Released: 30th September 1998
Preamble
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation recognises real long term jobs in any substantial numbers must come from the private sector. Governments can, and should, embark on major works but in most cases these are relatively short term situations.
Training
We further recognise governments have consistently held the view employment prospects were increased in proportion to an individual’s level of education. While it may be true employment prospects are improved through education, without job creation, this position simply causes job re-distribution.
The current policies relating to the education/employment relationship are making jobs more difficult for less educated people to obtain. Jobs that were once the property of year 12 graduates are now being taken by people with university degrees. Those with only a year 10 qualification have almost no prospect of getting a job in a market geared towards people who in many ways are perhaps over qualified.
With the current policies and existing financial climate, the future is greater numbers of qualified people scrambling for a diminishing job base and less qualified people left with minimal employment prospects and reliance on welfare.
Supplementing Employment Costs of Unemployed
The current policies are in many ways obstructive to employers wanting to increase their permanent staff with many opting for casuals who require lowered commitments in terms of cost and employment conditions. In particular, Federal schemes that fund wage supplements based on the time a person has been unemployed are often used to obtain cheap labour with the position terminating at the same time as the supplement.
Manufacturing Industries
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation is strongly opposed to the "free trade" economic policies, which over the past twenty years have led to the gradual destruction of the Australian manufacturing industry, with the resulting loss of hundreds of thousands of Australian jobs, an increasing dependence on the import of foreign goods to satisfy basic local demands, and a deteriorating trade balance, creating a massive and rapidly growing foreign debt problem. The demise of the Australian manufacturing industry has accentuated the serious unemployment problems caused by the misguided policies implemented by successive Australian governments since 1973.
Research has consistently shown that a strong manufacturing sector is essential for employment growth. Manufacturing currently employs 1.2 million Australians and provides many flow on job opportunities. Manufacturing contributes approximately one third of the value of national exports.
It is quite clear that Australia’s future is dependent on the prosperity of the manufacturing sector.
Each Australian government has the obligation to nurture and protect the industries which employ its citizens in preference to the industries of other countries and of foreign organisations.
The cost to the community of providing assistance and protection to Australian manufacturing industry, will be amply justified by the benefits of low unemployment, social stability and long term economic prosperity.
If a country has an agricultural base from which to feed the people, industrial infrastructure, a skilled manufacturing base, oil and mineral resources, and a healthy, united and educated population, it has the essentials to become self sufficient. If that country is barren of opportunity for its young, unable to care for its aged, dependent on goods and finance from foreigners, and unemployment among its workforce is rife, the problem is political ineptitude and economic mismanagement.
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation has always put the need for re-industrialisation as the best way of creating lasting employment with positions for skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers. This, combined with training our own rather than importing other countries’ tradesmen, assistance to local small business and farmers, and further incentive for new ventures in rural areas is the focus of our employment policy.
One Nation recognises that:
One Nation believes that for many students a 15-16 year leaving age is desirable.
One Nation also recognises that successive Australian Governments have cynically used education as a political tool, by encouraging students to stay on at school until they are 18, or maximum leaving age, to disguise Youth Unemployment figures.
One Nation has therefore created the Young Australian Apprenticeship Revival Scheme ( YAARS).
One Nation will also introduce a rural apprenticeship scheme.
The conditions of rural apprenticeships is the same as for YAARS – TAFE courses will need to be developed for the specific purpose of training rural appretices. Jillaroo and Jackaroo duties will provide the basis of such courses, with additional modules to broaden the scope of the course to cover a general range of primary industries as well as being tailored to meet the specific needs of selected rural regions and industries.
Cost
The scheme will cater for 6,000 new apprentices each year and will cost $48 million in the first year.
The all up cost I $228 million over the first three year cycle.
Estimated cost for 10,000 places is $160 million per year.
One Nation believes that governments must provide business with the incentive to invest in new ventures and expand existing ventures. In doing this, business would naturally increase the demand on the workforce.
Import Replacement Program
Australia cannot afford to continue importing at current levels. One Nation believes that Australia must shift the emphasis in the rural industry, from being a raw commodity producer to becoming value-added manufacturing economy. We need to start manufacturing and making these imports ourselves. Our balance of trade figures tell us that now - so do our unemployment figures.
The key to ensuring the prosperity of the bush and indeed the entire country, is to do as much ‘value adding’ of Australian produce as possible in Australia, thereby reducing our dependence on imported manufactured goods. This is the best way to create employment opportunities in the bush and the city, and improve our balance of trade figures and standard of living. Australia has a very clear choice – we either make and buy Australian goods which means Australian jobs or by cheaper subsidised product and continue losing jobs.
We will target imports in each industry code and allocate priorities to establish Australian manufacturers to replace imports with Australian value added product. Import control measures will be used in conjunction with low cost venture capital and other incentives as well as assistance to develop and implement business and marketing plans to help re-establish our manufacturing base.
Zoning and Provision of Industrial Land
One Nation believes it is essential to provide adequate land for the development of industry in areas where the basic infrastructure (transport, communications, power, workforce) exists, or can be developed by government.
We will, in conjunction with State and Local governments, work to provide low cost land for industry development on a formerly unprecedented scale.
Regions and specific locations which have established infrastructure and labour skills will be identified for re-establishment and re-development of manufacturing industries. The rebuilding of industries in these areas will be given high priority and whatever assistance can be made available through the federal government to enable the speedy re-establishment of manufacturing capacity will be provided.
"The Bank of Australia," a new publicly owned national financial institution will be created to provide, primarily, long term low interest. finance for the development of new industries (which must be at least 51% Australian owned) and fund strategic national projects which are too large in scope and cost to be funded by private enterprise.
The bank will also provide low cost finance for consolidation of existing business and industry debt, allow further expansion of new ventures, and to provide essential funding for debt reconstruction for Australian primary producer and small business. The inability to access government assistance due to excessively restrictive criteria has caused loss of equity and viability with existing debt burdens. The Nation has a choice - continue to lose farmers and small business, or provide suitable funding.
Options being considered as incentives include:
Application for funding will be based on receipt of a business plan in the form of a tender. All funds allocated must be expended on the project - funds cannot be re-invested. Priority will be given to projects based on the level of employment created. It will not be necessary to reduce the principal in the first year. In this period, payments will be restricted to interest only.
Labelling
One Nation will introduce a simple labelling system of three categories to allow consumers to purchase Australian-made products with confidence. The categories of labelling are as follows:
Government Purchasing Policy
One Nation will ensure the policy for government purchasing will continue to support local, regional and national industries, and preference will be given to locally manufactured goods over similar imported goods, all other considerations being equal.
Tourism
The promotion of Australian tourism has been largely confined to the eastern seaboard. The coastal strip is receiving the lion’s share of the promotion, while arguable Australia’s greatest tourist attraction, the bush, the great open spaces with the diversity of natural attraction and national parks are under marketed and under promoted. Inland tourism, including eco-tourism has been mostly ignored in the past. This is an area of enormous job creation and earning potential for all Australians. In most areas, there is sufficient accommodation capacity, and transport facilities to support increased the increased inflow of tourists. To date there has been little recognition of the diversity of attraction throughout inland Australia, nor any packaging or promotion on inland tourism.
The opportunity to increase our tourism dollar, increase employment opportunities and improve our balance of payments figures is not being maximised. One nation believes there should be a major domestic and international marketing campaign.
One Nation will support a major international marketing and promotional campaign for rural tourism.
Marketing
One Nation will initiate an awareness campaign to educate the Australian people about the consequences of continuing with current government policy which allows cheap subsidised imports to come into the country and destroy Australian industries, farmers and small business.
Foreign Aid
One Nation will reduce the amount of foreign economic aid spent each year and will direct it to helping Australians. We will send food or product in kind for humanitarian purposes.
Unemployed
The ever increasing tax burden has priced tax-generating jobs out of existence and made more people dependent on tax welfare which in turn expands the demand for more taxes and prices more tax- generating jobs out of existence. A complete overhaul of Australia’s taxation system is needed to create a climate which encourages expansion of Australian manufacturing and primary production, and business generally which will in turn create sufficient jobs to absorb our existing unemployed.
Cost of industry Inputs
A taxation system is needed which will reduce the costs for Australia’s primary, secondary and tertiary industries supplying commodities, goods and services, which will substantially lower the attraction to imported goods based on price. With a lower tax burden many Australian producers and manufacturers will expand in their efforts to supply a growing domestic market. That same improved cost/price position will enable Australian producers and manufacturers to compete in foreign markets and improve our export capacity.
Employment Growth
Employment growth will flow from lower employment costs, the increased domestic demand and our improved export competitiveness and capacity.
Australia needs a new tax system which eliminates the punishing regime that discourages overtime, discourages the normal desire for promotion and wage increases and discourages the pursuit of increased income through increased work.
Such a change will cause employees and the self-employed to increase productivity willingly.
We need a taxation system which will reduce the cost of all levels of government in Australia in administering the social and economic activities of Australians substantially, enabling further lowering of taxation, increased funding for Government employment initiatives such as infrastructure projects in regional and rural areas and the rebirth of rural towns and cities.
One Nation supports a lower taxation regime, with resultant lower cost of labour and lower cost of inputs which in turn will encourage Australians to invest in and initiate Australian manufacturing and primary industries, and will attract foreign investment and relocation of industry that had previously moved offshore.