Mon, 26th May 2008
Nelson Doorstop - Gippsland by-election, price of petrol, teachers...
The Hon Dr Brendan Nelson MP
Leader of the Opposition
E&OE
DR NELSON:
Well Mr Rudd needs to tell us whether the Labor candidate in Gippsland is someone that he endorses and stands by. The Labor candidate in Gippsland has been promoting a show which is sexually explicit, would offend the vast majority of Australians and is inconsistent with the sort of values that we would certainly want to see represented in a candidate for the federal parliament. Mr Rudd needs to make it very clear to Australians and the people of Gippsland whether these are his standards and if this is the candidate that he really wants to represent the people of Gippsland.
QUESTION:
That act played at the [inaudible] festival though Dr Nelson. What, are we introducing something like the Stasi in Australia [inaudible]?
DR NELSON:
Well again you’ve just got to see the review of this particular show. The Labor candidate in Gippsland promoted the show and apparently stands by it. Mr Rudd simply needs to tell us: does he stand by this candidate?
In relation to petrol the difference here is very clear. The Coalition stands for lower taxes and lower petrol at the bowser. Under the Coalition we will cut the excise on fuel by five cents a litre. It means that no matter what the price of petrol at any day, it will always be five cents a litre cheaper under the Coalition.
Mr Rudd is now trying to tell Australians that he is going to have – surprise, surprise – a review which will report toward the end of next year which might look at taking the GST off the excise component on fuel. Australians are at breaking point right now. What they need is a government that will make decisions. Not run a committee, not have a summit, not have a plan to have plan. We actually need decisive leadership and a decision from Mr Rudd in relation to fuel.
It just seems to us that he announced this review of the taxation system – there was no mention at the time that it was actually going to look at the price of petrol – and as a result of the pressure that we have applied by now firmly locking into a five cent cut in the excise on fuel, Mr Rudd has suddenly decided that the tax review is going to look at the GST on the excise. Mr Rudd, what Australians need is leadership. What Australians need is decisions that are being made to help relieve the pressure on all of us now is relation to the price of petrol. We don’t need another committee, we don’t need another review, and we don’t need this kind of smoke and mirrors in relation to the GST on excise that might be delivered in about 18 months time…
QUESTION:
Shouldn’t you cost things like this? I mean yours in uncosted. There are no numbers to it. The Rudd Government is saying look, we’ll look it at and we’ll cost it.
DR NELSON:
Again, five cents a litre off the excise is $1.8 billion a year. Like all Coalition policies it will be fully funded and budgeted and presented to the Australian community prior to the next election.
QUESTION:
Dr Nelson how much longer do you think Alexander Downer will string the party the party out in deciding his future?
DR NELSON:
Well he is in the process of making a decision in relation to that. He’s spent more than two decades in the federal parliament and I expect that he will make a decision soon.
QUESTION:
How do you think the states would react to Mr Rudd’s plan of scrapping the GST?
DR NELSON:
Well again this is all smoke and mirrors. It’s like a lot of things, Mr Rudd last week told Australians that he’d done as much as he possibly could for them. After six months he’s out of touch and out of ideas. Now he’s decided over the weekend in a bit of a panic because most Australians know that a decisive five cents a litre off the price of petrol now is what they need and what they want. He’s now sent a couple of his ministers out to try and talk about taking the GST off excise out of some sort of committee or review. It’s obviously, again, policy on the run, he needs to start leading the country not having policy reviews, committees, summits and plans to have a plan.
QUESTION:
Do you think there needs to be an ongoing debate about artistic expression? I mean there’s been the Bill Henson issue. You’re now talking about this comedy act in Gippsland. Can you overstep the mark in terms of censoring these things?
DR NELSON:
Well again it’s a question, it’s important that as Australians, and Australian taxpayers, I think we need to make decisions about what is right and what is wrong. And Mr Rudd needs to say whether he believes the Labor candidate for Gippsland, having promoted this kind of show, is the person he wants to represent the people of Gippsland.
I mean it’s pretty simple. If people want to go to the arts festival that’s their business but if you want to have a candidate for election to the federal parliament who actively promotes this kind of show, Australians and people in Gippsland will make a decision about that. Mr Rudd has chosen this candidate to represent the Labor Party in Gippsland, he needs to say whether he thinks it’s appropriate or not.
Daniel.
QUESTION:
[Inaudible] the Government’s taxation review, wasn’t cutting, isn’t cutting petrol GST always going to be [inaudible] included anyway?
DR NELSON:
Sorry Dan?
QUESTION:
Isn’t cutting petrol GST, always going to have to be included in this wider taxation review which the Government announced?
DR NELSON:
Well it’s interesting, when the wider taxation review was announced Mr Rudd and Mr Swan made it very clear that the GST was not on the table. Now after a week of pressure on petrol from the Coalition that we’ll cut the excise by five cents a litre he’s suddenly decided that the GST now has to be in the mix as far as petrol is concerned. I mean by all means look at the GST on petrol and the GST on excise, but for God’s sake Mr Rudd make a decision. Don’t form another committee. Don’t tell Australians that are trying to fill up with petrol today – trying to feed kids and feed their mortgages – don’t try and tell Australians you’re going to have a committee that will report in 18 months and might take just under four cents a litre off the price of petrol. Make a decision today. And that decision ought to be to take five cents a litre off the excise on fuel so Australians know that whatever the price at the bowser it will be five cents a litre cheaper. Mr Rudd is more concerned about himself and his own popularity than he is about bringing relief to Australians and after six months he’s said that there’s nothing more he can physically do. I mean this is a guy that told us last year he would bring the price of petrol and groceries down, he told us he had ideas for Australia, he’s run a two and half million dollar gabfest and after six months he’s put up the white flag and said that he can’t do any more for Australians. Well we can.
QUESTION:
Should teachers get paid better? Is this a good plan?
DR NELSON:
Look as I said in by Budget in Reply last Thursday week, one of the key reforms that must be undertaken is we must set a much higher minimum standard for entry into teacher training and so long as we live in a country where the most mediocre disengaged teacher gets paid exactly the same as the one that’s in early and home late and is on the phone looking after parents and kids at the weekend then it’s very hard for us to have high quality outcomes in teaching. Every teacher in this country needs to be paid more on the basis of performance as judged by their own peers. And when you’ve got people going into teacher training with tertiary entrance ranks in the order of 50, how can you expect them four years later to come out and do a brilliant job for our kids?
Thanks very much.