PM Transcripts

& Lk
PRIME MINISTER
FOR MEDIA 18 November 1986
An Office of Multicultural Affairs is to be established within
my portfolio, reporting to me and to Mr Hurford who, in
addition to his present responsibilities, is to be Minister
assisting me in Multicultural Affairs.
The responsibilities of the Office will embrace both ethnic
and multicultural affairs.
It will be basically an advisory and research body, with the
administration of established programs of a specific nature
remaining where they are now.
The general research and advisory functions in the ethnic
affairs field which are presently in Mr Hurford's portfolio
will be included in the new Office.
Consistent with the other Offices in my portfolio, the new
Office will not have a statutory basis.
There will be an Advisory Council established, serviced by the
Office, to report to me and to Mr Hurford as Minister
Assisting. While the Office will not be responsible for programs of a
specific nature, it will be responsible for the development
and management of the grants-in-aid program and for some
information activity and sponsorship of research.
A structure for the Office, and other details associated with
its establishment, are expected to be settled in the course of
the next two or three weeks.
Compared with previous arrangements, this new Office, and its
associated Advisory Council, will be able to make a more
active and effective input into the development of
multicultural policies and programs. They will be well placed
to promote better co-ordination and to bring to notice ethnic
and multicultural interests wherever appropriate in the normal
policy development and decision-making processes of the
Government.