JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, what do you make of the fact that it appears that two-thirds of Australians want Australian troops withdrawn from Iraq straight away?
PRIME MINISTER:
We will not be changing our policy. If it were good enough for Australia to pull out of Iraq, as Mr Beazley wants to do, why isn't it also good enough for America and Britain and others to do the same? And anybody with an elementary understanding of the situation in that country now knows that a sudden withdrawal of foreign forces would unleash further violence, would cripple any hope the country has of establishing a democratic future. It is difficult and it's easy to say, yes, let's pull our troops out. I think we have to ponder the consequences of that, which I have been doing for a very long time, and that is why the Government's policy in relation to the presence of our forces is not going to change. We don't have the luxury of saying leave it to somebody else, which Mr Beazley apparently believes. His cut and run approach is not one that I endorse because if we were to cut and run, why shouldn't the American and the British do the same? And the consequences would be as I have described.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard has the Telstra Board's opposition to Geoff Cousins been taken out of the prospectus?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well the prospectus is coming out later today. I think everybody knows that our view on Mr Cousins and the Telstra Board's position is different. I don't think that difference is going to be very material to how investors react to T3. People will look beyond that. My sense is that the market has already factored in the reality that Mr Cousins will be elected a director at the Annual General Meeting. They know there's a difference. We have a very strong view. He's an outstanding Australian businessman, he'll be totally independent, he won't be a stooge of the Government and he'll do a very good job when he goes on the Telstra Board and that really is the end of the matter.
JOURNALIST:
So this idea that Mr Cousins was going to eavesdrop on behalf of the Government....
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh really, that is nonsense. Anybody who knows Geoff Cousins knows that he's his own man and the idea that he'd be a stooge for me or for somebody else is ludicrous and insulting.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard how confident are you that the Government will be able to work out a position with an accommodation with the Nationals regarding the media laws?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh we'll subject it to the normal processes and we're making progress. But people should understand that media reform has always been to me a second order issue.
JOURNALIST:
So does that mean that maybe you'll shelve it?
PRIME MINISTER:
What it means is that there are other more important things for the Australian public.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister there's a Lowy Institute report out today on Papua saying the Government needs to seriously rethink its position or risk a serious disruption in the Australia-Indonesia relationship, what do you say about that?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I haven't read it unless it's the report that was the subject of a lengthy article in The Australian newspaper at the weekend...
JOURNALIST:
Yes it was.
PRIME MINISTER:
If it's that particular report then I've read the lengthy article in The Australian newspaper and what I would say in response is that we should carefully scrutinise asylum claims of people coming from Papua in the future because there is evidence that the system has been manipulated by some in the past. We recognise and will continue to support Indonesian sovereignty over Papua, that's been our policy for a long time and that policy will not change. Indonesian-Australian relations always need close attention. It's not an easy relationship but it's a very important relationship and one that both countries at the highest level, at present, are giving a lot of attention to.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard on mental health, are you happy with the response of the states to your challenge to roll out an equivalent amount of funding that you've been announcing today?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, I'm not. I don't think the state response has nearly been good enough, it does vary. But let me make it clear that we will spend every last cent of the $1.9 billion irrespective of what the states do. But this was meant to be a partnership. We have done our part. This is a massive increase. This breakthrough on GP consultations, we've effectively doubled the number of professionals available for consultation and the great expansion of the Medicare system does demonstrate that the Howard Government is the best friend that Medicare's ever had.
JOURNALIST:
The ACTU and Labor have branded the $20 million being spent to promote T3 as a scandalous waste of taxpayers' money?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that's absurd. You always have an extensive advertising campaign when you do something like this. I mean the former government, I'm sure, when it finally [inaudible] up the courage to sell Qantas and the Commonwealth Bank, I bet they spent a few bob on trying to promote the idea. I mean it's ludicrous to say that, come on.
JOURNALIST:
Were you aware of the potential threat against Australia's cricketers during the Ashes Test last year?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well the first I've heard of this was last night and this morning. I've checked and we certainly weren't told that. It may not be accurate, the report, we're investigating, our people are talking to their British colleagues and if there's any further information then it will be brought to light. But I certainly was not aware and I think we have to have the source of the allegation very carefully checked before we assume it's correct. But whether this particular report is true or not we have to again remind ourselves of the reality that there are people around who want to do us in, who do want to do damage to Australia and what Australia stands for and that's been the case now for a long time.
[ends]