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PRIME MINISTER
TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER, THE HON P J KEATING MP
LAUNCH OF THE TRIPLE J TRANSMITTERS INTO REGIONAL
AUSTRALIA, PARLIAMENT HOUSE, CANBERRA, 6 DECEMBER 1994
E& OE PROOF COPY
It's so hot my make-up is running. I borrowed someone's make-up in the
office and she said to me " do you want the lippy too?", and I said I'm not
doing an impersonation of Julian Clary, I am only impersonating myself.
It is wonderful to be here and see this extension of Triple J's network. I
suppose if you like the present and you are inclined to the future, and you
look forward to the future, then you are inclined to Triple J. But if you are
stuck in the past and you have got old fogies for friends then you are inclined
against Triple J. And I suppose that probably marks out the Triple J
supporters from those who are not. But what we have seen here is the
development of a marvellous, authentic stretch of Australian communications
and Australian radio. As David said, or Michael Lee said, that is from a small
studio in Darlinghurst not so many years ago to now a national network of 1.8
million people. And now with the extensions into 22 regional areas, a much
greater network altogether. And of course, their grearTeg-fi-7Australian
music and comedy I mean HG and Roy were a couple of bodgies not so
many years ago, now the most fabled social commentators in the country.
Even Paul Lyneham and some of his colleagues in the ABC are feeling the
pressures these days... . the Kerry O'Briens of this world are feeling the
pressure from Roy and HG. And they came along with Triple J.
But I think it also tremendous that Triple J's big contribution has been in
breaking in new Australian bands and not just the Coral Snakes today, but
INXS, Yothu Yindi, Midnight Oil, and more recently they first recorded and
broadcast the Newcastle band Silver Chair which I now understand are on
top of the charts. I mean, with that support, just imagine what I could have
done with The Ramrods back then in the 60s. I mean I did take them from
nowhere to oblivion, and with this sort of support... . the battle that I had to get
them on the Parlaphone and I did and to get them played I knew every
manager of every radio library in Australia. And I would always have the
sitting on the edge of the desk, trying to get it played the D-45' s as they
were then.
At any rate, the fact is that this is a great thing that Australia has become one
of the music capitals of the world in popular music, and Triple J is of course,
playing a tremendous role in all that. And of course, for apparently only 18
cents a year it costs each of us only 18 cents a year, which is a little more
value than 8 cents a day. Probably not, because I do think the ABC has
stuck to its last and stuck to its charter, and I am not ashamed to say I am
very proud to say that I am a core supporter of the ABC and Triple J.
And of course, the other thing is it's about the only station -in the country
where you would expect to find a woman disc jockey, which is also a
breakthrough for Australian radio because it is rather monopolised.
I would like to just say that this you know, you wonder when you pass these
budgets, and the appropriations go out, whether it is money well spent, but I
think this extension which is $ 20 million worth to these 22 regional areas,
and I am told we go something like by 1996 Triple J will reach 44 regional
areas and cover an additional 4.7 million people, then with 80% of the
population. A far cry from the thing which Moss Cass kicked off in 1975 and
which has come along from as someone said earlier that small studio in
Darlinghurst. So, the Government is delighted to be involved with it to find a
place where young Australians can identify certainly a radio station they
can identify with, something that is not a bit provincial or parochial, that is
unmistakably Australian, and to see this development is a great pleasure for
all of us.
Last week I had the pleasure of launching what we call the Youth Training
Initiative, and this is about saying to young Australians that we in this country
care about them, we want to pass our sense of optimism on to them, that we
won't let them slip out of the school system to be unemployed, that we will
pick every one of them up and case manage them that is individually relate
to them and try to get them back into mainstream study or to work experience,
or into a job and that comes as well as the linkages now between secondary
school and TAFE, the building of a proper vocational education system with
TAFE, and the massive extension of the university system. But I think the
commitment which we have made to young Australians that nobody under
the age of 20 should basically drop out of the system without being cared for,
without being someone an individual person case managing them, talking to
them, finding out about their aptitude, their educational standards, their
interests, and getting them back into study or work is the sort of commitment
a country this wealthy ought to make to its young people. That was launched
last week, and I know that Triple J has a program of its own the Triple J
Extension which is about much of the same thing, and that is giving young
Australians a voice, and a role in the future.
So I can think of no better medium than Triple J to talk about issues which
affect young people, to let them listen to the music that they like, to discover
the Australian bands that in the past were there but incapable of discovery,
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and to punch out a peculiarly and authentically Australian mssage and
sound. This is a tremendously good development in our communications.
Let me congratulate everybody associated with Triple J and the ABC to
David Hill and his colleagues and to say that the Government will continue
to support the ABC and Triple J, and let's hope that by 1996 we see this huge
extension into provincial and rural Australia, and we see truly a national
network come from it. It is with great pleasure that I launch this shift to 22
regional areas this broadcast to 22 regional areas as a further affirmation
of our faith in Triple J and its message to young Australians. Thank you.
ends.