PM Transcripts

PRIME MINISTER
TRANSCRIPT OF SPEECH AT PELLA. JORDAN, 25 JANUARY 1987
E. 0 E -PROOF ONLY
PM: Thank you Basil. I would just like to say on behalf of Hazel
and myself and I am sure the whole party, two things really.
How interested we are in what you are doing. But secondly, which
flows from that, how proud we are of what you are doing. You
ayhave gathered that as far as I am concerned and the Government
is concerned, we have a very warm relationship with the Government
and the people of Jordan. And it is extremely satisfying to me
Basil, to see here in such a practical way a group of Australians
is working in association with the Jordanian Government and people
to do work which is, I think, immeasurable in its value. And
that it is a group of Australians, gives me a very great sense
of pride. So rather than just being a politician who is saying
I am proud and it is nice I thought I would try and be a bit more
practical than that and promise you two things that would be of
value to you. I am not quite sure of what the order of importance
is to you but I will put them in this order and you can make it
either ascending or descending order. Firstly. I understand that
while you are battlers you are prepared to live in adversity
under tough circumstances, like pioneers there is one thing
up without you will not put and that is Vegemite and that you
are down on supplies of Vegemiter. So I hereby give you a solemn
non pol-itician's undertaking to see tM~ t -you-get a -good supply
of Vegemite sent to you. Secondly, you have told me and I was
surprised, that you really only operate for basically about 3
months of the year and then it is closed down. And that that
means that there is an enormous backlog of work that accumulates
and that you would be able to operate very, very much more
efficiently if you had the wherewithall to have a couple of people
here fulitime. I asked you ideally what you would like to see
and you said if you could have a couple of people here to do that,
to continue the cataloguing of work that is done that would make
life easier but more importantly it would make it more efficient.
The second undertaking I give you is that I will, on my return
to Australia, undertake to find from my contacts.. within the private
sector $ 30,000 a year so that you can do that.
ends -r