ERIC HUTCHINSON:
Thank you everybody and welcome to the Northern Midlands in the electorate of Lyons. It’s very, very pleasing for me to have the Prime Minister here and stopping off from the Pollie Pedal for a short time to come and join me at one of the most amazing and really transformational, in terms of this region, businesses in this part of Tasmania. This is a business that has grown from having three employees 10 years ago to having nearly 100 employees today. This is a benefit not only to those people but, of course, also to their families.
This area is really an economic stronghold for Tasmania. Just on the road that we came in here today, we have this business, of course, next door we have Petuna Seafoods, their trout and salmon hatchery, and further down the road we have Burlington Berries there where at the peak of the season, there might be 160 people employed down there picking raspberries and strawberries and other berries that they’re growing down there. This is a really an economic strong point for the Northern Midlands in Tasmania.
Recently, I had the pleasure of announcing nearly $1 million for the Westmoor Bridge which is an important piece of infrastructure just down the road here. It links the Midland Highway with the three businesses I've just described. So, it illustrates the things that this Government is absolutely committed to and that is investing in infrastructure – the single biggest investment ever – $50 billion invested in last year's Budget in infrastructure all around the country.
The other key story I think from the visit we've had here today is, of course, the free trade agreements that we've negotiated with South Korea, Japan and also China more recently, but also the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme. For this business, that is a significant injection and it allows them to compete much more on a level playing field with competitors in other parts of Australia.
So, without any further ado, I'd like to introduce and welcome the Prime Minister to my electorate.
Thank you, Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thanks, Eric, and it is very good to be here at Tasmanian Quality Meats, as Eric says, a great local business that's doing very, very well indeed and will do even better in the months and years ahead thanks to the free trade agreements that we've negotiated and thanks to our recent changes to the Freight Equalisation Scheme that will mean that goods moving beyond the Australian mainland will get access to this Scheme.
This is day four of the 2015 Pollie Pedal. It started on Thursday night in Burnie. I was delighted on Friday morning to launch the Pollie Pedal. I then had to go to a funeral in Melbourne, I made a speech to the Victorian Liberal Party on Saturday morning, was back here in Tasmania on Saturday afternoon to ride from Exeter to Georgetown. Yesterday, I had the funeral of the late, great Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore and today here I am back in Tasmania.
I was at the Cressy School earlier. It was great to meet up with the school leaders and the principal. It’s not that often that senior politicians come to the regional centres of our country, but the great thing about the Pollie Pedal is not only do we raise money for a very good cause – in this case, Carers Australia – but we also see parts of the country which are a bit off the beaten political track.
By the time we make it to Launceston this afternoon, we will have raised about half a million dollars for Carers Australia. There are almost three million carers around the country. Most of us, at some stage in our lives, will either need a carer or be a carer and it's important that they have a body that can help carers to stay in touch, and help put carers in touch with the services that are there for them and that is what will happen as a result of the half a million dollars or so that we'll raise for Carers Australia this year.
So, it is terrific to be here in Northern Tasmania. It's great to be with Eric Hutchinson.
I'm sorry that I was only able to watch a bit of the cricket last night from Singapore, but what a mighty victory for Australia! What a great way for Michael Clarke to bow out of the One Day game but a splendid win, and great to see Australia and New Zealand putting on such a fantastic World Cup and great to see last night's spectacle with, as we all know, the right result.
QUESTION:
You're visiting a business today that prides its self on producing halal meats. There have been some calls within your own party for inquiry into certification. Do you have any concerns about the funding or where the money goes for certification fees?
PRIME MINISTER:
I'm just really pleased that a business like this is growing its exports all the time, particularly to the Middle East. If we want to export to the Middle East, we have to have certain procedures in place and this is just part of exporting to the Middle East and if we want our exports to grow all the time, this is what we need to do and I think that's what Australians want. They want to see our agricultural industries expanding, they want to see our exports growing, and good on Tasmanian Quality Meats for all the work they've done and all the employment they've created.
QUESTION:
Do you support the state government's plan to downgrade the Mersey Hospital to a day centre for elective surgeries?
PRIME MINISTER:
My understanding is that the Tasmanian Government will be announcing its health plan, or will be announcing a proposed plan for consultations, this afternoon and obviously we'll be working closely with the Tasmanian Government to try to ensure that we have the best possible health services for Tasmanians but in the end it is the Tasmanian Government which is primarily responsible for the delivery of hospital services.
QUESTION:
Would you support that move, though?
PRIME MINISTER:
It is a matter for the Tasmanian Government and they will be consulting over the next few months on their draft plan.
QUESTION:
Prime Minister, the tax discussion paper says the change to GST will only happen with strong community support and the support of the states and territories. We know that Labor won't agree to it, so surely you have to make the case for change if you think it needs to happen?
PRIME MINISTER:
This is an important conversation starter. That's what this paper is: it's a conversation starter, and I think as a nation, we are certainly mature enough to have a good wide-ranging conversation about what is the best tax system for our future. As far as I'm concerned, as far as the Commonwealth Government is concerned, what we want is lower, simpler, fairer taxes – that’s what we are on about. Let's see where the conversation takes us, but the point I stress is that there can be no change to the GST unless Bill Shorten wants it, because we can only change the GST if all the states and territories agree and if there is something close to a consensus in the national parliament.
QUESTION:
Does the New South Wales result show that if you explain a difficult policy and bring the people with you, they will vote for you?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think the New South Wales result shows quite a few things. It obviously shows that Mike Baird is running a highly competent government which the people trust and that's obviously a very good thing. It also shows that people reject Labor's scares. I mean, Labor has nothing but a scare. You look at the last few elections in this country – the South Australian election, the Victorian election, the Queensland election, the New South Wales election – all the Labor Party has to offer is one long scare campaign. The point that I make is that in this country, the Coalition are the builders, Labor are the wreckers. I think the lessons from the New South Wales election are that Bill Shorten has got to start getting positive.
QUESTION:
Prime Minister, is tax bracket creep something that Australian workers are just going to have to tolerate until Australia reaches a budget surplus?
PRIME MINISTER:
What this Government wants to do is to get taxes down. We've got rid of the carbon tax; we’ve got rid of the mining tax. Getting rid of the carbon tax was a $550 a year benefit to Australian households; getting rid of the mining tax has once more made Australia a safe place to invest. So, we want to get taxes down and we’ve got the runs on the board when it comes to getting taxes down. If we want to get taxes down further, we've got to keep government spending under control. In last year's budget, we got the growth of government spending down under 1 per cent. Under the former Labor government, spending was growing at something like 3.6 per cent a year. So, to get taxes down, you've got to get the growth of spending down and that's exactly what this government is doing.
QUESTION:
By what measure will your Government decide whether there is a public mood to change the tax mix or have a higher GST?
PRIME MINISTER:
Let's see where the community discussion goes. This paper that we have released today – it's an important paper, but it's a discussion starter. It scopes out the issues, it tells us what some of the problems are but, in the end, it's now up to the Australian people to decide where we collectively as a nation want to go and as far as I'm concerned, I want taxes to be lower, simpler, fairer. That's what I want: lower, simpler, fairer taxes. Let's see where the discussion goes and as for the GST, well as I say, the GST can't change unless Bill Shorten wants it to change because we can't change the GST without having all the states and territories on side, and without having a consensus in the national parliament.
Thanks so much.
[ends]