4/ 16'& 1V
FOR MEDIA SUNDAY 22 JULY 1979
ADDRESS TO THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN
STATE CONFERENCE OF THE LIBERAL PARTY
This St~ ate Council, which from all reports is midway through
being a most successful one, follows what I believe was a
highly successful Federal Council meeting in Perth. That is
a tribute to the strength of Western Australian Liberalism.
It is a tribute to your State Cabinet, to your organisation.
It is a tribute to Sir Charles and the leadership that he
has given not only this State but Liberalism throughout
the Commronwealtk-h.
I know quite well the enormous contribution that Western
Austra. bia has made to the Federal Governmrent over a long period.
I've only got one disappointment with that. You have a rather
miserable record of holding only nine of the ten seats in the
House of Representatives. I think it is quite unforgivable
to allow the Labor Party to have even that one. So that
ought to be the objective of the next election.
But making this State's economy go ahead has been a major part
of the work of the State Government. W,-here we can, the
Commnonwealth has sought to co-operate in that. With the
Noxfth West Shelf for example, we have a number of special
arrangements agreed between the State and the Commonwealth
to enable that to move ahead. The last reports I have had in
relation to the feasibility study are encouraging. I would
hope very much that major projects are sucessfully launched.
Those few thousand million dollars of major development work
either going ahead, or in the final feasibility stages of this
State that can only happen with Liberal policies, as I believe,
co-operation between the State and the Commonwealth.
I would thank your State President, Noel Crichton-Browne, for
four years as President. The Constitution doesn't allow him
to be President again.
But Noel has done an enormous amount of work for the Liberal
Party, in this State I know, and also in the Federal sphere
through general elections; on the Federal Committees, on the
Federal Executive. He has spent a very great amount of time and
effort. That is what is needed. It's not'just sitting here
being the State Presiden't. It ne~ eds energy, initiative, the
capacity to get out and maake sure that our organisation is
as strong an organisation that it can possibly be. I believe
Noel * Crichton-. Browne has served Western. Australia, and the
Federal Liberal Party, well.
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There is one thing which Liberal Party Councils, whether they
are State or Federal, just can't match. We can't match the
Labor Party, the socialists -solidarity spectacular that it
always seems to have when they get together.
I want to say one or two things ab'out the Labor Party
Conference we need tc look at the policies and make
sure that everyone understands the policies that have been
adopted over this last weekend, in the Labor Party, and which
commit them, and commit them all.
Mr. Hayden said he wanted to leave the Whitlam years behind him.
But he was proud to be part of them. He w-. as in fact Mr. Whitlam's
economic architect for a large part of those years. He still
carries responsibility. He obviously doesn't want to leave
those years as far behind as he says because the policies they
have endorsed and adopted are substantially the same as the
policies that were applied during those times.
If w. e can remember 1972 Whitlam and Labor before the election
were hailed as moderate and reasonable by the media. But as
soon the polls were declared at the end of 1972 moderation was
left behind and we had the three most terrible years that
Australia has ever seen. The destructiveness of Labor showed.
Over the last weekend we have had
Mr. Hayden offering Mr. Whitlam's failings, but maybe without
Mr. VWhitlam's flamboyancy and sense of theatre.
But the objective to destroy the States is totally unchanged.
Sure, they said ' w'e will keep the Senate', but let's make sure
it is a Senate with no powers; no power to do the things that
sometimes that Senate has to do to protect the smaller States
and sometimes had to do to protect the whole of Australia.
So that is Whitlam all over again.
Then what about a simple majority to alter the Constitution.
No question of having a majority in a majority of States. That
is the wise men of the East, I suppose, telling. Western Australia
what to do. It is not something that you would willingly accept
and not something that you ought to accept. But that is Whitlam
all over again.
Again, they said they would assert total Commonwealth power over
mining offshore. Painstakingly, Sir Charles and myself, his
Government and mine, have come to an agreement about offshore
matters. Special arrangements also to meet the particular
needs of this State in relation to the joint authority. All that
is going to be torn up, thrown away, because Federal Labor would
want to do it all from Canberra*. They specifically said, " we
will move the Federal departments out into the States so that
we can better control what the States would do". Now, surely, that
is Whitlam all over again.
For the economy; interventionist in the extreme. Direct
planning of allocation of resources by Government, not by private
enterprise. Nationalisation where it is necessary. Joint
public and private ownership to be promoted. Extension of public
enterprise to national investment fund which our tax dollars would
go to to mfake the losses for socialist bureaucratic failures.
An Australian Hydrocarbon Corporation to do what private enterprise
again ought to do. That a~ ain is Wh-itlam all over again.
-3
High taxes they certainly promise. You know Mr. Whitlam
promised to pay this was one promise he certainly kept
to promise to pay for a large measure of his proposals through
higher inflation and therefore higher taxation as a result of
inflation. Well he kepL that and we had the greatest inflation
in Australia's history.
He also proposed a capital gains tax and then found it too
difficult to implement. But Mr. Hayden is going to do that
all over again. On top it, he would have a wealth tax, so
I suppose it is Whitlam over again but slightly worse.
In addition, a resources rents tax designed presumably to stop
the great development projects in the State, in Queensland, in
other parts of Australia, as they effectively stopped them in
three years of Government. But then again, they will intervene
to take action to prevent the continuance of trans-national
corporations that are against the public interest. What a
wonderful way to say we want overseas investment in this country;
to'have a sword hanging over the head of every trans-national
or multinational company say we are going to prevent the
activities of the ones we don't like. But which ones don't they
like? Are they going to get up and say what projects they
want to stop. Are they going to get up and say whether they
are goin9 to expropriate the ones they don't like? Instead they
just create a policy which is going to cause doubt and dismay
if there ever was a Labor administration which there isn't
going to be amongst all those whom we want to have invest
in this country with confidence and vigour.
They said staff ceilings would come off. We have nearly 60,000
less public servants than we would have had under their policies
and programmes. That is not a bad effort.
They also want to politicize the public service. We passed a
law to stop future Prime Minister of any power moving his own
private and chosen people in a political sense, into the
public service, because we believe in the apolitical nature of
that service. Three private secretaries of Mr. Whitlam became
permanent heads. We thought that ought to stop. We passed a law
to stop it. Labor said they will remove that law if they ever
get the chance.
But what did they do about the mainstream of economic problems.
They sold out to the Left. They ignored inflation as though it
doesnt-L-exist. No recognition of a wages problem, that it adds to
inflation. No real recognition that too much Government expenditure
adds to inflation. Even Mr. Wran called the policy a hotch-potch
and Mr. Hawke sdid it was a gutless sell-out to the Left. If
Mr. Hawke, whose much of his ACTU and semi-Dolitical life is
dependent upon the votes from the left, is accusing Mr. Hayden of
a gutless sell-cut to the Left I can't see any reason why on that
occasion we shouldn't believe Mr. Hawke. / 4
-4
We've got to give it to Mr. Hayden. He does some things just
like Mr. Whitlam; he fights with Mr. Hawke.
But in industrial relations, where Australia is today facing
a challenge in the Str~ tes and in the Commonwealth, which this
State and the Commonwealth is seeking to match and to meet
with all the vigour and power at our command, they say " we will
place the unions above the law. We will place any activity
undertaken in the name of unionism beyond the reach of any law"
Labor and their words will ensure the right to strike immune
from any pains or penalities; recognise the right of trade
unions to regulate their own affairs free from Government or
judicial interference, even though some of them have an annual
income of nearly $ 10 million a year and exert more power in
this community than any corporation, Australian or multinational.
They will free trade unions from the Trade Practices Act which
has been useful on many occasions; repeal all penalties for
strikes against arbitral decisions a decision of Labor
aimed at the heart of arbitration, aimed at the heart of the
industrial processes of this country. They will repeal the
disciplinary legislation that we have introduced. Repeal the
legislation that ended the TLelecom dispute. Labor has sided
with industrial anarchy against the people of Australia. They
will plainly repeal any lawa which gives any Government power
which is so patently and clearly needed under current circumstances.
They would repeal the lot and leave Government and the people
of Australia naked and defenceless.
Not only that, they are going to have a special body to spy
on multinational companies. Then they are going to give the
information they get from those multinational companies
t'-o the domestic trade unions and to international trade unions.
Just as though their other policies weren't going to do enough
to stop investment and development in this country, they would
have a special spy service against multinational companies to
make damn sure that there wasn't going to be any more investment.
The accumulation of Labor's policies would stop Australia dead in its
tracks, just as effectively as it did in the past. It is our task
mnake sure that all Australians understand that.
Let me now g -t on with the real business of where Australia
stands today and what we ourselves, in co-operation with the
States, intend and seek to do about it.
Australia is now more competitive than it has been for many many
years.-Our industries are selling again better in Australian
markets and also in overseas markets. That started from the
devaluatk-ion of two to three years ago and the management of the
exchange rate and the economy since then, which has rebuilt the
competitive base of Australian manufacturing industry and
helped Australian farming industries. As a result, our balance
of payments is stronger than it has been. Where is all that
speculation about a weak Australian dollar today? It doesn't
exist because of the effectiveness of our policies.
Since February, private capital inflow has been over
$ 1,000 million. That is a better result than for many many
years. In the eight months to February, export prices rose at twice
the pace of import prices, greatly assisting Australian exporters.
in this last year non-farm gross domestic product I hope
you can put up with one or two figures increased by three and
a half percent in real terms. In the nine months to March
company profitability r * ose over 20 percent. In the year to March
investment expenditure rose 25 percent in mining uD 45 percent.
What happened under Labor? Real investment for those industries
on many estimates fell by an average of eight percent a year.
There Ihas been great progress in this State with major projects
cornritted or in the final feasibility stage, upwards of
$ 2,000 million and in other States in Queensland, in great
resource projects there are equivalent figures indicating
the progress that is and can be made.
our rural industries are looking to the 1980s with a deg ree
of conf'idence for the first time in many years. We know what
has happened to beef prices. This was needed because farmers wiere
in a very difficult position. Last year's wheat crop was an
all-time record. There are continuing high export prices and
a larger area has again been planted this year throughout
Australia. The prospects are good. In wool, production is
rising, not greatly, but usefully. The average price for wool
is very sound. The reserve price has been increased by 20 cents.
Remember Labor, just when confidence was needed -they reduced
the reserve price by 50 cents in one year. The forecastsfor
1979-2,0 for the wool industry are again sound. Reserves at the
moment are lower than they have been for many, many years. That
industry will be able to build on the future with confidence.
But rural recovery is no accident. The industry has been assisted
by policies to control the internal economy and to get better
access to markets. We had a situation where other governments
had argued and spoken for thirty years about getting reductions
in the American wool tariff. It is this Government that has
achieved a 60 percent reduction in that American wool tariff.
Our beef industry will have better and more secure access to
Japan, to the United States and even some access to Europe as
a result of the trade policies that we have pursued.
Then the Primary Industry Bank which has already re-financed
$ 100 million of debt, income equalisation deposits, the new
Wheat Stabilisation Scheme, the support for the Wool Corporation
and tax averaging are all specific policies designed to rebuild
the strength of Australia's rural industries.
Of course, the fundamentals of economic control getting inflation
down, getting expendituro down great progress has been
made in both of those areas. ./ 6
-6
There have been unexpected events Iran and what happened as a result
of Iran and the upset of world oil supplies. We wanted beef prices
to be increased but the increase was larger t!-L-an we expected and had
greater inflationary consequence than we expected. The wheat
harvest was an all-time record) as you know. It is good for
wheat farmers and good for the balance of payments, but not good
for inflation. For these reasons there were upward pressures
on inflation which we had to respo-nd to, as we did in the
mini-budget. But if we hadn't, people could have charged us
and said " what has happened to your anti-inflationary policy,
aren't you going to keep the country on track in relation to that".
The change was necessary; necessary more so than desirable.
Industrial disputes: I have indicated what Labor wouldn't do.
Let me say what we are doing and will do. If strikes continue
as they have over the last two to three months, they will assuredly
destroy Australia and the possibilities and prospects of this
nation in the 1980s.' The strikes are selfish; seeking confrontation,
not with Government , but with the people of Australia. So many
union leaders seem not to want consultation. Where the
Commironw.. ealth has clear power it will act. It has clearest power
in relation to our own employees. So we have proclaimed an Act
that has been on the books for some time, really, in a sense2
waiting for the opportunity nr the necessity, if that should be
forced upon us. The proclamation was enough to end the
Telecom dispute.
The Postal Commission already has well * over 2,000 people stood
down. If they are not back at work by M". onday with the bans
lifted from the Redfern Sydney Mail Exchange, then further measures
will be taken and we know precisely what we are going to do.
The Postal Commx-ission has already indicated that no matter what, back
to work or not, they are going to move to dismantle Redfcrn.
It is a large operation that can't be done overnight, but they
have set the task and that is irrevocable.
The special Act we proclaimed is a reasonable one. It enables
. us to suspend, stand down, or ultimately to dismiss employees
who are seeking to disrupt activity in Australia. There is no
way we are going to accept the circumstances where people go along
and say amn going to do 70 pearcent of my work, and I don'It like!
the other 30 percent or I am not going to do the other
percent because I don't like a Government policy. Of course,
you the employer, being the taxpayer, and the Government, are going
to pay me my full wage as though I am doing my whole job".
Doing part of your work, striking for the other part, and expecting
to be paid in full that is the position we were faced with
no private employer would put up with it for two minutes. This
Commonwealth Government is not going to put up with it. Any
public servantswho expect that they can behave in this way can
now axpect to be stood down forthwith as the minijmun consequence
of that kind of action.
7
The Australian Council of Trade Union's actions and attitudes
have been inflammatory in this situation. Tony Street called
a meeting and said: " We are not asking you to take sides
in any dispute, but we do ask you to support arbitration to
support reason to get your affiliates to stop these bans and
limitations which are damaging Australia". And what did
Mr. Hawke do? He just thubed his nose at that very reasonable
request and then said " Well, that is all your problem. We
are not going to do that" and attacked the Government on its
economic policies. So they didn't exert their influence
when they could and should have. Now they call for rolling strikes
by Australian Government employees against our legislation.
That won't change us in our attitude in relation to that
legisliation, which is now a part of the industrial relations
inventory. Where it needs to be used to supplement other
powers in relation to Commonwealth employeesL and employees of
Commonwealth statutory bodies, it will be so used. If the
unions want to give support to rollinq strikes, I suppose there
are some other things that we could also do. We know that eiey
would be.
Last night I had what I believed was a very useful discussion
with your Premier) Sir Charles Court, before coming down here this
morning. There is obviously a very serious situation in the
Pilbara which the State Government has been battling with for
some time. But $ 80 million in export funds, I am tcd has
already been lost since May. We can't allow that to continue. rhe
, tate and Commonwealth jointly can't allow that to continue. The
Ccr-onwealth is prepared to co-operate in any way we can with the
State Government, with Sir Charles Court and his Government, to
make sure that where joint powers are needed if they are
needed those powers are available to
get this State back to industrial sanity.
For example, if the unions operating in the Pilbara happen
to be de-registered under State law and they are under State
awards at the moment there is a fear that they might obtain
a benefit of a Commonwealth award. I don't believe for one
moment that the Arbitration Commission would give the benefit
of a Commonwealth award to unions that were de-registered as
the result of the industrial action that has taken place. But
if there is a need to change our law to strengthen that, to make
sure that it could not happen, then so b6 it. The law will
be changed to make sure that it doesn't happen.
But one of the things we discussed last night was whether it Tmight not be
best that the unions that now operate and have a coyerage of the
Pilbara were in fact de-registered, Then we might use our powers
jointly to see that one union was established for the Pilbara--for
the iron ore industry which would then have an in. terest in
the well-being octne Piinara, in the well-being of the iron
ore industry~ instead of these other unions that are sometimes
Australia-wide in their coverage caring nothing about the well-being
of. any particular industry or of Australia caring only about
the pressure points of power; being able to disrupt and destroy
where the opportunity offers itself. / 8
8
If those unions, the AMSWU and others, were de-registered
from the Pilbara and denied any possibility of ever getting back
into that arena, it might cause a little fuss for a while, but
if that is the fuss Western Australia wants the Commonwealth
will stand with Western Australia. Let's have it out and let's get
it over with.
I would like to say something for a moment about Australia and
where we stand in the world, because we have every reason to
be proud of the achievements of this nation. If we get this
industrial disruption oehind us sensibly then we can look forward
with overwhelming confidence to the 1980s and the years ahead.
In many overseas countries the increased inflationary pressures
are worse than they are in this country--the United States,
six months to hay, already 12 percent; the United Kingdom,
13 percent on the admission of their own Government going to
16 or 17 percent; Canada, 10 percent and risi. nq; Italy, 15 percent.
Australia at the moment is around 8 percent, but faces increased
Al, and new inflationary pressures2as we know, which we are determined
to combat and ve. have already taken some measures in relation to
that. In growth rates, the OECD has forecast 4 percent for Australia
in 1979. That is not as good as we would like, but it is
well above the OECD average; the United States, 2 3/ 4 percent;
Britain) 1 1/ 4 percent; and Canada leqs than us again.
Productivity improvement: Australia with 3 1/ 2 percent on the same
forecast is well above the OECD average which is 1 3/ 4 percent;
the United Stateswit ro productivity growth through 1979;
the United Kingdom, 1/ 4 percent3and Canada 1/ 4. Now it is no
wonder that the world is in trading difficulties. We have had
high inflation for nearly seyen or eight years or more. In
the twenty years to 1973-we had an eighnt percent growth in
world trade each year. Since then there has been a 4 percent
growth in world trade, largely because of high inflation and low
growth in the economies of a number of major countries.
What does that mean for Australia? It does mean that with
inflation remaining too high we can't look to the world to pick
us out of problems and difficulties. There won't be
adequate growth in world trade and markets to achieve that.
That means we've got to look to ourselves. We can--and we
shouldn't be deterred by that or frightened by that) because
it is within our power. Ifwe keep our inflation below that of our
maior trading partners, our industries will sell more here and
more in other markets overseas. If we keep our industries
more competitive we will do better no matter what is happening
in the wider worid. With economic stability as an encouragement
for investment, with greater political stability than in many
other resource nations, then again there is a greater
incentive for investment in this country than in many others.
Because we have coal and gas, iron ore and bauxite and other
minerals that the world needs, with these things we h~ ve a
capacity to attract investment to Australia and get more than
our normal share of world trade. It is within our power with the
right policies to achieve that. ./ 9
9.-
For all these reasons Australia has many advantages. We have
taken tough decisions. We are not going to go the way of
some other countries. We have the right, the responsible,
policies and we can do better and look after this nation even
if the world trading scene gets tougher and more difficult
than it has been.
The one blotch, the one difficulty, is industrial relations.
The time has come to make sure that we do something about that.
With Liberal philosophies, with our approach, with co-operation
between State and Commonwealth, there is nothing that this
State of Western Australia--there is nothing that Australia
herself--cannot achieve. 000---