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Treasurer defends decision to stay at function
Lexi Metherell reported this story on Friday, October 12, 2012 08:12:00
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TONY EASTLEY: The Federal Treasurer has brushed off economists' concerns that the latest interest rate cut didn't have the desired effect on consumer confidence. The latest measure of confidence shows the Reserve Bank's move failed to reverse an eight-month pessimistic trend.
Meanwhile the Federal Treasurer who is in Tokyo attending the annual meetings of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and World Bank has defended his involvement at a controversial union function before he left.
A comedian at a CFMEU (Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union) function on Wednesday night made offensive comments about the Opposition Leader Tony Abbott and his female chief of staff Peta Credlin. We can't give any more detail about what was said because of legal reasons.
Senior Labor MP Craig Emerson says he left the event in disgust following the comments. Wayne Swan however remained at the venue.
The Deputy Liberal Leader Julie Bishop says Labor has failed to live up to its own test.
JULIE BISHOP: It was tasteless, it was offensive to Tony Abbott's female chief of staff.
But the point of this is that Labor have now failed the very test that they set for the Opposition. And Wayne Swan and other ministers remained in the room after the joke was made so by Labor's own test, they endorsed and condoned the joke.
TONY EASTLEY: The Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan spoke to AM and said he did not agree with what was said.
Mr Swan is speaking here to Lexi Metherell.
WAYNE SWAN: Well the comment was made by a stand-up comedian. It was offensive, it was inappropriate. I think it crossed the line and I have conveyed my objection to the union.
LEXI METHERELL: When did you call the union?
WAYNE SWAN: I called the union the next morning because on the evening I did not want to give oxygen to those comments, to give them further publicity. In retrospect it would probably have been better if I'd conveyed them immediately but I was the guest speaker there and I was concentrating on giving my presentation out to the audience.
LEXI METHERELL: What time did you call the union yesterday?
WAYNE SWAN: I called them early in the morning.
LEXI METHERELL: Was it before or after the Government had been contacted by journalists about it?
WAYNE SWAN: No, it was well before.
LEXI METHERELL: Government ministers criticised the Liberal MPs Sussan Ley and Alex Hawke for remaining at the function where Alan Jones made the remarks about the Prime Minister's father after he made those remarks.
The Trade Minister Craig Emerson says he was so disgusted by the comments that the CFMEU function that he walked out. Why didn't you leave?
WAYNE SWAN: Well, first of all I was the guest speaker at the function. I think there is an enormous difference between a stand-up comedian and someone who is a lifelong friend of another person.
I didn't know that these comments were going to be made. I found them offensive. I conveyed my objections to the union. I don't think we can do much more than that.
LEXI METHERELL: What does this say about your judgement, that you didn't leave on the night, especially in the climate that the Government is in at the moment?
WAYNE SWAN: Oh look I've made it very clear that I in retrospect should have conveyed my opinion on the night. I didn't do that. But these were commentary from a comedian.
LEXI METHERELL: Has the Government, as the Opposition's Joe Hockey said, set a new benchmark that it can't hold to?
WAYNE SWAN: No, I don't believe so. I think we need to keep this in perspective. These were repugnant comments, they shouldn't have been made. They were made by a stand-up comedian. And I conveyed my view about them as did other members of the Government. I think that's the appropriate thing to do.
LEXI METHERELL: Treasurer this week we saw that a closely watched measure of consumer confidence by Westpac and the Melbourne Institute has been negative now for eight consecutive months. That's despite a one percentage point drop in interest rates over that time. Is that disappointing?
WAYNE SWAN: Well I think you've got to take a measured view of some of the indicators that are out at the moment and you've got to look underneath them and look at the rock solid fundamentals.
If you look at our rate of unemployment, even now at 5.4, we had strong full-time employment growth in September.
And also what we've got is solid growth overall, admittedly a little weaker now because of the slowing in the global economy.
We've got a very strong investment pipeline and of course we've got contained inflation and lower interest rates.
LEXI METHERELL: You're heading to the IMF meeting today. What kind of information will you be seeking from your counterparts at that meeting?
WAYNE SWAN: Well I think these meetings provide an important opportunity to take the temperature of the global economy. I've been to quite a few of these over the years, something like 20 G20 meetings and many IMF meetings and I find they are a great opportunity to talk to other policy makers. And in the past I've found their advice very important in getting the big economic decisions right as we have done in Australia in recent years.
TONY EASTLEY: The Treasurer Wayne Swan speaking to Lexi Metherell.
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Around 500 Indigenous people fought in the First World War, and as many as 5,000 in the second. But many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander diggers who made it home received little or no recognition for their contribution. On Anzac Day, 2007, the first parade to commemorate their efforts and bravery was held in Sydney. Listen to our report from that day by Lindy Kerin.
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