The government must provide financial support to Australia's car manufacturing industry to maintain a diversified economy in the midst of a resources boom, the prime minister says.
Julia Gillard said $34 million of funding announced last week to keep car manufacturing at Ford in Victoria until 2016 would create an additional 300 jobs.
She said it was important for Australia to remain one of only 13 countries with a car industry that can design and manufacture cars.
The resources boom and high Australian dollar were putting pressure on manufacturing and the industry needed government assistance to survive, she said.
"I'm very determined as prime minister as we go through this period of economic change that we emerge with a diversified economy with many sources of strength," she told reporters at Ford's Broadmeadows plant in Melbourne on Tuesday.
"As a government, if you want to have jobs in your economy, then you have got to have the right policy settings every day.
"You never rule a line and say it's done. "We are making the prudent decisions that we need to to keep Australian jobs here in manufacturing."
