Dumping 'me-too' a joke: Garrett

In an impromptu conversation with high-profile radio announcer Steve Price at Melbourne Airport this morning, Mr Garrett defended Labor's tactic of copying Coalition policies.

Mr Price said Mr Garrett told him the "me-too" tag would not matter if Labor won government because "once we get in we'll just change it all".

Mr Price said he was so surprised that he asked a third person present, Nine Network entertainment presenter Richard Wilkins, if he had heard correctly.

"And he said, 'sure did, he said it all right'," Mr Price told his Sydney audience on Southern Cross Broadcasting.

Mr Garrett has not denied making the comment but says it was part of a "short, jocular and casual" conversation.

And he has been backed by Mr Wilkins, who says he thought Mr Garrett was joking.

"We had a little chat about how it was all going and Pricey had a cheeky little question about `me-too' policies which had got a bit of coverage in the papers today," Mr Wilkins said to Macquarie Radio in Sydney.

"And Peter had a bit of a light-hearted response which I took as very much a throwaway line, I have to say ... my take on it was that it was very much a light-hearted throwaway line."

Labor has been under fire for its tactic of copying Coalition policies, particularly on tax, pensioner bonuses and climate change.

At a hastily convened press conference in Melbourne this afternoon, the former Midnight Oil frontman said things would change under Labor – with better policies on education, industrial relations, environment and health.

"This was a very short and casual conversation and what is clear is that things would be much better under a Labor government if it was elected," Mr Garrett said.

"We would be able to do good things for this country. The policies that are in place that Kevin Rudd has identified are the policies that can make this country better and the changes would be good. That's absolutely the case."

He denied he had been referring to scrapping policies borrowed from the Coalition.

"My comments in a conversation which was short and casual with Steve Price are directed specifically in this instance to what we can identify as the best things that can happen to Australia if a Rudd Labor government is chosen," Mr Garrett said.

"Let's remember – there would be big changes if Rudd Labor was chosen, there's no doubt about that."

It was Mr Garrett's second gaffe of the week, after he was forced to back down on claims a Labor government would sign a new climate change treaty that committed Australia to cutting emissions, even if developing countries did not sign up.

With opinion polls suggesting a landslide Labor win, Mr Price said the comments were an insight into what voters could be in for.

"It goes to the suspicion that politicians and political parties will say and do anything to get elected, like John Howard with his never-ever GST and Paul Keating's L-A-W law tax cuts," Mr Price said.

"But Peter Garrett, this morning, by admitting to me that Labor is already thinking of, in his words, 'changing it all when we get in', well, that's going to leave a fairly hefty level of suspicion I would have thought among voters on what they're really voting for."

Mr Rudd was in transit from Perth to Darwin and was not available for comment this afternoon.

But Treasurer Peter Costello said Mr Garrett had shown that Labor was planning on breaking its promises if elected.

"Everybody knew these weren't Labor policies. Everybody knew that Labor wasn't interested in tax cuts or helping the pensioners, and it certainly was a big reversal on their position for Kyoto," Mr Costello said to Sky News.

"So why was Labor saying me-too, me-too, me-too? Peter Garrett's just told you why – Labor has no intention of actually implementing these things."

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