JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, a very dramatic start to your morning today. What did you see?
PRIME MINISTER:
Something, but I';ll leave that to the police.
JOURNALIST:
But I mean obviously a good job by your security to control the situation.
PRIME MINISTER:
They always do a good job.
JOURNALIST:
Did it give you a fright Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER:
No.
JOURNALIST:
Stuart MacGill deciding not to go to Zimbabwe.
PRIME MINISTER:
I respect him. I like Stuart MacGill. He';s not only a wonderful player, but he';s a good bloke and I always admire somebody who in his own way, for his own reasons forms a conscientious objection on something, and I';m sure it';s properly based and it';s genuine and I congratulate him for the strength of his character.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, Bob Carr has called on the Federal Government for two reasons. First of all he believes ammonium nitrate should be banned, and also he has asked the Federal Government to try and make Telstra and Optus phone jam phone lines around jails, so criminals with mobiles smuggled inside can';t call outside. What';s your response?
PRIME MINISTER:
He must be suffering from amnesia, because we discussed this ammonium nitrate ban at the last Premiers'; conference meeting, and it';s underway. He knows that. He really knows that. And as for the other proposal, well I';ll have a look at that. I don';t know how technically feasible it is. On the ammonium nitrate, we are underway. We';ve been doing something about that and working on that now for months. And I wrote… the Attorney General wrote to all the states some time ago on that. I don';t know whether New South Wales has replied. I';m not saying they haven';t. But the whole thing has been underway, and he knows as well as I do that you can';t ban that throughout Australia without the cooperation of all states and the Commonwealth. And that is exactly what we have been doing over the past months, so I really don';t know what he';s going on about.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, Mick Keelty (inaudible) considered resigning at the height of the Keelty affair, so to speak. Does that surprise you?
PRIME MINISTER:
Look I don';t have anything to say on that matter. I admire his work. I note his emphatic rejection of that absurd Rand Corporation finding, and I continue to have full confidence in him.
JOURNALIST:
Should the Federal Government match Mark Latham';s 45 per cent immigration target in regional areas?
PRIME MINISTER:
We have pioneered measures to deliver more migrants into regional areas. We have the runs on the board and we have the policies in place.
JOURNALIST:
Are you involved in the plan or the hope to save the Mitsubishi plant in South Australia?
PRIME MINISTER:
I have been in very close contact with a lot of people about this. I will do everything I can to keep the Mitsubishi investment in Australia. There are obviously a lot of things being considered by the company worldwide at the moment. In the past few days I';ve been in touch with the management of the company overseas and will continue my efforts to make it plain that we want Mitsubishi to stay, we particularly want (inaudible) in South Australia. The South Australian and Federal Governments have already provided a lot of money and a lot of incentives and a lot of encouragement for Mitsubishi to stay, and any difficulties now being experienced by the company are not the result of the unwillingness of either State or Federal Governments to encourage them to stay. We hope that they stay, but I can';t guarantee that. But I will do everything I can within reason to ensure they stay, and I want to give that assurance to the workers and to the management of Mitsubishi in South Australia. Thank you.
[ends]