PRIME MINISTER
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JOURNALST: Sunday Age poll. Now does that gel with
your sort of research? What's your assessment of the state
of play? Are there a lot of people that you still have to
convire?
PM: Taking part of your question first Mike, I think
there are a number of people, a considerable number of
people we still have to convince. Under our preferential
system of course, if people are going to cast a valid vote,
and they want to cast a vote for some candidate outside the
major parties, if the vote is qoing to be valid they then
have to make a decision as to who their preference qoes to.
And I'm confident Mike that by the end of the yno in
regards to that sector and I think it probaby a a larger
sector this time than in previous elections I think a
clear majority of those people, andt particularly those who
are going to cast their vote on environmntal grounds, will
give their second preference to Labor. I-meant after all i
somne, number one concern is the environment and they a~ d
going to vote for an environmental candidate, number one.
Then if they begin to be serious, if they begin to be
serious in their concern about the environment they mast
give their deciding preference to Labor. Because I rend
you of the record of the conservatives in this area, would
have dammed the Franklin, are still in a position where they
would be mining in Kakadu, every major environmental
protection decision that was made, they have vehemently
opposed and so in that area I'm confident that we will do
very, very much better than the conservatives.
JOURNALIST: Do you find it frustratinq, despite your record
on the environment, there are still people who think you
haven't done enough and how important do you see that is?
what ert of
PK: I don', t know whether frustrating is the right word. If
people have a purely environmental prism in their eyes, then
I suppose for then there is always going to be something
else that they would like done. Now I've said already in
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this campaign, I said yesterday, that one of the quite
fundamental tasks of government these days, not only in
Australia but around the world, is to get that balance
right, between the need for development and the obligation
you have to protect the environment because development is
foundational. Without economic growth there aren't jobs,
there isn't a capacity for sustaining and gradually
developing and improving living standards and so you have
got to have development and it is the basis also for
discharging your obligation, for looking after the most
needy in the community. When specific decisions arrive
Mike, you can never or rarely let me put it be dogaatic
and say I've got that absolutely right. I aean on the
Franklin, no doubt at all about that one, I mean never had
the slightest doubt, that had to be done. Kakadu. But in
other areas there can be valid arguaents both ways and the
task of getting the balance right is difficult. All I can
say to the Australian people, and particularly those who are
concerned with matters environmental, is that we have done
the best we can and I think the record isn't bad. As I've
said, when you look at it this way, economic growth twice as
fast as it was. And employment growth twice as fast as the
rest of the industrialised world in our period of office.
At the. sae time the World Heritage Bureau saying that no
country has done more to advance world heritage values than
Australia. So we've done a fairly good job in getting the
balance right. What the people in the environmental
movement know is that in my Government they have a
Government which is always prepared to listen to their
argument. We may not on every single issue be able to go to
every point thay want. But it's not bad to have Australia
in a position where it is said of it that no country has
done more to advance world heritage values than we have.
JOURNALIST: Mr Hawke, I've been around the markets this
morning in Cairns just talking to the grass roots people of
North Queensland. There are two questions that really come
to mind here. The first one is that with Cape York space
base. There is a lot of hard feeling. The Aboriginal
people it seems that they are because of the development
up there. And have you decided to definately go ahead with
the space base?
PM: No. What we have said is that that's something that is
worthy of consideration, but we have talked with the
Queensland Government and what we have agreed is that we
will prepare a joint land use study plan of the Cape
York. In that joint study between the two Governments and
is being the situation now where you have got a
government that you can deal with on realities of issues
rather than just being rejected on the basis of prejudice.
With the Goes Government you can sit down and talk with
them. We've agreed that we will have this joint land use
study in preparation of a plan. That will not be something
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that will be'rushed. It could take up to three years.
There may be some interim reports come through but it is ' not
something that will be done lightly. In that study we will
be lookinq at both environmental matters and the needs and
concerns of the Aboriginal people as well as developmental
proposals. JOURNALIST: There seems to be a lot of pressure on the
PM: I've been used to pressure. I can stand it as distinct
from the Opposition. Look at the pilots dispute. 7 can
stand pressure. The others can't.
JOURNALIST: OK. If you could just consider another
question that came up earlier this morning Why can't
this Government lead the way to be the first country in the
world to ban all herbicides and pesticides? A man I spoke
to at the markets this morning, who was selling his organic
0 bread, which was made from all natural grains and
everythinq, said that
PK: That's great.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PUt Wñ s is the sort of food I thrive on.
JOUPRNLST: inaudible
PK: Let me come to this point. Of course the question of
all controls of herbicides and pestacides is not just a
matter for the Commonwealth Government. We don't have the
select constitutional powers in these areas. But I can we
have I think a very good record in being prepared, in
consultation with the States, to look at these issues and
make decisions. I think our record will stand up and if
there was some particular proposals in regard to any
particular herbicide or pesticide, we would be prepared to
look at it. And please thank the gentleman for the broad.
I shall have some later on today.
JOURNALIST: With the question of road funding in Australia.
PM: The question of road rundinq. Yes, the question of
road funding.
JOURNALIST: Have you got any comitzents to give us?
PM: I ight be able to tell you something during the
election. Just let me say something about roads. Get it
into perspective. As far as Queensland is concerned you
have this situation, if you want to look at our period in
office we've comitted. $ 1.8X to Queensland road fuhding in
our period in office and that is a 17% increase in real
k
terms in funding as compared withi our conservativO
opponnts. And that-Is a pretty substantial increase a 1.7%
increase in road funding. Now we know it's an issue and we
night have sousthinq further to say about it during the
election. ends