Subject:
Indigenous emergency; Iraq; housing affordability; Julian Moti.
E&OE...
PRIME MINISTER:
Ladies and gentlemen, just a brief news conference to tell you that at the Cabinet meeting this morning Mr Brough gave us an update on progress with the Commonwealth initiatives to help indigenous children in communities in the Northern Territory. I am pleased to report that the first of the medical teams is now on the ground. I am also happy to confirm that in relation to six communities in the Northern Territory, business managers have been appointed and are now assuming their duties. We have police permanently on the ground at Mutitjulu and we are well pleased with the practical way in which this initiative is now being implemented. I should also indicate, and Mr Brough may want to supplement this with some comments of his own, that the proposals put forward by the Northern Territory Government in relation to alcohol are not satisfactory. We will continue to develop our own proposals and legislation in relation to the alcohol issue in accordance with the principles that were laid down in the announcement I made with Mr Brough some two weeks ago. Concerning the legislation, the target date was to have the legislation ready on the 26th of July. We are still working to have it ready as soon as possible but it is very complicated legislation and if it turns out that it is not ready by that date and indeed is only ready on the eve of the scheduled resumption of parliament, then it would make sense for there not to be a special additional sitting, but we'll know about that over the next two weeks. But can I report generally that we are very satisfied with the progress that is being made, we are quite overwhelmed with the offers of support that are coming from the general community. It is evident that the Government's determination to make a real difference on this occasion is receiving very widespread support within the Australian community and that is something that I very warmly welcome.
BROUGH:
Thanks Prime Minister, just in relation to the NT's offer, it's been proven to fail in Far North Queensland and that is where you only restrict the access to take away alcohol and requiring ID if you are adjacent to a dry community. Clearly people are prepared to drive a long way to access alcohol. We've seen that in the issues, or the communities around Arakun, driving down to Cairns. So by experience, that's why we came up with the policy initiative across the entire territory. We welcome some initiatives of the NT Government, but as I said I have written, or as the Prime Minister said, I have now written to Clare Martin, the Chief Minister, last night reiterating that this is not adequate and that we will be going ahead with our legislation and we will continue to negotiate with them to get a positive outcome.
PRIME MINISTER:
Any questions?
JOURNALIST:
Is this proving more difficult than you first thought, given the delay in getting the legislation into parliament?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, no I always expected the legislation would be technical but the preparation of the legislation has in no way delayed the action. This was always going to be a very challenging, detailed operation. On the ground it's gone very well. The most important thing is that Mr Brough and other people going to these communities on behalf of the Commonwealth have been warmly welcomed. They are coming as friends and as helpers, they are not coming as people hostile to the interests of indigenous communities and that is the most reassuring thing about the whole operation. The people there in the communities know that the Commonwealth is acting in good faith. We come in friendship and with offers of support and help, we don't come as hostile interveners.
JOURNALIST:
What's the status of the health checks? You mentioned...
PRIME MINISTER:
The status of the health checks is that they will be made available to all children in the Northern Territory and we expect that with the understanding, which is now spreading through these communities, that we come as people wanting to help, we expect that parents will be only too happy to have their children examined and only too happy to have the health checks carried out.
BROUGH:
Just to clarify for you to, that how we are handling these issues, sensitively, is that the original community that the first doctors were going into, there is sorry business there, so we changed at the last minute to attend a different community and it is...that is just recognition of the value that we place on indigenous culture in dealing with these issues and that wherever possible there will be male and female doctors addressing obviously individual needs and that again has been reinforced by the NPY Women's Council and by the communities that I visited and they welcome those initiatives.
JOURNALIST:
But you will be seeking the parent's permission for the health checks?
BROUGH:
Mate, I can tell you that every parent that I spoke to, every health worker that I spoke to overwhelmingly didn't have one issue with what has been reported down here, but embracing it. Can I just also say that in relation to whether things...there is ever any need for compulsion, what occurs in Sydney will occur in Mutitjulu, if the child is suspected of child abuse, there are protocols in place and those protocols will be upheld.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, yesterday we had three more US republicans joining the push for a pull out from Iraq, how do you feel about the situation?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I'm not going to get into a detailed comment on domestic politics in the United States. Can I say that I, however, don't believe there is going to be any change in the approach of the Administration. The next issue in relation to Iraq in the United States is for General Petraeus to give his report to Congress and I think we should all take a deep breath and wait until that report is given.
JOURNALIST:
Bringing it back home though, this morning Michael Scheuer from...he's a former CIA Agent....
PRIME MINISTER:
Who, I'm sorry?
JOURNALIST:
Mike Scheuer, he's a former CIA Agent....
PRIME MINISTER:
I've not heard of him I'm sorry.
JOURNALIST:
Well he actually criticised Australia and the US's involvement in Iraq and says that defeat there is imminent and in fact the democracy there will never succeed. What do you have to say about that?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don't know who you're talking about. A lot of people disagree with me on Iraq. My position is that we are there to help the people of Iraq give affect to their desire to have democracy, they've voted in the most fearful circumstances of intimidation to embrace democracy. We believe very strongly that if the coalition were to pull out of Iraq in circumstances perceived as defeat then that would be very destabilising for the region, it would a huge victory for the terrorists and it would be against Australia's national interest. I can't for the life of me understand the logic of somebody like Mr Rudd who says it's okay to fight the terrorists in Afghanistan but it's okay to give in to terrorist intimidation in Iraq. I think there is a conflict, there's a piece of logic chopping by the Leader of the Opposition that completely dumbfounds me.
JOURNALIST:
So Prime Minister, you don't think there's going to be an imminent change in the US strategy? Some people in Washington...
PRIME MINISTER:
There's always speculation but my very strong view is that the Administration will remain on course with what it's previously said and the next step in the process is to receive General Petraeus' report which he'll deliver to Congress in September.
JOURNALIST:
Have they given any indication to you that there could be a change in strategy?
PRIME MINISTER:
I don't believe that there is going to be any change from the course on which the Administration has set itself over recent months.
JOURNALIST:
Just on housing affordability Prime Minister, it seems to be coming a more politically potent issue. Do you accept that voters out there are feeling more stress?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh look I'm not going to give a running commentary on, you know, the level of this or that interest on particular issues. As far as housing affordability is concerned the best thing that we can do as a government in relation to housing affordability is to keep interest rates as low possible. And I do know this, that if there's a change of government there will be great upward pressure on interest rates and if you think that is just a piece of political rhetoric, state Labor governments have gone into deficit; those deficits have put upward pressure on interest rates and if you want to know how a federal Labor government would behave in relation to deficits have look at how state Labor governments have behaved. I would have thought to have eight state and territory Labor governments augmented by a federal Labor government, collectively that would be a very bad outcome for interest rates and that would be very bad for home buyers.
JOURNALIST:
Do you accept that now under this federal government voters are feeling more stress and more pain because of rising house prices?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well the truth is that the cost of servicing out of your disposable income the average housing loan is in fact lower now than what it was at its peak in 1989 and that's not my calculation, that's the calculation of the Reserve Bank.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, on the issue of the Solomon Islands, Julian Moti's been sworn in as the Attorney-General there today. Will this have any effect on the RAMSI mission?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well it won't of itself have a direct affect on RAMSI but it is a very provocative and insensitive thing for somebody who is wanted on criminal charge in this country to be sworn in as the Attorney-General. The first law officer of the crown in the Solomon Islands is apparently going to be somebody who is wanted, what, on a child sex offence? I think that's quite extraordinary and I think it only has to be, the facts only have to be stated to underline the seriousness of what is occurring but you don't deal with that seriousness by hurting the people of the Solomon Islands by pulling out of RAMSI. I want to make it clear, we will be in for the long haul when it comes to RAMSI and the reason we're in for the long haul in relation to RAMSI is that RAMSI is good for the people of the Solomon Islands. The ordinary people in the Solomon Islands want Australia there. They appreciate the help and they'll be there irrespective of who is in power in that country.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, just...
PRIME MINISTER:
This'll be the last question I'm afraid because we've got to go back to a Cabinet meeting.
JOURNALIST:
Sure, there's a developing story in Queensland, there seems to be more disunity in the Queensland Liberals with some talk that Bruce Flegg could be a liability at the federal election. Do you...
PRIME MINISTER:
I don't have any comment, that is a matter for my colleagues in Queensland.
JOURNALIST:
Is it concerning though that there seems to be trouble there?
PRIME MINISTER:
I don't have any comment, it is a matter for my colleagues in Queensland.
[ends]