PM: I'm delighted to be here today with Premier O'Farrell. You can feel the excitement in the air already. People look forward to this day all year and already history is being made as we're here for the first day of the 100th test at the Sydney Cricket Ground and I know that the crowd is hoping to see some more history made than that.
So on this very exciting day I'm very pleased to be here to make an announcement with the Premier about the future of this ground.
This ground has wonderful history and we want to honour that history by making sure we preserve it but also making this ground ready for the future. That does mean that three stands need redevelopment so that they can have better facilities for those who love their cricket and those who love their football. Better lines of sight, better amenities, better facilities for corporate entertaining as well as, as Rodney mentioned, the biggest screen that there will be at a ground in Australia.
So I'm very pleased to be here and to commit the Commonwealth Government to investing $50 million in this redevelopment. It means that this great ground, the Sydney Cricket Ground will not only have a proud past but it will have a wonderful future.
I'll hand over to the Premier.
O'FARRELL: Look I'm delighted to be here with the Prime Minister. I want to thank the Prime Minister, I want to thank the Sports Minister Mark Arbib, for their contribution.
$186 million will buy a great future for what is already a fantastic cricket and sporting ground.
She is looking tired, the facilities aren't up to scratch and what this $186 million dollars will do is ensure this is a first class stadium again. It will set it well for the future and provide both spectators and those people who have the honour to play on the stadium with the world's best equipment and facilities.
So it's fantastic to be here with the Prime Minister, it's great to be here with Rodney Cavalier as Chairman of the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust to be investing in infrastructure in New South Wales.
You know running Government is not just about hospitals, not just about roads, not just about public transport, you have to do it all. You have to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time, that's what we're doing, we're getting on with the job and we're doing so today on the first day of the 100th test here at the SCG by committing ourselves to redevelopment that will be complete in time for the January 2014 Ashes Test.
PM: So this is a great partnership, Commonwealth Government, State Government as well as the Cricket Ground Trust so I'd like to thank everyone involved and on my part I'd like to thank Sports Minister Mark Arbib for his work on this proposal.
So we're very happy to take any questions.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well no one who knows me understands that I love this place, that I love the football here, I love the cricket here, I even love those concerts that used to occur here. And it doesn't take much arm twisting for me to ensure that this stadium is up to scratch with others around this country.
Now what I understand, and we've got Cricket Australia here today, is that there is no right to have test matches at any ground around this country, we operate in a competitive field, we've seen in Victoria, we've seen in South Australia, we've seen in Western Australia, we've seen in Queensland a stadia upgraded. Upgrading and this investment in the SCG is about ensuring that we remain competitive in the race to have some of the best sporting events in the world here.
PM: We're here today for the cricket, no wrestling, no wrestling today.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well I'm suggesting that frankly when you compare parts of this ground now to other stadium around the country it doesn't come up to scratch that's why the New South Wales Liberal Nationals Government is committing $186 million. $50 million of which is thankfully is coming from the Federal Government to ensure it is competitive and that the future of this ground, the future of events at this ground is secure.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: I'll leave that to the Cricket Ground Trust because I'm happy to run Government, I leave to the Chairman of the Cricket Ground Trust the events that occur here and I leave with him the factors to what name the new stand will have as well.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: I think demolition starts in March if I'm correct Jamie, is that right? So demolition will start in March and it's all due to be read for the second test, the New Year's Test 2014.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible) do you wish there would have been bigger capacity with these renovations?
O'FARRELL: Look I think what the renovations also seek to do as we've seen with the Trumper Stand is not just give individual patrons and spectators better facilities but also to improve both the corporate and functions facilities because we can't operate stadia like this, they can't generate the income they do simply through sporting events. I would come out here probably at least once a fortnight to a dinner or an event in one of the rooms here that's run by a charity or some other organisation and that's what this new stand will do as well which is provide more revenue generating capacity for this ground.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well that's a question, that's a very good question Chris and I suggest that you ask that as a Channel Seven exclusive to the Chairman of the Trust after this.
[Questions to Mr O'Farrell omitted]
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Well what we've seen from Commodore Bainimarama is the announcement of a first step but from the point of view of the Australian Government all steps need to be taken to restore democracy to Fiji, that has been our consistent call. Now getting rid of these emergency regulations is the first step, having a consultation period is a first step too but these steps need to be followed up by further action.
When I attended the Pacific Island Forum we called for a consultative period that was inclusive of all stakeholders with no preconditions so people could get round a table and build democracy in Fiji, that is what we want to see happen.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Well as soon as possible democracy should be restored in Fiji. We have maintained this call consistently now for a long period of time. We've had representations in the past from the Commodore that he was going to act and then action didn't follow. We do want to see action, we do want to see democracy restored.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: I've seen these reports today and there is no new system in our detention centres. There have always been administrative arrangements made so that asylum seekers are held in detention facilities that are most suitable for them.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Well the investments we've made on Christmas Island are known already and they've been publicly announced but the sense in today's reports that there is a new system in operation is simply not right.
JOURNALIST: Bob Hawke says that the Labor Party's unions are strangling the party. Do you feel there is less influence (inaudible)?
PM: Bob Hawke's, of course, a living legend, an Australian living legend and certainly a Labor legend, I count him as a good friend.
Bob is right to say that the Labor Party needs to keep modernising and that's why at our recent National Conference we did respond to the review that I ordered and which was subsequently undertaken by Steve Bracks and Bob Carr and by John Faulkner.
And as we dealt with those reform issues at National Conference we did adopt a number to better include our party membership in the decision making of the ALP.
So the right forum for those debates was at National Conference and debates were held. We are now moving to implement the decisions made.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Look I believe our great trade union movement is important to Australian society and to representing the needs of working people. It was the trade union movement shoulder to shoulder with the Labor Party that fought back and got rid of WorkChoices and we're going to keep the fight up because if we ever give that fight away then WorkChoices will be back. Clearly it remains the policy much loved by the Liberal Party in Canberra.
So the trade union movement's got an important role on behalf of working people. For our party structures we do need to keep modernising and we had those debates at National Conference.
JOURNALISTS: (Inaudible)
PM: We'll go here and here and then across. Yes.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: I've lost count of how many policies about broadband the Opposition's had. It may be on its 16th, its 17th, its 18th - something like that. The Opposition is basically opposed to Australians having broadband. The Leader of the Opposition is committed to ripping the National Broadband Network out of the ground. Now that means he is opposed to our economy being ready for the future because having this technology is important to us holding our heads up in the international competition that is the global economy today. Other nations have this infrastructure, we must have it too.
Now the roll out is proceeding. We did take the time necessary to negotiate with Telstra, an appropriate agreement to use its infrastructure because that meant that the National Broadband Network could be rolled out more easily using pre-existing infrastructure, so that was the right thing to do. The time was taken to negotiate that agreement, it was negotiated and now the NBN is rolling out.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Well time was taken to negotiate the agreement with Telstra, there's nothing new in me acknowledging that. All of that was spoken about publicly and worked through during the course of last year.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: I don't think it's a New Year's resolution. Premier O'Farrell and I have worked on some important reforms during our joint period in office including the National Health Reform Agreement which means more doctors, more nurses, more local control of hospitals, more resources. We'll go to COAG together in the first part of the year and talk about skills reform, so important for the future of our economy.
So we've been working together - if you want to say shoulder to shoulder I'm happy to, during the months that Premier O'Farrell‘s been in office and I've been Prime Minister.
JOURNALISTS: (Inaudible)
PM: I did promise one over here so I do want to be fair - yes?
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: Well we've moved to change the system to better benefit low income workers. I want Australians to have a decent retirement. Superannuation is a great Labor invention, it's here in this country because of the actions of the Hawke and Keating Government. And now we need to take the next step and increase superannuation from 9 to 12 per cent and we're on a journey to do that using in part the proceeds of the Minerals Resource Rent Tax to back in what Government needs to do to make that possible.
Now as people prepare for their retirement we've got particular concern for low income workers, many of them women, how have been in and out of work because they've been caring for their families, or perhaps have worked part time or on a casual basis for an extended period of time. So we've moved to have a better system to support the superannuation of low income workers.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
PM: We've settled our policy, I can of course understand that there are many who will argue for different policy conclusions. But our policy to make sure that we are assisting low income workers through better co contributions, contribution from Government to help them along is out there and a settled policy.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible) do you think that we need to crack down on safety at holiday homes?
O'FARRELL: Look I think the spate of drownings, the spate of accidents is just a reminder to parents to be ever vigilant with children particularly in holiday periods when they're not in organised activities. So as a parent myself I know that young children need constant attention and regrettably these incidents demonstrate once again the importance of parents keeping a close eye on kids in the holiday season.
JOURNALISTS: (Inaudible)
PM: We'll just have a last question - to be fair we had an indication over here and you haven't had one yet.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well our submission is in to Infrastructure Australia. Infrastructure Australia will make their consideration and of course I'm happy to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Prime Minister anytime she has a cheque to deliver to New South Wales.She is the Michael Clarke here, she's the captain of the team, I'm the Ed Cowan - I'm the new boy on the block.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well look, you know it's tragic whenever any emergency worker loses their life. Paramedics, emergency workers exercise their duties on behalf of the entire community. It's a sad day for what we see is the health sector, the community coming together to celebrate a life, a life given in the end in sacrifice for others.
JOURNALIST: (Inaudible)
O'FARRELL: Well you know I'm concerned that the holiday period road toll has increased. There is constant effort by both the Office of Maritime and Road Safety but also the Police to keep the road toll down, but as long as you have idiots who get behind the wheel drunk you're going to have deaths and it's about time people exercised greater personal responsibility on this issues.
Understand - you drive drunk you lose your license, you can go to jail. Understand - you run people down you can end up in jail as well.
PM: And I think we're on our way out but just on our way out I think we should acknowledge there are a lot of emergency workers who are on high alert today due to the extreme weather conditions in parts of Australia and the extreme heat.
So to everybody who is suffering through those conditions I'm sure we'd all want to say - keep safe, listen to your local emergency announcements and make sure that you do what you are asked to do by emergency workers - they're trying to keep you safe too.
Thanks very much.
[ENDS]