Troops cut?

Press, 9 February 1983, Page 6

Troops cut?

from front page

"He was not prepared to support a position on this matter clearly against the views expressed in the polls. “This extraordinary . position on the vital issue of peace in the Middle-East suggests that under Mr Hawke foreign policy will be determined by the opinion polls.”

Mr Street said that to withdraw the Australian troops would sabotage the single most important step in maintaining peace in the region and would be against the expressed wishes of both Egypt and Israel.

Mr Hawke also foreshadowed sweeping changes to Australia’s industrial relations laws if elected to government on March 5. He disclosed that he had called on the Prime Minister, Mr Fraser, to allow him access to the Public Service Board’s chairman, Sir William Cole, to plan Labour’s accession to government.

Mr Hawke was speaking at a press conference in Canberra soon after being unanimously elected by the caucus as leader of the Federal Parliamentary Labour Party.

Among the major changes which he said a Labour government would institute were:

• Abolition of the Federal Government-initiated Industrial Relations Bureau and establishment of a tripartite

body to examine the entire Industrial Relations Act.

• A referendum seeking fixed-term parliaments and sterner restrictions on Prime Ministers being able to call double dissolutions.

• Imposition of a resource rental tax on mining companies earning above normal profits. • The calling of a national economic summit conference soon after taking office to discuss action needed to get the economy moving.

Mr Hawke also announced changes to Labour’s front bench including the appointment of his predecessor, Mr Hayden, as foreign affairs spokesman. The deputy leader, Mr Lionel Bowen, will assume responsibility for trade from Mr Stewart West, who will retain finance.

Mr Hawke will keep his position as Shadow Minister for industrial relations but will release employment and youth affairs to Mr Michael Young, who will also retain immigration..

Mr Hawke said he was keeping industrial relations because Mr Fraser had made it the central issue of the election campaign so far. Mr Hawke said that he and the Shadow Attorney-Gen-eral, Senator Gareth Evans, would today outline in detail Labour’s plans for preparation for government. , “We are going to take over and we are ready to do it,” he said.

Labour’s economic platform will be launched in Sydney tomorrow.