E&OE...
Well ladies and gentlemen, Mr Macfarlane and I are delighted to be here at Goodrich and I would like to thank John Dwyer and all the team at Goodrich for allowing us to launch this very important industry statement here and to give me an opportunity of meeting the workforce and to learn something of the high precision absolutely critical work that is carried out here, which is very important to Australia's defence effort. And the last 10 minutes have been very illuminating for me in having explained the highly precise and very, very important work that is carried out which is so important to maintaining our Hornets, the FA-18s and also, in time, very important in relation to the Joint Strike Fighter Project which is going to be the cornerstone years into the future of Australia's air defence system.
And the purpose of this announcement is to outline to you a $1.4 billion extra commitment, all extra new dollars over the next 10 years to assist Australian industry. And this policy has been put together by the Minister after a year of consulting large and small firms within the broad spectrum of manufacturing and other industry in this country. It is important that we remind ourselves on a regular basis that Australia's economic miracle and Australia's export strength is not just built on mining. Mining is important, but it's not the only pebble on the beach. The other very important elements of Australia's industrial performance lie in the manufacturing and service sectors of the economy, not, of course, to forget agriculture. And the whole theme of this policy is to further the process of global integration and to take advantage of the markets that are available for Australian manufacturing around the world.
The major initiatives comprise a new $254 million Global Opportunities Program that will help Australian firms win work in global supply chains and major projects. A niche contribution of $11 million over two years to pursue some export opportunities under the Australia/United States Free Trade Agreement. A very important decision to extend the eligibility of the 175 per cent premium R&D concession to ensure that multi-nationals undertake more research and development in Australia. And that will better link our innovation base with the global economy. It's a realistic decision recognising the global character of the economy in which we're now involved and also recognising the size of the Australian economy. We're also going to expand the export, finance and insurance corporation. We're going to invest $351 million in the Australian Industry Productivity Centres, a new $90 million Commercial Ready Plus program and $14 million over two years to extend the Building Entrepreneurship in Small Business program and $54 million to support innovation in the food processing industry through grants to pursue innovation projects.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Australian economy is performing very well indeed at the present time. We have a 32 year low in unemployment. We have strong outlooks for growth in many areas of the economy but it's important that we reinforce the commitment of this country to the central role of manufacturing industry. And this program is designed to do that. It's designed to make us integrate more readily into the global economy. It's designed to build on the skills of the Australian workforce and most importantly it's designed to maintain Australia's competitive edge around the world. There are many policies that contribute to that and this particular package; and I congratulate the Minister and his Department on the work they have done to put it together, will make a major contribution to that. And I have great pleasure in launching this industry statement which will in my view contribute very significantly to the strengthening of manufacturing in Australia.
Now I'd be happy, with assistance on highly technical subjects, to answer any questions on this or indeed on any other subject of political comment in Australia at the present time. Any questions?
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, how appropriate is it that you're launching this here today in that I understand this company recently had to lay off 30 workers because it lost out on a contract to China?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I think that just reinforces the point. You need to give Australian industry more help to more effectively compete. So I think it's entirely appropriate that we should do that.
JOURNALIST:
Do you acknowledge then that companies like this are missing out on work....
PRIME MINISTER:
Well what I acknowledge is that you can always provide companies with more help and that is exactly what this is doing, consistent with recognising that we do live in a competitive world environment and companies have to largely stand on their own feet. But if we can make sure that barriers to strong competition are removed, then we ought to do so and that's what this program is designed to do.
JOURNALIST:
What do you think, Prime Minister, of Julia Gillard's warning to business that it will be injured if it continues to support your IR laws?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that sounds like a threat to me. When you say that it's a rough and tumble body contact sport, Australian politics, and that's what she effectively said, and when you talk about companies getting injured, that sounds to me like Julia Gillard, who'd be Deputy Prime Minister in a Labor Government saying to business if you speak out in support of Coalition policies and we win we'll bash you up. I mean, that is essentially is what she is saying and that's no mean threat because if Labor wins this election there'll be Labor governments everywhere and there will no safe havens for people and the Labor Party's done this before. The Housing Industry Association in 1993 campaigned in favour of the Coalition and for two years after Mr Keating's re-election nobody in the government spoke to them. They were told that this was a payback for having supported the Coalition. Now that's no way to run a country, it's no way to conduct policy. Business is entitled individually or collectively to express their views. The unions have got a right to express their views, I'm not threatening any retribution to the trade union movement because it's spending tens of millions of dollars and there won't be any retribution from me against the trade union movement. The trade union movement has got a right to exist, they've got a right to express their view, they've got a right to spend the money they levy from their members in campaigning against the Government. That's their right. I don't like it, but it's their right and I don't think the Deputy Leader of the Labor Party should be engaging in bully boy tactics and threatening business with retribution if they express their views on our policies.
JOURNALIST:
Do you expect that business will now launch an advertising campaign?
PRIME MINISTER:
I have no idea what business will do. That's a matter for them, it's not my money, it's their money. But I have made the point before that I hope that people who believe in the industrial relations reforms that have created 270,000 new jobs over the last year, those who want to keep the current policy will fight to keep the current policy.
JOURNALIST:
Isn't that similar to the Government's and some business lobby group's line though that Labor is elected all of a sudden there'll be wholesale sackings. I mean, we had solid and strong jobs growth of which you government is rightly proud in the lead up to WorkChoices, the time leading up to WorkChoices. If it reverts to a pre WorkChoices system, why would jobs necessarily suffer? The other conditions remain.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I have no doubt Joe that if you get rid of the unfair dismissal provisions that are now in the law, the rate of growth and employment in small business will slow and it may even go into reverse and I think that would be bad for the economy. If you get rid of AWAs that will very bad for the mining industry and our friends in the Labor Party keep telling us that the mining industry is the underpinning strength of the economy. Well why would you take away the preferred industrial arrangement that operates in the mining industry, unless, of course, you are doing what you are being told by others.
JOURNALIST:
Couldn't common law contracts easily fill the role...
PRIME MINISTER:
No, no because the common law contracts start on the assumption that all the rigidity of the award system must be there and then you put things on top of that, so they don't enable the flexibly that is available under AWAs. I mean, that's been debated before but Julia Gillard has made it crystal clear to the mining industry that whatever they say, whatever the Western Australian Premier says, she's determined to get rid of AWAs. Well I think the community should understand that and should understand the impact it's going to have on the Australian economy.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, can you tell us how much money is the Government, as opposed to the Liberal Party, spending on advertising WorkChoices?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I think there was something in the order of, from recollection, I don't have the figure in my pocket, at the time it was introduced on the information campaign, and bear in mind that when you introduce a major change to the law it's perfectly legitimate to expend public money, we don't make any apology for that, I think it was somewhere in the order of $40 million.
JOURNALIST:
Since then has there been...
PRIME MINISTER:
I don't, I'm not sure that there's been a lot spent since then, I'd have to check, I mean, don't take that as absolutely solid. I'd have to check that but I'm not aware of any major advertising as distinct from the routine operation of the information services of the various agencies in that area.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, why is Australian government spending on research and development lagging behind a lot of other countries in the OECD?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well in the public sector, our investment does not lag. I think if you look at the aggregate of public and private it may be less than others but in the public sector we do very well. Any questions, other questions?
JOURNALIST:
Apparently two men...
PRIME MINISTER:
Would you mind speaking up, I'm a bit deaf.
JOURNALIST:
Just wondering, two men have apparently have been charged with terrorism offences in Melbourne this morning. I was just wondering if you knew anything in regards to that?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I couldn't possibly comment on a police matter. You know that, I can't comment on that, that's a matter for the police and a matter for the authorities and I couldn't possibly offer a view except to say that the law should take its course and people are entitled to a presumption of innocence. Thank you.
MINISTER MACFARLANE:
I just wanted to back up what the Prime Minister said and answer the question about China. There are areas where Australian industry is more than competitive with China, in fact one of them is just out the back here in a test unit for the generators on the auxiliary motors on the Airbuses. That unit was up in China and they couldn't get it to operate and test those generators properly. It's now down here, here in Sydney, here at this business and it is testing and repairing the auxiliary units from all over Asia which are being run on Airbuses. So there are some things we do here better than anyone else, including the Chinese.
[ends]