PM: Today I announce a minor reshaping of the Executive of the Australian Government, underlining the Government's continued commitment to its core priorities which is nation building for recovery and secondly, strengthening Australia's national security.
Yesterday I announced the appointment of Senator John Faulkner as Minister for Defence and I welcome his appointment. Today I announce further changes to the Ministry.
Senator Ludwig will become Cabinet Secretary and Special Minister of State and continue in his role as Manager of Government Business in the Senate. Senator Ludwig is a former barrister who has served in the Senate for more than a decade, including as Manager of Opposition Business in the Senate from 2001 to 2007 and as Manager of Government Business since December of 2007.
Chris Bowen will enter Cabinet and be appointed as Minister for Financial Services, Superannuation and Corporate Law and Minister for Human Services. Minister Bowen has served with distinction as Assistant Treasurer since December 2007 and has overseen significant reform in improving fairness and integrity in the Australian tax system and important areas of consumer rights.
Craig Emerson, Minister for Small Business, will have added to his responsibilities becoming Minister for Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs. Minister Emerson's significant achievements in working with the small business constituency in reducing red tape will prove valuable experience in what will now be his expanded role, an expanded role which is important in terms of overall national economic reform.
Senator Nick Sherry will be appointed as Assistant Treasurer. Senator Sherry is a former Shadow Assistant Treasurer and was Parliamentary Secretary for Primary Industry, Energy and Resources during the Keating Government.
Brendan O'Connor will become Minister for Home Affairs, taking on the critical portfolio with responsibility for policing and law enforcement and the administration of Australian territories. Minister O'Connor's wealth of experience from his strong handling of employment participation during the global recession positions him well to take on this critical national security role and I welcome his promotion to this position.
Warren Snowdon will be appointed Minister for Indigenous Health, Rural and Regional Health and Regional Services Delivery. As a proud resident of Alice Springs, Minister Snowdon is a tireless advocate for Australians living in rural and remote areas.
Kate Ellis MP will be appointed Minister for Early Childhood Education, Childcare and Youth and will continue as Minister for Sport. Establishing a Ministry for Early Childhood Education and Childcare for the first time reflects the importance that the Australian Government attaches to these key policy challenges.
Greg Combet will enter the Ministry as Minister for Defence Personnel, Materiel and Science and the Minister Assisting the Minister for Climate Change. That continued role on the part of Minister Combet will continue until such time as the Government completes passage of its Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme through the Australian parliament and continues his present role. Minister Combet is well prepared for this important position having previously served as Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Procurement. He will also continue in his important role concerning climate change as I have just indicated.
Senator Mark Arbib will enter the Ministry as Minister for Employment and the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister on Government Service Delivery. This will build on the work of Senator Arbib, which he's carried out in his role as Parliamentary Secretary for Government Service Delivery, in assisting with the rollout of the Government's historic nation building infrastructure investment.
Maxine McKew will become Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, to further assist in this infrastructure rollout and with a particular focus on community infrastructure and local government.
Gary Gray has been appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Western and Northern Australia. Mr Gray's extensive knowledge of the West and the Northern Territory and particular challenges based in rural and regional areas is heightened by his expertise in the resource, land and infrastructure sectors.
Jason Clare MP will be appointed as Parliamentary Secretary for Employment. This will build on his current role as Special Adviser to the Prime Minister on Local Employment. As a Member from Western Sydney Mr Clare has firsthand experience of the impact of the global recession in areas of high unemployment around our country.
Mark Butler MP will be appointed as Parliamentary Secretary for Health. Mr Butler will bring to this new role his broad experience working with Government providing also in the provision of health services across a number of critical areas and therefore we welcome his participation in his new role as Parliamentary Secretary and particularly in his home state of South Australia.
Richard Marles MP will be appointed as Parliamentary Secretary for Industry and Innovation. Mr Marles has a comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by industry through more than 10 years in the labour movement, as well as being well positioned to work across industry, developing strong foundations for our emergence from the global recession.
After nearly 28 years of service in the New South Wales and Commonwealth Parliaments, the Honourable Bob Debus MP has indicated to me that he will not recontest the seat of Macquarie in New South Wales at the next election.
In the context of the current reshuffle and the challenges of the global recession, Mr Debus has made the decision to retire from the Ministry in order to facilitate a strong team for the future to continue the Government's response during these challenging times.
Bob Debus has made an extraordinary contribution over this time, including in his dedicated service as Minister for Home Affairs. His discipline, his integrity are legendary and his application to the complex and challenging task of our national security has been simply outstanding. On a personal note, I would like to thank Bob very much for his work over such a long period of time and underscore the significance of his contribution to the Government of New South Wales and the Government of Australia.
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Health and Ageing, Senator Jan McLucas, has informed me of her decision to step down from her portfolio responsibilities. She does so in order to focus on her role as Senator for Queensland, given the particular challenges faced in regional, rural and provincial Queensland during the global recession. Senator McLucas has made a significant contribution through her role as Parliamentary Secretary and has provided valuable support to the Health Minister in a major area of policy reform and policy priority for the Government.
As I said before, this represents a reshuffle of responsibilities within the Government's executive. This reshuffle underlines the Government's continued commitment to its core priorities - nation-building for recovery in response to the global recession. Getting on with the task of strengthening Australia's national security. Over to you folks.
JOURNALIST: How much of a part did Labor's factions play in your decision-making?
PM: One of the things that happened after the last election is for the first time in 100 years I have changed the rules. These decisions are now made by me exclusively and not subject to any deliberation on the part of the caucus. These decisions are mine, they are final. And they are reflective of the talents of the individuals concerned.
JOURNALIST: Why now, Prime Minister? Why are you making these changes now?
PM: Well it follows logically that the changes which have occurred in the Cabinet as a result of a resignation and now in the Ministry as a result of a further resignation because of Bob Debus' decision not to stand at the next election, a number of consequential changes flow from that. That's why these various changes have been made together.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, did Jan McLucas (inaudible) step down or did you approach her (inaudible)?
PM: I'm advised that Senator McLucas has expressed a desire to focus on her senatorial responsibilities for Queensland and wants to do that in the future, hence why she tendered to me her decision to step down from the executive.
JOURNALIST: (inaudible) privatisation?
PM: Well, I'm Prime Minister of Australia, I am not the Premier of Queensland. Can I just say tough decisions have to be taken everywhere. Anna Bligh has to take tough decisions as well.
As I said at the conference this morning, Queenslanders at the last election voted for her and she has shown great strength of leadership in the past, great strength of leadership today and she'll show great strength of leadership in the future as well.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister just on Chinalco. Are you aware of Chinese interest in any other Australian mining companies?
PM: Not that I am aware of but if, this would not surprise me because Chinalco in the past has expressed interest I think in various mining interests in Australia. We run, maintain an open investment environment in terms of foreign investment, something I reiterated yesterday in my comments on the Rio-Chinalco matter in a press conference in Canberra.
What we do with each of these expressions of interest by any foreign company is that we make our judgment based on the application of national interest criteria. So we'll do so again in relation to any further interest by Chinalco in any other matter.
And on a rolling basis you have companies from around the world expressing interest in various aspects of the Australian economy including in the minerals and resources sector.
JORUNALIST: Can we just go back to the-
PM: Sorry, I'll just take this one and then come to you.
JOURNALIST: There's been some criticism that the FIRB process, the length of that process caused the deal to fall over. Do you think that's fair criticism?
PM: As I indicated in my press conference yesterday, this was a commercial matter between Rio and Chinalco and separately between Rio and BHP. These were matters resolved between those companies.
The Government as far as its Foreign Investment Review Board processes are concerned, will also be undertaken professionally with a proper consideration of all the information that needed to be assessed and necessarily that takes time.
We would also always take time on such questions, particularly when they involve large questions of the national interest. Sorry, over here.
JOURNALIST: Just going back to the State Conference. Have you spoken to -
PM: Yes I was there this morning. Were you there this morning?
JOURNALIST: I was indeed.
PM: Oh good.
JOURNALIST: Union leaders tomorrow are likely to come out against the privatisation, have you given them any advice to back the Premier?
PM: I've not spoken to any of those delegates about any matter which is before State Conference tomorrow. I am sure they will sort these things through and I am sure will be the usual argy bargy, after all it is a State Conference and argy bargy tends to happen at those.
JOURNALIST: The UK High Court has ruled, I'm not sure if you are aware, that the atomic blasts in South Australia (inaudible) can seek compensation (inaudible).
PM: I haven't seen the outcome of the decision. I'd like to examine its full implications first. I've always believed it's important to deliver justice to those who have been affected by atomic testing in Australia but I'd like to review first the text of the decision.
JOURNALIST: Would you support it (inaudible)?
PM: Can I just say I'd like to review the text of the decision and I've said my position of general principle is to have justice delivered to those who have been adversely affected by atomic blasts in Australia. It's the right thing to do but let's look at the text of the decision. These things, especially when they are legal decisions, decisions of the court have to be examined with a high degree of forensic detail.