TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER, THE HON P J KEATING, M P
DOORSTOP, BAN KSTOWN AIRPORT, SYDNEY
FEBRUARY 1994.
J: You must be terrified this morning, with the news that 17 percent of
Labor voters are prepared to vote Liberal under Bronw yn Bishop's
leadership?
PIM: Yes, well, don't believe any of those rinky-dink, one thousand, polls on
the telephone they're just not worth reading. The fact is. the Liberal
Party's in a state of chaos, I think. And, as Four Corners reported last
night, when people are coming out attacking the leader saying they
can't win with him, with Senator Bishop prowling around displaying
herself politically to the rest of the Liberal Party and the country then I
think the Liberal Party has got deep problems. The problem for the
Liberal Party is it doesn't know what it is there for. It's got no policy
framework, they don't know where the society and the country is and
they can't relate to it. That's why they're in the trouble they're in. It isn't
because they have somebody who parts their hair the wrong way, it's
not to do with appearances or political appeal they don't know why
they exist. They've lost the policy threads in this country and they can't
relate any more to Australian society and the Australian community.
J: There would also appear to be a lack of discipline, too?
PM: Well, that comes whenever you get the policy paralysis and the
breakdown and that's what they've got. The Labor Party had the same
thing in the 1950s and 1960s.. They've got it now. They don't
understand the changes in Australia, they are not part of them and it's
because of that that they have the dissension they are having. It's not
about personalities, it's the fact that they don't have any policy
cohesion.
J: How seriously do you take a Bishop-Costello Coalition?
TEL: I. eo. I4, J No. U1 t. UD Q-
2
PM: Well, I think while ever the Liberal Party doesn't know what it's about,
while ever it fals to relate to the community and understand the
changes taking place in Australia, it doesn't matter who they propose to
lead them, they'll be in trouble.
J: Mr Keating, on another matter, do you anticipate any flow through
effects from the worsening trade war between Japan and the US?
PMV: Well, this has been on now for years, this balance of payments problem
between the US and Japan, and no doubt in the working out of this the
US and Japan have got to find accommodations. And they will over
time.
J0 Do you think it will have an effect on Australia?
PM: Japan Is In a recession and that's already having an effect on us. And,
obviously, the more that we can spread economic growth, the more the
GATT round can open up opportunities for growth, the better off we'll all
be Including Japan and the United States.
J: In the past, Australia has taken the position, your government has taken
the position that in a war between Japan and America you would be
Inclined to take Japan's side. Is that still your position?
PMV: No, it was never our position. What we're saying is we won't enter into
bilateral arrangements which are detrimental to Japan. That's a
completely different thing to saying we're taking one side against the
United States. It's for the US and Japan to work that out, we've helped
create a new institution to work it out, within, and that is APEC. APEC
gives the United States and Japan a chance to work it out within an
umbrella organisation, to look at their policy and trade differences. But,
they'll always do it bilaterally as well as in any other framework. There's
a lot of serious thought about this relationship and in terms of their
current-account it's had a problem for years which stems from an
underlying savings imbalance between the two countries. Now, it's
going to take time -to work. this. out. but. it's, working. itself o4t in a sense,
now as the United States is enjoying very rapid growth of exports into
north and south Asia so that the dependency of Japan on the United
States, as a market, Is diminishing and like most problems they tend
naturally to work themselves out.
J: What's your reading of the American position though, do you think the
timing of all this is to take advantage of the political vacuum and crises
that exist In Tokyo at the moment?
PM: No, I don't think so. I think this is just, I think Prime Minister Hosokawa
and his government have had a good relationship with the Clinton
administration. I think this is just a reflection of fundamental underlying
differences,