PM Transcripts

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EMBARGO NOT TO BE PU3LISHED, BROADCAST OR TELECAST BEFORE
7.15 P. M. ON THJRIDAY, iiOV" MBE 14.
BROADCAST NO. 1
BROADCAST BY TE-2 PRIME 1iNISTER THE RT. HON. SIR
ROBERT MENZTES OVER NATIONAL S-AIONS AT 7.15 P.-i.
THURSDY, NOVEMB 14, 1963
Already I have been encountering a whispering campaign
which is also being shouted aloud by Mr. Cawell.
The story is that, having won the next election,
I will then " hand over" the Prime Ministership to Mr. Holt,
giving him what is described as an " arm-chair" ride into
office. This story is not only a silly and malicious story,
but it is also the greatest confession of weakness that Mr.
Calwell has made. Where did Mr. Calwell get the idea that after
being re-elected I would move out? The fact is that, if the
people of Austral a wish me to continue as their Prime
Minister, I will continue to do so so long as I have health
and vigour. So far as I know, I am in full possession of both.
You have heard this kind of story before. Over
the last fourteen years my opponents have promoted me, in
anticipation, to the House of Lords. Now they seem to have
given up the idea of the House of Lords.
Where did they get this idea of someone having
an " arm-chair" ride into the Prime Ministership? I did not
have one. Mr. Calwell will not have one. How did Mr. Calwell
become Leader of the Labour Party? By the votes of the
members of his Parliamentary Party. How did I become the
Leader of my Party and Prime Minister? By the votes of members
of vy Party at Canberra. If and when the day came that, being
still in office, I decided that the time had come to make way
( and I am not contemplating this event) who will choose my
successor in the leadership of my Party? I wontt. The
Parliamentary Members of the Party will make the choice and
they will do so with complete freedom. Is that an " arm-chair"
ride?
0I said that this story was malicious. I will tell
you why. My distinguished colleague, Mr. Holt, is the
Treasurer. Three years ago, on behalf of the Cabinet as a
whole, he produced a eries of special financial measures.
Even Mr. Calwell should know that a Federal Treasurer does not
act on his own without regard to Cabinet opinion. Well, the
1960 measures were as we felt they would be, unpopular for
the time being. So Mr. Holt got the blame. It is in human
nature that we should like to blame someone in particular. So
instead of blaming me or my colleagues, as they were entitled
to, some people blamed Mr. Holt. So what does Mr. Calwell do?
He says, " Now, I must cash in. I do not think that if the
issue is between Calwell and Menzies the people will choose
Calwell. If I can persuade them that the issue is Calwell
versus Holt, and that Menzies is not in the picture at all, I
might snare a few people."
I take a poor view of such tactics. But I emphasise
to you that this is on amazing public confession on the part of
Mr. Calwell that in a fair fight he would not expect to beat me,
or the Government. After all, if he really believed that he
could defeat us in a general election which involved a contest
of leadership, he would not have found it necessary to resort
to this rather nasty manoeuvre designed to persuade people that
for purposes of this election I am a more figurehead, to be
set on one side when the eloction is over.