PRESENTER:
Prime Minister thank you very much for your time. Now you have been out and about and seeing first hand the devastation. How has it affected you?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well just before I answer that question could I correct the info to that last bit. The Howard Government is not pointing the finger of blame at anybody. There is a case when this is all over, and the people who need help have been helped, for us to ask questions and to continue the legitimate debate about the degree of hazard reduction that ought to go on all over Australia. But I have nothing but admiration for the work of the firefighters and the police in Canberra. And in fairness to Wilson Tuckey his remarks have been taken out of context.
PRESENTER:
Should he have not have said that Mr Howard?
PRIME MINISTER:
No. I looked at what Wilson said and he was talking about the broad generic issue of whether as a community nationally we have enough hazard reduction and there is a legitimate debate in this country about forest management. But that is unrelated to the response of fire teams and fire crews in Canberra on Saturday and Wilson was not having a go at them and it's not fair that he be painted as having done that. I think what we ought to be doing as a community is helping the people who need help and then in the calmness and full light of day let us legitimately ask some questions and let us have the debate about whether we have the right policies generally to deal with the bushfire threat in this country. But let it not be couched in terms of blame apportionment, of finger pointing. Let us as a community in Canberra and as a nation help the people who need help, and then when that is done and their lives have been rebuilt, we can then have a calm and objective and reflective examination and debate. I've heard experts like Phil Koperberg say in the last 48 hours that this event was a result of a freakish conjunction of circumstances, wind velocity, heat, drought, all of those things and I think we have to be very calm, but above all help the victims and express our admiration and thanks to the fire people and the police who put their bodies on the line to help us.
PRESENTER:
Well I'm sure a lot of people will be happy to hear you say that. Mr Howard thank you very much for your time.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thank you.