Campaign Transcript

TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER, MINISTER KIM CARR AND LABOR CANDIDATE FOR BENNELONG JASON YAT-SEN LI DOORSTOP MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY, MACQUARIE PARK 12 AUGUST 2013 E & O E PROOF ONLY _____________________________________________________________ Subjects: Manufacturing Skills Plus; GST; Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Outlook; Asylum seekers; Polls. _____________________________________________________________ PM: Its great to be here at Macquarie University at the Australian Hearing Hub with the Minister for Innovation, Science and Research, my good friend Kim Carr, as well as my good friend Jason Yat-Sen Li, who is our candidate for Bennelong. ViceChancellor, thank you for taking us through this centre this morning. We are very proud of it. We've invested in this place. And you see such extraordinary research and good work under way here today and for full disclosure I'm using notes also today, if you just take your attention to that, consistent with my normal practice of using notes. I prefer to be across the detail wherever I can. This is a great centre, a really good centre. I remember with Kim way back when we decided to invest $40 million into the construction of the Australian engineering hub. What I have seen this morning is an extraordinary reflection of the high quality work which is under way here. This is, Im advised, one of the best centres in the world. And when it comes to hearing sciences it is helping to make Australia a genuine world leader in this area of critical research. This is research which affects so many hearing impaired folk right around the world, right around Australia, including little kids. So it's been an honour, actually, to mix with some of the professionals that work here this morning and see terrific things that they are doing. There are five core reasons why we are seeking support from the Australian people for this upcoming election in building Australia's future. Number one, we believe in building the new industries of the future to adjust for the end of the mining boom and through those new industries to create the new jobs of the future. Number two, we believe in building the best education system in the world and that means implementing our Better Schools Plan right across the country so that we have the one-on-one attention which young Australians need in the classroom, so that they can end up here in places like the hearing hub with the sorts of professional skills which are needed. Number three, we believe in maintaining a first-class health and hospital system that caters for our ageing population, but on top of that building Australia's first DisabilityCare system. Number four is we believe in building for the future through a National Broadband Network. I look at all the young researchers here today, if they're not linked in with high speed, high reliability, lowest cost possible broadband then frankly they can never be cooking with gas. It's part and parcel of how research

is done these days. We are passionate about that as a building block for Australia's economic future. Number five is building, of course, a clean energy future for Australia. I looked at some figures recently which said, for example, on solar panels on roofs I think when we were elected to office, Kim, we had about 7 to 10,000 houses with solar panels, I stand to be corrected. Now there's more than a million. This is all helping to build a clean energy future as well as deal with the challenge of global warming. To do all these things and to build our future, we need a new way of approaching these challenges as well. What I'm here to do today is to announce another investment in how we create the new industries and new jobs of the future. Now that we see the end of the China mining boom in sight. As I noted before, this is a world-class facility for collaborative research into hearing and related speech and language disorders. An example of the potential for jobs to be created through our high tech industries. I've always said before I never want to be the Prime Minister of a country that doesn't make things any more. You know something, we've got about just under a million Australians who are working in manufacturing. Manufacturing is the end point of innovation and research and technical application and venture capital to make it all work. We are in this country making extraordinary devices to assist with people's hearing disorders and so much of the research is done here. Manufacturing is not just about yesterday, manufacturing is also about tomorrow and it's built on these pillars of innovation, research and commercial application. Therefore, we believe what we need for the future of our manufacturing is to continue to move up the value added chain into high tech, high skill sectors and for all of our workers to be able to lift their skills on the way through. So today, I announce that if our Government is returned to office, we'll invest $35.6 million working with business and institutions like this to begin to retain our manufacturing workforce for the future. Our Manufacturing Skills Plus program will help nearly 7,000 new and existing manufacturing workers to develop the skills they need for the new industries of the future. We want to help our companies move from low skilled, low technology manufacturing to high skilled, high tech sectors, where we will find the jobs of the future. This initiative builds on the $35 million Step into Skills initiative I announced yesterday. The bottom line is this: you can't create the jobs of the future unless you're investing in the skills of the future. That's what this Government is about building our country's future, brick by brick, wall by wall, in order to make sure that we have a strong house for the nation into the future. There is a further announcement I would like to make today as well. That is, the announcement of the establishment of a medical technology innovation partnership here at Macquarie University bringing together researchers and industry. Medical technology is a key industry for the future. One of the new industries, employers for the future. Worldwide, it's a $300 billion business. The success stories, we know are right across Australia. This is one of the 12 innovation partnerships around the nation. Our Government will boost funding for these partnerships by $12 million. We have a plan to deal with the end, therefore, of the China resources boom and building the skills which the manufacturing workforce needs for the future is part of that. And building the skills we also need through innovative partnerships like the

one here at the Australian hearing hub and those like it around the country are just as important. I conclude just by saying this, we believe in building and investing in the future. It seems, however, that Mr Abbott is more interested in cutting and cutting for the future. Theres a big difference there. I believe we need to focus on this squarely as we move into the final month of this election campaign. We believe that you've got to invest in the future, but what I see however is Mr Abbott still not being upfront about where his $70 billion worth of cuts will come in terms of education, health and of course jobs. I fear that the reason for this is that Mr Abbott wants to keep all this under wraps and not come clear about where his $70 billion worth of cuts will happen because he is frightened about what the people of Australia might do if they found out. Mr Abbott has today however gone one step further. Mr Abbott today says that he wants to emulate Jeff Kennett's golden age in Victoria, nation-wide. Thats what he said. He regards Jeff Kennett as representing a golden age and he therefore embraces that, we presume, as his model for the future. Let me say a thing about that in terms of the model he would embrace. In the period Mr Kennett was Premier of Victoria, 300 public schools were closed, 9,000 teachers and school staff were sacked, 3,500 nurses were sacked, 17 hospitals were closed, 800 police officers were sacked, 45,000 public servants were sacked and unemployment peaked at 12.3 per cent, and state taxes ended up being the second highest in Australia. So if that is the golden age that Mr Abbott embraces for Australia's future, I think the people of Australia will legitimately ask, where are your $70 billion worth of cuts going to fall? On top of this we also have a call to arms from the Liberal National Party Premier of Queensland saying, and I see it reported in the press today, that a Queensland style of austerity measures program is working in Queensland and calling upon Mr Abbott to do the same. What has happened in all of these places, whether its Queensland, Victoria under Premier Kennett, and what Mr Abbott is proposing is a Commission of Audit, no details attached, if they are elected. Then, the cuts and the cuts and the cuts roll in. I worry about that the level of the general economy, because if you cut that much, the real risk is that you will plunge the economy into recession and that will have an effect on all jobs. But particularly when you embrace Mr Kennett's golden age, that's Mr Abbott's words, golden age in Victoria as I presume a model for the future, I think we need to know precisely where that goes. So whats our vision for building Australias future - its about building the nurture by investing in the future industries and jobs we'll need with the end of the China mining boom. Whereas Mr Abbott's vision is one of cut, cut and more cuts, without giving us the details. I will turn briefly to Minister Carr on this program here, briefly to Jason, then we'll take your questions. KIM CARR: Thank you Prime Minister. We have a new way, a new way to assist this country move to a brighter and more prosperous future. What this Centre shows is that this Government has a commitment to ensuring that our scientists and researchers have the very best kit this country can afford. And in return, we ask of our scientists and our researchers to work with us to help us rebuild this country, to prepare for the future, to prepare the jobs for the future. And that's exactly what's

going on. And today we're announcing new measures to see that that happens. This is what we say is about blue-collar meeting white coat. This is an opportunity here for us to be able to build on the strengths of this country, its intellectual firepower, to have the very best researchers in the world come and study here, ensure we use the best equipment this country can afford and then build the jobs for the future. Medical instruments is one of those areas. 19,000 people currently employed in these industries. We think this is an area in which we can grow substantially, $300 billion worth of business out there in the world and we want a cut of it. We want to ensure that the very best is able to be produced here in Australia so that people buy Australian at home and abroad. This facility highlights what can be done. We bring the very best of all our different agencies, the CSIRO, the ARC, Australian Hearing, we bring them together with the universities to be able to get the very best talent this country has and mobilise it to produce the jobs for the future. Prime Minister, you mentioned that the Opposition is still continuing to hide its cuts. I can tell you where $1 billion of those cuts will come from, because they've indicated that they would wish to remove the underpinnings of programs such as this, remove the precincts program. $1 billion jobs plan would go out the window under Mr Abbott. Furthermore, Enterprise Connect which is a very, very important instrument, $150 million program which helps sustain up to 25,000 businesses in this country at this time, would also go. There is just one example of what cuts would mean if we adopted the Kennett-style approach to government in Australia. PM: Thank you very much Kim. Jason for just a minute or two on your ideas locally. JASON YAT-SEN LI: Thank you Prime Minister. I'm delighted and I think it's entirely fitting that these announcements should happen in the electorate of Bennelong. We have a vision for Bennelong as the Silicon Valley of Australia, as a hub of innovation, economic growth and local jobs. We're holding an event here at Macquarie Uni on the 28th of August, where we're bringing the best minds together to come up with a strategy to deliver that vision. PM: Thanks very much Jason and having been around Macquarie University a bit in the past, in this precinct. There is, per cubic meter of space, there is a whole bunch of really bright people out here. So when it comes to building a Silicon Valley in Australia, I believe you are starting with the absolute right ingredients. Over to you folks. JOURNALIST: On the GST, you ruled that out of the Henry Tax Review. Negative gearing wasn't ruled out. Do you have a secret agenda to scrap negative gearing? PM: No. JOURNALIST: PEFO is coming out tomorrow. Do you expect that the numbers in PEFO will be very different to the numbers released in the economic statement a released in statement a few weeks ago. And also, you've obviously got policy costings as well. When are we going to see your policy costings and that will do for starters?

PM: Well, I like a level playing field, Sid. That's good. You saw with the economic statement a week or so ago, a clear statement involving lots of hard decisions on how we return the budget to surplus over time. Very clear both on the revenue side and on the expenditure side and some of these have been quite politically controversial and some of them unpopular, but we believe in taking those hard decisions. I think for the future Sid, as we release further policies, you should assume that there will be a full reconciliation of the costings on the way through, but we start with a very transparent position about how we intend to return the budget to surplus over time without engaging in a massive $70 billion set of cuts. The challenge for our opponents, 24 hours out from PEFO Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Outlook - is to level with the Australian people about where the $70 billion worth of cuts will come. Its a pretty simple request. Then if there are subsequent initiatives in the campaign, fine, put them out and indicate how they will be funded. I think that's the right and fair way. JOURNALIST: The tertiary staff union is using money to help fund Independent and Greens candidates in this election, rather than Labor, because they're angry about tertiary education funding cuts. What will you do to address those concerns? PM: One thing I just say, before I turn to Kim to help answer this question, is when I look across Australia, I mentioned this in the debate last night, one of the things I'm very proud of is we now have 190,000 more kids in university across Australia than we did when we first came to office. That's a huge investment and when we've uncapped university places we've accompanied that with a parallel strong investment with universities. Kim on the specific question. KIM CARR: Can I just say to you, we have record levels of science and research investment in this country by the Australian Government. Record levels of investment in higher education for undergraduate programs. A university such as this, on average, would increase its funding, in terms of direct funding to the university by 50 per cent. We've got 190,000 extra places in the system. So in terms of our record of achievement, I think it stands second to none in the history of the Commonwealth of Australia. If the national tertiary Education Union wants to vote for the Greens, that's their position but they'll never be able to form a government. All theyll be able to do is form a protest movement. We're in the business of forming a government and reshaping the higher education agenda in this country, the research agenda in this country, the science agenda in this country. JOURNALIST: Two Somali asylum seekers have been found making their way from PNG through the Torres Straight on their way to Australia. Are Campbell Newman's fears being realised and is this part of our border secure? PM: I will allow the Immigration Minister to answer those questions a bit later in the day in detail on the ones that you raise. But broadly, what I said when we launched the regional resettlement arrangement was that what's fundamental here is a clearcut message to people smugglers and those who draw upon their services, which is if you seek to bring people to Australia by boat, they will not be allowed to be settled in Australia. That's why we have entered into an agreement with Papua New Guinea for people to be not just assessed there but also to be settled there if they're proven to be

migrants. If they're proven to be bona fide refugees. I always said there's always going to be bumps in the road in the implementation. I said that upfront. But I also note based on the most recent data that in the month or so since we've had this policy being implemented, I'm advised that the number of boat arrivals is down by about 30 per cent. So I think we take this one step at a time. Understanding that this is a challenge which will face any government of Australia. I believe we put the right policy forward. JOURNALIST: Mr Rudd you made a joke of bringing your notes along to the press conference today, but do you acknowledge at all that you did make a mistake last night by taking notes to the lectern? And that that is seen by some people as a breach of trust? PM: I think what's fair to say is that if someone had said to me that it was not proper to take notes along to a debate, then sure, that's fine. I was in receipt of no such advice. It would be rather odd if you went to a platform watched by several millions of people thinking you could do something on the sly. You can't. So I acted in good faith. I think everyone would accept that. Second thing is, I seem to remember when I debated Mr Howard in 2007, I had notes with me then. I think most times I stand before you folks I carry notes with me. There's a reason for that. I prefer to be as accurate as I can and so when people present data like they did last night about how terrible labour productivity is under the Fair Work Act then what I can say, well actually if you look at the data about productivity under the Fair Work Act versus WorkChoices it's better rather than worse. The other thing is there is a limit to how much you can scribble down on the palm of your hand, there is a limit of how many of Mr Abbott's three word slogans you can actually get there to actually remember them all. So you do need notes. JOURNALIST: Talking about future measures in science. Your candidate for Perth today, Alannah MacTiernan, has said that Australia should look at nuclear power as a future option. Is that something that you would consider? And a second question, is the Victorian right of the ALP at war and are you confident that your candidate or most likely candidate Claire O'Neill, that no dirt will emerge against her? PM: I think the first thing to say is that everybody in the Labor Party is free to put their views on the question of Australia's energy mix. I could tell what you the Australian Government's policy is and it does not involve nuclear power. These matters are regularly debated and discussed at our national conferences and thats as it should be in a democratically run party. On the question of Victorian pre-selections, this is a matter which will be dealt with by the National Executive of the Australian Labor Party and I'm sure, as is usual, these will be the subject of robust discussions and debate about who's the most appropriate person. What I would say is that when it comes to the good folk of Victoria and the good folk who reside in the seat of Hotham, we want to be able to put the best candidate forward. I have never known anyone nominated for political office who has not had some things thrown at them, which then subsequently prove to be completely false. That's why you have to be very cautious about these things on the way through. JOURNALIST: Mr Rudd today's Newspoll, it's probably the fourth or fifth survey

which shows that Labor is behind and your personal approval is slipping. Is the honeymoon over? PM: What Id just say is I said on day one as we called the election, we entered this election for September the 7th, as the underdog. Nothing has changed. If you look at these polls, 48, 49, 50, depending on the day, depending on the poll, I think the key thing is this: the Australian people will be the good judges of who should be the Prime Minister of the country. When we get to September 7, there's about a month to go in this election campaign. I'm a positive sort of guy, with a positive set of plans for the country's future and I'm not fazed by any of this. I've been around for a bit, mate. I've been around for a few things somewhat more challenging than this as well so we will continue to put our best foot forward. But I think the key thing is just contrasting on the way through, we've put forward how we intend to build a better Australia for the future. It's very plain. We believe in diversifying the economy. Mr Abbott seemed to be saying last night that the mining sector is where he thinks we should still have our principal focus, if I read him correctly. I dont think thats sustainable, we need to diversify, Ive explained how wed seek to diversify because I dont think we can have all our eggs in one basket because we need to create these new jobs in the future. How we intend to build a world class education system through the Better Schools Plan which hes described as a con, how we intend to build the health and hospitals system for the future which remains world class given that his record is cutting a billion dollars out of public spending, how were building a National Broadband Network for the future which he would plan to disconnect. And how we are building a clean energy future given that Mr Abbott has said hed basically tear the emissions trading scheme into little pieces given I think in his heart of hearts he remains, at best, a climate change sceptic if not worse. KIM CARR: Can I just add something, we dont normally comment on polls but I do think its worth a mention. What weve seen is quite ugly negative polls, negative advertisement, financed by the tobacco industry and those of us who have some experience in these matters know that negative politics does have an impact and they have clearly have had some impact. I think we can overcome them, but I dont think that for a moment you should be deluded by thinking that the negative campaign thats been run has not had some impact. We will overcome it. We are in the business of arguing the case for the future of Australia and I think thats where the electorate will put its money in the end. JOURNALIST: My point before was do you accept that things can be included in your review that doesnt mean youre necessarily going to change them? PM: What Id say about that is pretty basic, is that on something as fundamental as the Goods and Services Tax, which affects every single Australian, every single Australian because its 10 per cent on top of everything you buy really outside of food with a few other exceptions as well. We have taken the view, had a long debate about this internally with the Government that thats not on the table because it go es to cost of living pressures faced by families who themselves are finding it tough to make their budgets meet. So where I dont get Mr Abbotts logic last night is this, if on the one hand youre not going to touch the Goods and Services Tax then why are you making the Goods and Services Tax part of our tax review.

JOURNALIST: (interrupts) PM: this is just so basic for everybody, everyone is affected by the Goods and Services Tax, everyone. Let me give you another example, Mr Abbott said last night that he couldnt change the Goods and Services Tax unless youve got the agreement of all the state Premiers. Well thats just not true, that arrangement exists.. JOURNALIST: (interrupts) PM: The Goods and Services Tax exists through an intergovernmental agreement which is entrenched in Commonwealth Government legislation and therefore if the future Australian Government wants to change that legislation it can by putting a Bill through the House of Representatives, passing it and putting it through the Senate. Its a simple as that. So what Im saying is that his core argument that there is not a problem because everyone would have to agree is actually a false argument so Im just saying that its a big impact on cost of living pressures for families ac ross the country. I think the question that needs to be answered is if Mr Abbott is and he said last night he doesnt want to change the Goods and Services Tax then why is it part of the review. One final thing on the Goods and Services Tax, in Perth he has said he wants to make sure that WA gets a bigger slice of the Goods and Services Tax. Thats what he says in certain discussions in Perth and thats one of the reasons why we have sought to invest more in WA in infrastructure in order to assist our West Australian friends with some of the big infrastructure challenges they face. At the same time in Tasmania hes saying that of course that distribution of the Goods and Services Tax wouldnt be affected, wouldnt be affected at all. Now you cant do one without the other so all Im saying is, it's time to be upfront about what his plans on the Goods and Services Tax. JOURNALIST: (inaudible) PM: Yeah well today is the last day for enrolling to vote for the election on September the 7th. If you haven't enrolled today it closes at 8pm. So whether you're going to vote for Mr Abbott or vote for me at the next election, it's really important that every Australian has their say, every Australian citizen should enrol and young people who are on the roll for the first time or if they've been changing their address, go online, find the Australian Electoral Commission website and you can enrol online. You don't have to toddle off to the post office again. JOURNALIST: Nathan Bracken is running as an independent in the seat of Dobell. Will you be talking to him about preference deals? PM: anything concerning preferences in this election is dealt with by National Secretary or the relevant state secretaries so Ill leave all that there. Anyone here who hasnt had a question? Yes mate. JOURNALIST: You've been accused by the Coalition of playing politics on gay marriage.

PM: Do you say Ive been accused of playing politics by the Coalition? Thats terrific. You know something I was very upfront way before I returned to the Prime Ministership about why I changed my position on marriage equality. Ive told people why Ive adopted that position and the reasons for it, got attacked left right and centre at the time and supported by others. Secondly we get asked a question at the end of the debate last night, that is, what's your position and what are you going to do about it? I just answered the question directly. I support marriage equality. I believe that if are going to bring about that change, then we're going to need to have a free vote in the Parliament, which our party will provide but regrettably, Mr Abbott is not providing to his own members. I also said that in the first 100 days of our Government being returned, if we are returned, is that legislation will come forward with the objective of legalising samesex marriage because, frankly, in the year 2013 I think the time has come to put this acrimonious debate behind us. When I meet same sex couples across Australia, as I had in recent years and that had a profound effect on my thinking, as I have discussed the matter with them. I believe that under the ceremonies provided by a secular state, there should be no impediment for their relationships to be reflected as that of marriage. The churches are still free to conduct religious ceremonies which distinguish themselves from those of the state and which marriage is still regarded as between a men and a woman. I think I had a question here. JOURNALIST: I thought Id ask you about Sydney airport. Last night you said it wasnt the only airport in the country. Do you understand the importance of it as a gateway to this city and would you personally take it up and would you consider that Anthony Albanese may have a conflict of interest because his electorate is affected by aircraft noise? PM: Sydney Airport is a critical piece of the nation's infrastructure, like all our major airports are whether it's Tullamarine or Brisbane Airport, but because Sydney is the nation's gateway, of course, it is the most critical of all. The point I was making last night was about the productivity for the nation is that it's a bigger equation than Sydney Airport. The point I was making last night about productivity for the nation is that it is a bigger equation than Sydney airport. Secondly the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Infrastructure has made absolutely plain that he believes that construction on a second airport site would need to commence in the next term of the Parliament and I understand from his earlier comments that there is still the completion of a specific survey of the Wilton site as one of those to be considered. For the future, it's big for Sydney. I understand that. On the conflict question I have known Minister Albanese for a long, long time. He is a Member of Parliament who in my experience will put the national interest first and he wants to make sure that this decision is got right. Ill take one before I go. JOURNALIST: Do you acknowledge that if your figures from the budget update don't match up PEFO figures that will be an issue of trust for the Australian voters? PM: We work with the data were given and I dont know what your alternative expectation would be. The Treasury provides its best analysis of revenue projections. We act within that. That's the proper way in which government is done. You can't sort of have some plan in the back of your pocket, what if this projection is wrong or that projection is wrong so we operate honestly on the basis of the data we

are given. Can I just suggest to the country at large that we have adhered to the disciplines based on the numbers we are given. I would just request, I would just request that Mr Abbott be subjected to the same discipline. Remember it was Peter Costello, the former Liberal Treasurer of Australia who brought in this discipline. I think it's the correct discipline, it tries to put us all on to a level playing field about your disciplines on revenue and expenditure. Its the right way to go and I fully support it, he brought that back in I think after the 1996 election. It's something we've all adhered to since and what I am stunned about is Mr Abbott's continued determination to keep his $70 billion worth of cuts to jobs, education and health under wraps for political reasons, not for good financial economic reasons. Having said all that folks, I think I better zip. ENDS