S HOBART PRESS CLUB
22 SEPTEMBER 19751
OPENING STATEMENT BY THE PRIME MINISTER N C
Mr President, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Thank you for giving me an opportunity again, directly
and personally, and in these hospitable surroundings, to speak
to the representatives of the Tasmanian Press. There's
one particular point I want to make to you today: that is
that the Australian Government is determined to remove the
handicap of isolation which Tasmania suffers as Australia's
only island State. Of necessity this is a long-term aim. it
will not be achieved by temporary measures. Our policies
are therefore designed to redress the basic handicap of
separation from the mainland by attacking the fundamental
problem on the basis of the best available advice and
information. This has been a difficult year economically as you
all know. Our economic problems the problems which Australia
shares with every comparable country have not made our task
in Tasmania any easier. our Budget last month recognised
the need for a steady, continuing attack on inflation. We
therefore decided that a sharp reduction in the growth of
Government expenditure was needed. I emphasise, however,
that in cutting back this rate of growth the Australian
Government has bden generous, and will remain generous, in its
outlays to the States. While we have imposed restraints on
our own spending we have been reluctant to compel the States
to do likewise, though naturally we expect that the same
spirit of restraint will be observed by them. In point of
fact, as Mr Hayden said in his Budget speech last month,
we estimate that the financial assistance grants payable to
the States this financial year will total about $ 3,185 million,
an increase' of $ 811 million, an increase of 34.2 per cent
over the grants paid by the Australian Government to the
State Governments last financial year. This is on the basis
of the improvements in financial arrangements which we
undertook at'-the Premiers' Conference in June. So while no
State Government may get as much from the Australian
Government to spend as it would like they will all enjoy
a much bigger increase in their expenditure than the
Australian Government has so'ught or allowed for itself.
Now to come back to Tasmania. We recognise that the
chief problem is in transport. I undertook in November 1972
that an Australian Labor Government would ensure that surface
freight between Hobart and Melbourne would cost no more per
ton mile, no more per tonne per kilometre than the surface
freight between Melbourne and her other neighbouring capitals
on the mainland, Sydney and Adelaide. Because previous
Australian Governments had allowed the Inter-State Commission
ordained in the Constitution to expire and had not persevered
with proposals to reestabli~ sh it, the Government didn't have
the necessary information available to it. We accordingly
appointed Mr Nimmo as a Royal Commissioner to inquire into
and report upon the whole subject. We expect his report
in December or January. He commenced writing it earlier
this month. The Commissioner has indicated that the issues
are so complex and inter-related that an interim report on
any one aspect of his inquiries would serve little purpose.
It's an enormous inquiry. Mr Nimmo has collected information
from more than 140 firms, he has received 84 written
submissions, he has interviewed 185 individuals and representatives
of organisations. Evidence was given by 87 witnesses
at the public hearing. He has inspected ferry services
between the Eastern provinces of Canada-to Prince Edward
Island and Newfoundland from the mainland-and also ferry
services across the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. The
Government will be considering his report as soon as it is
received. Meantime , the Australian Government has made and will
make no increases in northbouna AWL freight rates. This
policy and the subsidy on ANL passenger services across
Bass Strait will cost Australian taxpayers $ 6 to $ 7 million
this financial year. Now, I know people constantly say, not
enough. Therefore allow me to make at least this political
point. The previous Liberal Federal Governments gave no
financial assistance to these services at all. My Government
is levying from Australian taxpayers as a whole $ 6 to $ 7
million this year for this purpose.
Incidentally, nobody prevents other lines providing a
service. It's completely legal to do so. But it's increasingly
being left to the ANL.
In one respect, the price of wheat, Tasmania has for
long been placed on the same footing as the mainland States.
' the taxpayers, however, are paying more than they should to
support this policy because no Tasmanian port is equ pped
to service an adequate ship for the wheat trade. The
matter has now come to a head. The ship hitherto used to
deliver the wheat to Tasmania, the North Esk, has reached
the end of its life. It is coming up for its survey and all
the indications are that the survey will disclose so much
would have to be done to it that it wouldn't be an economic
proposition. The Tasmanian Government has been advised by
Pak Poy and the Australian Government has been advised by
AWL that a bulk ship is the proper ship for this trade.
The ANL has several suitable, bulk ships already. There is
however, no Tasmanian port w; hich can so far handle such a
bulk ship. It's urgent to equip one of the Tasmanian ports
to handle a wheat ship, a bulk ship, a modern ship; presumably* it'd be
Bell Bay. In fact, Bell Bay should logically be the focus
of Tasmania's sea, rail and road links with the mainland.
The real significance of the acquisition of the
Tasmanian Government Railways by the Australian National
Railways lies in this context of better transport links with
the mainland. With the res. ponsibility for rail services
within the State and the responsibility for most sea services
across the Strait reposing-in the national Government there
will for the first time be a real effort to coordinate and
dovetail these two essential modes of transport. With the
national Government also accepting its constitutional
responsibility to upgrade roads to the ports what the
Constitution says is, that the Federal Parliament can pass
with respect to trade and commerce including trade and
commerce by road, with other countries and among the;
States. Accordingly the national Government has always
had the responsibility, although mine is the first
Government to accept the responsibility, to upgrade roads
between States and the ports. Now with us accepting that
responsibility Tasmanians can at last expect their basic
handicap of isolation to be removed. I-' d better say
something about the railways in another context, the
financial context.
The transfer of financial responsibility for your
railways to the Australian Government came into effect
last July on the basis of agreements between Mr Neilson and
myself. In addition to getting a more modern and efficient
railway service and better standards of track and rolling
stock and signaling equipment there will be significant
fianncial advantages for Tasmania. The State will be relieve
of the burden of losses-and inevitably with the equipment
which State Governments seem to be able to get for their
rail ser" Yices, Those losses will mount every year. In
New South Wales the losses are well over $ 200 million this
year and in Victoria they're approaching $ 200. million.
Now with the State being relieved of those losses, it will
also receive an additional $ 3.3 million in financial assistance
and on top of that we pay $ 5 million as a first contribution
in consideration~ of assets.
Another area where the Australian Government can give
particular and much needed help to Tasmania is in urban and
regional development. In the current financial year $ 1.8
million has been provided to Tasmania, if I may mention it
here, for sewerage programs; $ 840Y000 has been provided for
the North-West Tasmanian Water Supply Scheme the first
allocation ' of funds for this purpose. We have allocated
the maximum possible amount of $ 500,000 to set up the
Tasmanian Urban Land Council. And this Council will
administer the land acquisition and development programs
for which generous Australian Government funds will be
available. As you already know well, the Australian Government
is concentrating all its Ant'arctic Activities in Hobart and
is establishing the Australian Maritime College on the Tamar;
the legislation for that will be introduced next month.
The apply and pear industry one of the pillars of-
Tasmania's economy hitherto has received assistance on an
unprecedented scale. You don't know how lucky you are havinq
Senator Wriedt as the minister for Agriculture. We have
continued the fruitgrowing reconstruction scheme and the
stabilisation scheme for growers' returns on exported apples
and pears. The Australian ' and Tasmanian Governments have
agreed jointly to provide supplementary support for apples
exported on an " at risk" basis to the United Kingdom and other
European markets. The purpose is to sustain the viable sector
of the export industry until the Australian Apple and Pear
Corporation established by my Government can develop
alternative markets. I am confident that the Corporation / 4
will bring new drive and expertise to the promotion of
this industry. In addition, $ 950,000 has been paid so far
to Tasmanian fruitgrowers in post-revaluation adjustment
assistance. The Industries Assistance Commission will be
reporting later this year on apple and pear and other
fruitgrowing reconstruction schemes.
Finally I want to give you some-account of our response
to the Tasman Bridge disaster. The social dislocation caused
by the disaster was so great that remedial measures will
necessarily take longer than at first seemed likely. Our
response has been prompt and generous. The Australian
Government was in no way obliged to rectify the destruction
of the bridge but that hasn't stopped us from doing everything
in our power to do so. People, take all these things for
granted now. No suggestion was ever made under previous
Federal Governments that there should be assistance for
the West Gate Bridge for instance in Melbourne. Now the
Australian Government a joint Tasman Bridge Restoration
Commission has been established by the Australian and
Tasmanian Governments. A very great Tasmanian, Sir Roland
Wilson,-. you remember him as Secretary to the Treasury, and
then chairman of Qantas and of the Commonwealth Bank he
acts as my personal adviser on this matter. A sum of $ 6
million was appropriated by the Australian Parliament for the
period up to. the end of last June; a further $ 13.9 million
has been appropriated for reconstruction, restoration and
ancillary works in the present financial year. The Australian
Government will finance the widening of the bridge during
restoration to provide for five traffic lanes. You will get
a very much better Bridge than you had before.
The Australian Government has undertaken to meet all
the costs of designting and constructing a second bridge and
its approaches over the Derwent River between Dowsings Point
and Cleburne Point. This bridge is estimated to cost $ 21 million
and will have 4 traffic lanes. It will have a vertical
clearance above the river of 15 metres.
In the meantime we have undertaken a range of relief
measures such as the financing of a permanent community
health centre at Bellerive,. assistance with additional ambulance,
fire-fighting, road safety, flaw enforcement and judicial
services on the eastern shore, and assistance with emergency
river crossing facilities. There has been virtually no limit
to our readiness to cooperate with the Tasmanian Government
and that cooperation will continue until community life in
Hobart on both shores is restored to normal. From the ruins
of the Tasman Bridge incomparably better metropolitan
communications will arise. The capital of Tasmania will obtain
better town planning and better civic services because for the
first time there is a national Government which is involved
in urban affairs.