Ex-Prime Minister John Howard backs Government’s review of Safe Schools Coalition program

JOHN Howard has praised the Government’s move to review a controversial program about gender and sexual identity in schools.

FORMER Prime Minister John Howard has welcomed the Turnbull Government’s review into a school program aimed at increasing acceptance of children struggling with gender and sexual identities, saying the program should never have been allowed in the first place.

In a wideranging interview with Sky News, the former Liberal Party leader also called for a review of Australia’s tax mix to create “efficiency gains” and said he “trembled at the thought” US presidential candidate Donald Trump could be successful.

It was revealed last week Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had agreed to a review into the Safe Schools Coalition program last week, after lobbying by conservative Liberal MP Cory Bernadi.

Former Prime Minister John Howard has spoken to Sky about the GST, Donald Trump and why the Safe Schools Coalition program should be reviewed. Picture: Britta Campion

The announcement has drawn strong reaction from both sides of politics.

Mr Howard said on Sunday he believed the review was warranted.

“I am, like most middle Australians, concerned,” he told Sky.

“It just completely baffles me that something should have got passed the first barrier; something like that is fundamentally according to our culture and our society those matters should be discussed by parents with children.

“I am totally in favour of any effective program that will deal with bullying. Bullying against people whether they are homosexual or whatever their gender disposition or their beliefs is quite unacceptable and it causes an enormous amount of pain and grief not only to children put to their parents.

“But you don’t need to be pursuing such a social agenda as this document is clearly pursuing in order to deal with bullying.”

Current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Picture: Kym Smith

Mr Howard labelled Opposition Leader Bill Shorten as “out of touch with middle Australia” for suggesting those MPS behind the review were homophobic.

Asked about the Turnbull Government’s tax reform agenda, Mr Howard said it was not up to him to tell the Prime Minister what to do.

But Mr Howard said he believed in the medium to long term Australia must make changes to its tax mix in a “revenue neutral” way.

“We do need to revisit the tax mix because there are efficiency gains to be had, quite apart from any other considerations and we rely too heavily on personal tax and company tax,” he said.

“And one of the ways of relieving that is to have a greater reliance on indirect tax.”

Howard labelled Opposition Leader Bill Shorten as ‘out of touch with middle Australia’. Picture: Kym Smith

Mr Howard said Australia’s state and territory governments would not be in the budget strife they are now had the GST been applied more generally, as originally proposed.

Asked about the US presidential race, Mr Howard said he trembled at the thought of Mr Trump becoming President.

“There is an instability about him that bothers me, but I can understand why he is doing well,” he said.

“He is doing well because he is saying things that a lot of people think should be said and the current political class aren’t willing to say.

“And in part his success if emblematic of people’s frustration with political correctness.”

Mr Turnbull said he’d had a “long chat” about tax policy with Mr Howard yesterday.

“He is obviously a great source of advice,” he said.

Mr Turnbull repeated earlier claims that Labor’s negative gearing policy was “reckless” and would “shock” the economy.

“That’s why we are taking the time to analyse these issues very carefully and Labor clearly did not,” he said.

“They thought they would get political credit for a big announcement but without thinking through the consequences of what they have done.”

He claimed the Opposition wanted Australian homes to fall in value.

“As John Howard was saying on (Sky) this morning the last time the abolition of negative gearing was tried by the Labor Party, and they did in fact legislate it, it was quickly reversed because of its negative impact on the housing and in particular the rental market,” Mr Turnbull said.

“So Howard’s advice? Look at these things carefully. Absolutely; that’s exactly what I am doing.”

ALP leader Mr Shorten said Mr Turnbull “had a plan to have a plan”.

“It’s now been 904 days since the Liberals were elected, but when it comes to the economy all Mr Turnbull can do is tell Australians that he has a plan to have a plan,” he said.