Howard Makes Final Pitch At Press Club, Maintains Stand On Asylum-Seekers And Hints At Staying On
November 8, 2001
With just one full day to go until the Federal elections, the Prime Minister, John Howard, has made the traditional appearance at the National Press Club in Canberra.
As the Opposition Leader, Kim Beazley, did yesterday, Howard reiterated the now familiar themes of his campaign for a third term, stressing the "uncertain times" ahead and the need to keep Australia's government in "safe hands".
Howard spoke at length about his government's economic record, claimed that the Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) had endorsed his claim that the coalition wasn't anti-welfare, and expressed concern about the future of industrial relations under a Labor government.
Questioned about possible future decisions of a coalition government led by Peter Costello, Howard aggressively offered the view that "only two governments are on offer in this election, mine and Kim Beazley's." Whilst the focus during the campaign has been on Howard's refusal to commit to serving a full three-year term if re-elected, in recent days he has been at pains to stress his enthusiasm for remaining in the job.
Howard was questioned at length about the asylum-seekers issue. Earlier today, a Navy video of asylum-seekers being rescued from a sinking boat was released. This stemmed from allegations by Howard and Defence Minister Peter Reith that children were thrown overboard. Early in the campaign, Howard said that he did not want "people like that" in Australia.
The video is at best inconclusive. It does not provide any conclusive proof that the allegation is true. For most of the past two days, the government has clung to its claim that parents threw their children overboard, whilst disavowing actual knowledge and putting the onus of proof on the Navy.
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