PM Transcripts

LI~ IijiiiGOLU UNTIL 3. U( JAJ Z' 4 JANUARY 19Ub
T A L I A
PRIME MINISTER
FOR MEDIA 24 JANUARY 1986
The British official gift to Australia for the Bicentenary will
be a specially commissioned sail training ship.
The ship will be sailed to Australia by a joint crew of young
Britons and Australians to participate in the Tall Ships Event in
1988 and will then be handed over to Australia.
The British Prime Minister, Mrs Thatcher, has written offering
the ship to Australia and I will be writing to thank her for the
British Government's offer.
The ship is a significant gesture by the Government and people of
the United Kingdom towards Australia's Bicentennial Year and is a
most appropriate tribute to the longstanding relationship between
Australia and the United Kingdom.
This gesture is one of many aspects of British participation in
the events of 1988 in Australia, which were being co-ordinated by
the Britain-Australia Bicentennial Committee.
The Government will give early consideration to how the gift can
be utilised in support of its Priority One commitment to young
Australians in the years ahead.
The British gift of a vessel will, over the years, offer many
young Australians a unique opportunity for the personal
development which sail training offers.