Interview with Neil Breen, 4BC
28 January 2022
NEIL BREEN: In Cairns today announcing a one billion dollar, one billion dollar injection for the Great Barrier Reef, the extra billion will bring funding for the Reef 2050 plan to more than three billion. There's already two billion there. This money will be spent over the next nine years. There'll be three billion all up. It will be delivered over those nine years and go towards improving water quality, fighting crown of thorns starfish. We've been fighting those buggers forever, the crown of thorns. And working with farmers and traditional owners in the area. It's a massive cash splash ahead of the federal election. The Prime Minister joins me on the line. Good morning to you, Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Neil.
BREEN: So the Barrier Reef, we know that around the world, some different authorities are looking at its status and everything about how threatened it is. Will this billion dollars protect the reef from those lists?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I believe so. But more importantly, I believe it will protect the reef, and that's what it's about. And I mean, the reef is, you know, one of the great natural wonders not only of Australia, but the world, but it's also an important livelihood for everybody up in north Queensland, far north Queensland. I mean, there are 64,000 jobs that depend on that reef. And so its health is about the economic health of that region, as well as the natural health of that region. And as you said in the introduction, this billion goes on top of the $2 billion we've already invested. As a government, we've taken our stewardship responsibilities for the reef incredibly seriously, and we've been able to ensure that the reef not only remains protected despite the many challenges, environmental challenges to the reef, but to ensure that its status has been able to be preserved.
BREEN: Is money the only thing that can fix it? Do attitudes need to change as well? If we keep throwing money at everything in Australia, we'll go broke.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's why you have to be careful about where you're investing. Your programmes have to be targeted, and that's why we've done the work over a long time with this package to ensure it's been directed where it needs to go. And as you said, water quality is the most important part of this package. So that's working with land managers, people who actually live off the land in this part of the world. Those who are, you know, doing that commercially. Those who do it to care for our national parks and places like this, land managers to remediate erosion, improve land condition, reduce nutrient and pesticide runoffs. There's serious investment going into research. The crown of thorns starfish, I heard you, we have been battling those little…
BREEN: Buggers, the buggers.
PRIME MINISTER: Back when I was a kid, we heard about that and it is a battle. But we've got more than 13,000 hectares of coral reef is protected under this programme. It covers 253 reefs. That is the programme that the crown of thorns starfish control programme focuses on and there's over 275,000 starfish that have been culled since we started that programme back in 2014/15. So there's a lot of work going on up there, and we've got the best reef scientists in the world and we've got the best reef managers in the world. And what we're doing is we're backing them in to ensure that they can do the best possible job they can for their, you know, their fellow Queenslanders up there in far north Queensland, but also for the country and the jobs and and the reef that depends on them.
BREEN: Back in 2018, there's been some commentary about this today, in April 2018, the federal government of which you were a part, but Malcolm Turnbull was the Prime Minister who gave $444 million to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. Do we ever know what happened to that money?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, we do. I mean, it's reported on regularly to the government, and they've been able to also draw in private money to support that. And that was one of the many investments that we've made in the reef. See, to keep supporting the reef and ensure its health, you need to bring everybody in. And they're an important part of it. It's not just a job for governments, it's a job for everybody, and they play an important role in building that awareness as well. So, you know, plenty of people who criticised us back then for, you know, investing in supporting the health of the reef. But it's been an important part of keeping the health of the reef. We've just been getting on with it.
BREEN: Prime Minister, one of the things with this Omicron wave, there's a crisis going on in aged care across Australia. Can I asked if aged care was discussed at national cabinet yesterday?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, we discuss it at every meeting of national cabinet and and in particular, we got the update that 86 per cent of all the residential aged care facilities have now received their booster visits, which is very important, and the balance of those are occurring over the course of the next week. I mean, aged care and particularly residents in aged care, have been the key focus of the federal government, particularly since the start of this pandemic. And while we grieve the loss of those who have fallen victim to the disease, the fatality rates in Australia compared to Canada, they are 15 times higher in aged care, 15 times higher. And that's, you know, and the reason for that is we've worked so hard on the vaccination in aged care facilities. I remember the first big wave that we had that went through aged care in Victoria. You'll remember it, it was just terrible.
BREEN: Yes, I do.
PRIME MINISTER: There was no vaccine. But even then, only eight per cent of our aged care facilities were affected by those extreme events. And in the UK, it was 56 per cent. So it is a challenge to manage COVID in aged care facilities. I mean, we've sent out some 15.4 million N95 masks, seven million rapid antigen tests that we've been buying since last August to make sure we could respond to these outbreaks. And so what we're seeing this time around with the outbreaks is, yes, there are facilities that have COVID, but the way it's being managed, the use of the PPE equipment, the getting the rapid antigen tests in there, the training of the staff that we did, the boosters to the wages that we provided to keep staff in aged care facilities, getting private hospital nurses involved and bringing them in. All of this has been relieving the pressure. But Neil, I'll be honest, it is a hard challenge dealing with Omicron.
BREEN: Yes and there's no staff, there's no staff. They're all going down with COVID-19.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's happening right across the health system. And that's why, you know, we have put in, passed the boost to their wages to try and keep people in. But it's also why we changed the rules for close contacts so we could get more staff back to work. And it's also why we've been opening up the rules on hours that student nurses can work, as well as getting other people in to support that workforce. But it's a tough challenge. And you know, there's no easy way through COVID and in aged care the challenge is the greatest. But I am, you know, we are seeing results there that despite those challenges compared to other countries, the aged care system in Australia is holding up. And I really want to thank all those workers who are there. They're working double shifts. And it's not just the care workers themselves, it's the cleaners, it's those cooking the meals, it's those, you know, assuring that relatives for as long as possible can continue to come and visit their loved ones. And for those in palliative care, which is where 60, over 60 per cent of sadly we've seen fatalities in aged care most recently, we want their end of life, which is a tough thing for families to go through to be as peaceful and as comfortable as possible.
BREEN: The Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck doubles as the Sports Minister as well, and he went to the Test in Adelaide for three days, the Ashes Test and didn't appear before a Senate Committee hearing on the impact of Omicron on nursing homes. Should he have been at the cricket or at the Senate Committee hearing?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, he has appeared, as you know, at that hearing on many, many occasions. And you know, we set up that hearing. We set up that Committee at the start of COVID because we wanted to ensure there was an ongoing oversight and visibility on everything we've been doing. And he's appeared before that on countless occasions. And during the course of that week, I'm aware he was dealing not just issues when it was related to his Sports Minister, but he was having the regular contacts with the aged care sector with the AHPPC and all of those things. I mean, ministers have many responsibilities. I can understand the criticism and I'm sure ...
BREEN: Because it doesn't pass the pub test. Doesn't look good.
PRIME MINISTER: I think Richard has taken that, you know, on board. I have no doubt and but I can tell you, I mean, over the course of this pandemic and I know Richard very well and you know, there's been a few knockers of him, but I know what he does each and every day for the welfare of people living in our residential aged care facilities. And and so, you know, he will take that criticism on the chin and he'll get back to work, which he does every single day.
BREEN: Scott Morrison, did yourself and your wife Jenny feel disrespected by Grace Tame this week with the way she looked at you and didn't greet you at The Lodge?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh look, I've seen all that. When anyone comes to our home, when Jenny and I, we invite someone to our home we greet them with a smile and they're always welcome. And that day was actually about all the finalists that we came to celebrate. And the previous Australians of the year were there. Jenny and I were there, and that day was all about them. And, Dylan couldn't be there that day, he was actually playing at the time. But the others, Daniel Nour and Aunty Val and everyone ...
BREEN: Suppose she made it about herself though and she made a political statement.
PRIME MINISTER: Well look, that's for- I haven't raised any issues about this. All I'm saying is we were there that day to celebrate those who had done an incredible job for our country. And Jenny and I wanted to welcome them to our home and wish them all the best. Look, Grace is a passionate person who's raised important issues. She's had a terrible life ordeal, you know, things happen to her, her ordeals, the abuse. It's just awful. And I know a lot of Australians, me included, you know, support her efforts to ensure that these issues can be raised and addressed. Our government has done more than any other government on this issue, and that is in part because of the strong focus that has been brought to these issues and the response that we've made. So I thank her for her time as Australian of the Year and as I say, when you know, if people come to our house, Jenny and I always greet them with a smile.
BREEN: Well, when you come to our house today, to Queensland, Prime Minister Scott Morrison, you enjoy Cairns.
PRIME MINISTER: I will, looking forward to getting up there, a lot of jobs up there and and the reef is one of our greatest, one of our greatest assets in the country. We are going to take care of it as we always have. Thank you.
BREEN: Thank you, Prime Minister.
