NOTES FOR THE PRIME MINISTER
FOR CLERMONT AND EMERALD, QLD.
29 NOVEMBER 1974
1. IWAS LAST IN EMERALD -THIS RICH AND BEAUTIFUL REGION OF
CENTRAL WESTERN QUEENSLAND IN THE EARLY 1960' s. I REMEMBER
FONDLY THE HOSPITALITY OF THE PEOPLE OF THIS DISTRICT. LAST
WEEK THE NATIONAL PARTY SENT ME A TELEGRAM TELLING ME TO CANCEL
MY VISIT. I REPLIED PROMPTLY AND IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS. I WILL
NOT BE DETERRED FROM MEETING AND DISCUSSING MATTERS OF IMPORTANCE
WITH QUEENSLANDERS BECAUSE OF A HANDFUL OF ROWDY DEMONSTRATORS
ORGANISED BY THE NATIONAL PARTY. THE HOOLIGANISM, THE ROWDINESS,
THE DOWNRIGHT OBSCENITY OF A FEW HOOLIGANS IS QUITE FOREIGN TO
QUEENSLAND. IT IS REJECTED BY THE VAST MAJORITY OF DECENT
PEOPLE OF THIS STATE.
2. I WELCOME THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR DISTRICT, YOUR
LOCAL NEEDS AND PROBLEMS. A CAMPAIGN IS A GOOD TIME TO GET A
MESSAGE AS WELL AS GIVING A MESSAGE. IT AMAZES ME THAT WE HEAR
SO MUCH SCARE TALK AND NONSENSE FROM MR. BJELKE-PETERSEN ABOUT
CENTRALISM, . OUR POLICIES ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT GIVE THE LIE TO"
THIS TALK. WE ARE DOING MORE TO HELP LOCAL COUNCILS UPGRADE
THEIR SERVICES AND AMENITIES THAN ANY GOVERNMENT BEFORE US.
THIS YEAR, ON THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE GRANTS COMMISSION, WE
APPROVED DIRECT GRANTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT THROUGHOUT AUSTRALIA
TOTALLING % 56.3 MILLION. QUEENSLAND' S SHARE IS $ 8.9 MILLION.
EmERALD is RECEiviNG $ 92,000. No FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS EVER
GIVEN DIRECT GRANTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT BEFORE. AND THAT MONEY
CAN BE SPENT IN ANY WAY THE LOCAL COUNCILS WISH.
712 3 AIj1A4~ dL 7L 7 t0& L4 ' Y .1s2
REMEMBER WHAT OUR OPPONENTS USED TO SAY BEFORE WE AMENDED THE
GRANTS COMMISSION ACT TO MAKE THESE GRANTS POSSIBLE: CANBERRA
WOULD BE TAKING OVER LOCAL COUNCILS AND CONTROLLING THEIR
PURSE STRINGS. CANBERRA'S TENTACLES WOULD BE REACHING INTO
EVERY SHIRE AND MUNICIPALITY IN AUSTRALIA. YOU CAN SEE NOW
WHAT NONSENSE THAT WAS. OUR GRANTS ARE DIRECT, INTEREST-FREE$
NON-REPAYABLE. THERE ARE NO STRINGS ATTACHED TO THE WAY THE
MONEY IS USED.
3. OUR GENEROSITY TO QUEENSLAND IS NOT CONFINED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
DESPITE ALL THE BLEATS AND PROTESTS FROM'YOUR OUTGOING PREMIER
WE HAVE GIVEN MORE MONEY TO THE STATE THAN ANY PREVIOUS AUSTRALIAN
GOVERNMENT. OUR TOTAL PAYMENTS TO QUEENSLAND LAST YEAR WERE
$ 739 MILLION $ 382 PER HEAD OF POPULATION COMPARED WITH AVERAGE
PAYMENTS TO ALL STATES OF $ 34-5 PER HEAD. ANY BRAKE ON QUEENSLANDS
DEVELOPMENT IS NOT DUE TO US. IT IS DUE TO YOUR PREMIER.
HE HAS TURNED DOWN $ 50 MILLION IN FEDERAL FUNDS FOR GROWTH CENTRES
AND LAND STABILISATION. AND HE SPENDS THE MONEY WE GIVE HIM
MORE SLOWLY AND SPARINGLY THAN ANY OTHER STATE. WE CAN MAKE
MONEY AVAILABLE BUT WE CAN'IT SPEND IT ON OUR OWN. WE NEED THE
CO-OPERATION OF THE STATE.
1. WE HAVE GIVEN THE STATES A VIRTUAL BLANK CHEQUE FOR WELFARE
HOUSING. ONLY THIS MONTH WE ALLOCATED A FURTHER $ 8 MILLION TO
QUEENSLAND IN ADDITION TO OUR EARLIER RECORD ALLOCATIONS WHEN
THEY SHOWED THEY HAD THEIR PLANS READY AND COULD SPEND THE MONEY.
THERE IS NO REASON WHY FURTHER FUNDS CANNOT BE SPENT THIS YEAR,
EXCEPT THAT THE QUEENSLAND GOVERNMENT IS NOT PREPARED TO SPEND
THEM. SOUTH AUSTRALIA-WITH TWO-THIRDS YOU R POPULATION IS
SPENDING AT LEAST $ 35 MILLION MORE ON HOUSING THAN QUEENSLAND IS
MANAGING TO SPEND. ,3
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THIS ATTITUDE IS COSTING THE JOBS OF BUILDING WORKERS. IT IS
HOLDING BACK YOUR STATE.
MR,. BJELKE-PETERSEN REPEATEDLY TELLS US THAT HE WON'T TAKE OUR
MONEY, I KNOW HE'S ARELIGIOUS MAN BUT HE IS CARRYING RELIGION
TOO FAR WHEN HE TAKES A VOW OF POVERTY ON BEHALF OF QUEENSLAND.
6. WHEN YOUR CANDIDATE JIM TURNER INVITED ME TO VISIT YOUR DISTRICT
IT WAS BEFORE THIS ELECTION WAS ANNOUNCED HE TOLD ME SOMETHING I
OF YOUR PROBLEMS AS A COMPARATIVELY ISOLATED AGRICULTURAL DISTRICT.
THERE IS, FOR EXAMPLE, THE PROBLEM OF HIGH TELEPHONE COSTS
AND DELAYS. MY COLLEAGUE REG BISHOP, THE POSTMASTER-GENERAL, IS
CONSIDERING A PROPOSAL FROM PERC TUCKER FOR A RADIO TELEPHONE
SUBSCRIBER NETWORK LINKED TO THE NATIONAL TELEPHONE SYSTEM, YOU
CAN BE SURE THAT IF THIS SCHEME IS TECHNICALLY FEASIBLE WE WILL
GIVE IT CLOSE ATTENTION, OUR EXPERTS WILL LOOK AT IT AND SEE
IF IT OFFERS SOME ANSWERS TO THE NEEDS OF ISOLATED TELEPHONE
SUBSCRIBERS.
7. WE ARE PARTICIPATING ON A DOLLAR-FOR -DOLLAR BASIS WITH QUEENSLAND
IN A $ 720,000 PROGRAM FOR LOCUST CONTROL. MR. BJELKE-PETERSEN
TRIED TO MISREPRESENT OUR ATTITUDE TO THIS PROBLEM BY TELLING THE
PEOPLE OF QUEENSLAND WE WERE RESTRICTING OUR AID TO ONLY ONE
TYPE OF LOCUST. I GAVE THE LIE TO THAT ALLEGATION. OUR FUNDS
WILL HELP ERADICATE ANY SORT OF LOCUST WHICH DAMAGES AGRICULTURAL
PRODUCTION. I WAS GLAD TO HAVE A LETTER RECENTLY FROM MR. L. V.
PRICE, PRESIDENT OF THE QUEENSLAND GRAINGROWERS' ASSOCIATION,
EXPRESSING HIS APPRECIATION OF OUR OFFER TO ASSIST QUEENSLAND'S
LOCUST ERADICATION PROGRAM,
HE WROTE: " YOUR GOVERNMENT'S FINANCIAL COMMITMENT TO ASSIST THIS
PLAN IS MOST WELCOME AND WILL MAK; E A REALLY CONSTRUCTIVE CONTROL
EFFORT POSSIBLE.,
8. WE ARE STEPPING UP BEEF ROAD CONSTRUCTION IN QUEENSLAND. IN THE
NEXT THREE YEARS WE WILL BE SPENDING $ 24 MILLION ON BEEF EXPORT
ROADS IN NORTHERN AUSTRALIA. FEDERAL LIBERAL-COUNTRY GOVERNMENTS
GROSSLY NEGLECTED BEEF ROADS, WE ARE UPGRADING THE BEEF ROAD
BETWEEN CLERMONT AND CHARTERS TOWERS. THIS IMPORTANT ROAD
CONNECTS THE CATTLE BREEDING AREAS IN QUEENSLAND WITH THE FATTENING
COUNTRY OF THE BRIGALOW AND THE CENTRAL WEST. WE MADE A SPECIAL
GRANT OF $ 3 MILLION TO ALLOW THE BITUMEN TO PROCEED SOUTH AS FAR
AS MOUNT DOUGLAS. THE QUEENSLAND GOVERNMENT IS DOING NOTHING
TO IMPROVE THE ROAD.
ON 30 AUGUST 1973, MY COLLEAGUE REX PATTERSON WROTE TO COUNCILLOR
TURNER OF THE BELYANDO SHIRE COUNCIL: " ON THE SUBJECT OF THE
CHARTERS TOWERS-CLERMONT ROAD, I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT I AM AWARE OF
ITS IMPROTANCE TO THE BEEF INDUSTRY AS WELL AS FOR A NUMBER OF
OTHER PRUPOSES SUCH AS PROVIDING THE RESIDENTS OF THE AREA WITH
A MUCH NEEDED IMPROVED LINKING ROAD AND AS AN AID TO TOURIST
INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT. As I MENTIONED, THE CHARTERS-TOWERS
CLERMONT ROAD IS RECEIVING CLOSE CONSIDERATIONIN THE INVESTIGATIONS
NOW IN PROGRESS FOR A POSSIBLE EXTENSION OF THE BEEF ROADS
SCHEME BEYOND 30 JUNE 1974,"
OUR EXTRA GRANT WAS THE RESULT OF THAT EXTENTION OF THE BEEF
ROADS SCHEME.
9. ALTHOUGH RURAL ELECTRICITY COSTS IN QUEENSLAND ARE THE HIGHEST
IN ALL THE EASTERN STATES, THE BJELKE-PETERSEN GOVERNMENT HAS REFUSED T(
CO-OPERATE WITH US IN SEEKING WAYS TO REDUCE THESE COSTS. HIGH
ELECTRICITY COSTS HELP PUSH UP PRICES OVER A WIDE RANGE OF GOODS
AND SERVICES. THE BJELKE-PETERSEN GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO USE
ITS WIDE POWERS TO CONTROL PRICES AND RESISTED OUR ATTEMPTS TO
OBTAIN COMMONWEALTH POWER OVER PRICES BY REFERENDUM.
MR BJELKE-PETERSEN HAS REFUSED TO CO-OOPERATE IN OUR PLANS FOR
A SOIL CONSERVATION PROGRAM. IWROTE TO ALL THE PREMIERS ON
17 SEPTEMBER OFFERING A TOTAL GRANT TO ALL STATES OF $ 2.5 MILLION
FOR AN INTERIM PROGRAM FOR UP TO JUNE 1976. QUEENSLAND WAS
OFFERED $ 160,000 IN 1974-75 AND $ 700,000 IN 1975-76 -THE
HIGHEST AMOUNTS FOR ANY STATE. THE OUTGOING PREMIER HAS NOT
YET TOLD US WHETHER HE WILL ACCEPTOUR OFFER.
11, UNDER THE LABOR GOVERNMENT WE HAVE SEEN THE FIRST SIGNIFICANT
POST-WAR FALL FOR MANY YEARS IN THE INDEBTEDNESS OF RURAL
PRODUCERS. IN 1971 THE BUREAU OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS
REPORTED THAT 7,570 AUSTRALIAN FARMERS APPLIED FOR ASSISTANCE
FROMiTHE RURAL RECONSTRUCTION BOARD. THIS YEAR THE FIGURE IS
DOWN To 523.
12. OUR DtCISION; Y TO ESTABLISH AN ANIMAL HEALTH LABORATORY AT A COST
OF $ 56 MILLION WILL HELP THE LOCAL BEEF INDUSTRY AND ALL
LIVESTOCK INDUSTRIES IN AUSTRALIA, ./ 6
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13. THE FITZROY REGION HERE IN CENTRAL WESTERN QUEENSLAND WAS ONE
OF THREE AREAS IN QUEENSLAND WHICH WE PROPOSED AS REGIONAL
GROWTH CENTRES IN OUR ELECTION CAMPAIGN IN 1972. MR. BJLEKEPETERSEN
HAS BLOCKED OUR INITIAL PLANS TO DEVELOP TOWNSVILLE AS A
GROWTH CENTRE.
i14. WE ARE AWARE OF THE SPECIAL-. EDUCATIONAL PROBLEMS OF ISOLATED
CHILDREN IN REGIONS SUCH AS YOURS, WE INTRODUCED A SPECIAL
SCHEME LAST YEAR TO HELP THESE CHILDREN. THIS YEAR WE HAVE
BUDGETED TO SPEND $ 11.5 MILLION THROUGHOUT AUSTRALIA. INCLUDING
$ 3.3 MILLION ON QUEENSLAND FOR THIS PURPOSE. WE ARE ELPING
2964l QUEENSLAND FAMILIES, AND 41899 QUEENSLAND cHiLDREN, wiTH OUR
ISOLATED CHILDREN'IS EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM THIS YEAR.