PRESS OFFICE TRANSCRIPT Embargo 6pm EST XS
Interview with Laurie Wilson, Channel 7
21 April 1978
QUESTION: Prime Minister, the talks with Mr Ushibo. this
morning were in fact unscheduled. That seems to indicate
that they have some significance, the fact that they were
called at the last minute.
PRIME MINISTER: Well I think they're significant, beca use
they flowed naturally out of the discussions that began
yesterday with the Prime Minister. They're designed to
probe in depth the trade negotiations taking course throughout
this year. Australia I think has had a degree of
scepticism about the total result, because on all previous
occasions when there have been international trade negotiations,
the major industrial countries have made arrangements to use
tariffs on industr * ial goods, but then they have said " Oh well,
agriculture was too hard, commodities are too hard, we won't
do anything about that". And as a result, over the last
decades there has been a general freeing of trade in industrial
goods, but certainly no freeing of trade in agriculture. And
the importance of that for many countries can be seen from
the face that the negotiations on industrial goods will
cover say 40% of Japan, North America and Europe's exports
but only 5% of Australia' s exports. There have been many
other countries in Australia's position, most of them
developing countries.
QUESTION: In terms of your talks with Mr Ushiba, just what
are you after then?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what we really want is to make sur7e
that in the international trade negotiations, a,-riculture
is included as well as industrial g-oods. The United States
says that agriculture -will be included, Japan says that
agriculture will ~ e included, but it's not going to be any
good waking't up at the end of the day and finding that
agriculture is once again excluded as has occurred in the
past. And there Is another reason why agriculture needs to
be included, bocause the industrial side of these inte-rnational
trade negotioitions are operating on something less than
of world trade. You have to exclude traele inside the European
community, because thot's already free. And if you exclude
commodities and agriculture you find that the proposals on
industrial trade, reductions in ' ariffs in that area, operate
on less than 20% of wonrld trade, and I don't believe that
anyone can really see that the proposals, which co uld involve
about a half percent tariff reduction a year over 8 years,
but not starting till 1980, are doing all that much to achieve
an expansion of markets wh~ ich is necessary if wre tire to get
t. reater ; roductive use of our resources, 6Lnd therefore a
lessening of emplo,,. zent, not just in Australia~ but in all
countries. QiUESTION: Is this the most significant aspect of the visit? ./ 2
PRIME iIINISTER: I think it' a very significant aspect of what's
happening throughout the course of this year, and I think it is an
importqnt part of our discussions. We'll also be talking later
today a. out the North/ South dialogue, and the need to make sure
that the developing countries are not excluded from any benefits
under the International trade negotiations. There must be movement
in the Common Fund.
QUESTION: Mr Ushiba is quoted as having said that the reason you
were coming up here was because it was the normal sort of
consultation which took place between the two countries prior to
the major economic summit to be held later this year. You
obviously see it as something different from that.
PRIME MINISTER I had rather though that these talks were
different from talks that have taken place between Japan and
Australia in the past. They're not talks about bilateral
issues, and that's been made plain and I think it's now accepted
They are talks about what's happening in the intornational
environment, and it's natural that we should want to talk to
Japan about these matters because we're vastly affected as a
significant trading nation, Japan as a significant trading
nation. We're affected by Japan's access to markets overseas
just as we're affected by our own access. Therefore I think
it's natural to talk with Japan about these particular matters
as we approach the more formal trade negotiations.
QUIESTION: Are you yourself going to be going to Jamaica, and
what is the significance of the jamaica conference following
the talks in Japan?
PIMI. MINISTER: Providing the Jamaica talks go ahead as we've
been told and as scheduled, I i. 11 be attending, yes, because
again I think this is maybe one of the very few forums, maybe
the only forum in which a group cf developed and developing
countries, Heads of Government, getting together in a completely
unstructured way. There is the Commonwealth, of course, but
I'm not taking that into accountat the moment. I believe that
if we are to get the sort of results out of the more formal
international negotiations taking place throughout this year
there has got to be a new commitment, a new dedication on the
part of nations, and my understanding is that the Jamaica
meeting has been called largely because of the same kinds of
concerns that Australia has expressed, and largely because
Prime Minister Manley wants to re-energise the international
trade negotiations so that hopefully they can really be successful.