Page 2807 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 14 August 1991
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I think it is a most remarkable idea that the Labor Party is trying to propose. They are saying that they are so incapable of managing campaign funding that they feel that everybody should be prevented from advertising political content on radio and television. Would not the simple solution be that they find out how to economise, how to budget, and that they take the responsible action themselves rather than expect everybody else in Australia to be prevented from radio and television advertising while they still have many opportunities to advertise.
Senator Bolkus said that the legislation was designed to sanitise the electoral process against corruptive influence. I think many people would say, firstly, that it is too late and, secondly, that this move would not work to handle those corruptive influences anyway. It is also an unfortunate, though obviously deliberate, ploy by the Labor Party to introduce two matters in one - not only advertising but also electoral funding. They would have been much better presenting them separately, and they would have more readily got agreement on one, though not the other.
Let us have a look at the real reason that the Labor Party has introduced such a dictatorial and absolutely atrocious suggestion. I think we all understand that the ALP is broke. Now that they cannot look to Brian Burke for help with their scam of going along to companies and saying, "Your donation is going to be $200,000", I can understand that they have concerns. Who, in their right mind, would want to donate money to them unless they were forced to do so by heavy-handed tactics? Granted, there would be some around, but one would have to look at their motives.
I think perhaps the real reason that the suggestion was made was to prevent people opposing them, to prevent the right of individuals and groups, be they community groups or other smaller political parties, and so on, to get a message across in the electronic media. It has been said, "Who can afford it anyway?". I suggest that a great many organisations can afford it. Interestingly enough, there are organisations that can afford even the television advertising.
But, leaving the television advertising aside for a moment, who would suggest that radio, particularly regional radio, is not something that many groups, if they are committed to a cause, could not readily afford? If the proposal were to be forced through, it would present major problems for community groups, yet major benefits for the two major parties. Both parties are very heavily involved in direct mail, which is very expensive federally.
Mr Humphries looked a bit puzzled; but I can assure you, Mr Humphries, that the Federal Liberal Party is spending a great deal of time, expertise and money on developing direct mail programs. It is certainly doing a better job than it did in the last Federal election. This is
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