PM Transcripts

PJ1E M4INISTER' S INTERVIEW ON CHAN4NEL 7 NEWS 18 OCTOBER 1975
bir Whitlam, what',; the possibility of a half Senate election through
either deferral or rejection of Supply rather than the normal
circumstances now?
There has to be an election for half the Senate before the end of
next June because half the senators' terms of office will expire
at that time. Now it's usual for the new senators to be elected in
November or DEcember beforehand and to do that one would issue
writs about this time. I haven't made up my mind when I will advise
the Governor-General to ask the State Governors to issue writs for
that half Senate election. When I give him that advice will depend
very largely how soon the Opposition makes uP its mind about the Bu dget.
They are threaten" hg to reject the Budget Bills; they haven't yet
done so. They've at this stage only carried a motion to defer
debate on it.
There' s obviously a deadlock -who is going to hack down?
Well they'll have to. I can assure you that I shall not. There will
not be an election for the House of Representatives just because the
( Senate wants it.* The Governor-General issues the writs for a
House of Representatives election on the advice of the Govern-ment.
And the Government has a majority in the House of Representatives, and
there is no sign that it will not keep that majority that is,~
the Government will have an election for the House of Representatives
at the ordinary timze in another eighteen mionths.
Q: Well, Mr Fraser has suggested that the Governor-General could intervene.
is that possible?
No , it would be completely improper for the Governor-General to do it.
it was possible for the Kings of England to do something like that a
few centuries ago, but it is not p ossible today. But not only that, our
Constitution expressly says that the writs for a House of Representatives
election are issued by the Governor-General-in-Council that means
by the Government.
Just summing that up you don't believe, well you believe that the
opposition will pass Supply; you don't believe there'll be a House-of
Representatives election next year.
I'm certain that there will not be a House of Representatives election
just because the Senate says so. I'm not certain that the Opposition will
pass the Budget in the Senate; I'm not certain, of t -at. I am certain
of the other there will not be an election for the House of Representatives
except at the proper time, and that is not determined by the Senate.
Well, if it doesn't pass the Budget, can we really expect the sort of chaos
that we've been hearing...
There will be very great disruption in economic matters, businesses and so onvery
great disruption, that is true. But that is what the Opposition is
risking.