PRIME MINISTER’S ELECTION SPEECH. OUR GREATEST DECADE AHEAD.  Mr. Holt, delivering his first policy speech as Prime Minister last night to a nationwide television audience, said the central issues of the election campaign were the development and security of Australia. He said Australia faced a critical period but predicted that that the next 10 years could be the greatest in its history. Mr. Holt said: these will be critical years for Australia, but they hold great ... for our advancement. They should be years of steady national progress- progress, fortifying our security and strengthening the base of our economy. The economy, despite one of the most, severe droughts in our history, is in good shape. It has continued to expand. So has our trade. Our own efforts and savings, aided by a continuing flow of capital investment from overseas, are enabling us to maintain full employment with a growing population. We have one of the highest standards of living in the world. We have continuing policies, many of which require increasing annual expenditures. But, in addition to these, we have a number of new proposals, which I will outline. First I mention education.  The record.  Education is the responsibility of a number of authorities. Each has his role to play. For our part, we have assisted in meeting the needs of the universities and in the establishment of advanced colleges of education. We have helped technical education. We instituted grants for school science blocks. To assist parents and students we have greatly enlarged the Commonwealth scholarship scheme for university education. With the establishment of colleges of advanced education, we have provided similar scholarship system for them. Commonwealth scholarships are also available for the final two years of secondary education and for technical education. We have given special taxation allowances to parents for education expenses. We now propose further assistance to education. We will provide $8 million a year over the next three financial years for the construction and equipment of new colleges for teacher ... throughout Australia. This money will require no matching grants from the States. I will be used by us to build colleges on sites selected by the States on condition that the State does not reduce its expenditure on teacher training, and on condition that at least 10 per cent of the places at the new colleges are reserved for teachers not bonded to state education departments.  Any colleges.  Winners of advanced education scholarships will be able to apply those scholarships to a teacher training course in any training college to which they are admitted. These scholarships carry the same benefits as university scholarships and will be available unbonded students. Our scheme to provide science laboratories and equipment to all schools has been highly successful. We intend to do more. In the next financial year and subsequently, we will double the amount available to independent schools for these laboratories. We believe this will ensure that in four years every science teaching secondary school in Australia, whether Government or inscience teaching laboratories dependent will have the and the equipment it needs- provided with the financial help of the Commonwealth government. We believe the time has come to establish a Commonwealth Ministry of Education and Science and we will do this. The ministry will be responsible not only for education, but also for certain areas of scientific activity. CRIRO will function within the new Ministry. I turn to social services.  The needy  All through the life of the Government we have carried out our policy of giving the needy the assistance we can afford as a Government and nation without many other obligations. It has been our practice to review all aspects of our health and social service policies each year when we consider the Budget. We have liberalised the means test progressively. We now propose further liberalisation. We will enlarge our social service programme on for fronts: we will raise by $156 the limits both of property and income within which pensions will be payable to the aged, the invalid and the widows. We will expand the scope of the Aged Persons Homes Act, particularly in regard to housing the needy, by making local governing bodies eligible for our subsidy. We will further assist the disabled in the community by capital assistance on a $2 for 1 basis to sheltered workshops and by a special allowance to disabled persons, employed in those workshops. We will make annual grants to certain national voluntary agencies working in the field of social welfare. Mr. Holt gave details of these proposals in this supplementary statements issued with the speech. On incomes of pensioners, he said: Very significant improvements have been brought about. In 1949, a single person with an income including income from property of $377 a year, or a married couple with a total income of $754 a year, were not entitled to an age or invalid pension. Since then these limits have been more than doubled so that today pension eligibility is retained by a single person until income, ignoring any income from property, reaches $1040 a year in the case of a single person, and $1950 a year for married couple (assuming that the value of property does not affect the rate of pension payable). We now propose to increase these limits still further by $156 a year for both single and married couples The new limits of income before eligibility for pension ceases will be respectively $1196 a year for single persons and $2106 a year for married couples. Full age or invalid pensions will be payable where a single person’s income does not exceed $520 a year, and a married couple’s combined income $ 684. These income limits are increased if there are children. Expressed in terms of property what we propose ... equally liberal. In 1949, no age or invalid pension was payable if a single person had property valued at $1500 or $3000 in the case of a married couple. Because of the progressive easing of the means test, the corresponding figures today for property, apart from the value of a home, motor vehicle and certain personal effects, are $10000 for a single person and $20320 for a married couple. Under the further improvement now proposed, a single person may have $12... in value of property, and a married couple $21..., provided there is no income other than from property, before losing eligibility for pension. The means test on widows’ pensions will be similarly cased. For example, at present, a widow with one child may receive a full pension if her income does not exceed $520 a year, and she retains eligibility for some pension until her income reaches $1404. These limits will be raised to $676 and $1560 a year respectively. As in the case of age and invalid pensioners, a widow with children may receive an extra $156 a year for each child after the first without affecting her pension, which is increased by a further $78 a year for each child. Thus, the amount of income which renders her ... for pension rises by $234 a year for each child after the first. If a widow with a child or children has no income other than from property, she will receive pension until the value of her property reaches $16040.  Homes plan. On homes for aged persons, Mr Holt said in his supplementary statement: During the 12 years the legislation has been in operation, the response by the churches, charitable and other voluntary agencies and the public to the Aged Persons Homes Act has been magnificent. We have recently widened the policy under which grants are made on a $2 for $1 basis, to permit eligible organisations to give greater attention to the aged who are frail and infirm. We will widen the scope of assistance by including local governing bodies in the organisations eligible under the act and accepting contributions by them towards aged persons homes as qualifying for Commonwealth matching subsidy. It is our hope that local governing bodies will sponsor aged persons homes in the areas of their administration and that particular attention will be given by them to the housing needs of pensioners. On help for the disabled Mr. Holt said: we will forthwith begin consultation with both voluntary and other agencies with a view to granting capital assistance on a $2 for $1 basis towards the expansion and establishment of sheltered workshops conducted by voluntary agencies throughout the Commonwealth. We have in mind that this aid should run not only to workshops that aim to restore the disabled to outside employment but also to those that will provide employment under sheltered conditions to those who have a permanent residual disability. We will introduce a special allowance for employes in sheltered workshops. The allowance will be reduced when earnings exceed a certain limit but will be so arranged that employes will receive a net increase in income for each increment of earnings. The effect of these two measures should provide a strong incentive to the development of sheltered workshops. On social welfare the Prime Minister said: we have decided to make annual grants to the Australian Council of Social Services and to the Australian Council Rehabilitation of Disabled. The annual grant, over the next three years, to each of the councils will be $15000 of which $10000 will be on the basis of $1 for each $1 raised by the organisation. These two grants will be additional to a grant of $60,000 for each of the next two years that the Government has undertaken to make to the National Old People’s Welfare Council to assist it in co-ordinating the work of voluntary agencies in the field of the welfare of the elderly. Mr. Holt said Australians wanted to own their own homes and the Government had fostered this ambition. He said: No country can point to a higher percentage of home ownership. More than half the homes in Australia today have been constructed since in we came to office in 1949. In the last parliament we introduced the home savings grant scheme which already benefited 64000 young couples. We also introduced the Housing Loans Insurance Corporation. We will now give the Minister for Housing new ... powers designed to meet the cases of headship under the home savings grant scheme. The discretionary powers will date back to start of the scheme. Details of these are set out in a supplementary statement. Further, we will extend the scheme to benefit widowed persons aged less than 36 who have one or more dependant children. The limitation on the value of the home, including land, will be raised from $14000 to $15000. In his supplementary explanation, Mr. Holt said: in the 1963 policy speech we undertook to provide a Commonwealth grant of $2 for every $6 saved by a person under 36 years of age to assist young married people to buy or build their own homes. The maximum grant payable to any young couple is $500. to be eligible for the grant, the savings must have been deposited over a period of at least three years in a home savings account with a bank or with a building or housing society, or used for purposes of acquiring a home. Our home savings grant scheme has been in operation for nearly 2,5 years. Grants totaling almost million have been paid. Because ... scheme novel one, and is still ... early years of ... cases have arisen where ... to genuine misunderstand ... or lack of awareness of the requirements ... have failed ... qualify for the grants. While we wish all ... to be lodged ... 12 months of buying ... building a home, we propose to give the secretary of the department of housing ... discretionary ... that cases may be ... sympathetically ... individual merits. The discretionary powers ... to eligible persons ... bought or commenced ... build their homes on ... December 2, 1963. The matters in ... of which a discretion ... be given are: (a) to extend the ... limit for the lodgment ... applications from the months, ... to empower the department to accept application ... within a further period ... circumstances suggest ... this is justified. (b) to empower the department to disregard ownership of another dwelling house where it is ... that it would be ... able to regard the dwelling house as the ... home or suitable for ... purpose. (c) To empower the ... to determine that ... interest in land that it ... appropriate for the ... of the act be ... as an approved .... (d) To give the department a discretionary power ... accept savings made in a period of three years ... a date not more than ... days before or after the ... date in circumstances it considers .... The definition of the described date will not be .... To permit the department to pay a grant to ... who has been ... on or after the ... date of the amount ... grant that would have ... paid to one or both ... couple if the spouse ... died. To give the department a discretionary power to permit an applicant’s ... period to be broken ... short period should ... appear to be good or ... reasons. ... these proposed new discretionary powers are ... to meet cases of ... that have already .... The discretionary powers will therefore, apply ... date of ... of the scheme. ... national development Mr. Holt said: We believe a programme of water conservation related to national needs should now be drawn up by us with State Governments. We have in mind a national water resources development programme. Its ... would be to increase water conservation activity to reduce hasards of droughts and expand primary production. We envisage that the States will maintain at least their existing levels of expenditure in this field, from their own financial resources. We shall invite the States to put forward programmes of additional works they would propose for Commonwealth financing. We, in turn, will make a contribution to enable additional works, selected on their merits, to be carried out. One cannot, at this stage, be precise about the capital requirements of our programme. We contemplate, however, that the contribution to be made by the Commonwealth for selected additional works could amount to $56 million over the next five years. The wool industry: a soundly based research effort is essential to this important industry’s prosperity. So is an energetic, imaginative and well-directed promotion campaign. The government is prepared to increase the scale of its contributions for wool research and promotion when the present arrangements expire next June. For the ensuring three years the government would provide funds on a dollar for dollar basis subject to a maximum annual contribution of $14 million for a programme agreed upon by it and the wool industry.  Dairying. On the diary industry, Mr. Holt said: the present five-year plan finishes on June 30, 1967, and my government would consult with industry bodies on the details of a further five-year plan. We would discuss with the industry the level of the annual subsidy allocation; the Commonwealth’s underwriting op the equalisation arrangement for butter and cheese; and plans for ... markets abroad. On sugar, he said: we have shown our determination to maintain a strong and prosperous sugar industry. Recently we have made loans available to cane growers and millers distreased by drought. The nitrogenous fertiliser subsidy introduced in August will be of particular help to this industry. The 1966 season’s production was affected by drought and abnormally low export prices. We have holstered the return by loaning the industry $19 million on concessional terms. We are persisting vigorously with our efforts to negotiate an international sugar agreement. Our aim is to ensure our producers remunerative prices for satisfactory exports quantities. Mr. Holt continued: my government has a programme, which assists rural industry considerably in research and extension. Some $80 million has been made available through joint industry, Commonwealth schemes for research by State and Commonwealth departments, universities and the CSIRO.  Extension. The results must be passed on to the farmer. For this improved agriculture extension services are necessary. We have now embarked on a five-year programme. Under this the Commonwealth’s contribution to extension services will be increased by $4 million above the present level of $1,4 million. At the appropriate time, my government will go into discussions with the wheat, cotton and dried vine fruits industries for the renegotiations of stablisation schemes having the objective of sustaining in respect of each a stable industry. On northern development Mr. Holt said: Commonwealth, state and local governments, private industries and companies are all involved in the whole pattern of northern development. Currently, capital projects totaling more than $2000 million are in train. These works are giving new employment and creating new communities. New arrangements and facilities for the provision of capital have to be devised. Mr. Holt said the government saw an expanding future for the tourist industry. Our annual grants to the Australian National Travel Association have been increasing substantially and in 1966-67, were $862000. Increasing activity and expenditure providing growing exchange earnings for us require the establishment of an Australian tourist commission set up as a statutory body, he said. We believe this would have support of ANTA, the tourist industry generally, and the state government all of whom have a direct interest in this matter.  Core of poll. On foreign policy, he said: this brings me back to what I described earlier as the very core of this election. Our domestic programme depends for its fulfillment on the security of the nation. But the principles and objectives of our foreign policy are at issue in this election. Our Labor opponents attack our assessment of Australia’s external security. Domestic affairs cannot be separated from foreign affairs. Our foreign policy is based on the believe we have, and the plans we have, about the kind of Australia all of us want to see and about the kind of society we want to build and preserve here. Unless there is security for all small nations there cannot be security for any small nation. Unless principles of international conduct are preserved in all international situations they are not likely to be preserved in any. That is the essence of our foreign policy. We have always seen Australia’s security in terms of world security.  Alliances. To that end we have for long allied ... with Britain and the United States. The basic principles and objectives of their policies are, for the most part, shared by us. We have sought, above all things, to keep our country at peace: but to have some ... that Australians will have strong and reliable friends. That is why we played our part in the ... of the ... and ... which carry with ... as well as benefits. ... of these responsibilities, Australian soldiers are fighting in South Vietnam. We ... a ... through .... But think of the ... of abandoning our objectives, and the people of South Vietnam. South Vietnam would become a communist State, and the lives and security of millions who have resisted communism would be in jeopardy. The impact of our complete withdrawal as proposed by the Labor party would be felt throughout South-East Asia. We, too, would come under threat. I turn now to defence generally. The centre of this problem, in global perspective, is in Asia and ... in our own part of the world. We must, meet ... expenditures for forces adequate to our obligations, thoroughly trained and equipped with the best and most modern conventional armaments. We live in an unstable region. We see it as a basic responsibility of the government of a free people to be prepared for any eventually.  Army plan. On of the basic issues of this election is national military training carrying the duty to serve abroad as well as at home. If we are to meet our obligations, we must have trained men immediately available to do the job. Our army is to be built from 22750 to 40000 as quickly as practicable. Voluntary enlistment did not provide suitable men to the extent needed. We and our advisors concluded there was no realistic alternative to national service. The call-up has been devised so as to cause the smallest possible disturbance to studies, employment and family commitments, and so as to ensure thorough and effective training before a national serviceman is required to serve overseas. The policy permits young men to make a choice between service with the regular forces and service with the citizen forces. Withdrawal of national servicemen from Vietnam as intended by the Labor party would render our task force ineffective and seriously disrupt the army. It would inevitably mean loss of confidence in Australia by its allies. Machines and money alone do not make a defence establishment. Our concept of highly trained, mobile striking forces has been made effective by the individualism, the intelligence and cool ... of the men who wear Australia’s uniform. National servicemen serving Australia abroad today are as one with their Regular Army comrades in efficiency, purpose and courage.  Vigorous. In his conclusion Mr. Holt said: the Liberal party, in association with the country Party, has had the longest period of unbroken federal rule in Australian history. Our government has remained vigorous and forward looking, assisted by fresh talent from the ranks of our private members. The Deputy Prime Minister and myself are the only two members ... from the ministry formed when we were returned to office in 1948. Today we are clearly more in tune with the aspirations and outlook of Australians than our opponents. For the greater period of our long term of office, the Australian Labor party has been ravaged by bitter faction fights. Nowhere has this internal conflict been ... nor more destructive than in the critical field of external security. Even our American allies have been a target for the spleen of the extremists in the Labor party. Surely we Australians recognise who are our true friends. The Labor party, plagued for ... long by the virus of doctrinaire socialism, left-wing influence and class bitterness, seems to have its will too paralysed to think clearly on great issues that affect our safety. The business of government and the conduct of our internal and international affairs are not for men who cannot be of one mind, sometimes for a week on end. Our national affairs are not merchandise for backroom bargaining between leaders of factions.  No claim. Many times in recent years, the people of Australia have had a sharp reminder that a Federal Labor Government would not be responsible to the people, or even to its own judgement, but that it would be bound hand and foot by the decisions of 36 people from the A.L.P., not, for the most part, elected by the people of Australia and in so sense responsible for them. On the great questions of national security, my Government is completely single-minded and united. Our opponents are confused and divided. We believe our national policies look to Australia’s future and the national thinking of our opponents is still bogged down in the past. We offer the country strength, unity and purpose as opposed to disunity and confusion. We offer you a programme in domestic affairs which advances national development, national security and social justice. In his supplementary statements, Mr. Holt said the government would continue to spend more on Papua and New Guinea to shorten the period before the Territory could finance its own basic needs. The Government had granted $70 million this year, compared with $... million three years ago. He said: The further expansion of primary and secondary industry and increased export income will be vigorously pursued in harmony with the broad policy or economic development based on the World Bank Missions 1964 report. The newly-established Papua and New-Guinea Development Bank will play an important development role. In political affairs the government will not be slow to make constitutional changes if the Papuans and New Guineas want them, nor will the government press changes upon the people if they do not want change. In accordance with this approach the membership of the House of Assembly which was set up in 1964 with a great majority of elected members, will be increased in ... for the next elections in 1966. again if the people of Papua and New Guinea indicate a desire for a limited system of ministerial representation, appropriate arrangements will be worked out. The new institute of higher technical education and the new university of Papua and New Guinea have been establishment to help in the training and education of Papuans and New Guineas. In political, social and economic matters the advancement of the indigenous people of the Territory will continue to be a basic objective.  Aborigines. I confirm once again that we will defend the territory of Papua and New Guinea as it was par of the Australian mainland. On Aborigines, Mr. Holt said: in the field of Aboriginal advancements, we will continue to co-operate with the governments of the states. In employment, we will continue to support equality of ... and conditions for aborigines. The Government supported the principle in the pastoral industry where substantial ... increases are being made and where complete equality under the award will apply not later than .... Royalties on minerals in Aboriginal reserves will be paid into a trust fund for the benefit of the aboriginal people. We will continue to improve the educational opportunities for aboriginal children. Proposals are being put before the Northern territory legislative Council to make land on Aboriginal reserves available for ... to Aborigines on the advice of 3 special board of which the majority of the members will be Aborigines. On the Northern territory, Mr Holt said: we will continue policies that provide a climate of opportunity and open up further prospects of growth for the mining, pastoral and tourist industries in this territory, which occupies one-sixth of the continent and in an area of special Commonwealth responsibility. We will go on encouraging the development of the great mineral potentialities of the Territory in such places Gove, ... and McArthur River. At these and other places investment could total more than ... million. The pastoral industry has been developing substantially with the establishment of export ... at ... and Darwin and with new techniques for improved ... and with the provision of more credit for water and subsidies for imported ... stock. This development will be stimulated still further by the continuation of the beef road programme for the territory. More than $3 million will be spent on the programme during the current year and 900 miles of beef roads will then have completed in the Territory.