Subjects: private health insurance; welfare.
E&OE..................................
COMPERE:
The Prime Minister John Howard has condemned a proposal by the Australian Democrats to scrap the 30% rebate on private health insurance. The Democrats' leader, Senator Meg Lees, told our morning program AM today that she thought the rebate was a waste of money, and the Prime Minister says that's a ridiculous idea though. John Howard also this morning raised the idea of extending the principle of mutual obligation to single parents on government benefits. After speaking on Sydney local ABC radio this morning on his 61st birthday, Mr Howard told our reporter Lisa Macgregor his government would be keeping the private health rebate.
PRIME MINISTER:
We are completely committed to the maintenance of the tax rebate for private health insurance. Her proposal would increase the cost of private health insurance by 30%. She is wrong in saying that it is only life time health cover which has encouraged more people in to private health insurance. It's a combination of that plus the tax rebate. Take one of them away and you will turn this process around yet again. I mean we have tried and worked and striven for several years to reverse the flow of people out of private health insurance and now is clearly not the time to alter that but.
MACGREGOR:
So you would like the numbers to keep increasing?
PRIME MINISTER:
I would like the numbers to keep increasing. It's not only good for the people who've got private health cover, but it's also taking the strain off the public hospital system.
MACGREGOR:
Is it necessary though, now that we do have 40% of people within the private health care system, do we still need that tax rebate as an incentive?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, because if you take it away you are going to directly and immediately increase the cost of staying in private health insurance by 30%. A lot of people won't be able to afford that or would rather spend the money on something else and will therefore drop out again and we'll go back to where we were. That's a ridiculous proposal and we won't have a bar of it.
MACGREGOR:
Would you settle on a compromise for a rebate?
PRIME MINISTER:
No we won't. We support the present rebate and while ever we are in government, it will stay.
MACGREGOR:
On welfare, you just got talking there on welfare and sensible, steady reform. How you do see the principal of mutual obligation extend to say, single parents or people on disability pensions?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well we certainly don't intend to threaten people with the loss of their benefits. What we, for example would have in mind is that once a child might reach a particular age, then the idea would be that the parent would perhaps on a regular basis get some help and advice and counselling about the possibility of re-entering the work force.
MACGREGOR:
What sort of age would you see that as a possibility?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh, certainly not when they're very young and when they are getting towards their middle school years. I don't have any particular age in mind but the whole idea is to gradually get people ready for re-entry when their children reach the age of 16. This is not meant to be penal, it's not meant to be threatening, it's meant to be encouraging and helping.
MACGREGOR:
Would you see voluntary work or community services play a role in helping parents or people on disability pensions to get ready for that work?
PRIME MINISTER:
I would see them playing a part. I would see the Government playing a role. I would see private job agencies playing a role. That's the general direction of it and these things can be sensibly talked about, and if the debate can take place against a background of people not feeling that we are trying pounce on them, which we are not, and take away their benefits then I think we can have a very sensible discussion about it.
MACGREGOR:
Could voluntary work be a pre-condition to getting a, continuing to get a pension?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I am not saying that at this stage, I'm not.
Thank you.
[ends]