PRESS OFFICE TRANSCRIPT MONDAY, 14 JANUARY 1980
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FOLLOWING ADDRESS TO YOUNG LIBERALS
CONVENTION, LA TROBE UNIVERSITY, 14ELBOURNE
Question Prime Minister, one issue which we may be debating later
in the week concerns whether or not it is an appropriate
response in regard to the Russian situation with Afghanistan
that Australia and other nations should boycott the Olympics.
Could I ask your own opinion please?
Prime minister
Well, I can tell you the position of the Government at this
point. We are assessing what a number of other like-minded
countries think about this particular issue. A number of Heads
of Government have either stated that the Games should not take
place or that they should take place somewhere else. I think
we need to look at the issue very seriously indeed. I said
coming in here that we used to try and keep-politics and sport
entirely separate, but then there are many people who told us
that we could not keep politics and sport separate. There
were some countries who ran their sport on the basis of race,
and apartheid was the obvious answer. The critics at the
time were directed to apartheid and they did not want Australia
to participate in sporting events which could give any support
of any kind to that alien and most unpleasant philosophy. A
number of governments have therefore introduced politics into
sport. By the decisions that my Government made in recognition
of the Gleneagles charter.-the Commonwealth document in
relation to apartheid in sport we have recognised that the two
cannot be entirely separated, that there are some elements of
politics and sport, and however much we might regret it, that.
plainly applies to the Olympic* Games-zas much as ' it doe's to
other sporting events, Maybe more so to the Olympic Games.
There is not the slightest doubt that the Soviet Union intends
to make the Olympic Games great internal successv all
nations in the world coming to Moscow, competing, and in the
Russian's view hopefully being defeated by Russian"-Athletes.
Well, recent events have given us all I think some stimulus to
try and make sure that we and many others do better than the
Soviets if the Games do take place.
There have been one or two interesting suggestions. One, that_-
there should be a permanent home for the Games in Greece and
that could well be appropriate and it could well prevent what
might otherwise be a very unfortunate politicisation of the
Olympics. Another suggestion which I believe is worth
consideration and these things of course are all at the moment
in the hands of the various Olympic committees and the Internationall
Olympic Federation and I am well aware that their Chairman
has said something this morning but another suggestion might
well be that the Games should not take place in any one country
but that it should take place in four or five or six countries
at any one time. The reasons for that would be that a larger / 2
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Prime Minister ( continued)
number of countries could participate in mounting the
Games. The cost of mounting the Games is becoming prohibitive.
Lesser numbers-of countries would feel inclined to embark
upon that path and put out the enormous sums that are now
required and indeed demanded for a successful mounting of
the Games as a whole.. That second suggestion is not entirely
novel, because some aspects of the Games are held in separate
places now. It would be an extension if you like, of that
principle. I think it is very important for the Olympic committees, and
for governments, to do what they can to see that the Games
continue into the future free of political interference.
I think either of the suggestions that I have put might well
give a greater opportunity of that occurring than the Games
continuing largely being held in one place, and therefore
capable of being used for political purposes.
But, so far as these Games are concerned, the Australian
Government has not yet made any firm decision. We are consulting
with other countries. Quite plainly, the Games are an
international event. While the Russians mount them they are
not a Russian event, and therefore we look at the Games in a
different light and other aspects of the bilateral
relationship is'strictly between the Russians and ourselves.
So, they are different in that context. It is important I think.
What a number of other countries do, we will have to be assessing
that. I look forward to learning what the views of the
Young Liberals are after you have passed, changed or amended
what various resolutions you have.
Question I congratulate your Government on introducing training and
education schemes for young unemployed people, but do you maintain
that in spDite of technological advances in the future
economic growth will provide jobs for all. If-not,-mn other
words, if there will be a permanent pool of unemployed what is
your Government doing to come to grips with providing their
social needs, their social role, their-needs, and. determining....,-
what place they will play in the future of Australia?
Prime Minister
The best thing we can do to help people who are unemployed
is to re-establish the sound basis of economic growth taking
Australia forward into the future, because whatever the lev -elof
unemployment might be, with a substantial level of economic
growth it will plainly be much less than it would be without
that growth. I think everyone could accept that. If we can
take much as agreed, I think we then have to recognise that
we are going to go through a much more difficult environment
than we have over the last 20 or 30 years. A number of jobs
have disappeared. Not so much because of modern technological
changes, but because of dramatic changes. in wage structures
which have forced people to do things differently if they are
to be done at all. When you have average wages, or award wages,
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Prime Minister ( continued)
going up 38 per cent in one year alone and that is what
happened in the year March to 1975 arnd all of that had to
work its way through industry. It hit industry 9 months before
we came into office. It had to work its way through before
you could get back to a competitive Australian industry which we
are now establishing again. But the impact of wage increases
of that kind does lead to some permanent changes which is
very difficult to overcome, especially the very great increase
of wages of young, unskilled people where a lot of the jobs
that might have been available just now are not there, or
machines do the work instead. So it is not just a question of
technological change. You have got to look at the other changes
within society, within our own economy, to see how they have
been affecting things.
Modern technology I think, I am certain, has got to be embraced
as a challenge and as an opportunity, not looked at in any
sense with defeatism or despair, because technology enables you
to produce things more cheaply and better, and if you do that
you are going to sell more. You will employ more than you
otherwise would. If you do not use that technology, your
competitors in some other countries certainly will. And then
we in our industries will be left with old technology;
inefficient, high-cost, not able to compete overseas, not able
to compete in Australia except under higher and higher tariffs
and protectionisms which carry their own problems with it.
So embracing modern technology, and using it to Australia's
advantage, is the only sensible course that we have available
to us.
I think that in this kind of environment, taking the domestic
changes and other changes into account, we are going to
more difficult employment situation than we have had for a
long while. But the policies we have set in train will
minimise those difficulties.-In addition, I believe. that.. ther:
has be-readier access to training throughout life, partly*
because of the changes of technology. It is not good enough
to have somebody trained at.. the age-of 17 or, 18 or 19,. r
early 20' s and then that training is the be all and ' the end of*
it for the rest of life. If technology makes that.-particular
skill unnecessary or outdated, the person should have an
opportunity for later changing and moving into the additional
technology. A number of firms do do this with their own
employees, and I think it is essential for the smooth and quiet
and happy introduction of new technology. So we cannot get
over the fact that we are living in a world of greater change;-
greater need for education and training opportunities. The
trade unions could help us greatly if they would accept more
willingly adult training and adult apprenticeship, if they
would accept re-training. That is one of the great
conservatisms in the Australian environment, one of the great
reactionary forces which does place difficulties in the way of
people who time might otherwise pass by. So we have to work on
a broad front. There are problems, but ouir policies are
designed to minimise those problems. / 4
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Question Mr. Fraser, it seems fairly clear that there has been a good
deal of public unease about the Government's health insurance
policies and the relatively frequent changes that there have
been in them from time to time. Is it likely that we will
see any more substantial changes in the near future, during
this election year, or we acknowledge the presence of the
minister for Health as well are we likely to see the scheme
settle down in its present form.
Prime Minister
I would not like to pre-empt anything that the Minister for
Health might propose or be wanting to propose -which might well
be just a continuation of what is. That is always one of the
options. I think we need to understand the background of
the problems that we confronted in the health arena. The fact
that there has been more than one set of changes we have not liked,
but it only I think emphasises the extent of the problem.
Many countries around the world have lost control of their
health expenditure. They really have. We were doing that in
the Hayden time under Medibank. One particular aspect of health
expenditure went up. I think it was hospital costs to the
Commonwealth, Micheal, went up 113 per cent in one year-under
Mr. Hayden. That is the so-called architect of the only
economic responsibility that Labor ever had. It gives a measure
of what they regard as economic responsibilty. Quite plainly,
the changes that we have introduced have been introduced against
two elements, two things we wanted to preserve and to establish:
adequate health care for Australians, and especially for
disadvantaged Australians, for pensioners, and for people in
special need but at'a cost that the community can entertain,
at a cost that the community can stand. It is easy to say everyone
will -get free health care. if--you-are. not going to~ care
how much people have to pay out of their Pockets to do it
through taxation and all the rest. But afL" ter what Labor did, to
be able to continue with reasonable, proper health carg, but . to.
do within a budgetary position which is overall responsibly
managed, is obviously difficult. That is the challenge. That is
why there has been more than" one change, and I make , no apology
for that, because it has been necessary in the meeting ofthose'
twin objectives. If Micheal wants to recommend further changes
of course the Government will be looking at those closely in
the pursuit of those further objectives.
I must say that in some areas, especially in New South Wales,
we could be much better helped and the taxpayer could be much
better helped if the Health Minister did not want to play.
politics with hospital finances to quite the extent that he
has over the past 12 months. With a 60 per cent occupancy of
beds, with a very large part of the total health costs in the
hospital area, quite plainly we have got to make sure that
enough beds are available for everyone, but you do not want a
whole lot of beds, fully staffed and operational, but nobody
to be in them. The rationalisation of hospital facilities, in
the medium term, is going to be quite essential to get the
total cost of health care under control. I agree it is a
difficult area. I agree that there has been an element of
Prime Minister ( continued)
concern, but I also believe that people understand the
basic objectives that we have been pursuing.
Question Mr. Prime Minister, this morning, recently this morning,
we re-endorsed one of the Liberal Party's 1955 election policies
and that was to end the 48-hour blackout prior to an election
on radio and television, including comment. Could you give
a commitment to end that for the 1980 Federal election?
Prime Minister
By that particular Wednesday I think the general public
havebeen so bombarded with political propoganda that there are
quite a large number of people out in the community who are
able to get back to their normal programs with relief, and not have me
or Bill Hayden coming out, or Micheal MacKellar or somebody
else coming out with an advertisement, and giving them a little
relief in which they can make up their own minds quietly,
without people who think they know so much better than all the
rest of us telling them what to do from that box.
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