PM Transcripts

MEDIA RELEASE Released in Lismorc
8 February 1977
The Labor Party was getting up to its old tricks in
wanzing to bring back the kind of policies that have contributed to
the worst inflation and unemployment in Australia's history, the
Deputy Prime Minister and Member for Richmond, Mr Anthony said in
. isr. ore today. Mr Anthony said the Government was acutely aware of the
damage being caused by inflation, and of the personal suffering of
individuals and families caused by unemployment.
The Government was doing all it could in very difficult
eco:. omic circumstances to sustain the unemployed and help them
through their difficulties while resolutely tackling the basic problem
of inflation.
0 He said the four point economic package put forward by the
Opposition was based on precisely the approach that had pushed the
Budget deficit to massive and highly inflationary levels.
" The Government is battling to clear up the aftermath of
the Whitlam Government's big spending, the effects of which are still
damaging Australia through high inflation and record unemployment,"
Mr Anthony said.
" Yet we now have the Opposition wanting the Government to
spend a lot more money at a time when we need to be doing everything
we can to keep Government's spending in check and bring down the
Budget deficit. Mr Anthony said the Labor Party had introduced the R. E. D.
* Scheme when it was in office to try to soak up some of the unemployed,
but had abolished the scheme when its cost got out of hand.
" Now Labor wants us to bring back the kind of scheme it
abolished," he said.
He said Labor suggestions for man power schemes, youth
employment subsidies and apprenticeship and other training programmes
were already being im. plemented by the Government, which had introduced
a series of new initiatives in these areas.
Mr Anthony said that indications of the magnitude of the
problem. inherited by the Government was the fact that when Labor
was clected in 1972 there were 136,769 people unemployed.
. hen Labor icft office in 1975, there were nearly 329.000
ur. er. eloved. This meant there had been an increase in the unemployed rate
from 2.4 percent to 5.4 percent while Labor was in office.
" We now have the task of trying to reverse this rising tide
of unemployment," Mr Anthony said.
" We cannot reverse the trend until we get rid of the continuing
effect of the policies which cause the unemployment.
" In essence, this means bringing inflation under control and
that is the job we are committed to do."