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Mr Speaker,
Australia’s contribution to the Thai currency swap was decided with undue haste, and without consultation. The contribution this government decided to make without consultation was also disproportionately large.
Australia’s US 1 billion dollar contribution, is overly generous when you consider in context Japan’s contribution of US 4 Billion.
The Japanese economy is much bigger and much healthier than ours, and Japan is purported to own over 40% of Thailand’s 73 billion dollar commercial foreign debt.
Yet while the Japanese have so much at stake with their substantial involvement in the Thai economy, the very wealthy Japanese were only forthcoming with 4 Billion dollars - almost nothing to them.
The Australian Parliament and the Australian people should have been consulted. However, now this government has forced this decision on us all, it is incumbent on the Treasurer to make the terms and conditions of the swap clear, and open to the scrutiny of the Australian people.
Presumably, if the risk is carried by the Thai government and not Australia, then Mr Costello will be pleased to tell us this. The fact that the terms and conditions are secret cannot help but make Australians suspicious of the implications this deal poses for our country.
The Australian people can only view this as potential exposure to a large financial loss should the Thai currency suffer further devaluation, or worse, the total right-off of one billion dollars should Thailand experience complete economic collapse.
The more you consider the lack of information and consultation relating to this matter, the more apparent it becomes that this is but another example of the complete lack of concern the Howard Government has for the thoughts and well being of the Australian people.
As a matter of interest, Thailand will also be one of the countries seeking to export cooked chicken meat to Australia - will we just consider this a little thank you for this loan, further job losses and the threat of disease for our poultry industry.
In the event of the Australian dollar collapsing, always a possibility given this country’s mismanagement, will the Thai government bail us out.
Clearly the Americans are not rushing forward with billions on offer. Is this because they learned their lesson the hard way through the Mexican fiasco? Is this government now forcing Australia to learn the same lesson, the same hard way?
Your lemming like leap into the sell out of Australia you now call the Thai bail out, is nothing but pandering to the international elite. It accelerates the rush to globalisation so eagerly and deliriously pursued by our politicians and successive Liberal and Labor Governments over at least the last 25 years.
What have you done to evaluate the allegations of the corruption and mismanagement of the Thai economy? Do you even pretend to care about this issue?
Our involvement in this I.M.F bail out has set a dangerous precedent.
A precedent for further risk and exposure of the Australian people to international instability.
Beyond this, let us not forget, that this government has openly shown that it views itself above the people, and above the good sense of the people. You should not have made a commitment of this magnitude without consulting the Parliament and without taking the Australian people into your confidence.
You, the members of this so called Coalition Government, have failed to trust the Australian people yet again. Do not expect them to trust you.
You, the members of this Government gang, however unwilling some of you might be in your participation, have acted irresponsibly and autocratically and you cannot expect that shameful episodes such as this will cause the Australian people to renew the licence of your misused authority, through re-election.
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