to talk to anybody about getting our legislation through. I would like to get our unfair dismissal laws through. I';d like to get our budget changes through and surely in all the debate that we';ve had in recent weeks about the ageing of the population, people will understand how ridiculously irresponsible it is of Labor Party and the Democrats to reject the modest increases in the prescription charges that we proposed in the budget. Nobody likes it, but heavens above, the cost of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is going like that and it';s just going to accelerate with an ageing population. And if you can';t realise your responsibilities in relation to something that';s relatively easy as that, then you don';t deserve to be called an alternative Government.
JOURNALIST:
On your trip to Port Moresby, Prime Minister Somare has signalled a freeze on the privatisation on the public utilities (inaudible)…
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don';t…he';s a prime minister of a sovereign country. I don';t give domestic political advice to the prime ministers of other countries.
JOURNALIST:
(inaudible)
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I';m looking forward to seeing Michael and I';m sure we';ll have a chat about a lot of things, but I';m not going to get into public advice.
JOURNALIST:
What's important (inaudible)
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, it';s very important to have the opportunity of talking at length to Michael Somare. He';s just been re-elected. I congratulated him. I think really getting to re-acquainting ourselves with each other is a very important objective and I';ve offered him a lift to the meeting in Suva. So, I hope he';s able to take that up and we can have a further chat on the plane. So, I think we';ll be able to cover a lot of ground on the journey over to Suva. Thank you very much.
JOURNALIST:
Michael Somare has said that he won';t be seeking further assistance from Australia (inaudible) for example Taiwan. Considering the excellent relationship Australia has with (inaudible) China. Would it not be in Australia';s national interest to increase aid to our near and dear neighbour?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I don';t want to make a comment about what Michael may or may not have said in advance of my having a personal talk to him. Thank you.
[ends]