EMBARGOED AGAINST
DELIVERY CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY
SPEECH BY THE PRIME MINISTER TO THE LEBANESE COMMUNITY,
SYDNEY, 7 NOVEMBER 1984
LADIES AND GENTELMEN
1AM DELIGHTED TO ONCE AGAIN HAVE A14 OPPORTUNI'TY TO BE AMONG
my LEBANESE FRIENDSAS
A GOVERNMEN4T WE HAVE ALWAYS FEL. T THAT THE LEBANESE
COMMUNITY COUNT AMONG THEIR NUMBER SOME OF LABOR'S CLOSEST
FRIENDS AND SUPPORTERS-WE APPRECIATE THISTHE
GOVERNMENT IS ALSO VERY MINDFUL THAT THE LEBANESE
COMMUNITY BRING A PROUD AND RESOLUTE TRADITION To AUSTRALIAN
SOCIETYYOU, MORE THAN MOST, APPRECIATE THAT THERE IS NO FUTURE FOR
THIS COUNTRY IN TRYING TO BUILD OUR SOCIETY AROUND
CONFRONTATIONIST STYLES OF GOVERNMENT.
THE TRAGEDY WHICH HAS BEEN SUFFERED FOR SO LONG AND SO
PAINFULLY BY THE PEOPLE OF LEBANON HAS BEEN DEEPLY ETCHED IN
THE AUSTRALIAN IMAGINATION-
THE LABOR GOVERNMENT AND MY OWN PLNS0ONAL COMMITMENT, TO
SECURING A PEACEFUL RESOLUTION OF THE CRISIS IN LEBANON IS
WELL KNOWN-WE CONSIDER IT ESSENTIAL THAT THE TROOPS OF ALL
FOREIGN COUNTRIES IN LEBANON SHOULD BE WITHDRAWN. ONLY WHEN
THIS HAPPENS WILL THE PEOPLE OF LEBANON BE ABL!: TO RESUME A
NORMAL AND PEACEFUL LIFE.
YOU KNOW FROM YOUR OWN BITTER EXPERIEINCE THE FUTILITY AND
THE TRAGIC COST OF CONFLICT AND CONFRONTATIONIST STYLES OF
GOVERNMENT. LABOR IN GOVERNMENT HAS FORSWORN SUCH APPROACHES AND HAS
INSTEAD BROUGHT TO THE FORE THE CO-OPERATIVE, HARMONIOUS
INSTINCTS AUSTRALIANS HAVE ALL TOO RARELY BEEN ALLOWED TO
GIVE FULL PLAYUNDER
LABOR ALL AUSTRALIANS ARE WORKING TOGETHER.
ONE OF THE LEBANESE COMMUNITY'S GREAT ACHIEVEMENTS HAS BEEN
THAT, WHILE NEVER FORGETTING YOUR OWN RICH CULTURAL
TRADITIONS, YOU HAVE BECOME IN THE BEST SENSE OF THE TERM
REAL AUSTRALIANS.
INDEED IT IS As AUSTRALIANS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO
f'OU TONIGHT.
FOR ALL AUSTRALIANS THE GREAT ISSUE OF THE: DAY, THE MATTER
CLOSEST TO THE EVERYDAY CONCERNS OF ALL 01: US, MUST BE THE
ECONOMY. IN THE LIGHT OF THE LONG AND PROUD HISTOPICAL INVOLVEMENT OF
THE LEBANESE PEOPLE WITH COMMERCE AND TRADE, AND INDEED IN
CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE THE LEBANESE COMMUNITY COUNTS AMONG ITS
N4UMBER SOME OF AUSTRALIA' S MOST SUCCEISSFUL BUSINESSMEN, I AM
SUR~ E YOU WOULD ALL BE CONSCIOS OF THE NEED TO CONDUCT
ECONOMIC POLICY IN A WAY WHICH WILL ALLOW OUR BUSINESS
COMMUNITY TO PROSPER AND EXPAND.
IT IS ONLY THROUGH EXPANSION OF THE PRIVATE SECTOR THAT WE
WILL BE ABLE TO CREATE JOBS IN THE NUMBERS WHICH AUSTRALIANS
DESIRE AND DESERVETHE
BUSINESS SECTOR KNOWS THAT IT HAS NOTHING TO FEAR FROM A
LABOR GOVERNMENT. INDEE'D IT KN4OWS THAT OUR POLICIES ARE
COURAGEOUS, FAR SIGHTED, PRODUCTIVE AND IN THE BEST
INTERESTS OF ALL AUSTRALIANS. GONE ARE THE DAYS OF
DIVISIVENESS AND DISCORD WHEN GOVERNMENT SOUGHT TO PIT
WORKERS AGAINST THEIR EMPLOYER'; AND USED BANKRUPTCY AND
UNEMPLOYMENT TO ACHIEVE POLICY OBJECTIVES. THIS GOVERNMENT
IS A GOVERNMENT OF CONSENSUS; OF RECONCILIATION; AND OF
NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION-
THE GOVERNMENT MADE ITS APPROACH PLi'. IN AT THE NATIONAL
Ecor~ oMIc SUMMIT CONFERENCE LAST YEAR.
WE REALISED THEN THAT CHANGES WERLE REQUIRED TO MODERNISE
AUSTRALIA'IS INDUSTRIAL STRUCTURE;' TO END THE SENSELESS
SQUABBLES BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES OVER THE
DISTRIBUTION OF THE NATION'IS WEALTH;' AND TO PUT ECONOMIC
POLICIES IN PLACE WHICH WOULD GET AUSTRALIA MOVING AGAIN.
WE CAME TO OFFICE WITH A PROGRAM OF ACTION TO ACHIEVE THOSE
ENDSBUT WE DID NOT SET ABOUT SEEKING SIMPLY TO IMPOSE OUR WILL
ON THE COMMUNITY. THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A RECIPE: FOR MORE
DISCORD;' MORE UNCERTAINTY;' MORE DELAY BEFORE DESIRABLE
CHANGES COULD BE IMPLEMENTED;' MORE UN4EMPLOYMENT AND
INFLATION-INSTEAD WE SET ABOUT PROVIDING A STEADY AND
PREDICTABLE POLICY ENVIRONMENTBy
fTS ACTIONS THE GOVERNMENT HAS DEMONSTRATED THAT IT
SUPPORTS AND ENCOURAGES A HEALTHY BUSINESS SECTOR-OUR
COHERENT ECONOMIC STRATEGY:
HAS BEEN A KEY FACTOR IN THE STRENGTH OF ECONOMIC
RECOVERY'
HAS PROVIDED A STABLE AND PREDICTABLE ENVIRONMENT IN
WHICH BUSINESS CAN PLAN AHEAD. ON THE BASIS OF
PREDICTABLE COST INCREASES;'
HAS POSITIVELY ENCOURAGED BUS11NESS iNVESTMENT INCLUDING
THROUGH MEASURES INTRODUcED IN THE BUDGET; AND
HAS INVOLVED BUSINESS AS AN ESSENTIAL CONTRIBUTOR IN
THE PROCESS OF CONSULTATION ON GOVERNMcNT POLICYPRIOR
TO THE GOVERNMENT COMI1NG TO OFFICE, THE ECONOMY HAD
BEEN SHRINKING, THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HAD RISEN TO A LEVEL
NOT SEEN SINCE THE DEPRESSION, OUR RATE OF INFLATION WAS
AROUND TWICE THAT OF OUR TRADING PARTNERS, CONSUMER
CONFIDEN4CE HAD PLUMMETED. THE BUSINESS TRADING ENVIRONMENT
WAS HIGHLY UNCERTAIN AND BUSINESS CONFIDENCE WEAK.
SINCE THEN THE SITUATION HAS DRAMATICALLY IMPROVED.
CONFIDENCE HAS BEEN RESTORED-WE HAVE BEGUN TO MAP OUT A
PROCESS OF MANAGED AND MEASURED STRUCTURAL CHANGE. ECONOMIC
RECOVERY HAS BEGUN INDEED. REAL GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT
DURING THE LAST FINANCIAL YEAR GREW BY I-0 PER CENT AND THIS
GROWTH WAS BROADLY BASED-SOME 264,000 NEW JOBS HAVE BEEN
CREATED, AND THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HAS FALLEN FROM 10.2 PER
CENT IN APRIL LAST YEAR To 8.8 PER CENTAT
THE SAME TIME AS ACHIEVING THIS, WE HAVE ALSO SEEN
THE ANNUAL INFLATION RATE MORE THAN HALVED TO THE POINT THAT
ICAN CONFIDENTLY SAY TO YOU THAT DURING THE CURRENT
FINANCIAL YEAR IT WILL BE LESS THAN 5 PER CENT-
AT THE SAML TIME INDUST~ IAL DISPUTATION HAS FALLEN TO ITS
LOWEST ANNUAL LEVEL SINCE 1969, INTEREST RATES HAVE FALLEN
SIGNIFICANTLY, AND THE I5UDGET DEFICIT HAS BEEN REDUCED
SUBSTANTIALLY. ALL OF THIS HAS BEEN ACHIEVED AT THE SAME
TIML AS PROVIDING MOST WAGE EARNERS WITH A TAX CUT OF $ 7.60
A WEEK I1N THE 1984-85 BUDGET, AND PUTTING IN PLACE A NUMBER
OF NOTEWORTHY PROGRAMS AIMED AT ASSISTING THE NEEDYUNLIKE
THE PROSPECT WHEN THE GOVERNMENT TOOK OFFICE, ALL
AUSTRALIANS CAN LOOK FORWARD WITH CONFIDENCE TO THE FUTURETHE
ECONOMY IS FORECAST TO GROW IN REAL TERMS AT AROUND 4 TO
PER CENT THIS FINAN4CIAL YEAR, WITH A FURTHER INCREASE IN
EMPLOYMENT OF MORE THAN 2 PER CENT-INFLATION WILL REMAIN
UNDER CONTROL, AT VERY LOW LEVELS COMPARED TO THE PERIOD
BEFORE WE TOOK OFFICEALLOWING
FOR SEASONAL INFLUENCES CONSUMER CONFIDENCE IS
POSSIBLY AT ITS HIGHEST EVER RECORDED LEVEL. A~ ND BUSINESS,
RES. PONDING TO THE IMPROVEMENT IN THE ECONOMY, IS
DEMONSTRATING ITS CONFIDENCE IN THE FUTURE BY INCREASING
INVESTMENTAS A RESULT OF THE SUCCESS OF THE GOVERNMENT'IS POLICIES,
PARTICULARLY THE PRICES AND INCOMES POLICY, THERE HAS BEEN A
DRAMATIC TURNAROUND IN4 BUSINESS PROFITABILITY-INDEED, THE
SHARE OF COMPANY INCOME IN THE NATIONAL INCOME IS
APPROACHING LEVELS NOT SEEN SINCE THE LATE SIXTIES AND EARLY
SEVENTIES-
THE REAL COST OF EMPLOYING LABOUR PER UNIT OF OUTPUT HAS
FALLEN SUBSTANTIALLY AND IS NOW AT THE LEVEL OF THE EARLY
i970s. IN SHORT THE GOVERNMENT ATTACHES GREAT IMPORTANCE TO HAVING
A STRONG AND PROFITABLE AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS SECTOR. ONLY
WITH THIS CAN WE HOPE TO MAXIMISE AUSTRALIA'S LONG-TERM
GROWTH POTENTIAL AND RESTORE PROSPERITY TO OUR COUNTRY.
WE STILL HAVE MUCH TO DO IN THIS REGARD. SUBSTANTIAL
ECONOMIC PROBLEMS STILL REMAIN. THE DEPRESSING COSTS OF
HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT CONTINUE TO BE INFLICTED ON TOO MANY
AUSTRALIANSHOWEVER, WITH THE SUCCES OF THE GOVERNMENT'S POLICIES THUS
FAR, AND WITH YOUR CONTRIBUTION AND THAT OF THE REST OF THE
COMMUNITY, INCLUDING THAT OF THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT, WE
CAN ALL FACE THE FUTURE WITH CONFIDENCE.
THANK YOUL