PIRNIMISE 8E
TRANSCRIPT OF INTERVIEW WITH PAUL LYNEHAM, 7.30 REPORT
14 NOVEMBER 1989
E OE PROOF ONLY
LYNEHAM: Prime Minister, thanks for joining us.
PM: It's a pleasure Paul.
-LYNEHAM: Eighteen and a half million dollars for
international promotion of our tourist industry and
eleven and a half for domestic promotion. What are we
going to be saying overseas, " come back, we're sorry'?
PM: We've got nothing to be sorry about. All the
attractions of Australia are permanent features. We
still are the most attractive tourist destination in the
world I would suggest.
LYNEHAM: But we must be on the nose a bit in Japan.
PM: We're not on the nose. I've had the opportunity as
you would've appreciated in recent weeks of meeting with
a lot of people from Asia. Our Japanese friends were
here for APEC. We're not on the nose.
LYNEHAM: But yet we're not even in some of the travel
pamphlets being distributed now in the East Coast of
America and in Japan for the Christmas-New Year period.
PM: Just let me make this point to you. The increase in
international tourism to Australia as you know has been
enormous. The industry and the Government is confident
that that growth can be maintained. The important thing,
looking at it long term which is I know what you're
interested in as I am is that of course we are going
into next year with an infinitely more efficient and
productive airline industry than we've ever had in this
country before. That's the important thing.
LYNEHAM: So if I ask you how long before we get right
back to taws in the international market what would you
say? PM: We'll be back to taws in the international market
next year.
LYNEHAM: And the domestic promotion you're targetting,
Tassie, the Northern Territory and North Queensland.
PM: It is not confined to them. There will be, as we
put it, a $ 5 million generic Australian advertising
campaign and then there'll be the $ 6.5 million which will
be targetted most particularly at those areas that have
suffered the most and that is the Northern Territory,
Northern Queensland and Tasmania.
LYNEHAM: What did you mean when you said recently that
you thought Paul Keating might have handled his attack on
John Elliott differently if he had his time again?
PM: I meant one thing and one thing only. I'm not
dodging the question, I'll come directly to it but it's
fair that I should make this point because there has been
some attempt to misinterpret, if I can put it that way,
what I said. I have total faith in Paul Keating. He was
absolutely right in making the point that John Elliott
epitomised the total inequity and the economic insanity
of the Liberals' capital gains tax policy. Let me say
that I'll be shoulder to shoulder with Paul Keating in
continuing that attack upon a policy which I believe is
arguably the most grotesque socially inequitable policy
that this country has seen and in economic terms the most
disastrous. Now I simply was making the point, and you
as a journalist would understand this. Politicians like
journalists have sources. You as a journalist will not
reveal your source. That's your ethic. And in Paul
Keating's case I know from my conversation with Paul that
he believed totally in the source that he had as to the
accuracy of what he was putting. The difficulty of
course, his difficulty was in not being able to reveal
that source. Now I meant no more than this, that having
made the statement he did and having the inability to
reveal his source that that was a problem which if he'd
had his time again he might have rearranged his
presentation. But I mean no more and no less than that.
LYNEHAM: So you weren't implying he should have softened
his presentation?
PM: Not softened his presentation because what has been
done by Andrew Peacock and let me say this on the
question of the involvement of Mr Elliott. Mr Elliott on
many occasions has boasted publicly and openly about his
involvement in policy development in the Liberal Party.
Just let me give you one reference, very quickly. This
was on the 14th of May on a television program I won't
mention it, it wasn't yours. But on the 14th of May he
was asked the question ' do you think Peacock's a wiser
politician than he was a couple of years ago?' John
Elliott ' I have spent some time with him as Treasurer
and Deputy Leader on the economic policy. And when it
comes out I think the community is going to be very
pleased with it.' Now here is Elliott saying he's deeply
involved.
LYNEHAM: There is a very real difference between having
a hand in policy as Party President and having a hand in
policy, a particular plank of policy for your own
personal gain.
PM: There is no possibility in my judgement of any
rational analysis which would suggest that if John
Elliott was involved, as he boasted, in the development
of economic policy for the Liberal Party that there
wouldn't have been, in those discussions, reference to
the capital gains tax element. Now the question of
whether specifically he raised the question at some point
about the Harlin bid and the capital gains tax, I don't
know whether he did or not. I'm simply saying that in
regard to the basic issue, the central element of their
policy of the abolition of the capital gains tax, it
beggars belief that if Elliott is saying he was involved
in discussions about economic policy that they put a
barrier around him being involved in discussions about
capital gains tax.
LYNEHAM: Whatever Mr Elliott did or did not do you say
your remarks were misinterpreted but it does seem that Mr
Keating misinterpreted them too because he said, didn't
he in Tokyo, that if he had his time again he would've
gone in harder.
PM: I've got no doubt, and you'll see when he comes
back, you won't have to be theoretical about this
LYNEHAM: Was it a slap in the face to Bob Hawke?
PM: Certainly not, certainly not. When Paul is away
LYNEHAM: You've often had troubles in the past
PM: When Paul's away we stay in contact with one
another. I've spoken with him, as I will not
continuously but regularly while he's away. There's no
problem in that regard. You wait and see when Paul
Keating comes back, not only in regard to Paul Keating
but in regard to Paul Keating and the Prime Minister. We
will be attacking the Liberal-National Party policy. The
economic policy generally but most specifically their
policy to abolish the capital gains tax. Because, as I
say, it is grotesquely inequitable that you can have the
promise of a Government which is going to return billions
of dollars to a tiny percentage, one percent of the
population, including John Elliott, and deny to that
Government the capacity and the revenue to look after the
kids of this community. Paul Keating and Bob Hawke will
be in there attacking that as vigorously as we are each
capable of doing.
LYNEHAM: Prime Minister, this misunderstanding about the
Treasurer is extremely widespread. I put it to you that
you'd probably be the only person in Australia who
doesn't believe that the Treasurer has openly defied you
on this.
PM: You can do what you like. I mean Paul was asked a
question. He gave, as he is very very capable of doing,
a jesting line in which he said I might as well have gone
in harder. I'm simply making the point that neither Paul
Keating nor Bob Hawke regarded that as any slap in the
face to me. If neither he nor I do that I guess that's
the most important thing. Let me say this, that the test
will be, when he comes back, you watch us both in action
on this issue.
LYNEHAM: Is there any justification at all for
Opposition claims that your wife is campaigning for Labor
through her involvement with Greening Australia and
Austcare? PM: No, I must say that I regard their performance as
pathetic. We've seen yet again this current leader of
the Opposition flip-flopping on an issue again. First of
all grabbed hold of a tasteless comment by a Senator from
Queensland. When you want to find not the most elevated
form of political life you look at Opposition Senators
from Queensland.
LYNEHAM: Mr Peacock says she does seem to feature in a
fair number of taxpayer-funded commercials.
PM: But then what did flip-flop Andrew do? After having
taken the cheap swipe he got a bath last night, and
particularly from Laurie Oakes, got a bath and then said
of course not, I'm not attacking Hazel, I admire her. A
pretty overall gutless performance.
LYNEHAM: Of course the truth is she's probably more
popular than the both of you at the moment isn't she?
PM: Yes, I'd be very surprised if Hazel well I'm
significantly more popular than Andrew but I would be
very surprised if she didn't pip us both.
LYNEHAM: Thank you and good night.
PM: Thanks mate.
ends