Transcript - ABC 891 SA Radio17th March 2008, 10am

ABC 891 SA Radio

Excerpts of “Two Chrisses”

17th March 2008, 10am (CST)

Journalist:

Discussion about Martin Hamilton-Smith’s plan for a stadium.

Schacht:

If a stadium is built it must not be owned or controlled by any one sport.

Pyne:

I think the story on the weekend about Rann’s vision was fascinating on a number of levels. One was that he felt the need to respond to Martin Hamilton-Smiths speech to the South Australian Press Club a few weeks ago about the Liberal Party’s vision

Journalist:

But how could he not?

Pyne:

Well of course he had to, but what’s interesting about the Opposition is that it is now setting the agenda which must be vexing for the Rann Government on that level. Martin Hamilton-Smith talked about a twenty year plan, he wasn’t just talking about things that would happen in the next couple of years. He said that the Royal Adelaide Hospital should be completely upgraded so that you would have a new hospital, so it’s not a choice between a hospital and a stadium, but he also said we need to have signature events and infrastructure developments in this city and water is one of them. Obviously he was the person pushing for a desalination plant which the State Government finally agreed to that after the Opposition put it on the agenda. Now he’s pushing for a major stadium, he wants to hold the Commonwealth Games in South Australia, he points out that Perth held them in the 1950’s or 60’s, and Adelaide’s never held the Commonwealth Games. He wants to hold soccer matches here – if we win the right to hold the Soccer World Cup, he wants to have a stadium that FIFA will accept as being of world standard. We haven’t got that at the moment, so Martin Hamilton-Smith is talking about making Adelaide a great city and South Australia a great state. On another level I thought it was interesting, what we’ve seen from Mike Rann is an attempt to catch up, he’s been in Government six years, and now he’s talking about his vision for the state, his model is apparently the template for Kevin Rudd. Kevin Rudd’s template is lots of symbols, lots of announcements, lots of inquiries, you saw all of that with the Rann Government, but where is the substance. Six years into the Rann Government, Mr Rann thinks it’s time to announce a vision for the state.

Journalist:

Raises claims by the Rann Government that the Leader of the Opposition is in cahoots with the Advertiser pushing for a new stadium

Pyne:

I think it’s amazing that when the Rann Government is under any scrutiny from the media at all, they immediately claim there is a conspiracy against the Government. It’s ludicrous.

Journalist:

A few weeks ago apparently there was a conspiracy between this programme and the Opposition announced in the Advertiser.

Pyne:

Exactly, we’re now seeing the situation where, when the Rann Government is placed under any pressure, it’s not because they might be incompetent, it’s not because they might not have a vision for the state, it’s because the ABC and the Advertiser, the well known pro-Liberal ABC, are against the Rann Government.  

Journalist:

Debate over whether Robert DeCrespigney assisted the Rann Government write a strategic plan.

Journalist:

(Labor’s) plan didn’t include a stadium.

Pyne:

It didn’t include a stadium, it didn’t include an increase in the number of public servants by three times, it did include planning for infrastructure like water, like ports, like roads and like power stations. A stadium is one of the five or six things Martin Hamilton-Smith talked about over the next twenty years, and I think it’s an imaginative and exciting concept.

Journalist:

Discussing infrastructure and roads, mentions the Britannia Roundabout. It’s not right to say they’ve done nothing about the Britannia Roundabout, they’ve repaved it.

Pyne:

That’s because of the water leak. There’s a water leak beneath the Britannia Roundabout which they’ve been working on for about two weeks, wasting water, you can see the water coming up out of the manhole. It’s unbelievable. The Britannia Roundabout has been sitting there aching to be fixed, and Pat Conlon came up with the traffic lights programme which was then knocked over because Vini Ciccarello and Jane Lomax-Smith didn’t want any trees knocked over in Victoria Park Racecourse. … The State Labor Government could now do something about the Roundabout with the redevelopment of Victoria Park Racecourse.

Journalist:

Discussion about the Haneef Inquiry.

Pyne:

My view is that there is an appropriate body to conduct the investigation into the Haneef matter, and that is the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity. It was established for the express purpose of ensuring that the AFP and other law enforcement agencies of the Commonwealth were keeping within the rules. If the Labor Party was serious about having a proper investigation into the Haneef affair, and I think we should have an investigation into the Haneef issue, then they would use the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity. My view is that Labor is using a judicial inquiry as a political stunt. The Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity is set up to ensure there is no breach of national security, or no question of ongoing operations of the AFP being placed at risk, as they’re trained to be aware of the systems. The problem that could arise from a judicial inquiry, and I have only the upmost respect for Justice Clarke, I’m sure he’ll be an excellent investigator, but he has not been trained to ensure there is no public uncovering of sensitive and important information to do with national security.

Journalist:

Argues Justice Clarke will be properly advised on security matters

Pyne:

I agree that there is a very good argument for the way the Haneef matter unfolded being properly investigated, and I am first to suggest that civil rights are incredibly important, but when issues of national security are at risk, there is a proper body established, the Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity, to make sure that the police are acting correctly. That is the body that should be conducting this investigation. The fact that the Labor Government has established a judicial inquiry reeks of a stunt to get maximum exposure. Let’s face it, if this wasn’t the case why would it have been leaked to the Sydney Morning Herald and the Australian the day before the announcement to get headlines saying “former government minister to be investigated”. This was obviously designed to damage the opposition rather than get to the bottom of this matter.

Journalist:

Discussion about Clyde Cameron

Pyne:

I think Clyde Cameron can rest easy, passing away after the election of a Rudd Labor Government, because the Unions are back in control of the country again. His old style left-wing union attitudes about employers verses employees are back in vogue in the Federal Government, so Clyde Cameron has left the stage when his brand of politics is back in control of Labor again, and I think in terms of sending the country broke it won’t be more than two or three years Federally and we’ll be back in Government because of it.

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