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Transcript of press conference: Endeavour Project. Perth: 5 April l992
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JOHN DAWKINS. M.P. Federal Member ior Fremantie Treasurer
COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARY LiBRARY MICAH
Transcript of Press Conference with the Federal Treasure, The Hon John Dawkins MP, at the Endeavour Project. Perth, today· Sunday, 5 Aprill992
Journalist: Mr Dawkins there is still a long way to go for the Endeavour do you think it is reasonable to ask the public another X million dollars to have it completed?
JD: well I think this is very wonhy project for the public to contribute. Its going to be a long lasting memorial which will be in the National Museum in Sydney but it won't be stuck in Sydney. It will spend a lot of its life travelling round Australia so that all Australians can enjoy it and particularly can understand the enormity, of not just tlle
construction of this ship, but also the whole business of sailing it here to Australia a couple of hundred years ago.
Journalist: Do you think it is realistic expectation to have the extra 4 million spent in time for it to be launched next Autumn?
JD: Well !hats not a matter for me to judge. I am very confident however that if John Longley and the others say it can be done it will be done.
Journalist: Is there a chance of the Government kicking in a bit more money?
JD: Well, when we sat down with the Foundation which took up this task when al;l the other contributors had disappeared what they said they needed from us was one and a half million. We gave them what they said they needed from the Commonwealth. They also received some from the NSWs Government because of the particular association
with NSW, and they were quite confident at that time that they could raise the money elsewhere. Of course the recession has made fund raising more difficult but as we come out of the recession I think the Foundation's more confident that they will be .able to raise those funds.
Journalist: Just on Other matters, the Ashburton By-election, a good omen for Wills?
JD: Well I think there are very different issues. One was a State By-election and the other Federal by-election. We still think that the Wills by-election is going tho be · pretty tough assignment for us, but of course it was a great result for the Western Australian Government to experience just a 3 per cent swing against it under these
circumstances in a by-election when you expect there to be larger anti-government swings.
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Telephone: (09) 335 8!
Facsimiled (09) 336 1(
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JOURNALIST: Do you still think Labor can win Wills though'?
JD: Well as I said, its going to be a bit close to call I think and I wouldn't want to be making any particular pn:dictions now. It will be tough, but we are in there fighting, we are running a great campaign and we have got a very good candidate.
Journalist: Dr Hewson is still n:fusing to say his allegations that he made in Parliament outside of Parliament, any further calls to him?
JD: Well I think the people will make then: own judgements. I mean he decided to make these quite scUirilous and unsupported accusations. It is not just about the Labor Party, its the way in which the Australian Government works. He's saying that then: are criminal influences in the Prime Minister's Office. Its a shocking thing to say without
substantiation and he wont substantiate it and he wont withdraw it, so the people will make their own judgements about him.
Journalist: Do you think it has really hurt the Liberals campaign for Wills?
JD: Well thats hard to say. We will know soon enough. But I think its probably damaged Dr Hewson's reputation because he purported to be someone who was interested in very high standards in Parliament but now he has decided to adopt the lowest standards, the standards of the likes of Wilson Tuckey.
Journalist: On your nip to Japan do you plan to talk to the Prime Minister about their agn:ement with the U.S. to take cheaper car parts from them?
JD: Well the Foreign Minister and I will be meeting with the Mm Minister- the Minister for International Trade and Industry- and we will certainly be raising those matters with the Japanese Government because we don't want to see the Japanese and the United States coming to any agreements, this one or any others, which will do
damage to our important trade with Japan.
Journalist: Do you think it sets a precedent?
JD: Well look we have had to deal with this over the years, there have always been attempts by America to try and employ non commercial tactics in trying to improve their trade with Japan. We are only interested in a commercial fair go as far as our trade with Japan is concerned. This is not the first time its happened but what we have to do
is identify these occasions and resist them and encourage the Japanese to resist them as well.
Journalist: Is it also a case of attempting to shore-up the Japanese markets as that country goes into recession?
JD: Well I don't think the Japanese economy will go into recession. Its slowing down for sure, but I don't think it will stop or go backwards. I think its a very resilient economy, its got very good trade figures, its got pretty respectable budget and I think they can slow the economy down without it going into reverse, and I think we are going
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through period now of the Japanese economy essentially cranking down a gear so that its growing more slowly but still continuing to grow.
Journalist: What other matters will you raise with the Government?
JD: Well I will be pointing out what the Government's economic policy is, particularly coming out of the One Nation Statement. I will be talking about our prospects for the future, our continuing dedication to restructure the economy and I will also be trying to encourage an even stronger economic relationship between Australia and Japan. We
are the two most important economies in this region and I think we can do a lot together, both in terms of bilateral arrangements and in terms of the development of the region as a whole.
ENDS
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