TRANSCRIPT OF NEWS CONFERENCE, NEW ZEALAND HIGH
COMMISSION RESIDENCE, CANBERRA 6 FEBRUARY 1990
E OE PROOF ONLY
JOURNALIST: The Democrat preferences in Thomastown don't
seem to be going, or aren't going your way. Does this
worry you?
PM: Look, if there's any worry about the votes of the
Democrats in Thomastown it should be by the Liberals. To
have themselves being outvoted by the Democrats is a very
real concern for them. We haven't disguised the fact,
before the Thomastown election, that there'd be a swing
and that there would be dissatisfaction down there
amongst the voters in that electorate. I said that would
be so before the election and I've said it since.
Predominantly, not exclusivesly, but predominantly they
have been state issues. The Liberals are the ones who
need to worry about what's happened to the vote in
Thomastown. JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, when will the Government
work out its position on foreign ownership of television
networks? PM: Well the Minister has had some discussions about it
and he will be considering this again in the next week or
so. The Government will make its position clear when
he's concluded his considerations and recommendations to
US. JOURNALIST: Does it concern you that the delay favours
Kerry Packer rather than Alan Bond?
PM: Well what would concern me if we were to take any'
particular decision which manifestly was seen to or would
in fact favour one player rather than the other. It's in
that sense almost a no-win situation. But we don't
intend to make our decisions in terms of favouring one
player or the other either in regard to that network or
anyone else.
JOURNALIST: trip to Western Australia, will you be
attempting to diffuse the issue of WA Inc in regard to a
federal election.
PM: WA Inc is a state issue there. I'll be going over
there to talk about those issues which will determine the
welfare of West Australians in the period ahead as far as
federal government is concerned. It's who's in
government in Canberra which will determine whether the
people of Western Australia will be devastated by changes
to Medicare and the abolition of Medicare which the
coalition parties propose at the federal level. These
are the sorts of issues that I'll be talking about. The
question of WA Inc as you say is a matter of state
politics and to be worked out over there. There is
nothing that we've done to create WA Inc. That is
entirely a West Australian matter and will be seen by the
electorate as such.
JOURNALIST: Does Mr Dowding enjoy your unqualified
support as leader in the West?
PM: All the leaders of my Party wherever they are enjoy
my unqualified confidence.
JOURNALIST: Senator Button is suggesting that a deal has
been done between yourself and Mr Keating for the
leadership after the next election.
PM: Not so.
JOURNALIST: Mr Peacock said this morning that your
Government Prime Minister is practising the politics of
the big lie, that key groups are not supporting the ACTU
wage struture. The National Farmers Federation
dissociated themselves and small business is not happy
with it.
PM: Yes but he really couldn't do much better than the
National Farmers Federation. did it with a bit of a
flip Earlier in the day they were part The
simple indisputable fact is that the major employer
organisations in Australia have said to the Opposition's
wages policy what any intelligent person would've
expected them to say. And that is you can stick your
wages policy because it is a recipe for industrial
disaster. That is the judgement of everyone in Australia
that has any significance, including the major employer
organisations. They have no support from any section of
the trade union movement. They have no support now from
the major employer organisations. And this is not
surprising because no intelligent person concerned in the
Australian industrial and economic scene wants to see a
return to the disaster of ' 81-' 82 when you had your wages
explosion. And the employers and the trade unions
understand that what Mr Peacock is proposing is precisely
such a recipe. So it's not surprising that as in most
other areas of policy intelligent people and relevant
organisations are saying to the Opposition you are
pathetic, you are irrelevant.
ends