LAWS:
Prime Minister, good morning.
PRIME MINISTER:
Good morning John.
LAWS:
Has it been a good year?
PRIME MINISTER:
It's been a very good year for Australia. We've had a very strong economy; we've remained a very united, cohesive, tolerant, society. Our respect around the world has remained at a very high level. That doesn't mean to say that we don't continue to have challenges, that there aren't some people who continue to miss out on the good life and the opportunities that the successful modern Australia offers. But overall I believe it's been a very, very good year for this country. Our relations with our neighbours are in good shape and we're also not ashamed in any way to keep our traditional friendships and alliances in very good repair as well.
LAWS:
Do you think we should keep our traditional beliefs in good repair?
PRIME MINISTER:
I certainly do, and if you're inviting me to make a comment on...
LAWS:
Please.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well can I just say this is political correctness from central casting. It is unbelievable, and the most significant thing is that I have never met a Jewish person or a Muslim Australian who wants us to stop celebrating Christmas.
LAWS:
Neither have I.
PRIME MINISTER:
See this is the ridiculous thing about thing blanding-out of any kind of distinctive identity that we might have. Christmas is not only a religious festival, and it's not compulsory that people observe the religious side of Christmas...
LAWS:
No.
PRIME MINISTER:
...although many choose to, millions choose to, but it's also part of the history and the culture of this country. And the very idea that you win acceptance by denying your own identity is pathetic. It's always been at the heart of what I regard as the harmful aspects of multicultural zeal. Ordinary multiculturalism which says you respect difference, you encourage people to treasure and value their own personal heritage, but at the same time you recognise that the dominant influence in this country still is the Judeo-Christian ethic...
LAWS:
Yep.
PRIME MINISTER:
...and Christmas is not only as I say a religious festival, it's also very much part of our culture, and really the explanation given by the Lord Mayor is in my view worse than the actual demonstration of the attitude - that you have a generic approach to Christmas? I mean...
LAWS:
Exactly.
PRIME MINISTER:
I mean it is just... You can't have a generic approach to Christmas. It celebrates an historic event. It celebrates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, and it has become a focal point all around the world for families to get together, to celebrate, and it brings people together.
LAWS:
Of course it does.
PRIME MINISTER:
Decorating a city and so forth brings people together, it brings happiness to children, it encourages people who've got woes to perhaps forget them for a little while. All of those things. Now there's nothing can replace that. In a thousand years you're not going to find a replacement in Australia for Christmas, and I just think this is silly. I really do. I...
LAWS:
I do.
PRIME MINISTER:
...I think the lady should reconsider. She won't, I know that, but it really is just so unnecessary and it's not going to please a non-Christian. A self-respecting Australian Jew or Muslim...
LAWS:
Of course.
PRIME MINISTER:
...would think to themselves and say well what a ridiculous joke. I don't expect people to carry on like that and...
LAWS:
No, they won't. They never have.
PRIME MINISTER:
...and they never have. They are perfectly understanding and they're part of our general culture.
LAWS:
What do you feel about Ms Moore deciding she'd put up eight banners in eight different languages offering 'Season's Greetings', not 'Happy Christmas', not 'Merry Christmas', 'Season's Greetings' in eight different languages. Can you...
PRIME MINISTER:
Well it's part of this...
LAWS:
Stupidity.
PRIME MINISTER:
...political correctness from central casting, as I call it. I mean it really is very much a part of that. And can I say that I was very disappointed some years ago when a lot of the department stores began... abandoned nativity scenes out of sensitivity. I mean it's part of the message. They still have decorations, but I think... my understanding is that very few of them now, if any, have nativity scenes.
LAWS:
No, well we had a fight earlier this week about it and we got a couple returned.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that is very good. Good on them. And I hope they all bring them back.
LAWS:
Yeah, but believe me I had to really punish the people involved on radio before we could get them to change their mind. But they changed their minds, so I suppose that's good enough.
PRIME MINISTER:
Excellent.
LAWS:
Yeah.
PRIME MINISTER:
But you have these sort of outbreaks each Christmas. You get the odd child care centre or something that will have an end of season celebration, or a holiday get-together, or some other pathetic, bland euphemism. But to have the Lord Mayor of what I think is one of the great cities in the world. I am biased because I grew up in Sydney.
LAWS:
Best modern city in the world.
PRIME MINISTER:
I think it's a fantastic city, and I think we should take every single opportunity to give people enormous pride in it.
LAWS:
I agree with you. What are your, can I ask you, what are your own plans for Christmas?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I'll spend Christmas in Sydney. I will spend Christmas at Kirribilli. I'll have the normal family gathering, I get members of the slightly extended Howard family, we get together on Christmas night, we have done so all our lives. I have three older brothers and myself and our families, bits and pieces of them, we'll all be there. Which is very nice.
LAWS:
Okay, well I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, a safe Christmas. Thank you for having done your best very for Australia for so long, because I know you have done your best, not everybody agrees with what you've done but you've certainly done your best. And that was proved at the last election, which I tipped incidentally.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well you did, you were very kind and you were prescient and I thank you for that, for both of those things and I wish you a good holiday and a good break and I've enjoyed being on your programme, I don't always expect you to, I certainly don't you to agree with everything, I know you won't and that's in the nature of an independent objective broadcaster but it's always a great delight to be on your programme and it reaches so many people around the country and you can always say what you think.
LAWS:
Prime Minister, have a very, very happy and safe Christmas and hopefully we'll talk to each other again in the new year.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thank you John.
LAWS:
Okay, good bye.
PRIME MINISTER:
Merry Christmas.
[ends]