PM Transcripts

P. M. -No.-22/ I951) 1IXPREMIER-
S CONFERENCE AND LOAN CO-NCIL
Statement by__ the A~ cti~ png Prime minister, Rt. Hon. J. McEwen M. P.
This conference comes about in two ways. First of all,
at this time or about this time in every year the matter of the
State Tax Reimbursements Grants and Loan allocations is decided.
But9 in addition, the Commonwealth has said that it has undertaken
to make some general re-examination of Commonwealth-State
financial relations. This was said in the policy speechgand the
Conference on 4th and 5th March was the first step towards it.
This Conference will resume the discussion on that issue.
It has been apparent for some years that the present
tax reimbursement formula has not satisfied all the States and has
been a source of disagreement both as to the quantum of the annual
grant and its distribution. Every year for many years the
Commonwealth has found it necessary to add an amount, arbitrarily
arrived at, to the tax reimbursement formula grants. F-ru-ther.....,
some States have said that the present distribution arrangements
are unsatisfactory. Over and above that, within the present financial year
two States Victoria and Queensland have raised the question of
applying for special assistance under section 969 i. e. 9 Grants
Commission assistance. If this were to come about, five States
out of six would come within the Grants Comirission arrangements
and this would make the system unworkable. So it was clear that
a study of a possible revision was needed.
At the March Conference the Prime Minister, speaking
for the Commonwealth, said that we would put to study the question
of something new which might rectify any position of disadvantage
in one or two States while ensuring that the needs of other States
were given due recognition,,
So we have made this study. We have looked at the
matter under several headings, -, ihich include the quantum of the
grant9 the distribution arrangements and Grants Commission
arrangements, and we will be putting soe proposals to the States
as we undertook to do. This whole problem does not reduce itself
to simple arithmetic and does not lend itself to any precise
scientific solution, But we have plans to put forward which we
believe to be practical and cormmonsense. It will, of course, be
open for discussion around the table. We have already had from
the States in ansr-j' to our invitation soire helpful views and we
have made use of thcsec
I am hopeful that in a spirit of partnership and cooperation
the seven Governments in conference will work towards
better arrangements for future provision of grants to the States
and their equitable distribution."
CANBERRA, A. C. T.
22nd June, 1959,