Interview with Ray Hadley, 2GB

19 May 2021

Ray Hadley: Prime Minister, good morning to you.

Prime Minister: G’day, Ray. Good to see you on 360 last night.

Hadley: I'm glad you were able to watch it.

Prime Minister: Yeah, I got, I got in last night, and if I find myself there at about that time, I'll switch it on. So yeah.

Hadley: Well it’s a good catch up when you’re flat out about what's happened in rugby league over the past week or so.

Prime Minister: It is.

Hadley: Now, I mean, I don't understand it. You’re copping a hammering at the moment about the borders and the sensible decision. You’re erring on the side of caution, as you've done through most of this, and thinking, well, we'll just have to wait a bit and maybe next year. But you see, if you go too early, everything that you and the state premiers have done in the last 12 months will come asunder. It'll all be brought undone if you go too early. That's your problem, is it not?

Prime Minister: Yeah, it's called rushing to failure. And Australians, I think, are demonstrating a great deal of patience. And I think the position that we have been maintaining is the sensible one. That doesn't mean we're not planning for when we can do it. And we do have to plan for that, whether that's how people can, you know, not be subject to domestic restrictions if they've been vaccinated, or potentially travel overseas and and quarantine differently when they come back, or how we can bring students and all that sort of thing when it's safe to do so. We've got to get all that right. And that's, the work goes on now. But for now and for sort of some time yet, we need to play it safe. That's what protects lives and that's also what protects livelihoods, people's jobs.

Hadley: We've had this 47-year-old lose his life in India, an Australian citizen …

Prime Minister: … Yeah …

Hadley: … who went there of his own volition last month, to I believe attend his mum's funeral.

Prime Minister: Yeah.

Hadley: She'd passed away with COVID. But you see what worries me, the variants we're talking about, this was apparently a fit, healthy man at 47, and it grabbed him and took him down very, very quickly.

Prime Minister: It's, look, it's a dangerous place. Since the 23rd of April, I think, Ray, more than 1,000 people have sought to travel to India. Now, we haven't let them go for obvious reasons. Earlier, you know, you know, last year and there were arrangements where people, if they, you know it's terrible what's happened to this, this relatively young man. And it's a tragedy, and when it, when we lose an Australian anywhere, and sadly that happens in all around the world when people are in dangerous places. And so I feel for the family, but, you know, it's not, it's not a safe place. And we're trying to bring people back safely. But, but equally, we've got to do it in a way which doesn't put at risk everything that's been achieved here in Australia.

Hadley: You had a word to say yesterday about the CEO of Virgin Jayne Hrdlicka. And I didn't crucify her yesterday. I thought maybe, you know, she said things that she may regret, and I think the airline is now making statements to …

Prime Minister: … Yeah …

Hadley: ... in some way mitigate what was said. But you and I have discussed this before, Prime Minister. There are some people in the media who talk about, oh, if you don’t die of that, you don't die with COVID, you die, but, you know, and all the rest of it. And it's not a problem. It's no worse than the flu. I think people have got to understand, and this is how I feel, any life is precious.

Prime Minister: Of course it is.

Hadley: I don't care whether it's an eight-year-old or a 48-year-old or a 98-year-old.

Prime Minister: I agree with that and have all the way through. Look, I said yesterday, I don't really want to say much more …

Hadley: ... No …

Prime Minister: … because I think, I thought it was insensitive but I think the company has walked that back. I appreciate that. And it was, you know, said in the business environment. But, that, still it is what it is. But look, I think it is important that we acknowledge. I mean, we've had 910 people pass away in Australia because of COVID. And, yes, the majority of those have been quite elderly, particularly in Victoria when that second wave went through. But every single one of those lives is somebody's mum, dad, sister, brother, cousin, aunty, uncle. It's, and, you know, we've, we've avoided 30,000 deaths in this country. If you take the average fatality rate of what has been experienced in countries just like Australia, what are known as the OECD countries - you know, similar, you know, advanced economies, good health systems, prosperous economies - if we had their average fatality rate, 30,000 more Australians would have died in this country. And that's what we've avoided together. So as you said before, we don't want to rush to failure. We want to make sure we preserve that. The Budget’s all about securing that recovery. And, and we're going to stay on that track, keep doing what's working and working together.

Hadley: It looks like I'll have my AstraZeneca next week, I now qualify. But I'm seeing a lot of pushback. There's a poll published in the Herald today, about 29 per cent of Australians, for varying reasons, not want or having any, whether it's AstraZeneca or whether it's Pfizer or whether it's, you know, one other, Moderna or whatever. Is that concerning, that we've been so good as a nation, but there seems to be just a core of people at the moment who are resisting for varying reasons, being vaccinated, particularly with AstraZeneca?

Prime Minister: Well, no, I'm not, I'm not overly troubled. I mean, we've obviously got to work on it. But that, what it also seems to me, around 70 per cent of people want to have it, Ray. So let's just get on with them. They, there's plenty of time to have the chat with the others who are still a bit hesitant. That’s, that's alright, free country, and they should talk to their doctor. Those who are hardcore against it is a much smaller number.

Hadley: Yeah.

Prime Minister: Much, much smaller number.

Hadley: Sure.

Prime Minister: But there are others, I think, who are open to the conversation, and we'll have that. I think we've also got to remember in a country where, as you just announced the COVID cases before I came on, zero community transmission too. It's different to the UK or certainly the US and across Europe where it’s a choice between having the vaccine or putting your life at risk.

Hadley: Yeah.

Prime Minister: So there's a different equation here in Australia. And so even with a very, and people, I heard someone this morning on the radio in an interview I was doing up in Newcastle, and they were talking about, you know, we know it's a really small risk. But the risk of getting COVID is not perceived as great here. But the truth is, it's good for the health of the country to do it. We're making great progress, I think we’re well over three million now. We’ve got over 85 per cent of the aged care facilities covered, and we're on track there. So, you know, we’ll just keep working through the 70 per cent who’s happy to get it done. So, like you, you're in that 70 per cent, make your booking, and you're over 50, and we'll get ahead and we'll get it done.

Hadley: I know you're flat strapped …

Prime Minister: … You’re right …

Hadley: … but one comment about PETA. I mean, look, they're totally irrelevant. And it became more irrelevant with their nonsense this morning about this mouse plague in New South Wales, all parts of New South Wales. I’m watching vision on TV in the studio at the moment. It’s horrendous. And they want some sort of Pied Piper solution to drag them away and rehabilitate them. I mean, they’re stark raving mad, aren’t they?

Prime Minister: Oh, it’s pretty dopey. It's pretty dopey. And the devastation and heartbreak that's being experienced by, by farmers in New South Wales, it's just so hard to see. We've been, like, we've been through drought, we’ve been through fires. We've gone, I was up in, up around the Manning River floods recently on the mid-north coast. And now we've got this, and it is just one thing after another. And I, apart from the comments, being, I think very, again, insensitive, to the plight that those farmers are going through, I just think they’re pretty dopey. The New South Wales Government’s dealing with that and good for them. Good on Gladys for getting on about that. It's, you know, it’s in New South Wales. And if they need help, they'll ask for it, but they're on it. So good on to them.

Hadley: Okay. I've said this to the Premier, I’ve said it to the Queensland Premier. You still find the energy to stump up every day, all of you. I mean, I think the day that COVID no longer is a problem in Australia or across the world will be a day that perhaps it's a bit like Bob Hawke saying after the America's Cup win of the 80s, everyone can have a day off. And if the boss won't give you a day off today, they're not much good.

Prime Minister: Yeah, well, I think sadly, I think that day’s still some way away. I mean, we're doing, we’re doing really well here, and I've spent most of this week when I've been meeting with people - I was up in Gladstone earlier in the week and down through Brissy, down in Melbourne at the moment - and what Australians have done, particularly small business owners have done to get, you know, to just hold their staff together, of course, JobKeeper all that, that all helped them. But all of those policies would, basically had they, had one assumption that Australians were going to persist, they were going to look after each other, they were going to keep pressing ahead, and that's what they've done. So I'm incredibly grateful for the way that Australians have just pressed on. Yeah a few people here and there had a bit of a whinge. But overwhelmingly Australians have been just absolutely amazing. And that's the secret to our success.

Hadley: You see, I think, what the point you made through the conversation earlier was we've been so successful and we think we're totally immune from it, and that's where that 29 per cent figure comes from. For herd immunity we need to be over 90 per cent. But I think because of that success and the zero cases in the community, which I read out every day …

Prime Minister: … Yeah …

Hadley: … people became a bit apathetic. I mean, it’ll only take one outbreak somewhere. And we've dodged a bullet in New South Wales. We've dodged a bullet in other areas. And let's hope we keep dodging them. But one more outbreak and it could go the other way.

Prime Minister: Well, we saw that in Victoria and we're seeing it in Singapore at the moment. They’re shutting things down and Singapore's done very, very well. In Taiwan, a country that has done extraordinarily well, they’re going into restrictions, I think, for the first time. So the virus is a, is quite a, quite an opponent. And the only person I'm fighting is the virus. That's my job as Prime Minister. Others might want to fight with me. But I'll keep fighting the virus on behalf of Australians.

Hadley: Alright, as always, thanks for your time. We appreciate it.

Prime Minister: Thanks a lot, Ray. Good to chat, cheers.

Hadley: All the best.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43406

Interview with Richard and Shanna, 2HD Newcastle

19 May 2021

RICHARD: Good morning, Prime Minister.

SHANNA: Good morning.

PRIME MINISTER: Good morning. Good to be with you, too. Good day for the Hunter.

RICHARD: Yes and, well a great day for the Hunter. So it's definitely happening this, this gas-fired power station at Kurri Kurri on the old Hydro site, Prime Minister?

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, it is. And it's going to bring with it some 600 new jobs during peak construction there and 1,200 indirect jobs across the state. Importantly, it's going to keep the pressure down on electricity prices across New South Wales, in particular. But in addition to that, a gas-fired power station is actually, works in together with our renewables strategy because it supports and firms up all the renewable energy that's coming onto the market. We’ve got a lot of renewable energy coming in, but when the wind doesn't blow in and the sun doesn't shine, well you need the gas-fired power plants to be able to make up that difference and ensure that you keep the lights on and you keep prices down. So it all works together as part of a plan. But I think it's great for the Hunter and it comes on the back of the more than $60 million I announced when I was up there the other day to widen the Newcastle Airport. So all good news for the Hunter.

SHANNA: Prime Minister, just on the cheaper electricity prices. Our emails, our listeners have emailed in this morning and they want to know, how is this going to guarantee, though, to deliver cheaper electricity prices?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, because it increases the supply of reliable energy. And when you've got Liddell coming out at some 1,000 megawatts, then that reduces the supply and that puts pressure on prices going up. So we were saying, well, if a thousand’s coming out, we need a thousand to come on. And the industry have delivered around 330 megawatts. And this puts the balance of the 660 megawatts back into the system to ensure that we can keep that downward pressure on power prices. And since the last election, we've seen a 13 per cent average fall in, in household prices since the last election. And so prices are not going up like they were some years ago. We've been getting that pressure on them through what we've done with the retailer guarantee and all of these things. But we've got to keep the pressure on, and that's what this is about.

RICHARD: Right. And just to clarify, it's what we call a peaking plant. So it'll only be turned on, turned on when it's needed, and, and that's the advantage of gas over coal. It's very easy to turn it on and turn it off.

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah. That's exactly right. That's exactly right. So that means you're using your renewables when you can, and there's a lot of additional capacity coming on there. But then, you know, the lights go out when you can't turn one of these things on. And with the others, you've got to keep them running all the time. So that's why, you know, gas is a great transition fuel for Australia as part of what we're doing on the, on the changing nature of our energy market. So, you know, it's a very, it's been worked through very finely by the Snowy Hydro Corporation who do a great job. And, and they're stepping up and I basically said, well, let the big energy companies have the first crack at this. But if they're not going to turn up, then we will.

SHANNA: Is there a timeframe, Prime Minister, when the project will be complete, and how much is it going to cost the taxpayer, the project?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we're putting in an additional $600 million into the Snowy Hydro Corporation to ensure that they can, they can do this. And we understand that they'll have this done by the end of 2023.

RICHARD: And, and, where will the gas come from? There was a report the other day saying that there is at this stage no gas supply for that proposed plant and it might have to run on diesel fuel for at least six months.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's a contingency, and we don't necessarily anticipate that contingency having to be realised. And those elements of the project will be settled in the months ahead.

RICHARD: When, while we're talking about gas, it's been, I think, now three months since the PEP 11 exploration licence expired off the coast. I think all the New South Wales ministers, well, and certainly MPs along the Eastern Seaboard, don't want it. You've said you don't want it.

PRIME MINISTER: That’s right.

RICHARD: And yet our Resources Minister Keith Pitt has not yet made a decision on, on the PEP 11 exploration licence.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I think I've been pretty clear about what my view is and the Government's view is. So I ...

RICHARD: Well, why, why hasn’t a decision been announced?

PRIME MINISTER: There's a process that it's following that, look I've made it pretty clear about what my view is and what the Government's view is, and I think people take a lot of confidence from that.

RICHARD: Well, it's been three months since the licence expired.

SHANNA: Yeah, the 12th of February.

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, and what you've seen is it hasn't been renewed.

RICHARD: Right. Okay.

SHANNA: Prime Minister, what would you say in response to Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese’s recent comments that your Government's failed Australian citizens who are still stranded overseas due to COVID-19?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it’s just the facts don't bear that up. He says lots of things that aren't true. We've had, you know, 166,000 people have come back to Australia, when we were trying to get back just 26,800. Last September I said we're going to work to get people home who were registered with us at that time. That was 26,800, 166,000 people have come back since that time. Multiple flights that we've run to bring Australians home, it's a big task. People have gone overseas, they've found themselves in difficulty. Like in any case, we seek to provide support to people in those circumstances. We're in a global pandemic, it's not easy. But we've got a hardship fund which has seen $30 million of support gone out to people all around the world, not just in India, but many places around the world, supporting them with medical expenses or emergency accommodation or cash support that they've needed. We're giving as much support to Australians as you can in these circumstances and we're bringing them home as well, including out of India. But we've got to do it safely.

RICHARD: Well, and so, so much of the recovery from the pandemic, you know, relies on us all getting vaccinated. A survey out this morning shows that 29 per cent of Australians don't want to get the vaccination. What's your message to those people that still have a question mark about being vaccinated?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, my message is more to the 70 per cent that are quite happy to go and have it. And of that 29 per cent you refer, they're not hard against it. It's only a small proportion of those who are hard against it, which is fairly normal with vaccinations. Now but for the 70 per cent of people that are happy to get along with it, and I'd encourage them to go and make that booking. If you're over 50, you can go and do that with your GP now. The State Government is setting up other clinics to do the same thing. So I’d just encourage people to get on and do it. We're over three, well over three million now, and those numbers keep climbing every single day. And it's an important part of what we're doing. It's not the only part of what we're doing. And it's important we all work together to achieve that. That's why I’m sort of disappointed that the Labor Party, and I'm fighting the virus, they seem to be fighting me. I'll just keep fighting the virus and I'll let them do whatever they want to do.

SHANNA: Now, Prime Minister, you copped a bit of flak for the red carpet treatment you received when you were in the Hunter just the other week. But you must feel pretty special because even your Sharkies didn't receive the red carpet treatment when they won the grand final in 2016.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we, we have nothing to do with that. I mean, I just walk out of the plane and whatever's there’s there. I mean, some suggestion that, by those who sort of seized on this, I mean, I have nothing to do with what the Defence Forces do when you get out of the plane. That was nice of them to receive. It wasn’t the first time that's happened.

RICHARD: No. We're on radio, it's theatre of the mind. That’s, that’s the sound effect of rolling out a red carpet. So we've done it again for you this morning.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'm more grateful for the service of our Defence Force personnel, personally.

RICHARD: Hear hear.

PRIME MINISTER: I’d be rolling out a red carpet for them, if it was my, it was my decision.

RICHARD: Definitely, definitely. Thank you very much for your time this morning, Prime Minister.

SHANNA: Thank you, thank you.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks a lot. Good to talk to you.

RICHARD: Have a good day. Thank you.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43405

Interview with Steve Austin, ABC Radio Brisbane

18 May 2021

STEVE AUSTIN: Prime Minister, thanks for coming on this afternoon.

PRIME MINISTER: G'day Steve. And can I just send a shout out to Luke Howarth and his family today. I know he’d normally be joining you around about this time. But going through, they’ve had some bad news lately, and I just want to send them all the best on this difficult day for them.

AUSTIN: I’m sure he appreciates it. What do you need from universities to allow them to fly in international students on charter flights to start getting the higher education back up and running again?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Steve, let me just sort of pull you back a bit. I mean, the reason why the borders are shut is because of the global pandemic. This is not made up. It's real. And it's worse today than it was a year ago, and it's raging through the developing world as we speak. So the protections we have on the borders is keeping Australians safe. But at the same time, it's enabling the Australian economy to have more people in work today - despite all the challenges and all the issues that you said in your introduction - there are more Australians in work today than there were before the pandemic. And we're, in an Australian way, managing to work our way through this great challenge. It's the pandemic that is the issue here. It's the virus that is the reason for all of these things. If we had the same average rate of fatalities from COVID that other countries just like us have had, 30,000 more Australians would have perished as a result of this virus. So we'll do everything that we can do to ensure that we can start to bring back as much of that activity as we can. But in the meantime, we will continue to do things that keeps the Australian economy moving forward, and that's what the Budget’s about. That's how it's securing Australia's recovery …

AUSTIN: ... I understand that …

PRIME MINISTER: … [inaudible] these challenges, we deal with them. But when it comes to students and, or when it comes to Australians returning in larger numbers and all of these sorts of things, that will, of course, be guided by the health advice. But, equally, for students of universities and universities who have made significant revenues in recent years and they have significant capital to be able to support the type of facilities that would assist those students coming back, if the state government wishes to support their return with the health arrangements that would allow that, over and above the bringing Australians home, then we've always been in favour of that. We already have a …

AUSTIN: … I understand that. Let, if I may interject, let me, I understand that and accept what you say, but the Commonwealth has told the universities to come up with some plans, trial plans, some trial projects …

PRIME MINISTER: … Yeah …

AUSTIN: ... to test bringing international students in from overseas.

PRIME MINISTER: Correct.

AUSTIN: So, what, let me go back to my original question. What do you need from universities to allow them to fly in international students on charter flights?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, what has already occurred in the Northern Territory, where they've been able to do that around facilities, get the support of the Territory Government to ensure that the health issues are covered off because the public health orders that are put in place by states and territories have to be observed. You need a workforce to support that and the facilities to make them possible. This is the same thing we've been saying to them for over a year, over a year.

AUSTIN: The State, the State Government is pushing, as you know, for a dedicated facility to be built at the Wellcamp Airport near Toowoomba. But the proposal’s been rejected by you. Given that quarantine is a Federal responsibility, what do you need from the State Government?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, again, Steve, I’ve got to pull you up there. The quarantine is enforcing a state public health order, which was agreed to over a year ago by the National Cabinet, including the Queensland Government. It's a Queensland state public health order that they're enforcing with the hotel quarantine that is in place. Now ...

AUSTIN: … I know, but they look to the Commonwealth to manage the borders. You're responsible for the Northern Territory quarantine facility. I'm just trying to understand what else you need from the state to get something up and running.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we've, we’ve written to them and told them, they won't tell us how much it costs. They won't tell them whether they're going to run the facility. They won't tell us whether, on top of that, whether it’s being in addition to bringing Australians home, so supplementing what is already being done, or is to replace it. These are the things we've been asking for for ages. This is a ...

AUSTIN: … So you want a dollar figure from them?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I mean, this is what Victoria’s done. I have a very comprehensive proposal from Victoria and we’re, we are in the … 

AUSTIN: … With a dollar figure attached?

PRIME MINISTER: Yes, absolutely, and we're working that through with the Victorian Government. It is a comprehensive proposal that deals with workforce, the medical controls, how the State Government will operate that facility, the capital requirements, all of this. It's all set out and we're working through those details. It's a comprehensive proposal. We didn't get that from Queensland.

AUSTIN: So you're looking for a dollar figure from the Queensland State Government on the Wellcamp proposal?

PRIME MINISTER: [Inaudible] what we need because I've written to them and told them, and we've been seeking it from them for some period of time.

AUSTIN: Let me play you Professor Sandra Harding, Vice-Chancellor of James Cook University, Chair of the Queensland Vice-Chancellors’ Committee. She wants the Wellcamp option looked at.

[Excerpt plays]

AUSTIN: So your position is the State Government only needs to provide a dollar figure on what a Wellcamp quarantine facility will cost, and you'll be happy to make it a goer.

PRIME MINISTER: No, that's not what I said, Steve. There was a range of issues that I said that remain unresolved ...

AUSTIN: … What are the other ones other than dollar figure?

PRIME MINISTER: No, I already went through them - how it's going to operate, who’s going to operate it, where’s the workforce going to come from, who's running the infection control procedures, or where is the security workforce coming from. All of this needs to be established. That's what the Victorian Government is doing. But the Victorian Government, like the New South Wales Government, Steve, is working with us. New South Wales is working with us on arrangements to bring students in as well as we speak. They're not doing it as some sort of political show out there in the, they’re just working with us, and I would encourage the Queensland Government to do the same thing, not looking to [inaudible].

AUSTIN: I spoke to the Premier's office today and they were having difficulty understanding what the impediment was …

PRIME MINISTER: ... getting [inaudible] for New South Wales and Victoria.

AUSTIN: They’re very, the State Government’s very keen to work with your office to see it happen. The impression they left me with that the blockage is in your office.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'm sorry. I completely reject that. We’ve, on numerous occasions, set out the additional information that we require, and it just hasn't been coming, forthcoming. But I'll tell you what people need first though, Steve. They need us to keep us focused on keeping Australians in work, getting Australians home safely, and ensuring that we keep Australians safe from a pandemic that is raging. It'd be great to have students back. But frankly, right now, the most important thing is we secure this recovery and the jobs that people have here, and we protect Australia from a virus that is ravaging the rest of the world. It'd be nice to turn everything back to normal in a heartbeat, but the pandemic is real and happening and it hasn't gone anywhere and it's getting worse.

AUSTIN: Do you have any concerns about the ability of the Wagner’s Wellcamp Airport to take jets and process people in any physical capacity? 

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the planes don’t fly there, they fly to Brisbane.

AUSTIN: No, but they could. I mean, frankly, international freight planes fly there now.

PRIME MINISTER: But no, but the airlines [inaudible], and this is one of the other problems with that proposal. It's not where the planes fly. We already have facilities that enable us to bring charters in. But for normal commercial flights, where we need that capacity, this is why the Victorian proposal is a far superior one. It's actually in Melbourne, close, you know, it’s within proximity to the hospital.

AUSTIN: Yes.

PRIME MINISTER: It enables you to attract workforce, to that proposal. And the other thing I'd stress is people in Toowoomba don't want it either. The community has not been brought on board with this proposal. They're not on board with it. And where we've worked with the Northern Territory Government - Michael Gunner worked with us, he went out there directly and got the Northern Territory community on board for the Howard Springs facility. So, you know, I'm working really well with the states and territories, but they have a role in actually bringing things forward that are in a position to be considered. And when that can happen, well, maybe they should, they can look at how the Victorian proposal worked out and that might assist them.

AUSTIN: My guest is Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison. So the Gladstone proposal didn't get up, you don't like the Toowoomba proposal, some time ago I spoke with your counterpart Warren Entsch in North Queensland. He wanted Cairns to be considered an international quarantine hub. Did he ever raise that with your office or raise that?

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, well we pursued whether there would be hotel quarantine that would be run out of Cairns, where international flights were coming into Cairns, and the Queensland Government did not want to do that.

AUSTIN: So there's three different options, all for international quarantine hubs and all of them have been rejected.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the Cairns one that the Queensland Government didn’t want to do, hotel quarantine in Cairns. I'm not criticising them for that. That was just that, they looked at where they had their workforce and how they could work that. I think the Queensland Government with hotel quarantine, which has a 99 per cent effectiveness rate, has been, you know, done extremely well. And I think they're testing and tracing regime here in Queensland is also very good. So I'm not making criticisms of how they've been managing it. They’ll make calls based on the health advice and I respect that. But equally, when it comes to other quarantine facilities, the hotel quarantine facilities have been very effective. And we will look at comprehensive proposals with states and territories, and as we are already doing in other states, where they’ve been able to work with us rather than seek to negotiate things through the media.

AUSTIN: Whenever I speak with business they express concern that they can't get hold of the skilled workers they need. This doesn't sound like they're going to be able to get skilled workers any time soon, Prime Minister?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I think you'll, you'll see over the next sort of six months or so, and you'll see further solutions being brought to bear there. We just keep dealing with this problem one step at a time. That's what you do in the pandemic. There's no magic answer. It doesn't turn up, you know, tomorrow afternoon. You just keep working the problem, as we have been, and let's remind ourselves of these. Here in Australia we are living like no other country, almost, in the world.

AUSTIN: Yes.

PRIME MINISTER: People are back in jobs. Businesses have been maintained. 

AUSTIN: Yes, we're very fortunate. I agree.

PRIME MINISTER: [Inaudible] had 910 deaths from COVID. It could have been 30,000 more.

AUSTIN: Yes. No, I agree, we’re ...

PRIME MINISTER: … That has been as a result of the decisions we've taken together, backing Australians. The HomeBuilder programme, there's another one. 120,000 applications, $2.7 billion of support, which is unleashing up to $39 billion in investments in residential housing by, including by first homeowners, which is at its highest level in 11 years. So we're making our way through this and we'll keep doing that and we'll get there by working together.

AUSTIN: Yeah, I agree we’re very, very fortunate. One final question. In today's Australian newspaper, which I understand you read, it's been written that Australia is one of the only countries in the world failing to publicly report the number of people who are fully vaccinated. Why is this?

PRIME MINISTER: We release our vaccination numbers every day, every single day, and we've got 13 per cent of the country …

AUSTIN: ... Fully vaccinated? ...

PRIME MINISTER: … of the adult, of the adult population that we've been able to achieve those doses, first doses with, and we're pleased about achieving that. And in addition to that, we're about 85, more than 85 per cent of the way through the residential aged care facilities. We release additional information on the Monday morning, which also goes into state allocations and vaccination rates across the population. We’ve still got a long way to go on the vaccination program. We’ll still keep releasing all of that information every single day.

AUSTIN: So we do report publicly the number of people who are fully vaccinated. That’s what’s happening - number one and number two vaccine?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, you can see that on the aged care figures we release every …

AUSTIN: … Okay, great ... 

PRIME MINISTER: … the aged care figures we release, how many people have had first doses and how many people have had second doses.

AUSTIN: Alright. Well, that’s the last time I'll trust The Australian newspaper. Finally, Scott Morrison, how much longer you going to be here in Brisbane? 

PRIME MINISTER: I'm heading, I’m heading [inaudible] I’ve been, I got up to Gladstone on Sunday and we've been here around Brisbane for the last couple of days, which has been great. I’m looking forward to coming back soon.

AUSTIN: Thanks for your time. 

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks a lot, Steve. Cheers.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43404

Doorstop - Caboolture QLD

18 May 2021

TERRY YOUNG MP, MEMBER FOR LONGMAN: Thanks everyone. We're here at Taipan Hoses in Caboolture and it's a great story because Allan Sandilands, the business owner here, actually promoted his HR Manager Tianah to what they call [inaudible] Manager. And the idea was that they had a lot of staff here who maybe thought they were never going to get into their own home. And Tianah’s job was to make that happen. So Tianah went through and she helped them with the process of getting a home, getting a HomeBuilder grant. And it's really changed lives. We got how many people got involved in the last four months? 5 staff now who had their lives changed and they got that dream of owning their own home. Allan, what do you think?

ALLAN SANDILANDS, CEO of TAIPAN HYDRAULIC HOSES: It's a great result. So we started out with 14 who were [inaudible] in time and effort. But at the end of the day, to achieve 5 houses out of the whole exercise is great. We're not only working on the houses, we're working on a lot of other stuff, but the secret is surround yourself with people who are a lot smarter than yourself, like Fiona and you’ll achieve a lot. A great initiative.

PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much Terry. Well, thank you, Allan and thanks to everyone here at Taipan. You know, there are two things that I've always, you know, celebrated - when an Australian gets a job and when they can buy their own home. They are big outcomes in life. You might be training yourself to get the skills to get that job and then go and buy that first home. And then on top of that, to be able to save to support yourself in your own retirement. These are the big achievements. And for Allan, starting his own business here out the back of the truck many years ago, back in the 1990s and look at him now. He's putting not only people into jobs, he's putting the people who he put into jobs into houses into their own homes. First-home ownership now is at its highest level in 11 years. The Home Builder programme has been an enormous success. 120,000 applications, up $2.7 billion being invested to generate, as the Master Builders say, $39 billion in additional investment in residential construction. That is a game changer. And it has been a game changer for our recovery plan out of this pandemic. Our investment in getting people into their first homes, to build their own homes and in particular in this Budget. And our new homes initiatives for single parents, with a 2 per cent deposit, enabling 10,000 of them to get into their first home. The last election, 2 years ago today, we said that we were going to put in place the first home loan deposit scheme. 20,000 of those places already being utilised. Another 10,000 in this Budget. Another 10,000 to get the 2 per cent for single mums. Then there's the first home supersaver scheme and of course, HomeBuilder, which is ensuring that not only are first home buyers and any other home buyers getting themselves into homes that they’ve built, but this has been one of the key supports that we've put in place to secure our recovery coming through the COVID-19 pandemic. So this has been a massive initiative on behalf of the Government, and it's based on one simple premise, and that is we want to back Australians in. So we put $25,000 in, but they’ll put the $300,000 in or the $250,000 or sometimes much more than that. This isn't just about government. This is about government enabling Australians to be able to get themselves into their first home or a home that they've had built for them and their family. And so it's incredibly pleasing to know that not only has Allan here and his business been making use of whether it's the instant expensing and the other lower tax rates that are being applied now for businesses. He's making sure that he's putting people on, he's putting trainees on and he's helping his employees realise their dream of getting into their first home. And so this is an exciting thing to see that the policies that we've put in place to support Australians, to back Australians in through the course of this pandemic, not thinking Government’s the answer. The Government isn’t the answer, Allan is the answer. Allan and his employees here at Taipans, they're the answer because they're the ones who are investing in their future and the HomeBuilder programme backs them in just like the instant expensing programme backs them in. Just like the tax cuts that are already in this financial year. This financial year alone, we've increased the threshold up to $45,000 on that level, those lower tax thresholds. And we've also increased them up to $120,000. So this is already happening in this country. We’re already putting more money back into people's pockets, letting them keep more of what they earn and look what they're doing. They’re building homes, they’re creating businesses. They're employing people. They're getting trained. That's how the recovery plan works, backing in Australians. Now, there's alternatives to this. You'll hear this from the Labor Party. They want to spend more to build less homes. Spending more to build less. We saw them do that before because they thought the Government was the sole answer to this challenge. And as a result, they're going to spend $10 billion, four times as much to build two thirds less homes. Now, that just doesn't add up. The programmes that we've put in place and then supported by things like the National Housing Finance Investment Corporation, which has provided low, low interest loans to community housing organisations that are also getting on with it. Some 2,700 specifically financed through that programme for affordable housing and many thousands more refinanced. And through the housing infrastructure programme, some 4,400 additional dwellings also being supported in their development. So we enable Australians to get into their first home and build their home and support the economy and support jobs in the economy, which this business is benefiting from greatly. But on top of that, we're doing the right thing by working with community housing organisations, enabling them with their dreams to see more people in affordable homes. So that's our plan. Our plan is to enable Australians to keep more of what they earn. The worst thing you can do in the middle, particularly of an economic recovery, is to increase people's taxes or tell them you're going to increase their taxes in the future. That just kills dreams. That just kills the idea of incentive and working hard. And to be one of those people on that picture board over there getting into their first home. You don't get there by putting their taxes up. What you do is you enable them to keep more of what they earn. And keeping taxes low is a key part of our economic recovery plan that we've released in this year's Budget. Happy to take questions.

JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, the Virgin CEO Jayne Hrdlicka suggesting that the borders should open earlier and you should accept the fact that people get sick but do not go to hospital and some people will die?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I understand that everyone is keen to get back to a time that we once knew. The reality is we're living this year in a pandemic that's worse than last year. I understand that we want to be able to prepare to get us in a place that when it's safe to do so, that we can make changes in there. But right now, it's not safe to do so. And we are working on plans, as I've said many times, working on plans to enable vaccinated Australians firstly to be able to travel around Australia and to be able to move around when states, from time to time, might have to put restrictions in place, but also potentially to travel overseas and have different quarantine arrangements on their return with the sign-off from state Chief Health Officers, and of course look at travel bubbles with other countries like Singapore, but we're some way off from that. And how we can bring others into the country that we need to support our economy. Now, we're putting all the plans in place to achieve that, but only when it is safe to do so. And it's not safe to do it now. During the course of this pandemic, Australia has avoided 30,000 lives lost when you compare it to the average fatality rate of like-countries in the OECD. 30,000 lives could have otherwise been lost had we not had the success we've had as a country working together. And so, I think that has to be understood. And I regret that those comments were somewhat insensitive. Somewhat insensitive and I would encourage people - you know, 910 Australians have lost their lives. Every single one of those lives was a terrible tragedy, and it doesn't matter how old they were. Some were younger, some were older. They were someone's mum, someone's dad, someone's aunty, someone’s cousin, brother, sister, friend. 910 - all felt extremely consciously by those loved ones around them. And so, no, I find it very difficult to have any truck with what was said there.

JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, what is the definition then of “safe”, what do you mean when you say only when it is safe to do so?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, that has always been assessed by the evidence that we have at the time, and it's done by the medical professionals advising both myself as Prime Minister, the Health Minister, the Premiers and Chief Ministers and their Health Ministers. The pandemic is raging. The pandemic is morphing. It's changing every day. When you see the pandemic this year raging through developing countries, then the great risk as we're already seeing is new strains, new variants coming through. That not all the vaccines will be equipped currently to deal with. And so, it's important that we make decisions based on the best medical advice at the time and on the medical advice we have right now, it is not safe to take those paths, but we will know when it is, based on clinical, proven evidence. I'm not going to take risks with Australians' lives. I'm not going to do that and I'm going to ensure that we maintain a regime that has so far avoided the loss of 30,000 lives in this country and has seen more Australians come back into work after the pandemic than were there before.

JOURNALIST: What about vaccination passports? Is that an idea that appeals to you?

PRIME MINISTER: We've seen that operate in other countries and I think they're the types of things that can be used particularly to enable Australians who are vaccinated to move around Australia. That's one. But also, when people are potentially in a position where they might be able to travel. So I do think those things, I've seen that and spoken to many leaders around the world who have been using similar types of mechanisms. But at this stage, we'd have to line those up. I think that the next most achievable step, because Australia, with our international borders up, means that vaccinated Australians would be in a much lower risk position when restrictions were to kick-in on Australians going on public transport or going to theatres or going to the footy, or whatever they might do, family get-togethers. They're all vaccinated and then obviously the risks are a lot less and that's why I'd continue to encourage people to move on making their booking to get those vaccinations.

JOURNALIST: So a couple of major sporting events coming up, Prime Minister, where the players are vaccinated largely. The Australian Grand Prix and the Australian Tennis Open. They seem to be saying that particularly the tennis players, they're operating in an international bubble every day. Could they come to Australia and avoid the 2-week quarantine? Could the GP Drivers Cup avoid the [inaudible]?

PRIME MINISTER: I think it's a bit premature to be making those decisions at this point. What I would note, though, is it's very different coming to Australia, because in most of the countries, they're moving around in, COVID is riddled through those countries. Australia is not riddled with COVID. Most of the rest of the developed world is and increasingly in the developing world. And so, the risk profile there is very different. But those events are still some time away. And I thought that the decision they made on the Formula One previously was a wise one - largely because they were used to operating in countries where COVID was already in. And Australia, we don't have it to the same extent as other countries. And so, that is something that we certainly want to protect. But I think we'll be practical about those things and I think technology and systems are improving each day.

JOURNALIST: PM, just back to housing. Labor’s policy they announced last week targets areas of specific needs, middle aged women who struggle to find affordable housing service providers, who can't live in the inner suburbs in which they service. What is your response to that? Do you have anything in your arsenal to combat that?

PRIME MINISTER: Over $1 billion provided every year to the states and territories to deliver on those tasks. One of the things that I found frustrating working in housing policy over a long time is that every time the Commonwealth invests more in state government responsibilities in public housing, the state governments do less. I mean here, Terry was telling me that they've just sold 4,000 public housing units here in Queensland. So the great risk is, this is where sometimes the states would see Anthony Albanese coming. Every extra dollar he'd spend is a dollar less they'd spend. So nobody goes any further ahead. That's why as Treasurer, I initiated the National Housing and Finance Investment Corporation to work directly with community housing organisations to ensure that we were leveraging what they were seeking to achieve. There are some amazing organisations to do that around the country and we've also already facilitated thousands of new dwellings being built, state-of-the-art, to support exactly the groups that you're talking about. And we've made permanent, that also as Treasurer and Social Services Minister, where we made permanent our National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness. Supporting not-for-profit organisations around the country, supporting people in need. So we invest a great deal when it comes to supporting affordable and social housing initiatives. But, when it comes to stimulating the economy, getting people into their first home, it is at its best level in 11 years, and we've ensured that people have been able to save better for their deposit with the First Home Loan Deposit Scheme. Save better under the first home supersaver scheme. And then be backed into building their own house with those grants. But we put the 25 down and they put the 350 down or the 300 down. Labor's plan is just to spend the lot themselves and put it on the taxpayer. And state governments have responsibilities here and we support them to do that through the National Housing Finance Investment Corporation, and that was an initiative that I pulled together with the state and territory Treasurers to enable that. It was a great piece of cooperation and partnership and I think it's making a really big difference.

JOURNALIST: PM, is it as David Littleproud said this morning, good enough that just 999 people living in disability accommodation have been vaccinated?

PRIME MINISTER: No, we've got to step up the performance there, there's no doubt about that. We’re working with our health officials to achieve that. I'm very pleased that on aged care facilities, we are about just over 85%, particularly by the end of today when we get the numbers, we'll be over 85% of first doses in aged care facilities, which is on track. I think that's very important. And we welcome that. We are really starting to see the daily on a weekday, the doses that are being delivered, but principally the Commonwealth Government through the GPs and through the in-reach services, into whether it's aged care or other facilities. That's really starting to pick up pace and we welcome that and we welcome the support of the states and territories in doing their bit as well.

JOURNALIST: He’s also suggested that there’s been no known coronavirus cases in disability accommodation facilities. Is that correct?

PRIME MINISTER: That's my understanding, that's my understanding. Going through the COVID pandemic and particularly when we went through the second wave in Victoria, that was an area of deep concern for us. And in the area of disabilities, Australia has actually performed extremely well in preventing the virus impacting on those communities. And that's welcome. But we can't be complacent about it and that's why we do need to do more and do better when it comes to ensuring that we're getting the vaccination levels up in our disabled community. And I'll be working closely with Linda Reynolds of course and Greg Hunt to ensure that we achieve that.

JOURNALIST: They are part of phase 1A off the roll-out. When do you expect that to be completed?

PRIME MINISTER: As soon as possible. It's always been our view that we wanted to move through the priority populations. Professor Brendan Murphy has said mid-year, so we're working towards that, so as I said on the aged care population, where over 85% now and that has been the population which was most at risk. We saw that when the contact tracing failed in Victoria and we saw the second wave just wreak havoc in that state. And we saw the hundreds of lives lost there in Victoria. And they were the most elderly and the most vulnerable and that's why we've made aged care such a high priority. But, right here what we're seeing here at Taipan is a business that's benefited greatly from the HomeBuilder programme and the lift in their business, and that has enabled them to keep people in jobs and take more people on, take more trainees on. And through that same program, they're getting their own employees into their first home and there's nothing better than the smile on a small business person’s face when they employ someone, and then even more so than that, when they see them go and have been able to go and buy their first home. And the same smile that's on Allan's face is the same smile that's on my face when I see that every time. Thank you very much, everyone.

JOURNALIST: The Nine newspapers have a poll out today, that the punters don’t want an early election. Can you rule out an election this year?

PRIME MINISTER: I've said constantly, the election is due next year. Thanks very much.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43401

Doorstop - Lytton QLD

17 May 2021

Prime Minister, Member for Bonner, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction

ROSS VASTA MP, MEMBER FOR BONNER: I acknowledge the traditional custodians on the land in which we gather and pay my respects to their elders past and present and emerging. Well it’s wonderful to be here in the AMPOL refinery in Lytton, in my electorate of Bonner. And we are joined by the Prime Minister and Minister Angus Taylor and by Matt. And it's great to be here because we have an incredible announcement. And it's all about the jobs for the local economy. 500 direct jobs here and over 500 indirect jobs. It's an incredible announcement. It's about the future of our country, it's about the future of our fuel security. Without any further ado, we introduce the honourable Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia.

PRIME MINISTER: Great to be here, thanks very much Ross. I am very pleased to be joined by Angus Taylor, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction. Also Matt and the team at AMPOL, it’s great to have you here. And Daniel from the AWU, it’s great to have you here. This is a partnership for jobs. The Budget is a plan for Australia's recovery. And recovery is all about self-sufficiency. There's one thing I think that's been reinforced over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s just so important that we have self-sufficiency. Whether it's in medical supplies, vaccines, or treatments, but also when it comes to things like fuel security. This is an increasingly tough business, margins in the fuel refining business are tough. And we've seen big, large multinational companies over recent years make decisions a long way away from here because of the technology and the upgrades that they put in plants in other parts of the world has meant they’ve made decisions that have impacted us here in Australia. And here in this Budget, under Angus’s leadership, working with the sector, we have a plan to ensure that we can preserve the refineries, these Australian refineries, Australian companies to enable them to continue to operate here with a plan to keep them going out to 2030. Now, it wasn't that long ago I was standing with Angus down in Portland, ensuring that we were keeping that aluminium smelter going. Well, here we are today on a very sunny day in Brisbane, ensuring that we're keeping our fuel refineries operational here and down in Geelong. Fuel security is important not just to ensure the more than 1,200 jobs that are directly employed, both here in Geelong, 550 jobs here, and the many hundreds of contractors that also support the work that takes place here. But the businesses and the others who are part of the economy that make up this part of Brisbane, also significantly supported by the operations here in Lytton. All of that is incredibly important for those jobs. But it's every job that sits in the transport sector, every job that relies on diesel, whether it's in the agricultural sector, the long-haul transport sector. All of these sectors are supported by ensuring that we have a self-sufficient refining industry here in Australia. The plan involves an up to 1.8 cent per litre support payment for refined fuel here in Australia. That’s out over the next 9 years out to 2030. Now, the way it works, I’ll let Angus Taylor explain it to you in more detail, but what it basically means is it supports the refinery and AMPOL here to be able to keep in business to ensure that they can keep the doors open and they can do this on a commercial basis. And the up to 1.8 cents per litre means that it allows the prices to drop and it ensures when there is pressure on prices going up, it takes that pressure off and that means it’s good for your fuel bill when you go to the bowser. It’s all about trying to reduce the cost of living and keep people in jobs and this plan is about doing just that. There are also important parts of this plan which relate to fuel standards in upgrading fuel quality and investing in the infrastructure. You would’ve seen we were observing the keen science that goes into ensuring the fuel standards that exist across Australia. We don’t apologise for those standards. It's important for people's health, and this package supports improving those fuel standards, while at the same time making sure that our refineries remain viable. And there's also support here that relates to ensuring that we have the minimum holding requirements of our fuel reserves in Australia. It’s also addressing national security, we need to be self-sufficient. We need to stand up for ourselves. And this policy, this program, this very significant commitment is ensuring that Australia will be self-sufficient and that's an important part of our economic recovery plan that’s recovering from the pandemic recession and the health pandemic caused by COVID and this is part of Australia’s recovery plan. I’ll pass you onto Angus Taylor.

THE HON. ANGUS TAYLOR MP, MINISTER FOR ENERGY AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION: Thank you, PM. Well it’s great to be here with you, with Ross, with Matt Halliday, with Dan Walton who we’ve worked with very closely throughout this process. This is a great day for fuel security in this country. Of course it’s fuel that keeps our economy moving and it’s fuel that keeps our country moving. And, of course, this is a commitment to our national security, our fuel security, having the fuel available even in the worst possible circumstances in a world that is far less certain than even a few short years ago. It’s a great day for the jobs here at the refinery and the refinery down in Geelong. 1,250 direct jobs and many more indirect jobs that rely on these refineries being in place, but of course, it’s the job of every fuel user. Every truckie, every tradie, every farmer, every commuter, every emergency service worker who relies on that fuel to get their job done. That's what this is all about, their jobs and their ability to do what they have to do in their jobs every day is what this is all about. And there's a couple of features of this arrangement I want to highlight. The first, is that the payments of up to 1.8 cents per litre depends on the refining margin. As the refining margin goes down, that payment goes up to 1.8 cents, but as the refining margin goes up and businesses like this are more profitable, the payment goes to zero. The whole point here is only to provide support when it is needed for the fuel security of this country. Another key feature is the commitment from the refineries to upgrades of their refining to reduce the sulphur in our fuels. This is absolutely critical to getting moving towards much cleaner fuel to allowing vehicles into this country to use that cleaner fuel and reducing pollution from cars. This an important commitment and it is a part of the overall package. Now, it’s also part of a broader fuel security package. Not only are we providing support to the refineries, we’re putting in place a minimum stockholding obligation, which is particularly focused on increasing the level of stocks for diesel. A 40 per cent increase in the diesel held in stocks in this country and alongside of that, a commitment to increasing the onshore storage facilities here in this country. We haven't had enough onshore storage, we are committing $200 million alongside the private sector to get more storage into place. The combination of those initiatives ensure that we have the fuel we need at all times, including those worst possible circumstances to keep our economy moving. Thank you very much.

MATT HALLIDAY, CEO AND MANAGING DIRECTOR OF AMPOL: Thank you very much. It's great to be here today. This is a very important day for Lytton, for AMPOL and I think for the broader Australian refining and manufacturing sector. We're really proud today to be partnering with the country and the government on the dual objectives of fuel security and energy transition. I think it's a very proud day for our employees, I think it's a very proud day for the broader community. As has been noted, this package enables the protection of 550 jobs here at Lytton and hundreds more indirect jobs. It enables AMPOL in parallel with continuing ongoing refining operations to be developing future uses for the site and protecting critical manufacturing jobs that will play an essential role in the longer term energy transition. AMPOL is a proud, independent Australian company. We play an important role in the local economy and we play a really important role in delivering national prosperity. Accordingly, our discussions with the Government right throughout the last 12 months have been very open and productive and have led us to where we are today, which I think is a fantastic outcome for our sector, for the country and for our company. I'd like to to extend my thanks to the Government, especially to Minister Taylor for the role he has played very openly and constructively in allowing us to reach this outcome and we look forward to continuing to work with the Government in continuing to deliver safe, reliable and efficient operations here at Lytton while we continue to build for the future.

DANIEL WALTON, SECRETARY OF THE AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION (AWU): Well, thanks very much. It would probably be very remiss of me not to mention that we rarely share the stage with the Prime Minister and Minister Taylor here today, but we’ve done so for our members. Our 1,250-plus members right around the country are breathing a sigh of relief today because they know that their jobs are secure and that they've got a long term future in to the years ahead. 1,250 employees are very important, but it's also the indirect jobs between [inaudible] companies that rely so heavily on the refineries remaining open to continue to make the great products they do. It's also important to remember that as a nation, we can't ever lose sight of our sovereign capability, and if we rely entirely upon our borders and our shipping lanes remaining open to provide the crucial fuels [inaudible] we must keep and remember the agriculture industry, the mining industry, the Defence Force, our aviation industry who so desperately rely on good quality fuel, which this site and the site down in Geelong produce. We welcome the announcement today. It's a great announcement by the Government. We look forward to continued work to ensure the viability of this facility, the viability of the facility down in Geelong and we certainly welcome the announcement today.

PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much Dan. Over the course of the pandemic, everyone who has wanted to support jobs has worked together and I think that’s been tremendous so I appreciate that very much Dan, you being here today and just like when I joined your Union colleagues down there in Portland not that long ago as well. We’re all here for jobs, which is very important and making things, making petroleum here. Yesterday, making steel fabrication in Gladstone and here today making petroleum. We have to keep making things here in Australia. Ok, happy to take some questions. If I could just keep it to this announcement first and then we’ll go to other issues and we can excuse our friends.

JOURNALIST: PM, fuel security is an element of this announcement, [inaudible], are we still exposed as well [inaudible]?

THE HON. ANGUS TAYLOR MP, MINISTER FOR ENERGY AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION: Having two refineries puts us in a position where we can provide the fuel we need from the crude oil we produce for those essential services we need to keep the economy going. That's why having two refineries is so important. Because we want to keep that production of crude oil you referred to, Phil, that has got to continue, obviously, and Bass Strait is important to that, Cooper Basin as well, and so too potentially is the Beetaloo Basin. That fuel supply will be something we will continue to work on. It's crucial to these refineries and it supports our fuel security.

PRIME MINISTER: The point I’d make Phil is, as you know the G7+ is coming up and many of these other forums. And one of the most important issues we've been discussing amongst like-minded liberal democracies, market-based economies, is the security of supply chains amongst those type of countries. It was part of the discussion I had with Boris Johnson just last week and I'm sure there will be many more of those discussions in the months ahead over the course of the many international meetings. You have to have self-sufficiency here and you've got to have partners you can rely on as well and we're working both sides of that.

JOURNALIST: PM, just in terms of different types of fuel and perhaps Minister Taylor as well, what about aviation fuel in Australia? How exposed are we, how much supply would we have to even keep our jet fighters in the sky?

THE HON. ANGUS TAYLOR MP, MINISTER FOR ENERGY AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION: I mean, the good news is, Chris, at the moment, we've got more than enough aviation fuel. With what has happened with the pandemic, there's been an enormous amount of aviation fuel and the challenge has been to produce a little less, not more. But over the long term, that's also part of the minimum stock holding obligation. You’ve got to have enough aviation fuel. Defence has its own requirements and it deals with that separately. But we do need to have enough aviation fuel and the minimum stock holding obligation applies to that and these refineries produce that.

PRIME MINISTER: The defence reserve capability is also addressed elsewhere in the Budget as part of the defence IIP.

JOURNALIST: This minimum security payment [inaudible] to keep refineries going …

PRIME MINISTER: Correct.

JOURNALIST: And this payment goes up to, I believe, 2030. What happens after that? How do you know [inaudible]

PRIME MINISTER: Well look, we can't guarantee every uncertainty that's out there. What we're doing here is working together to provide that certainty over the next 9 years. And I think what we've shown as a government, is our preparedness to work with everybody to provide further security and certainty in the future. Whether it's an aluminium smelter in Portland or indeed up in Tomago, up in the Hunter and the work that was done there around energy prices which is also supporting them to remain in the market. Or indeed here, these are practical challenges and we're constantly coming up with the practical answers to those. I think today is another good demonstration of that. No doubt there will be challenges in the future and I can assure you we'll address those with the same application and I believe the same success at that time and in the lead-up to that time. Very good.

JOURNALIST: So is it correct that the Company is only committing to 2027 [inaudible]?

MATT HALLIDAY, CEO AND MANAGING DIRECTOR OF AMPOL: So the company under the packages are continuing to operate until mid-2027. And the package is funded for obviously nine years. That's a long way into the future and it will enable us to continue investing with confidence and supporting the jobs here at Lytton over that period.

JOURNALIST: Have you made a decision beyond 2027?

MATT HALLIDAY, CEO AND MANAGING DIRECTOR OF AMPOL: In the longer term we'll make those future decisions.

PRIME MINISTER: Okay. If there's no more questions on that matter, I might thank very much all of our friends from AMPOL and the AWU, thank you for being with us.

JOURNALIST: A couple of things on international borders. What's the benchmark for

the Government to start considering opening the borders? Is it a level of vaccination of the population and effectively if the States believe they’ve reached a level of their vaccination programs where they believe it’s safe for international travellers to come into their borders, could the States go it alone separately and open up designed tourism areas, or their own States, or will it be a blanket decision?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, first of all, I welcome the fact that I think Australians by and large share the view that Australia has done incredibly well throughout the course of the pandemic and we have been able to not only save lives but save livelihoods as well. And Australians want to see that continue. And I think they understand the importance of a cautious approach when it comes to maintaining our border arrangements. Now those border arrangements, it's not one day the borders are open, one day the borders are closed. That's not how it works. There's a sliding sort of scale here. And we're working on the next steps. Now, it's not safe to take those next steps right now. It's not. But we'll keep working on what those next steps are. I have talked about those next steps. Those next steps are for Australians to be in a position when they're fully vaccinated to be able to not be subject to any domestic restrictions that are put in place by state and territory governments. That they might be able to travel with different types of quarantine arrangements on their return. And also the step of, in a managed and safe way, starting to bring back those who we need to come into the country, whether it's for international students or indeed for specialist occupations. And I know we have a lot of challenges in the agricultural sector and the hospitality sector, in regional areas, and facilitating those types of arrangements. So I’d say more, Mark, that there are some practical challenges that we are working on now and finding solutions to, and you'll move incrementally. Not all in one day. But right now it is not safe to be flicking the switch on those. I'm looking forward to further discussions with the Singapore Government about them being the next potential country. Now I still think that is some way off. Particularly as we've seen, and it's a telling reminder, in Singapore, we are seeing lockdowns come back in, and that has been one of the more successful countries, like Australia. In Taiwan, I’d argue, probably the most successful country in the world, is now going through a challenging period and seeing restrictions come back in. That's why in the Budget we talk about securing Australia's recovery, because we understand you cannot take it for granted. And so we won't be taking decisions that put Australians' lives and livelihoods at risk. We will be doing it cautiously, we will be working closely with states and territories on innovative ways to keep the borders safe, but at the same time address some of these other needs that are there, and to specifically answer your question in relation to states, just like we've had proposals come forward from South Australia when it comes to international student pilots, and we've already been doing those, or Northern Territory, in terms of bringing in horticultural workers and things like that, and we're already working on them with a proposal they have around Bladin, which has been in the works for some time. These are practical initiatives that we lean into with them. But the key thing is, is the overall border arrangements, they remain in place, until it's safe to do anything different. And then we work within that to do practical things that I think support the economy but keep Australians safe.

JOURNALIST: PM, do the cricketers get a rails run home?

PRIME MINISTER: No.

JOURNALIST: So how would you describe it?

PRIME MINISTER: No. They had to do what everybody else did. And they did not take one place in quarantine that anyone else might have otherwise had. That's something we insisted on with the New South Wales State Government when they were going to allow that flight back in. And we said well, it has to be over and above the caps. But that said, I'm very appreciative of the way the New South Wales Government has kept their caps high. If it wasn't for New South Wales working with the Commonwealth, on keeping those caps high, there would be thousands upon thousands, if not tens of thousands of Australians who wouldn't have been able to get home, were it not for the working relationship between the New South Wales Government and the Federal Government.

JOURNALIST: [Inaudible question]

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, working with the Northern Territory Government. When I was in Darwin recently, it's a proposal that Chief Minister Gunner and I have discussed. It's been used for defence purposes, and ag workers as well in the past, as I understand it. But mainly for defence purposes, with the US Marines, I understand. So it hasn't been going unutilised. But when those contracts finish, then there is the opportunity to do further work there, particularly dealing with workforce requirements, in the Territory, and that is a matter that we're already working with the Northern Territory Government on, and the farmers up there, who put that proposal. We're very open to these well thought through, detailed, comprehensive proposals where costings are provided, and who's running the health side of things and the operations and where’s the workforce coming from, and how is the capital being addressed. And we've seen a number of those. As you know, we are working through the Victorian proposal, which I think meets vastly, I think, that level of detail that we need. You can't just sort of throw a photo on the ground at a map and say that's a proposal. That's not something we can respond to. So it's important that we do these things safely and we do them constructively.

JOURNALIST: How far away is a decision on the Victorian proposal?

PRIME MINISTER: We’ve still got a little bit of time. The information we only received not that long ago, actually. So it's been worked through by my Department, the Department of Home Affairs as well. The precise points of the proposal, there's discussions going back and forth with the Victorian Government. I have got to say it's a very constructive, positive process. There are other alternatives in Victoria as well that we know that are available there. And I think they present some good opportunities as well.

JOURNALIST: But weeks, not months?

PRIME MINISTER: It's a bit hard for me to say at this point, Mark. Once we have gone through that process in the next couple of weeks, I think we'll be in a better position to give an answer to that question.

JOURNALIST: PM, you didn’t mention the Toowoomba quarantine facility. Is it fair to say once and for all that proposition is just not going to happen?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the problem with it is, we’ve never actually had a proposal. And the details, when you compare what has been put forward by the Victorian Government is chalk and cheese. Victoria's put a very comprehensive proposal to us. Something we can actually work with. And we are. One of the biggest difficulties with that proposal is it's not near a major capital city where there's a major hospital. That's the big problem with it, amongst many others. The idea that you can just put it in the desert somewhere, and I know that Toowoomba is not the desert, but the point being they need to be close to major capital city airports. Because the planes aren’t going somewhere else, they're coming into Brisbane. That's a very long trek to Toowoomba. We have facilities up in the Northern Territory to bring our charters into and that's what we're actually doing. We invested half a billion dollars in this Budget to upgrade the facilities at Howard Springs from 850 to 2,000. So we saw that as a much better way of increasing that capacity for those charter services. So where there's an opportunity to supplement what is happening in hotel quarantine, well, that's what the Victorian proposal is about. It's not replacing what is happening with hotel quarantine in Victoria. We still couldn't get straight answers on whether this proposal in Toowoomba was about replacing hotel quarantine or supplementing hotel quarantine. So there was just not enough detail, not enough answers to the questions that we need to properly assess this. I think it's reasonable to say that it hasn't been stacking up very well, particularly when you compare it to a very comprehensive and well thought through proposal from the Victorian Government.

JOURNALIST: [Inaudible]

PRIME MINISTER: I can't hear you, sorry.

JOURNALIST: What if the Queensland Government was to fund it?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it's for them to put proposals and it's for them to do the homework. It's for them to get the detail right and it's for them to put forward a comprehensive submission like the Victorians have. And if they were to do that, they could expect the same sort of hearing that the Victorian Government is getting. All good. OK. It's great to be here.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43400

Interview with Hammo, 4CC Gladstone

17 May 2021

HAMMO: Hello, Prime Minister.

PRIME MINISTER: G’day Hammo. Good to be with you, it was great to be in Gladstone yesterday.

HAMMO: Yes. Just before we talk about that, there's one thing I've got to have a crack at you about. You're the only Prime Minister that's ever been younger than me. It's finally happened.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'm catching up. I had a birthday last week, so I …

HAMMO: I know you did, turned 53, so you've got me by a couple of years. Yesterday, your visit around Gladstone. What was it for?

PRIME MINISTER: We went and saw Xtreme Engineering and we saw Oceans Tyres and we popped down to Auckland House. The reason for all that was that, in the Budget, what’s called instant expensing, the instant asset write off. This is really helping these businesses. I mean, Xtreme Engineering, they’ve just invested $1.8 million in this huge crane, which they've got to do the new BOM towers, Bureau of Meteorology towers. Now, that means more work, they’ve got 8 apprentices down there, they’ve got trainees on. And this is really serious work. It's all been fabricated up there in Gladstone, it's all Australian steel, all the work is being done here in Australia. It's one of the things that I think has come out of COVID-19, firms like Xtreme Engineering are getting a better go. And so that's a huge contract for them. So they're investing. They could write all that off on their tax. Then I went down to Ocean Tyres and people in Gladstone know that and looking after the trucking industry all across central Queensland, they're doing really well too. They're investing in their equipment. And, of course, Auckland House, which is a great new establishment, the microbrewery down there. They've got the additional support coming through, the tax incentives. So the point about all this is the measures that we're putting in the Budget are supporting local, small and medium sized businesses right across central Queensland to go and get the job done. And then the work we're doing on biosecurity and $370 million there, which obviously supports the agricultural producers. I was at Beef Week just the other week before Parliament came back. That was so well received by the livestock industry, because we all know what happens if there was any biosecurity break in our livestock industry. It would be devastating. So borders aren’t just about COVID, it's not about national security, it's also about our livestock industry and protecting its future. So that's exciting to be supporting local producers in that way. So businesses helping themselves are getting backed in by my government.

HAMMO: Which is good and you're damned if you do, damned if you don't with budgets. Last week, though, a little bit of flak from our Mayor Matt Burnett and our state member for Gladstone, Minister Glenn Butcher. The Federal Government's forgotten about health in Gladstone, roads, infrastructure and they want answers. What do you have to say about that, Prime Minister?

PRIME MINISTER: This is all politics.

HAMMO: Yep

PRIME MINISTER: Of course, the local mayor up there, he’s the Labor candidate at the next election. Of course he’s going to say that. I mean, everything he says from here on in, I think people have got to sort of just know where he's coming from. He's representing Anthony Albanese up there in Gladstone. He's Anthony Albanese’s candidate. Truth is, up in Queensland, they’re getting a higher share of infrastructure funding than the size of their population. And in health, for example, out at Biloela Hospital, funding has gone up 142 per cent since we came to government. There's record funding for health. There is $10 billion that's going into the Bruce Highway, major projects more broadly across the region, whether it's at Rookwood Weir or the various upgrades going into Rockhampton, the ring road there and those projects, all of that is supporting central Queensland. Of course, everyone up there knows just how much we support the resources industry as a government. No one has to wonder about the Coalition when it comes to our support for the resources industry. And we've been backing that in for many, many years to secure the success of the region. And I'm very grateful to the fantastic work done by our resources sector, quite a few of the workers that I met at Auckland House last night and we were having a good chat about that. Because the shutdown is on at the moment and a lot of people were in town. That was one of the reasons why I backed Ken O’Dowd in when Annastacia Palaszczuk wanted to put the quarantine facility up there in Gladstone. Now, the Mayor was backwards and forwards on this. She told me he was 100 per cent for it when I met with her the next day after being up there in January. But one of the reasons we thought it was a really bad idea, because you had the big shutdown coming, you had people coming in who needed the accommodation. And I thought Ken was just spot on in saying that wasn't a good idea. I opposed it. And as a result, it hasn't happened.

HAMMO: And Prime Minister, look, do you know who the candidate is going to be for the LNP? Because we know Kenny is stepping down.

PRIME MINISTER: We're going through those selection processes now. And nominations closed just the other day. And we've got a good field of candidates from across the electorate. So there's lots of experience, small business experience in particular, which is great to see. Ken, as the LNP candidate there and we'll be working very hard right across the Flynn electorate. And just like Michelle Landry does down there in Capricornia. I mean, she's amazing. She's doing a terrific job. I was with Michelle in Rocky as I said for Beef Week and the Budget is delivering there for her as well.

HAMMO: Just going back, though, when will we know who will be running for the federal seat of Flynn?

PRIME MINISTER: Probably about six weeks away or thereabouts. I mean, the LNP sets those timetables, not me, but I'm told it's about that timeframe, they’re just settling the dates now.

HAMMO: Prime Minister, thank you very much for joining us this morning. It's much appreciated. How’s the Sharks going in the NRL? Just let me have a look, because I know you're an avid Cronulla supporter.

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah.

HAMMO: Oh, 14th out of 16, gee at least they're not coming last.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I hope they don’t keep falling down the table, but, you know, good seasons, bad seasons, you always back your team. And I thought they showed a lot of heart against the Bunnies at Magic Round on the weekend. They came back hard in that second half and they made a real game of it. In fact, it was probably the best game of the Magic Round, actually, but it's always good to go to the footy.

HAMMO: Prime Minister, thank you very much for joining us again.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks so much.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43399

Locking in Australia's Fuel Security

17 May 2021

Prime Minister, Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction

The Morrison Government is taking strong action to further boost Australia’s long-term fuel security by locking in the future of our refining sector.

The Government’s fuel security package will help secure Australia’s recovery from the COVID crisis and it will help secure our sovereign fuel stocks, locking in jobs and protecting families and businesses from higher fuel prices.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the Government was delivering on its commitment to maintain a self-sufficient refining capability in Australia by supporting the operation of the Ampol refinery in Lytton (Queensland) and the Viva Energy refinery in Geelong (Victoria). The package will protect the jobs of 1,250 direct employees across the two refineries and create another 1,750 construction jobs.

The Prime Minister Scott Morrison said locking in Australia’s fuel security would deliver benefits for all Australians.

“This is a key plank of our plan to secure Australia’s recovery from the pandemic, and to prepare against any future crises,” the Prime Minister said.

“Shoring up our fuel security means protecting 1,250 jobs, giving certainty to key industries, and bolstering our national security.

“Earlier investment in Australia’s ability to produce better quality fuels, including ultra-low sulfur levels, will also improve air quality and deliver an estimated $1 billion in lower health costs.

“Major industries like agriculture, transport and mining, as well as mum and dad motorists, will have more certainty and can look forward to vehicle maintenance savings and greater choice of new vehicle models.

“This next stage in our plan for Australia’s recovery will create jobs and make our country more self-sufficient and secure.”

Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor said Australia's economy is reliant on fuel and this significant package will not only lock-in our refineries, but the jobs of thousands of Australians.

“Fuel is what keeps us and the economy moving. That is why we are backing our refineries,” Minister Taylor said.

“Supporting our refineries will ensure we have the sovereign capability needed to prepare for any event, protect families and businesses from higher prices at the bowser, and keep Australia moving as we secure our recovery from COVID-19.”

The 2021-22 Budget initiatives include:

• A variable Fuel Security Service Payment (FSSP) to the refineries, funded by the Government, which recognises the fuel security benefits refineries provide to all Australians;

• Up to $302 million in support for major refinery infrastructure upgrades to help refiners bring forward the production of better-quality fuels from 2027 to 2024; and

• $50.7 million for the implementation and monitoring of the FSSP and the minimum stockholding obligation (MSO), ensuring industry complies with the new fuel security framework.

The variable FSSP has been costed up to AUD$2.047 billion to 2030 in a worst-case scenario.

This figure assumes that both refineries are paid at the highest rate over the entire nine years in COVID-19-like economic conditions, which is unlikely as the economy recovers.

Actual payments are expected to be less than this, as payments are linked to refining margins at the time and to actual production of key transport fuels.

Payments will be made between the following ranges, limiting the downside risk for refineries:

• Refineries will receive 0 cent per litre (cpl) when the margin marker hits $10.20/bbl (the collar)

• Refineries will receive a maximum of 1.8 cpl when the marker drops to $7.30/bbl (the cap).

This will mean that the refineries are only supported in downtimes, and will not receive Government support when they are performing well.

Refineries will have an option to extend the support and their commitment out to mid-2030.

The Government is also ensuring better quality fuel is provided across Australia earlier.

We will work with the refineries to bring forward improvements to fuel quality from 2027 to 2024 by co-investing with domestic refiners to undertake the necessary infrastructure upgrades for low sulfur fuel production.

Accelerating the necessary major infrastructure upgrades will create up to an additional 1,750 construction jobs, bringing flow-on benefits to the Lytton and Geelong communities.

The Government will also accelerate the industry-wide review of the petrol and diesel standard to 2021, including a consideration of aromatics levels. This aims to create a Euro-6 equivalent petrol and diesel standard that are appropriate for Australia.

The Government will work with both refineries on their plans to consider future fuel technologies and other development opportunities. This will include the refineries’ roles in the roll-out of future fuels, such as electric vehicle charging and hydrogen transport infrastructure.

The Government will introduce the Fuel Security Bill to the Parliament in the coming weeks. This Bill will implement the FSSP to ensure it can begin on 1 July 2021, and set the key parameters for the Minimum Stockholding Obligation that will commence in 2022.

This package implements the Morrison Government’s commitment to the refining sector, announced as part of the 2020-21 Budget, and complements other measures including increased onshore diesel storage and taking advantage of record low prices to store oil in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43398

Australia-New Zealand Leaders' Meeting

17 May 2021

Jenny and I will visit Queenstown, New Zealand from 30–31 May, to meet with New Zealand Prime Minister Rt Hon Jacinda Arden and her partner Clarke Gayford, and to attend the annual Australia-New Zealand Leaders’ Meeting.

This will be my first overseas visit for 2021, and it is fitting that our first trip should be across the Tasman.

Australia and New Zealand are family—and we share deep historical bonds of friendship, trust and the ANZAC spirit.

Both Australia and New Zealand have been world leaders in our response to the COVID‑19 pandemic, and this visit is a great illustration of the Trans-Tasman Safe Travel Zone in action.

We have many shared challenges to discuss. We are key partners in delivering COVID‑19 vaccines to our Pacific neighbours, we share common goals and values for the Indo-Pacific region, and we are major trading partners.

We look forward to the visit.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-44060

Doorstop - Callemondah, QLD

16 May 2021

Ken O'Dowd MP, Member for Flynn: Well, good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to Gladstone, in the heart of industrial land here and Scott Harrington, the owner of this premises, welcomes the Prime Minister Scott Morrison to Gladstone. This is the second trip to Gladstone Scott’s done in the last month or so and very welcome Scott. It’s good to be here. Isn't it great to be here and see how industry really works. We’re sitting on the Gladstone Harbour which is a great asset and everything's going well in Gladstone. People are being employed, we’ve got 150 people that work on this site here, young apprentices also. So it's great that Scott has the ambition and the drive to make this happen. He's been here since 2007. So, yeah, it’s really good.

Scott Harrington, Managing Director, Xtreme Engineering: Thanks Kenny. Thanks for, thanks for [inaudible]. It’s great Prime Minister to meet you finally. And you know, some of the benefits of what we've been able to do is this beautiful big crane here, first of its kind in Australia, 120 tonnes [inaudible]. We used the instant asset write-off to help us with a project that we secured, a Commonwealth Government project that we secured, fully fabricated locally in Gladstone, steel produced from Australian steel mills. And we've been able to use our local apprentices on this job and sustain. And the kids love it and they're really enjoying it. Scott’s got to meet a couple of young fellas today, so that's good. Thank you. Welcome to Gladstone, mate.

Prime Minister: Thank you. Well, thank you, Scott, and congratulations on everything you’re achieving here at Xtreme Engineering. I’ll say $1.8 million. That's a significant investment for any business to be making in their future, and the fact that businesses are investing in their future is key to Australia's economic recovery plan. The Budget was all about securing Australia's economic recovery and that recovery comes from investing in the skills and the training. And we've met some of the apprentices, those in their second and third year, even those who are coming out of the school system right now. There’s around eight apprentices that are employed here as part of these projects. And it's great to see the investment in skills and training leading to the workforce being available, for firms like Xtreme Engineering to be able to take on these jobs. We're making things in Australia, we're making things in Gladstone, we're making things in Queensland. And continuing to support making things in Australia comes by ensuring that we're backing in our steel producers, which we've certainly done that. Backing in our aluminium producers, and we're doing that. Backing in the training that is required for the skills that are needed to make things here in this country, and we're doing that. And to see this project, this contract, which comes from the Bureau of Meteorology, from an investment that our Government made a couple of years ago in the Budget to improve our weather systems here, particularly in northern Queensland, in north Queensland, where what you’re seeing here will predominantly go. That is also helping our producers in so many other sectors of the economy because that information in the north of Australia is so critical to them. So this is all about the incentives for investment, the instant asset write-off, the instant expensing initiative, which means companies can fully write-off these types of investments so they can compete for the work and do it on a competitive basis that sees the jobs stay here, whether it's in Gladstone, Queensland or anywhere else in the country. And so it's just great to see that virtuous cycle of a Government actually stepping up to address a major environmental challenge, to see that actually delivered upon by an Australian company with Australian apprentices using Australian steel to make things that are the best in the world. That's what our economic recovery plan is all about. And that's how we secure our recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and recession. And it's great to see the evidence of that working out here on the ground. Happy to take some questions.

Journalist: Prime Minister, why is Queensland your first stop post-Budget?

Prime Minister: Oh, it's great to be back. I mean, it's hard to keep me out of Queensland. I love coming up here. It was a bit chilly down south, as you know, Mark. So it was very nice to get up in the warm skies again. Again I don't know if I'll get in Gladstone in the pool like last time I was up. But it's great to be here because here demonstrates, I think, where the Budget actually achieves the purpose of this recovery. What we're doing in the Budget, and we could be in any part of the country today to demonstrate, I think, where these instant expensing initiatives actually are supporting businesses to get work and get jobs. Here's a very practical example of it. And I think to be here with Ken in Gladstone and with Scott, even more significantly, and to see the apprenticeships working and see the manufacturing taking place, the fabrication, and where this is happening all within Australia. I think it highlights just how our plan is already working and needs to keep working, because the recovery cannot be taken for granted. The recovery can be lost. The hard won gains of Australians, particularly over these last 18 months, can be lost unless we keep doing what's working. And this is working.

Journalist: PM, yesterday the Leader of the Opposition was in central Queensland saying enough hasn't been allocated in the Budget for housing and social housing. How do you respond?

Prime Minister: Well, he can’t add up. I mean, his plan costs four times as much to deliver two thirds less housing. Our plan, the HomeBuilder plan, $2.7 billion being invested, around 100,000 homes. And then you add to that the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation's work, which we put in, that's supporting affordable housing. Now, there's already 2,700 homes that have been built out of that direct action, and another 4,400 through the National Housing Infrastructure Fund, which are initiatives of our Government. So, you know, we're getting on with that job and that's occurred just in the last three years. I mean, his policy just doesn't add up. I understand that it's well motivated. It is important to get Australians into homes. We have the highest rate of first home ownership, people getting into that market, now than we've seen in years and years and years and years. The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme, the First Home Super Saver accounts, the HomeBuilder programme, the National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation. We've been taking action on these issues for many, many years. And we're getting people into their first homes at a rate that we haven't seen in a long time.

Journalist: PM, can I ask you just on the border issue.

Prime Minister: Yeah.

Journalist: Some of your backbench are, you know, disquiet over the lack of clarity, I guess, or certainty. We’ve had expats, a lot of skilled migrants, in [inaudible] newspapers, you know, thinking of leaving or staying and so forth. How certain can you be or what, or at least generically, how certain, what is the plan on borders?

Prime Minister: It's always about the next step, and the next step is to see us enable Australians who have been vaccinated in this country - this is what we’ve been working on now for many months. I first started tasking the medical expert panel on this some months ago - the next step is being able to, for Australians who have been vaccinated, to be able to firstly travel around Australia, particularly if there are states that are putting in place restrictions, things like that, from time to time. We’ve already seen that in the United States where those who have been vaccinated aren't subject to those restrictions. Great to see that happening here in Australia. The second part would be to enable them to travel to safe countries. I think in countries where the virus is raging, that would be, I think, a difficulty because it would also hinder our task of getting people out of those red zones. But for people to be able to do that on an abridged or a different form of quarantine on their return, this is something we've been working on now for some months. And I still think there are many months ahead of us before we're able to achieve that. But that, you know, we're always working on the next step. The next step is how we can safely have international students come back. I welcome the fact that universities are stumping up to work with state governments to put those facilities in place to support their customers coming back, their students coming back. And as the Treasurer said this morning, we'll look at that very favourably, very favourably.

Journalist: One of the laboratories that has been testing Australian citizens in India has been returning false positive readings. You must be concerned about that. What’s being done about that?

Prime Minister: Well, it's a very difficult environment to operate in, where India is right now, and we'll work closely with Qantas who are, they're obviously conducting our testing regime as part of their processes, and they’ll get every support from us. But it is a very difficult environment to operate in at the moment. I'm pleased that we've been able to get 80 people home already. I hope we, and intend for us, to get even more home in the other repatriation commercially facilitated flights in the weeks ahead, more going into Howard Springs, where we're expanding capacity - half a billion in the Budget to expand the capacity of our national quarantine facility with the Northern Territory Government from 850 up to 2,000, that's happening right now. We're looking at proposals that are coming forward from Victorian Government. It's a very comprehensive proposal and we're working through that with them now. That only, I mean, that's only just come in just prior to the Budget. So we'll work with them on those issues. But making sure we have a rigorous testing regime is very important. And I've seen the suggestions from others that, who seem to think we can put people who've tested COVID positive on planes and bring them to Australia. I mean, that's, that just doesn't make any sense, and I, we all want to support people as much as we can, but by importing COVID into the country I don't think that's a very sensible or sound thing to do. This sort of testing is, is required from all places where people are coming from into Australia, whether it’s the UK or elsewhere. And of course, it's, it’s important in India, and we've seen those high testing rates, and that's frankly why we took the action we did because the risk was very, very high.

Journalist: [Inaudible] recovery, what are the major threats to the recovery [inaudible]?

Prime Minister: Well, the major threat, I think, to the recovery is that we need to ensure we keep the momentum of our domestic economy moving. We need to ensure that we're supporting Australians to be in jobs, that those jobs are being supported by the strength of our domestic economy. We’ve obviously got to make sure that our connections with overseas, when it comes to our facilitated freight transport and things like that, are done, but largely our economy right now and for the foreseeable future, over the next 12 months, certainly is going to depend very much on the economic strength of Australians, their households, their businesses, the work that they've got, whether it's infrastructure works like are being done here, which is keeping our economy moving, that that continues to go forward. And that's why people having lower taxes, that's why the infrastructure programme, that's why the incentives to ensure that businesses like Xtreme here are investing in big kit like this to ensure that they can deliver on the contracts that are out there. There's a real opportunity, actually, Scott and I were just talking about this a little while ago, because of COVID that means there are many Australian companies now getting a go that they found quite hard to get before. And this is a good example of that, the very contract we're talking about. And so, and they're able to show their wares, and I think that will lead to even better business for them in the future because people know what the capability of companies like Xtreme Engineering are. Not just to do this job, but to do many other jobs and to do it well, for Australian apprentices, Australian steel and Australian jobs. So I think the big challenge, Chris, is to ensure that we keep our domestic economy strong. And that means we need Australians to be in a strong, as strong a financial position as we can put them in. And there will come a time down the track when, you know, things will move to another form of normal in this COVID world. But until then, we've got to keep leaning in as a Government to ensure we can keep the momentum of that economy.

Journalist: PM, if all Australians are vaccinated by the end of the year, as the Budget suggests, why can't the world open up sooner?

Prime Minister: Well, even in that circumstance, you're still talking about many Australians, millions of Australians, who wouldn't have been vaccinated because, for, a) they’re children, or b) they have chosen not to be. And you're also making assumptions about what the rest of the world looks like with COVID at the end of this year, the introduction of new variants and strains. We’ve secured those 15 million additional Moderna vaccines which are booster shots. And so, look, I think we've just got to do this each and every day. I was pleased that yesterday was actually a record for a Saturday - we had over 30,000 people get vaccinated yesterday. We tripped over the three million mark on Friday, as I said we would. And we're seeing the vaccination programme just go from strength to strength, and the rollout with states and territories again amping up next week. Tomorrow, if you're over 50, you can go to your GP who are providing these vaccines and you can get vaccinated from tomorrow with your GP. So I think we'll continue to see that build. But all the way through we’ll be guided by the medical advice, we’ll be guided by the economic advice, I would also stress. Straight from the start of this pandemic I've said that that we've got to save lives and we've got to save livelihoods. And we’ve balanced those, I think, extremely well over the course of the last 18 months or so, and we'll have to keep doing that. So the job now is just to keep getting the vaccination programme rolling out. We've made particularly good progress in aged care facilities, we're through about 85 per cent of those now and on track with completing that in the timetable, and that's our most vulnerable community. But we still need more people aged over 70 to go and get those vaccines. That's a very high priority for us, because if there were to be an outbreak in Australia, they are the Australians most at risk and that's where our focus is most at the moment.

Journalist: PM, there’s word that our cricketers might be coming back from India in the next few days. Have they asked for any special dispensation and have they been given any?

Prime Minister: They haven’t been given any, I can tell you that, and they'll come in additional to the cap in New South Wales. We’ve been working with the New South Wales Government on that. New South Wales Government is happy for them to come in over the cap. That's something we insisted upon and they were happy to agree with that. But they'll come back under their own steam, on their own ticket, and and they will, they won't be taking the spot in quarantine of any other Australian who is returning home under the New South Wales caps. As you know in New South Wales, they’ve done all the heavy lifting, frankly, on people coming back from around the world. They’re the ones who kept their caps very high. And so we appreciate the fact that the New South Wales Government and Gladys Berejiklian in particular has been so strong in supporting those higher caps, but in this case, ensuring that when the cricketers come back they don’t take the spot of anybody else.

Journalist: What are you doing to ensure COVID testing systems are accurate and Australians aren't being unfairly blocked from coming home?

Prime Minister: Well, I don't think they are being unfairly blocked. I mean, as I said in my excerpt earlier, we’ll work with Qantas, who run that testing programme for people getting on planes. One of the, we were having issues earlier with the testing regime, and that was one of the reasons why we, we actually put the pause in place to ensure we could firm that up, and it has. And I think in these areas, you've got to be cautious. And, and I'm pleased we’ve got 80 people home. I'm looking forward to more coming home. I’m appreciative that In New South Wales, in Queensland and Victoria, they'll also be taking repatriated commercially facilitated flights. That's tremendous. But the testing’s got to be up to standard. In this case what we've got is that, we've got the, the other side of the coin, in a number of cases, where people who had tested negative, sorry tested positive, who may not have been positive, but when it comes to protecting Australians’ health and safety here, then we're going to be cautious. I know what side of the line we need to be cautious on. Okay, thanks very much everybody.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43396

Interview with Gareth Parker, 6PR

13 May 2021

GARETH PARKER: The Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison, a good early morning to you.

PRIME MINISTER: G’day Gareth.

PARKER: And happy birthday. 

PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you very much. Thank you. 

PARKER: I don't suppose Jenny and the kids have had a chance to give you a present yet, have they?

PRIME MINISTER: No, no. I won’t see them till late tomorrow night. But that's pretty normal for this time of year for me. It's been ever thus. Another day at the office, mate. 

PARKER: I presume that you're hoping the Australian people will give you the birthday present of increased approval ratings as a result of this Budget?

PRIME MINISTER: Oh, well, those, those things are always up to them. You just do this job to the best of your ability every single day, and that's what the Budget was all about. It's about securing Australia's economic recovery. And, you know, we've come so far over these, over these past few years, particularly during the pandemic, and we've got to keep going. All of it can be so quickly lost if we're not continually diligent about this, and that's exactly what the Budget is doing. It's securing that recovery, keeping us going on the right track. We're living in this country like no other country in the world, almost, at the moment, and we want to make sure we maintain that for our jobs and for our health.

PARKER: The old rules of budgetary restraint don't seem to apply anymore. Has that freed you to sort of take on and tackle more of these social areas that perhaps a Liberal Government ordinarily wouldn't?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we've always had a very strong record of tackling the sort of issues that we've addressed in this Budget. I mean, take mental health, for example. It was the Coalition Government that put headspace into position, and that's been an enormous success. And what we've done in this Budget on mental health is taking up that success with the new Head to Health programme, which is, basically a headspace for, for adults over 24 and also for young kids. A network of some 40 centres that we begin with, and then also 15 centres for those for children, supporting their mental health. But you're right, Gareth. I mean, we're in a pandemic, and in a pandemic ideology means nothing. You’ve just got to do what works. You’ve got to focus on the problem. You’ve got to save lives. You've got to save livelihoods. And given that Australia today has more people in work - 13.1 million Australians compared to the 13 million that were in work before the pandemic hit - very few countries in the world can say that. In fact, very, very few, if any, advanced economy countries can say that. And if we'd had the same average fatality rate of COVID as there is across the OECD - so they’re the same countries as Australia, sophisticated health systems, developed economies - 30,000 more people would have died in Australia. So when you look at those two metrics, it says that Australians have done incredibly well. And of course, we’ve played an important part in that. More than $300 billion now invested in securing this recovery directly through health and economic measures to get Australia through.

PARKER: There have been some Australians, of course, who have paid a heavy price for that success, and primarily they are Australians who have either business interests, or most acutely families who, who live overseas - that’s either Australians with adult children or perhaps elderly relatives overseas or just people who want to see their parents or their grandparents. The Budget assumes that the international borders will open in the middle of next year, and I noted with interest your commentary around that issue yesterday, saying that it's really a Budget assumption, not evidence of a plan. But what those hundreds of thousands, in fact, millions of Australians increasingly want to hear from you is just some pathway forward about when they'll be able to see their loved ones again. Why can't you give them some confidence about that?

PRIME MINISTER: I understand that concern, and as you know, in Western Australia, that hasn't just been about being able to connect with families overseas. It's been connecting with families within Australia.

PARKER: Indeed.

PRIME MINISTER: And, and so that obviously caused great anxiety, and this is what happens in pandemics. It does put constraints on us, and that does cause that, that suffering and that, and that hardship for Australians. We understand that. Suffering is far worse if you've got 300 people dying every day, as where they’re still seeing in the United States, and the absolute horror that we're seeing unfold in the developing world. The pandemic is worse today than it was a year ago. Now, what we've said about borders is, and Greg Hunt has made the same point, the borders don't just work - one day they're open and one day they're closed. That's not how it's going to work. We're working on ways at the moment where, if it's safe to do so and you get the health system right and the protections right, then Australians we would like to see, if they're vaccinated, to be able to make those trips and then return safely, and then quarantine under a different type of arrangement. Now, we're not there yet. The health advice doesn't support that. There is not one state or territory government in the country at the moment that is ready to do that. Similarly, other states - we've been working with South Australia, New South Wales, the Northern Territory - on programmes that can see elements of our international student industry return, but we're still some way away from that. So I can't provide certainty that doesn't exist anywhere in the world, Gareth. I mean, I know we'd like to know what this is, I know we’d like it. But I cannot risk the health and jobs of Australians. We're working to be able to establish such an opportunity.

PARKER: Just so I understand it, though, is it your position, though, Prime Minister, that it relies on the states to come to the table to allow people, for example, to quarantine in their homes? That once the states agree to do that, then you would be able to move on this? I'm just wondering what the hurdle is.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, that is exactly what we're working through at the National Cabinet now. That was the tasking I gave our medical advisers over at, well over about six weeks ago now, probably longer than that, where we're looking to provide. Now, some states are moving on those things. And but, you know, it's got to be safe, Gareth. I mean, we cannot take what we've achieved for granted. It can be so easily lost. And so, of course we're being cautious. Cautiousness has saved Australian lives. Cautiousness has kept Australians in jobs in a way that no other country, virtually in the world, has. So believe me, I understand the anxiety that this causes, but I also appreciate that making the wrong decisions on these things could cause absolute devastation, as we've seen in other countries. So they’re hard choices you’ve got to make in a pandemic. But we've been making them and we've been keeping Australians safe and we've been getting them back into jobs in a way that few countries have. So, you know, we've come a long way. We've got to keep going. That's what the Budget's about. And so I understand the anxiety, but when there, when you, when we can give greater clarity to a timetable, then, then we will. We're certainly working towards that. We're doing the work on it.

PARKER: The vaccination rollout is obviously the other critical component to this discussion. Overnight, Moderna have announced that they've signed a deal with your Government to provide 25 million doses of their mRNA vaccine …

PRIME MINISTER: True.

PARKER: … which is great news. Do you have any clarity about when that will be delivered and who will likely get it?

PRIME MINISTER: Well it’s 10 million doses that, that come for the Moderna vaccine now and that will come in this year, and that will support particularly that back end of the year where I've talked, you know, we've already got 20 million additional Pfizer vaccines that we were able to secure. We're trying to bring as many of those forward into the third quarter, not just in the fourth quarter. These ones are due, these 10 million - so there's two doses, that's effectively five million, for people - that was due to be here in the fourth quarter of this year. There’s then another 15 million of what is called booster doses. Now, that's a different vaccine again. That's next year, and that's to deal with, you know, possible variants and things like that. So we're now well in the phase of, you know, dealing with what's coming next because the pandemic’s not going anywhere. I mean, just because we can put, you know, 60,000 people over in Optus Stadium doesn't mean that the pandemic’s over. It’s, it is still there.

PARKER: Yeah. Is it likely under 50s will get the Moderna jab?

PRIME MINISTER: Oh, yes. Yes. I mean, that's, that's the point.

PARKER: Yep.

PRIME MINISTER: Because we've got AstraZeneca for those who are over 50. And from Monday, people will be able to go to their GP if they're over 50 - those who are part of the programme, the many of them - and be able to get their AstraZeneca vaccine from next Monday from a GP. You can currently do it from state, state based clinics, as well as the GP respiratory clinics at a federal level. And then we're bringing forward as much of those Pfizer doses as we can. And then we will also have these Moderna doses scheduled to come in, in the fourth quarter of this year. 

PARKER: Prime Minister, thank you very much for your time this morning on 6PR Breakfast. I hope we can do it again soon.

PRIME MINISTER: Just before I lose you Gareth, one point in the Budget which I think all Western Australians want to know. The GST deal delivers $2 billion, $2.115 billion additional to the State Government in 21-22. That's on top of the $1.547 billion that that deal has delivered in the current financial year. So this deal keeps on delivering.

PARKER: You were never going to undo that. Mark McGowan said you were going to undo it. I didn't believe him. I said there's no way Scott Morrison will undo that deal.

PRIME MINISTER: And you, and you were right Gareth, and I know Mark believes it, too. And that $2.115 billion is in the coffers of WA next financial year because of the deal that this Government did, and secured the GST for WA.

PARKER: Point made and understood, Prime Minister. Thanks for your time.

PRIME MINISTER: Good on you, Gareth.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43394

Interview with Ben Fordham, 2GB

13 May 2021

BEN FORDHAM: On the line, PM, Happy birthday to you.

PRIME MINISTER: G’day, Ben, thank you very much. Well, Ben, the plan that you referred to, the Premier and I have already discussed these matters before and they've been working away on this. And we've always said that we want to be working with the states and with the sectors about how we can address these issues and we will be working cooperatively with them. We already have been working with states like South Australia and the Territory up there in the Northern Territory where we've had pilots and other programmes running of a similar nature. So this is what we mean when we say you just deal with these challenges. You come up with these innovative solutions and we work together. And there's still a long way from landing this, I should stress, at this point. But it's something that we're encouraging of. But it's got to be done safely and we've got to be able to do it in a way that obviously doesn't risk the great success we've had. That's what the Budget is about, Ben. It's about securing Australia's recovery. And with all of these initiatives we're seeking to work our way through these challenges, then, you know, these are practical proposals and look forward to working further with them.

FORDHAM: So there's a possibility that we could welcome back foreign students under strict conditions before we allow Aussies to travel overseas without permission?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, not necessarily, because the other proposal we're working on, which I've tasked through the National Cabinet, the medical professionals who advise us on, is I've been seeking to get support for Australians who are vaccinated would be able to travel overseas and return in some sort of modified quarantine arrangement. I've been seeking that for some time, but that also has to be done safely. These are all of the options that we need to work practically on. Borders is just not a binary option of open one day, shut the next. There are various grades of that and that's actually what the Budget assumes. So that they need to be practical, they need to be safe, they need to ensure that we don't put at risk the great gains that have been made and that New South Wales has led the way there throughout this pandemic and been practical. So this is a cooperative process.

FORDHAM: I'm just having a look at the Budget papers. It does have an assumption that the national border will be closed until mid-2022. You say you can't guarantee that we’ll be able to return home without quarantine after 2022. Look, it's really a mug's game, isn't it? I know everyone wants to know the date. When can we fly? When can we can do this, when can we do that? But it's a mug's game when you're trying to guess what this virus is going to do next.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's exactly the point. And so what you do is you deal with what's known. You work with proposals that are real. You make them work within the medical advice, which keeps Australians safe and you get on with the job. And that's how we've been able to achieve what we've done over the last 18 months. That's what we've been doing. That's why right now, Australia has more people in work, 13.1 million, than there were before the pandemic hit. Those 900,000 and more people who'd lost their jobs in the months following the pandemic hitting us, those jobs have all come back. And also we've been able to protect the health of Australians. If we'd had the average fatality rate of COVID-19 in Australia that you have in the more than 30 countries of the OECD nations, like countries to ours, you know, developed countries with sophisticated economies and health systems, 30,000 more people would have died in Australia. So we've achieved a lot together as a country. And the Budget is about how we secure that recovery now as we go from that emergency phase and we're now well into the recovery phase and the Budget drives that forward by strengthening our economy, continuing to fight the virus, guaranteeing essential services and the resilience of our nation, whether it's against pandemics or natural disasters or changing climate or in particular the security threats in the region. That's what the Budget is about.

FORDHAM: Prime Minister, those repatriation flights from India are set to resume on Saturday. They were suspended because of the crisis in India and worries that it would put too much pressure on our quarantine system. So are we now confident that we're ready? 

PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, that's the advice I have, Ben, and we took that decision last week, and that was always our intention. I mean, what is happening in India is a terrible humanitarian tragedy and that's why we're providing so much support to India at the moment. The oxygen concentrators, the respirators that we've sent. I spoke to Prime Minister Modi on Friday afternoon and India are very grateful for the support that Australia is providing, as many other nations are. And it's not just obviously Australian citizens and residents who'll be returning from those repatriation flights that we've been concerned for. But the people of India more broadly, that the virus now, Ben, is ravaging the developing world. We've already seen it ravage the developed world of the United States and Europe and the United Kingdom. But now we're seeing it move through these developing countries and it is truly heartbreaking. And it reminds us that this virus hasn't gone anywhere. It is a fierce enemy and that's who I'm fighting, that virus. 

FORDHAM: I'm guessing going forward, we need a bit more muscle from the World Health Organisation. It turns out that the WHO can't tell the world about a new virus unless it has the permission from the country where the virus has been found and now this expert panel chaired by the former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark says those rules need to change. I mean, it's crazy, isn't it, that they can identify something but can't tell the world about it or declare it a pandemic until the host country agrees?

PRIME MINISTER: Well Ben, I made exactly this point when I called for this very enquiry. I made exactly this point about ensuring that these are the World Health Organisation had the authority. I mean, I even used that example of things like weapons inspectors that you have in other areas. I was mocked, I was bagged, the Labor Party mocked me when I said it.

FORDHAM: No!

PRIME MINISTER: And now the WHO has come out and recommended the same thing. So, look, I think it is important that we learn the lessons from this pandemic, but that's not about any one country. We all know how this started, but what it's about is ensuring that we protect against future pandemics. And that's why we suggested this process should be done and that's come and they've made those reports and I thank them for doing it. But there's a lot more, I think, to discover there. But what's important is we learn the lessons to protect the planet, the world's population from future pandemics. 

FORDHAM: Prime Minister, I know you'd be concerned about the rising tensions between Israel and Palestine. And yesterday, we had a woman charged in Sydney after burning an Israeli flag in Lakemba. How important is it to make sure that those tensions in the Middle East don't become tensions on the streets of Australia?

PRIME MINISTER: Oh, incredibly important. I mean, of course, we're all very concerned about what's happening there. And we've been urging restraint from all parties involved there to not take any unilateral action on those very stressful and tense situations that we're finding there. But those things should not be played out here in Australia. We're a peaceful country. We believe in a two-state solution. That's the Government's policy at least. And we want to ensure that people live in this country with tolerance and respect. By all means, I think people can have concerns and views and there's a tolerance for that. But at the same time, we do not want to import, import the troubles of other parts of the world into this country. We’re Australians,, that's who we are here. We're Australians and we're interested in Australian interests and we provide support around the world. And we're an agent for peace. That's what we want to see happen.

FORDHAM: I mentioned it's your birthday today. 53 today, is that right?

PRIME MINISTER: Starting to get up there a bit, Ben. But feeling good, feeling fit. I sadly won’t get to see Jenny and the girls today. But that's pretty regular for me. But that's alright. I'm sure I'll get to talk to them soon and yeah, it's just another day at the office, mate.

FORDHAM: I'm just having a look at a photo of you when you became Prime Minister and you looked about 43 when you became prime minister. 

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the job certainly has its stresses, as you and I know this particularly these last two years. I mean, it started with those floods in North Queensland and it has gone through bushfires and it has gone through cyclones and more floods and of course, the pandemic. And you know what? Over that entire time, Ben, I've just been humbled every day by the Australian people. Today, we're going to be handing out Emergency Service Medals to the brave heroes of Australia. And I couldn't think of a better way to have a birthday than celebrating those who have done so much for our country. 

FORDHAM: Happy birthday to you and I know you'll be looking forward to catching up with Jenny and your girls. Happy birthday, PM.

PRIME MINISTER: Thank you, Ben. All the best.

FORDHAM: Thank you for your time.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43393

Australia Secures Moderna Vaccines

13 May 2021

Prime Minister, Minister for Health and Aged Care, Minister for Industry, Science and Technology

The Australian Government has secured 25 million doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to further diversify our vaccine portfolio as well as provide access to a booster or variant vaccine should this be required in the future.

As confirmed in the 2021-22 Budget, the Government will commence an approach to market for mRNA manufacturing capacity in Australia.

The Government also remains in discussions with Moderna in relation to establishing a manufacturing facility in Australia for mRNA vaccines.

Onshore manufacturing would ensure a secure, long-term supply of Moderna’s mRNA-based vaccines against COVID-19, including variants, and for potential future pandemics.

This is the second messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine to be purchased by the Government, providing access to the current Moderna vaccine or variant-specific versions of the vaccine developed by Moderna, to address longer term immunity or emerging viral variants in the first half of 2022.

To date, the Moderna vaccine has shown an overall vaccine efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19 of 94.1 per cent, and 100 per cent efficacy against severe COVID-19. It has also shown strong protection of 90 per cent efficacy against COVID-19 for at least six months after the second dose.

The Moderna vaccine has been approved by leading regulatory authorities across the world and is being used successfully in the United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, the United States and Singapore.

The agreement includes 10 million doses in 2021 and 15 million doses of Moderna’s updated variant booster vaccine in 2022.

Supply in Australia will only commence should the vaccine be approved as safe and effective by Australia’s regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). An application by Moderna to the TGA is expected shortly.

The Science and Industry Technical Advisory Group, the Australian Government’s expert group advising on vaccine purchases, has recommended the purchase of the Moderna vaccine.

As Australia looks to 2022, the Moderna vaccine provides a strong booster and emerging variants supply if required.

A complete course of Moderna’s vaccination is likely to be two doses given 28 days apart.

The Moderna vaccine diversifies Australia’s supply of COVID-19 vaccines, provides more flexibility for the national vaccine rollout, and secures early access to possible vaccinations for emerging COVID-19 variants of concern circulating around the world.

Australia has five separate agreements to secure more than 195 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines if they are proved to be safe and effective. Around $6 billion has been invested to support the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43392

Interview with Leigh Sales, 7.30

12 May 2021

LEIGH SALES: Thank you for your time, Prime Minister.

PRIME MINISTER: G'day Leigh.

SALES: Your Budget priority is creating jobs and spending on things like aged care and child care with money that comes from economic growth. But how can you do any of it when growth depends on a concrete path for getting out of COVID and there are no firm targets for vaccination and no plan for how international borders can reopen without arduous quarantine?

PRIME MINISTER: We've got to keep doing what works, Leigh, and that's why this Budget is a plan to secure Australia's recovery. Already we've seen Australia achieve remarkable things over the course of this pandemic. Already we have achieved together as Australians the situation where more people are in work today - 13.1 million - than were in work prior to the pandemic, some 13 million. And that is done in concert with managing the health impacts of COVID, where if we'd had the OECD average of fatalities in this country, relating to COVID, 30,000 more Australians would have perished as a, as a result of this pandemic. This is what we've achieved already. So this Budget is about securing that recovery, that is already under way, but it's about moving from the emergency response measures like JobKeeper and the cash flow support and all of this which has got us to this point, and now moving into the next phase of recovery …

SALES: But as I point out … 

PRIME MINISTER: … which is the incentives for taxation, the incentives for skills development, and putting the investment through businesses that creates those jobs into the future …

SALES: But as I point out, Prime Minister …

PRIME MINISTER: … The Federal Government is stepping up to ensure that we can secure this recovery, as we go ahead.

SALES: As I point out, Prime Minister, all of that is predicated on vaccination and borders. Let's unpack each of those things separately. Vaccinations first. What level of herd immunity is your Budget banking on by the end of this year? In other words, what percentage of Australians will be vaccinated or will have had COVID?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it's nothing as precise as that, as the Budget papers say themselves …

SALES: You must have some modelling or forecasts?

PRIME MINISTER: No, what the Budget papers say is that there's a general assumption of a vaccination program likely to be in place and there by the end of this year. And, but what that means, Leigh, is that there is an understanding that over the course of this year the vaccination program will continue to roll out, and will reach as many Australians as we possibly can that want to have that vaccine. And that progress is achieving, at this point in time, some three million Australians by the end of this week will have received that vaccination. It's had its problems, particularly due to the lack of vaccine access from overseas at the start of the vaccination program. And then, of course, the medical advice that we had on AstraZeneca which contained that vaccination to over 50s. So it's certainly had its shocks.

SALES: That's right, Prime Minister. But we are at just over 10 per cent of the population. The US has vaccinated 45 per cent, the UK 53 per cent, Israel 60 per cent. You'd now need to be vaccinating 200,000 Australians daily to get as many people as you'd like to have done by the end of the year. Currently we're doing fewer than a quarter of that. How has the Government fumbled this so badly when everything relies on it?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Leigh, the comparisons you make are to countries where the choice of vaccination was to vaccinate or have serious illness or die. That was the emergency situation the countries that you've referred to …

SALES: … But that could happen here any time.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, my comparison is to countries like New Zealand and to Canada which is also going through a terrible place at the moment. Japan, South Korea, where Australia's vaccination program is proceeding at a much faster pace than at the same stage of their programs when you make that comparison.

SALES: Does the buck stop with you on the success or otherwise of the vaccine rollout?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Leigh, everything stops with me. I'm the Prime Minister at the end of the day. And so that's why we focus so hard on getting our general practitioners involved in the rollout of this vaccination program, and they're doing a great job. From next Monday they will have more doses. From next Monday they, we have brought forward the vaccination program for over 50s and we had 400,000 people get vaccinated in the past week. Our strongest week yet. And we're going to continue to see more Australians get that vaccination. But I want to stress this, Leigh, because you've raised the point about the assumption. The Budget rests on many things. And when it comes to the vaccination program, it does, it is important that we get this done. But what is in this Budget does not rely on that solely or even completely. The vaccination program, as it's set out in the Budget papers, just assumes that it's likely that this will be in place by the end of the year. But that could happen with two doses, one dose. It could be many months either side of that and that will not have a material impact on what is in this Budget, and it would be a mistake to think that it did.

SALES: In a speech on March the 9th, you said that with sufficient vaccine we can move to treating COVID like the regular flu. What will that look like?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, this is ideal. But what would be necessary in that environment is there would need to be a tolerance in this country, particularly at state and territory levels, that where you were getting cases in this country, because if you start to open up, if you start to have those controls relaxed, then you can expect to see large numbers of cases in this country, even with the vaccination program [inaudible]. In the United States right now, Leigh, there's …

SALES: Well a lot of comparison, Prime Minister, sorry …

PRIME MINISTER: Sorry, you're interrupting. I'll let you go. 

SALES: I just want to keep it in Australia. If you look at pre-COVID numbers from the regular flu in Australia from the Bureau of Statistics - 2019, 4,000 Australians dead, that's deaths, not cases. 2018 - 3,000 deaths, 2017 - 2,000 deaths from the regular flu. Are political leaders going to have to have an honest conversation with Australians about what living with risk looks like?

PRIME MINISTER: That's exactly the conversation that Australia's government leaders are having through the National Cabinet. That is exactly the process that I tasked through the National Cabinet over a month ago, and our chief medical advisers are going through that process to understand that as we speak right now. And that's why we are having the conversation about how you can have gradual changes in how these restrictions operate. For example, if you're vaccinated with approved vaccines in Australia, whether you can travel and return to Australia and you can go into some form of home quarantine. Now, at this point there is not advice to support that, but I note in New South Wales the Treasurer there has been open to that idea. So I think they're important, they're important next steps and I've been saying that consistently. But understand this, Leigh …

SALES: Well on that point, Prime Minister, on that point, sorry on that point, because you raised quarantine, you raised quarantine, that's the other pillar of the Budget, international borders. The assumptions for the middle of next year. So if an Australian wants to go and visit their son or daughter in London say in July of next year, will they be allowed to do so without having to do the two weeks quarantine on return?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it's impossible for me to say at this point, Leigh. I think, we need to understand …

SALES: Is that your goal, though?

PRIME MINISTER: It's impossible for me to make those sorts of predictions in the middle of a global pandemic, the likes of which we haven't seen for 100 years. I can fully understand why people want greater certainty but I can only provide the certainty that is available. And what we've been doing is being careful, being led by the medical advice, being led by the economic advice. And that has got Australia where we are right now. And let's not forget, Leigh, that today 300 people are dying in the United States, 300 people. That's what's happening in other countries around the world. That's what was happening in the UK not that long ago. This is what's happening across India, as the pandemic rages around the world. And we can't sit here complacently thinking that this cannot have a serious impact on Australia …

SALES: … So given that …

PRIME MINISTER: … which is why, Leigh, the Budget is all about securing the recovery and a plan to do that because that recovery is at risk …

SALES: … So if you need to …

PRIME MINISTER: … It is at risk if we get these decisions not as they should be. And that's, our Government is getting those decisions right.

SALES: So if, if you need to secure that recovery and if you need to manage that risk, shouldn't there be some more budgeting there for federal quarantine? You're going to need more than the 2,000 spaces that you have.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Leigh, in the Budget, I can tell you, you can go to page 107 of the Budget and you can read there that $487 million is provided over two years to expand quarantine services …

SALES: … To how many places? …

PRIME MINISTER: … And they're the ones in the Northern Territory. That's to 2,000 places, Leigh …

SALES: … But I just made the point, you're going to need more than that 2,000?

PRIME MINISTER: Well this is why we're talking to the Victorian Government even now, and they've put forward a very constructive proposal …

SALES: You don't have a line item in the Budget for that.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Leigh, what we've got, I've just told you …

SALES: Not for the Victorian project. That's the Northern Territory. That's the Northern Territory.

PRIME MINISTER: Well when we work through the details of that project, Leigh, we only received it not that long ago. And what I'm telling you is we've always been very open to constructive and comprehensive suggestions because we're working in partnership with the states and territories. The quarantine system has served Australia very well and it has to be backed up by the testing and tracing regimes with those rings of containment. And that's why Australia has been so successful.

SALES: On the point about working with the states and territories, does the buck stop with you on the effectiveness of quarantine?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, no, they are state public health orders that they're enforcing. And at the National Cabinet …

SALES: … But it is a federal responsibility?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, no, I'm sorry, they are state public health orders. That's what they are, Leigh, and states are responsible for public health, and that's why the quarantine is done on the basis of those state public health orders. We took this through National Cabinet over a year ago and the states and territories agreed that that was the best way to put this in place and give it effect, and at a 99.99 per cent effective rate for our hotel quarantine, and particularly when it's backed up, when inevitable occasional breaches occur, then the testing and the tracing regime is able to contain that. And we've seen that on many occasions. And again, that's why in this country we're living like few countries in the world today, and we need to preserve that. And that's why we need a Budget that we announced last night that does preserve that and can secure through our plan the economic recovery that otherwise would be at risk.

SALES: Well, on that Budget, aged care, you're injecting much-needed money. You've now got the Royal Commission findings and recommendations. From here, if there are further systemic cases of neglect, abuse and mistreatment, does your Government own it? You've got all the information you need.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, this is a five-year plan we're rolling out as a result of what we've announced last night, and this is a five-year plan to address the last 30 years and more, as the Royal Commission highlighted. This is a very complex problem. We've had, we'll see our population aged over 65 grow as we have even over these many years. We've increased, up until last night's Budget, we'd already increased in real terms our funding for aged care by 50 per cent. We're tripling the number of in-home aged care places and that was before last night's Budget, from when we first came to Government. The demands here are very significant and the needs are complex. And so what we've announced last night in response to the Royal Commission, Leigh, that I initiated, that I called, because I wanted to know, because I want Australians in this country to age with dignity and with respect. The proposals that were put in the Budget last night, that we'll put now into practice, in concert with the aged care sector, I believe will take us down that path as it needs to. And I suspect there will be more things we will need to do as we roll out this plan. But this plan at $17.7 billion, as you've said, is a very comprehensive response to a very complex problem. And we'll be putting all our effort to get this right. I have no doubt, I have worked on many complex problems in government, Leigh, and you never finish. You're always working at it. You're always learning but you have got to remain committed to that outcome and that is ageing with dignity and respect in this country.

SALES: If we can turn to some other issues, I understand that the Federal Police have now advised Phil Gaetjens he can resume his inquiry into who knew what, when in his office during the Brittany Higgins matter. Are you aware that has recommenced?

PRIME MINISTER: Yes, I am.

SALES: When would you expect that to come back to you?

PRIME MINISTER: He hasn't given me a date at this point but I would hope he can provide one at his earliest opportunity.

SALES: Do you know, so, how far has that investigation now progressed? Has everyone in your office been interviewed? Where is it up to?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'm not conducting the investigation. It's being conducted at arm's length. 

SALES: But you must know, it's recommenced. So I'm just asking.

PRIME MINISTER: I know it's commenced, but I have no knowledge of its conduct. Why would I? That would be inappropriate. It's an independent, arms-length investigation from me.

SALES: Even with that inquiry going on, why have you never been curious to personally ask questions of your staff or ministers as to why you were kept in the dark regarding an alleged rape in a Defence Minister's office?

PRIME MINISTER: I became aware I think it was on the 15th. It was the 15th of February. That was a Monday morning. I remember that very, very clearly. My office had become aware of it on the 12th—

SALES: But we know that from the timeline there was lots of people knew before then, the Defence Minister, the Employment Minister, the Home Affairs Minister, the Department of Finance, the Federal Police, multiple staff in your own office.

PRIME MINISTER: Not of an alleged rape, I should stress.

SALES: None of them thought you should be informed. You apparently weren't across the details of what had happened, whether it was an alleged rape or whether it was a security breach?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the security breach, we were aware of the security breach but not of any alleged assault, as you've said. And that's a matter of public record. My office did not become aware of that until the 12th of February and I became aware of it on the 15th of February.

SALES: I just rattled through all the other people in your Cabinet and who work alongside you.

PRIME MINISTER: Some of those didn't know about it until about the week before. The then Home Affairs Minister only became aware of it very soon before I did.

SALES: Don't you find it puzzling?

PRIME MINISTER: I've already made those points publicly, Leigh. The point I'd make, whether it was the now Attorney-General or the then Minister for Defence Industry, those were matters that were not relayed to me and were not relayed to my office because they were matters that were told to them in confidence and they didn't seek to breach those confidences.

SALES: On the question of the security breach, you've said in a press conference on the 23rd of March that it wasn't the first one, that the previous one had involved classified material. If that was the case, multiple security breaches of a Defence Minister's office, why hadn't anyone already been sacked?

PRIME MINISTER: Someone was sacked.

SALES: No, but they hadn't been. You said there were security breaches prior to that involved classified material.

PRIME MINISTER: There was an escalation of the caution on this individual and that final breach was the one that led to their dismissal.

SALES: You said at that press conference that classified material had been involved. Why had that not triggered at least an AFP investigation, a Defence Minister's office, classified material, security breach?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, Leigh, as I just said, as those matters had been addressed, there were sanctions and warnings put in place and then the individual was eventually dismissed for that final breach.

SALES: So you just get a sanction, do you, if you breach security in the Defence Minister's office?

PRIME MINISTER: Leigh, I'm not going to go into the details of something that relates to those types of issues. What I am telling you is the individual was sacked.

SALES: At the same press conference on March the 23rd, you said you were going to investigate whether anyone in your office had briefed journalists against Brittany Higgins's partner. What did you find?

PRIME MINISTER: That matter is still being addressed by my Chief of Staff and I understand that he'll be having a conversation with Brittany herself that was arranged not long after that I met with her just a little while ago. I found that a very helpful meeting. And I thank her very much for the opportunity we had to discuss, not that issue, that didn't come up. But the many other issues I know she's been very brave to bring forward.

SALES: Why should Andrew Laming be allowed to continue chairing a parliamentary committee given his track record against women?

PRIME MINISTER: Andrew's not contesting the next election for the LNP.

SALES: He's chairing a committee though.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I have never made comments on that matter. But he has formed a view since then that the issues that were the subject of complaints made against him have now altered and there have been new facts that have come forward-

SALES: Are you comfortable with that?

PRIME MINISTER: …He made those comments to the Parliament the other day. Andrew will serve out his time serving in the Parliament. He's been here a long time. He's done many good things while he's here as part of the Government and I expect him to keep working hard for his electorate all the way to the next election.

SALES: What's empathy training and have you ever had it?

PRIME MINISTER: No, I haven't, Leigh-

SALES: What is it?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, there are lots of counselling courses that are provided to people, they're largely run out of the private sector. This is something that has become quite common and where these counselling courses are necessary, then I think they can be quite helpful.

SALES: On China, the trend of the diplomatic relationship under the Morrison Government has all been downhill. Have you attempted to speak personally to President Xi Jinping to reset it?

PRIME MINISTER: I have spoken to Xi Jinping when I've had the opportunity to meet with him at international forums and those exchanges have been very polite-

SALES: But what about phone calls or something more recently?

PRIME MINISTER: We've always been open to those, Leigh, and we remain open to those now. But there's no interest in that from the Chinese side-

SALES: Have you sought that?

PRIME MINISTER: Of course we are interested in having those and we've expressed that on numerous occasions. But that is not something the Chinese side are interested in having at present. We'll respect that. We continue our trading relationship. We're interested in peace and prosperity in the region and a strong trading relationship and we're interested in Australia's sovereignty and standing up for Australia's sovereign interests and our national interests and we will always do that and we won't step back from them.

SALES: Do you agree with your Defence Minister Peter Dutton that a war between the US and China over Taiwan in the not too distant future can't be discounted?

PRIME MINISTER: This was reflected at the strategic update that I spoke of in our Defence preparedness over a year ago, Leigh, and that is actually the understanding of those who advise us on these matters. Of course there are many tensions that exist in the region and it would be foolish of Australia not to be appreciating the potential risks that emerge. Now, that doesn't mean these things will happen but any Defence Minister, any Prime Minister in Australia who did not give consideration to these things and ensure Australia was prepared in these circumstances wouldn't be doing their job.

SALES: You've been the Prime Minister now for nearly three years and so Australians have had a chance to observe how you've responded to various things. When it comes to taking responsibility, they've seen vaccine stumbles, not your fault, it's a supply issue. Quarantine, that's mostly a problem for the states. Bushfires, I don't hold a hose. Brittany Higgins, I was in the dark. COVID deaths in aged care, mostly the fault of state governments for not controlling virus spread, Christian Porter, don't need to drill into the particulars. Minister's breaching standards, I reject that anybody ever has. Doesn't all that taken together add up to a tendency to blame shift and duck responsibility wherever possible?

PRIME MINISTER: That's your narrative, Leigh, but that's not one that I share—

SALES: I've just, I've spelt out the facts there.

PRIME MINISTER: I'll tell you what the narrative is, Leigh. I'll tell you what's happened over the last 18 months in particular. Australia is in a position and living in a way that the rest of the world is not. At the height of the pandemic where we looked into the abyss, my Government took action and ensured that we saved lives and we saved livelihoods. That is the same action we took, whether it was in the floods in North Queensland or the many disasters that have befallen this country over the last 18 months. Over the course, in particular, of this last year we've seen more than 900,000 people get on and get back into jobs. We've seen businesses survive. We've seen confidence in Australia's future lift. We've seen our defence forces prepared. We've seen our national preparedness for disasters escalated. And in the Budget last night, you saw some of the biggest changes to aged care and mental health that this country has seen. So Leigh, there will be an opportunity for Australians to express their view when the election finally comes. Right now, I'm fighting the virus and I'm keeping Australians in jobs and I'm seeking to provide the best possible support for their health in response to the COVID crisis. So I'll get on with my job and I'll let you get on with yours.

SALES: As you say, you get to take the credit for all of that but it does come at a cost. The record debt and deficit that the Morrison Government is posting in the Budget, does the buck stop with you on getting the Budget back into surplus or will that be somebody else's problem down the line?

PRIME MINISTER: We've done it once before, Leigh, before we hit this crisis the many steps we took got the Budget back into balance before we hit the crisis and I'm glad we did that and I had my role in that, particularly as Treasurer. And now we're in a position to respond like no government has ever had to respond before in our history. What we're going through at the moment, the recession that has been caused globally by this pandemic is 30 times worse than the GFC. 30 times worse. And we have responded like no other government in Australia's history. That has put Australia in a place that many countries, if not most countries, around the world envy. And we're going to keep on with that job and that's why last night's Budget was the plan to ensure we continue to secure Australia's recovery. I'm going to get on with that job. That's the fight I'm in. Fighting for Australia, for Australia's national interests and protecting Australians through this COVID pandemic, keeping them in jobs, protecting their lives and protecting their livelihoods.

SALES: Prime Minister, thanks for your time this evening. We appreciate it.

PRIME MINISTER: Thank you, Leigh.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43391

Interview with Neil Breen, 4BC

12 May 2021

Neil Breen: Good morning to you, Prime Minister.

Prime Minister: G’day, Neil.

Breen: I heard you’re stuck in Parliament House because Extinction Rebellion is hanging around again, those pests.

Prime Minister: No, mate, we're just hard at work here. There’s a pile of interviews we’re doing today, and I don't know what they're up to. I’m not really fussed, frankly. We've got a pandemic to fight, and that's what the Budget’s about. It's about securing Australia's economic recovery in the face of this pandemic. That's the only opposition I'm interested in.

Breen: Now, this morning I've spoken to the Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick, who was quite strong and vehement and was going off his head saying that Queensland's been ripped off. Have we been ripped off in Queensland by this Budget?

Prime Minister: No, that's rubbish. Look, I've seen this quite a bit now. They just sort of go into the political jibes and the language and all this sort of thing, and I've got no time for that because the facts are this - that under this Budget, Queenslanders will receive a higher share of infrastructure funding than actually per head of population. So it's 20.7 per cent of the Commonwealth's investment in infrastructure over the next decade is in Queensland. The share of population over the same point of time is 20.2 per cent. So, look, his facts aren't right. But really, that's not the point. The time for all of this politicking and grandstanding and carrying on and name calling that we keep seeing from the Queensland Government, it frankly is quite juvenile and we've got a pandemic to fight here. So I'm not interested in those juvenile and undergraduate games. I'm interested in continuing to fund important works. And remember, this comes on top, this comes on top of what we've already said in going 50-50 with a fair dinkum partnership to deliver an Olympics for south east Queensland. So, you know, we're stepping up here and I would just prefer to just engage, work together, rather than going on with this endless squabbling.

Breen: And there's been $5.8 billion, we've read today, has been set aside or is available if we're successful for the Olympics. Is that number correct?

Prime Minister: Well look, as we said, this is a 50-50 partnership. So, all projects, there’s scoping, there’s planning, how they'll be delivered, the contracting and all of these things will be done on a shared basis. So that's the situation. That's the set up we will put in place to make those decisions. It will be a joint partnership. It won't be one side of one government telling the other what, how it will work. It will be done together and it will be done in a disciplined and responsible way.

Breen: Prime Minister, $161 billion. That's the deficit this year. It's a lot better than the predicted $213 billion from last October. But the number that stands out to me is 2032 is the next time we can expect to see a surplus. It's a long time away, to think that we're going to be in deficit for another decade or more.

Prime Minister: Well, it's because we're dealing with a pandemic, which economically is 30 times worse than the global financial crisis. You know, I think we have to just take stock here for a second. This is a pandemic Budget. These are not usual times. We've been facing the biggest economic challenge in 75 years, and that has required the Government to step up and do what we've done. Our economic recovery plan and response has, there’s been over $300 billion. Now, that's more than all the states and territories combined in their responses, double it, and go further, and that's where the Commonwealth Government has stepped up to support Australians, whether in Queensland or anywhere else around the country, to protect those jobs, to protect those livelihoods, and to protect their health, to protect their health. I mean the underwriting that we have put in place to ensure that the actions of the Queensland Government have been able to be done without impacting on the economy, as they might have otherwise done so severely. That has ensured Queenslanders have stayed in jobs. So we'll keep working together with the Queensland Government. I’ve got a mature relationship with the Queensland Premier, and I'll continue working with Annastacia Palaszczuk to ensure that we can deliver for the health and jobs of Queenslanders. And we've got a strong investment plan there in Queensland on projects right across the state, from the north to the south. I was only up in north Queensland, central Queensland, last week. In particular, right up there in the north, what we've done for the reinsurance pool, ensured that there’ll be affordable insurance premiums in northern Queensland. The responses to drought, the resilience agency to deal with cyclones and floods. And then you come down to the tax cuts for low and middle income families to ensure that they can continue to make the decisions that they need to make to get them and their families through. Incentives for manufacturing, for small businesses, lower taxes, this is what will get us through. It's a Budget, it is a plan to secure a recovery that you cannot take for granted, and we're very focussed on fighting this pandemic and keeping Australians in jobs.

Breen: Two other things that stood out for me. One, the push to get the unemployment rate down. And you talked about a lot of those things just now - incentives for business - but a lot of traineeships and things that are going on.

Prime Minister: Yep.

Breen: Five per cent, then down to 4.5 per cent unemployment. That is a low figure. That's a, that's a bullish number.

Prime Minister: Well, it's a bold goal, and that's what we have to do. That's what our plan has to seek to achieve, because the more people we get in work, that’s fewer people on welfare, and the more people you have in work, that means you’ve got more people who are making the contribution rather than having to take one. And that's how you balance the Budget. That's how we actually got the Budget back in balance before the pandemic hit. We got people into jobs, record levels of employment before the pandemic. And now, as we're still fighting this pandemic, we've got employment levels back to above where they were. We have 13 million people who were employed before the pandemic really hit us back in March of last year. Then 900,000 Australians lost their jobs. We thought it would have been far worse. We ended up having three million Australians and more supported by JobKeeper. Now, today, there are 13.1 million Australians in work. We’re the only advanced developed economy in the world, pretty much, that can actually say that at the moment. And so that's, that's something we can't let go. It's something we can't put at risk. And that's why the Government has continued to do what works, to go even further in this Budget to secure this recovery.

Breen: It’s a very generous budget to vulnerable Australians. Obviously, there's the special women's addendum, but then there's the extra funding for the NDIS, funding for veterans affairs. It's been something the Government's been conscious of here.

Prime Minister: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you've got to guarantee the essential services Australians rely on. That is the task at every Budget. And we've got some big demands in this Budget that we've had to meet - aged care significantly, the mental health of Australians. This is big change in mental health, and we all know how successful headspace has been to support young Australians. This programme ensures that we have an extension of that, called Head to Health, which is providing those same sorts of mental health support for Australians aged over 24, and to young children as well. So this is real game changing investment in services to improve the mental health of all Australians. And that's just not a health issue, it will grow our economy for years. As Treasurer, they used to say to me quite clearly, the Productivity Commission, if you want to boost productivity in this country so Australians can earn more, you’ve got to invest in mental health. We've doubled our investment in mental health.

Breen: There's some predictions in the Budget. The national border could reopen in the middle of 2022, later in 2022. That's a debate that could be had later. But Australians will be fully vaccinated by the end of this year. Would it help if Queensland put a mass vaccination hub or two online? Would that help with that goal?

Prime Minister: Well, we'll see where we get to by the end of this year. I mean, these aren't Government commitments. There’s some assumptions that are being made around first doses and things like that. But whether we get there, well, we've got still a lot of work to do. But what I'm pleased about is that, you know, we're getting through this task. From next Monday, those over 50 could go to their GP and they can get their vaccination. We’ll soon hit three million people having been vaccinated in Australia. More than 10 percent of the eligible adult population has already been vaccinated, around a  third of those aged over 70. And so the states, you know, over this last month and a bit, we've been working together, as I pulled the National Cabinet back together, to that operational footing. We put those new plans in place. We brought forward the vaccination programme. States are doing more and, and I believe Queensland will do more as well. This is a task we all have to get through. But I’ve got to tell you, the thing that'll actually impact more on this Budget and our economic recovery. We do need to keep those international borders shut and it'll be a step by step gradual process of getting people back into this country over time. But we cannot allow COVID to get back into this country, because once it's in, you can't get it out. And the strains that are coming through, the new strains, the pandemic is more severe and ravaging today than it was a year ago. So we do need to keep those protections on our borders in place, but we need to keep Australia open within those borders. That's what keeps jobs in place, particularly in Queensland in the travel and the tourism sector. So we need to keep working together to ensure we keep Australia as open internally as we possibly can.

Breen: Prime Minister Scott Morrison, thanks for your time this morning on 4BC Breakfast.

Prime Minister: Thanks a lot, Breeny. Cheers mate.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43389

Interview with Kieran Gilbert, Sky News

12 May 2021

KIERAN GILBERT: Good morning, Prime Minister. If I handed these numbers to you in the middle of last year when unemployment was forecast to be 15 per cent, what would you have said to me? 

PRIME MINISTER: Well, I would say that that would have been heroic, that we would have achieved what Australians have achieved. I want to stress that, Kieran. This is what Australians have achieved. The fact that there are more people in work today than there was before the pandemic. The fact that if we had gone down the path of so many other countries. In the OECD, the average fatality rate from COVID would have seen 30,000 more people perish here in Australia. And that we can stand here today, that you can put 100,000 people in the G, that we can talk of the jobs growth in this country, which has seen all of those people getting back into work. This is a great testament to the spirit of the Australian people and this Budget, which is a recovery plan. It's about securing that recovery. This all could be lost. This all can be forsaken if we can't continue to do what is needed to keep our economy on track. 

GILBERT: There was some scepticism about the idea of a bounce back. This is a massive bounce back.

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it is. It's V shape. There's no doubt about that. But we can't be complacent about it and that's my point. We're seeing Europe going into a double dip recession. We're seeing the wave of the pandemic now moving to an even more intensive, fierce phase as we've seen it roar through the developed world. It is now absolutely horrifically and heartbreakingly destroying the developing world. We're seeing what's happening in India. We'll see how that goes through other developing countries. We're seeking to do everything we can to support them. But this is a deadly pandemic, and I'm afraid we're still in the midst of it.

GILBERT: Given how well we've done, though, could you have moved more quickly to try and repair the Budget? Still deficits out to 2031-32. 

PRIME MINISTER: We’re still in the pandemic and in a pandemic, you need to throw everything at it to ensure you bring Australians through. I mean, our pandemic recovery plan now, it's over $300 billion that we've already invested, including what was invested last night. And it is about the rebuilding. It's about the infrastructure, of course. But we've moved past the immediate emergency phase and now we're into that recovery phase. So you're investing in skills. You're investing in infrastructure. You're investing in our response to the digital economy. But you're also guaranteeing essential services that Australians need, mental health, a very good example. Not only incredibly important for people's own wellbeing, but mental health has been nominated time and time again by the Productivity Commission as one of the key factors holding back productivity in this country and boosting our economy. So there's a double dividend there from what is a record level of investment in mental health support in this country.

GILBERT: You were one of the key members, I remember very vividly as the Treasurer, then trying to repair the Budget. How does it, as you now PM and delivering this Budget, it's such a huge turnaround from those days talking about the need to rein things in. And now as far as the eye can see, it is deficits. 

PRIME MINISTER: I’m glad we did what we did. I'm glad we got the Budget back to balance before the pandemic hit. I'm glad we did all that work that put Australia in a position to be able to respond in the way that we have, which now means Australia is a position which is basically the envy of the world. Now, that is because of what Australians have done and how our Budget support has enabled Australians to carry this country through and we're going to keep doing that. We can't turn back from that. We can't go down an alternative path. We'll spend responsibly. But we have to spend to ensure that we keep this recovery on track. I mean, JobKeeper is a good example. The single biggest economic support the country has ever seen. We announced it just over here. You were there, but we also knew when to turn it off. See, in our Government, we know when to do it and we know when to stop it. And right now we need to keep leaning in, particularly with infrastructure and skills and the digital economy and workforce support. All of this needs to continue so our recovery can continue.

GILBERT: Your investment in aged care and you spoke about skills because there's this disconnect, isn't there? We've got the unemployment rate coming down, which is fantastic. But we've got these cricks in the Budget, the economy, where there are labour shortages. So how do you fill those jobs with youth unemployment remains a big problem. How do you connect one to the other?

PRIME MINISTER: You spend more than $2 billion on training in this Budget. You create another 170,000 apprentices. You remove the blockages that are preventing young people getting into work with foundational skills training. You ensure you have programmes for people to be trained in things like digital literacy, digital skills. You're training people in the care workforce. 

GILBERT: You boost the wages too, don’t you?

PRIME MINISTER: All of these things will be driven by a stronger economy at the end of the day. But the record funding we're putting into aged care, $17.7 billion, the over $3 billion we're putting into, you know, into skills training and all these sorts of things right across the board. I mean, these are important investments to ensure that we can secure this recovery. Because at the end of the day, that's what this Budget is about. What’s this Budget about? Securing the recovery because the recovery we cannot take for granted. We cannot take where we've got to as a country over these last 18 months for granted. And the only thing I'm fighting is the pandemic to secure people's health and to secure their jobs.

GILBERT: Your mind’s not turning to the election just yet by the sounds of it. 

PRIME MINISTER: No, I mean, because this pandemic is raging. And as Prime Minister-

GILBERT:  But if you look at this, you could run to an election on this. 

PRIME MINISTER: People who focus on politics will do that. But as Prime Minister, I have to focus on the pandemic and Australians out there, that's what they're focused on. They worried about their jobs. They're worried about their health. They’re worried about their family members who are struggling with mental health or struggling with putting their family into residential aged care. And what I have to do is give them confidence that there is a plan and there is because that plan is working, the plan is working. What we're doing in this country is working and we have to keep doing it.

GILBERT: There's a paradox at the heart of the Budget, though, isn't there? Because you've got this huge windfall from iron ore. China continues to hoover up our resources and is our best customer. Yet we've got this tension, this geopolitical tension on the other side of things. Can you cool that down, is that possible?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, you're right to highlight that COVID is not the only challenge Australia faces. Not only that, natural disasters. And in this Budget, as you know, there's a very big plan to support Australians to deal with natural disasters and climate change and things like this. But importantly, we're living in a very uncertain region, and that's why we're investing in our intelligence and our security and our cyber security and our defences and all of these things.

GILBERT: What about diplomacy?

PRIME MINISTER: We've invested heavily in that as well. And we will continue to be Australians, stand up for what we believe in, counter any sort of threats that might arise in our region. But what is our goal? Peace. What is our goal? Trade. What is our goal? Prosperity for our region and sovereignty for every single country that exists within our region. And at the end of the day, we'll always stand up for a liberal democratic principle, we’ll always stand up for a world order that favours freedom.

GILBERT: It's just an interesting paradox because you’ve got your best customer, but also an increasingly assertive, right?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, it's a complex and it's a challenging world. But what's also important, I think, to reflect on, Kieran, is that we have to maintain a strong economy to ensure that we can deal with these challenges. I mean, in this Budget, aged care, mental health, support right across the board in services that Australians rely on every single day. The National Disability Insurance Scheme, all of that is only made possible if we can ensure that the economic recovery that we're pursuing and achieving as a nation is secured into the future. 

GILBERT: Prime Minister, there's a commitment to an mRNA facility. How far away would that be? I know it's a commercial in confidence negotiations, but are we talking within a year?

PRIME MINISTER: No, look, I think those sort of capabilities are very significant ones. I mean, a year ago, mRNA vaccines are being used as vaccines more broadly. It was almost seen as science fiction. And here we are a year later. And so in this Budget, and mRNA vaccines, this won't just be important for COVID. This will be important for vaccines more generally right across the spectrum. And so we will establish that capacity here in this country. We will do it as soon as we possibly can. We already, as a priority, put in place the vaccination capability manufacturing here in Australia that is ensuring that more than 10 per cent of our eligible adult population is vaccinated right now. We're not relying on those overseas vaccines for AstraZeneca and, importantly, we’ll be moving to ensure that Australia has a sovereign capability on mRNA vaccines. But a sovereign capability across a whole range of secure supply chains is needed to drive our economy into the future. 

GILBERT: Prime Minister, just finally, the one cut that I did notice in the Budget is for foreign aid. Given we are one of the wealthiest countries in the world and as you rightly said, this V-shaped recovery, we're doing great. Why don't we turn our attention more to foreign aid. We’re the third lowest in the OECD according to analysis done in the last couple of weeks by the Development Assistance Committee of the OECD.

PRIME MINISTER: We continue to increase our support, particularly we're doing that here in our region. I mean, what we've done in our foreign aid budget is we're focused here on our Pacific family and we're focused on vaccinations here and supporting the capacity to deliver those vaccinations. We're focused on Papua New Guinea, on Indonesia, on the ASEAN countries of our region. I've been in constant contact with leaders across particularly our part of the world and all of them are incredibly, incredibly appreciative of the strong role Australia has played, particularly here in our region. Now, we're very concerned about what's happening in Papua New Guinea with COVID. But when you look across the rest of the Pacific family, they are not seeing, they are not seeing the infiltration of COVID like we're seeing in many other parts of the world. And that is in significant part because of the ongoing support that we're providing.

GILBERT: Hopefully that continues.

PRIME MINISTER: I certainly hope so.

GILBERT: I very much appreciate your time. Thanks.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks a lot, Kieran.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43388

Interview with Karl Stefanovic, Today Show

12 May 2021

KARL STEFANOVIC: PM, good morning to you.

PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Karl.

STEFANOVIC: You must be pretty pleased with the reaction. The only thing missing was the steak knives.

PRIME MINISTER: What's important is to understand there is a pandemic raging and this is our second pandemic Budget and what the Budget is is a plan to secure Australia's recovery. That recovery can't be taken for granted, Karl. As you know Australians, we are living in this country like virtually nowhere else in the world and that has been hard won and we need to ensure we continue to hold on to these gains and we build on them. What we're doing is working, more people in work today than there was before the pandemic, and we have avoided the absolute terrible tragedy that we have seen in so many other parts of the world. You know, if we had the average of what OECD countries, countries like ours, experienced with the fatality rate from COVID, more than 30,000 Australians would have perished during this crisis. So Australians have achieved a lot, but this Budget is about the plan to secure that recovery because, as we have seen in Europe, they're going into a double-dip recession. We need to avoid that outcome, we need to keep doing what is working and keep pressing ahead.

STEFANOVIC: It was Gough Whitlamesque though, wasn't it?

PRIME MINISTER: It's about a pandemic, that is what it is about. In a pandemic you have to do what you need to do to save lives and save livelihoods. That's what it is about. That is the enemy here. That is the opposition I'm focussed on. It's the pandemic. Because that is what will rob Australians of their health, it’s what will rob Australians of their jobs and livelihoods and what we're achieving here as Australians together is quite unique and this Budget is about continuing to secure that because it is the Federal Government that needs to step up in these circumstances and lean in to ensure that we can provide Australians with that security and that confidence which we are seeing.

STEFANOVIC: You went especially hard at Labor and accused them of spending like drunken sailors during the global financial crisis. Your Government has a record debt almost five times that size. It is hard to imagine a Budget further from the Coalition heartland.

PRIME MINISTER: 30 times worse, that's what this pandemic is compared to the global financial crisis, Karl. When you're faced looking into the abyss as we were this time last year, when we launched JobKeeper just over a year ago and put it into place, the biggest single intervention we have seen from a government, that together backed Australians to get where we are now and there's a long way still to go, I just don't think the situations are comparable. In a pandemic there is no politics, there is just a virus that is looking to take your health and to take your livelihood and this Budget is a plan to ensure we secure that recovery that has been so hard fought for in this country and I'm going to make sure that we keep it. I'm going to make sure we keep making those gains. So last night we did what we had to do to secure that recovery.

STEFANOVIC: You're not at all worried about the size and magnitude of that debt?

PRIME MINISTER: Of course I am, Karl, but I don't do it lightly and it's why we did the hard work before the pandemic to get the Budget back into balance so we could respond in the way we have. This pandemic is 30 times worse globally, economically, than the global financial crisis. That is how serious it is and it is still raging now. Just because we can put 100,000 people at the G in Melbourne for a football game does not mean this is over. We are seeing it already having ravaged the developed world and now it is ravaging the developing world. As we were talking about last week when I was up in Rockhampton, this virus is not over and Australians, we can't be complacent, the Government is not being complacent, this budget shows we are not being complacent because we are not being complacent because we are continuing to lean in, to protect lives and to protect livelihoods to ensure that we can maintain the gains and keep surging forward doing what works.

STEFANOVIC: But your party, Coalition, prides itself on being economically more conservative. When will you deliver a surplus next?

PRIME MINISTER: There's not one scheduled and foreseeable within the next decade because of the significant investments we've had to take. This wasn't a choice, this is something we had to do.

STEFANOVIC: That’s a huge philosophical shift, though.

PRIME MINISTER: John Howard reminded Josh Frydenberg and I constantly... It has nothing to do with philosophy, it has to do with a pandemic, Karl. If Australia didn't take the actions, as John Howard told me himself, there's no politics or ideology in a pandemic, there is just government needing to do what we need to do to save lives and livelihoods and that's what we've done. Couldn't care less about the politics. I care a lot about people's jobs, I care a lot about their health and doing what is necessary. The only opponent I have got right now is the pandemic. That's the opponent I'm focused on. That is the fight Australia is in and as Australia's Prime Minister, that is the fight I'm focused on.

STEFANOVIC: You do care about being re-elected though again. You've left $10 billion for an election splash.

PRIME MINISTER: No, what we've done is kept things in reserve over the course of the balance of this year to keep fighting this pandemic. That's what we're doing, Karl. That's what we're doing. See, Australians like me, we're focused on ensuring we come through this. Nothing else matters. The thing that matters is family's jobs, family's health and, in particular, in this Budget, focusing on important needs they have in mental health and aged care and disability services. But none of that can be funded unless you continue to strengthen your economy and this Budget leans in to strengthening the economy with focus on skills, on manufacturing, on innovation, on the digital economy, on infrastructure, lower taxes, tax incentives for people to invest in their businesses and keep people employed. The reason the Budget is $50 billion better than it was when we were here in October of last year is because more Australians are in work today than we'd anticipated. Since the last Budget, half a million Australians have got back into jobs. From December of last year, there's 200,000 more jobs than we anticipated even at that time. What we're doing is working and that's why we need to secure the recovery with this plan to ensure that we can keep forging ahead and maintaining and extending on what we've gained in the country.

STEFANOVIC: Vaccinations are important and that has been slow. Quarantine is a huge issue with state governments crying for help yet there is no funding for federal facilities. We have flights arriving from India at week's end. You don't think we need those facilities up and running?

PRIME MINISTER: We do have federal facilities. We have got half a billion dollars in federal facilities which we have expanded from 850 capacity to 2,000 this month in Darwin which is where we are bringing those repatriation flights. So we are doing that and we are working with the Victorian Government on what I think is a very comprehensive proposal there as well. So no, I don't accept we are not funding those and I don't accept we are not acting on those and I don't accept we are not working with the states and territories because we are doing all three things.

STEFANOVIC: We have had more breaches in hotel quarantine. I think people want to see more done in that regard.

PRIME MINISTER: That's why we're working with the Victorian Government, that is why we have upgraded the facility at Howard Springs. But let me remind people when it comes to quarantine, that is only one ring of containment. It doesn't matter where the facility is or who is running it, there will be breaches in quarantine. Our quarantine system has a 99.99 per cent effectiveness rate, with Howard Springs it's 100 per cent. But it's the containment beyond that, the testing and the tracing. That is where NSW in particular has been so successful, but so have other states, Queensland, Western Australia and I believe we will see the same thing in Victoria now as their systems have improved greatly from when we had the second wave. We need to keep COVID out of the country as much as we possibly can because that is also supporting our economic recovery. The borders for now, of course they have to remain closed. The pandemic is raging around the world. The idea that we could open Australia up in that environment is not responsible, it's not sensible. But you made a point earlier about responsible decisions, Karl. We put JobKeeper in and we also decided to take JobKeeper off. Now, that was a decision that was criticised by our opponents, by others who said it should stay in, but we knew you put the measure in place, it's targeted, proportionate, you have a clear exit strategy and that is how we are running the finances, even in the midst of what has been a very big Budget, we also know how to that responsibly and in a very targeted way.

STEFANOVIC: It is a very big Budget. Josh Frydenberg had a very big smile on his face this morning. I thought you might be happier this morning, PM. Everything Ok?

PRIME MINISTER: I'm fine, mate. I appreciate the care and concern. I've got to tell you, Karl, the reason is this. I know, look, budgets are big events and that's all fine, but I just know the fight we're in and the fight we're in, and me as Prime Minister I'm in, is to be protecting Australians at this incredibly difficult time. I am very cognisant of how big those challenges are. It is with me every second of every day. That's where my focus Australians can be assured of will remain. Every single day I'm going to fight this virus to protect lives and livelihoods.

STEFANOVIC: And that's why you won't go to an early election?

PRIME MINISTER: The election is next year, mate. The election is next year. I've said that. I can't control every circumstance in Australian politics, but what I can do is stay focused on the fight that matters and that's the pandemic and securing health and livelihoods of Australians.

STEFANOVIC: Thanks, PM. Appreciate your time today.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks, Karl.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43387

Interview with Michael Rowland, ABC News Breakfast

12 May 2021

Michael Rowland: We are now joined by the Prime Minister Scott Morrison. PM, good morning.

Prime Minister: Good morning, Michael.

Rowland: Spending is far as the eye can see. Is this Budget part economic recovery and part attempted political recovery for the Coalition government?

Prime Minister: This is an economic plan to secure our recovery, Michael. That's what this is. This is all about ensuring that we come through the worst pandemic we've seen in 100 years and that recovery cannot be taken for granted. There are more Australians working today then there was before the pandemic. If we had the same fatality rate that we have seen across the OECD from COVID-19, 30,000 more Australians would have perished during this crisis. We've come a long way, but we have to keep going further. This Budget is about securing that recovery, because it can be risked, it can be lost, the gains can be taken away. Just like we’ve seen in Europe as they go into a double dip recession. We need to keep going on the path that we have set ourselves. Over $300 billion already invested in this plan and that has been upgraded in the Budget we released last night. That is about securing jobs, protecting lives, about protecting livelihoods.

Rowland: When you speak about risk, the big risk, of course, is the ongoing pandemic. Let's turn to the vaccine rollout. The Government committing an extra $1.9 billion. You talk in the Budget Papers about having a population-wide vaccine rollout in place by the end of the year. Does that mean every Australian will be fully vaccinated come December 31?

Prime Minister: No. There are assumptions that go to the rollout. They are not policy settings. We will continue to roll the vaccine out, as we have been, and accelerating it. From next week we will see over 50s being able to go to GP clinics all around the country, to our GPs. We will soon hit 3 million Australians vaccinated. We're already over 10 per cent of the adult population that is eligible for the vaccination. Over 30 per cent for those aged over 70. We will continue to do everything we possibly can to ensure we're progressing that vaccination program. But, more importantly, when it comes to our economy, the reason our economy has been able to perform strongly is when we shut those borders, we have allowed our domestic economy to continue to grow. That is what is driving or jobs growth. So it is important we secure Australia from the incursion of COVID-19 into the country and it is important we keep Australia within our borders open as possible, because it's those closures internally that can really risk Australia's economic recovery. And so we need to keep creating that confidence, keep providing that support. Australians have done incredibly well during the course of this pandemic. We need to keep going, we need to keep going further and this plan for our recovery will ensure that we stay on that course.

Rowland: Prime Minister, Melbourne is on edge, as you would know this morning, care of that case of community transmission. I know you talk about hotel quarantine being 99.99 per cent effective. This came from hotel quarantine in South Australia. Isn't it time and shouldn’t it have been time last night for the Government to at least commit to what the Victorian government is proposing to do, and that is build a separate Howard Springs-type purpose-built facility? Where was the money for that?

Prime Minister: Well, as you say, we've already invested in the Howard Springs facility. Half a billion dollars. This month it goes from 850 to 2,000 people, which will enable us to be particularly bringing those commercial repatriation flights for people coming back from India. The Victorian government has put forward, I think, a very good proposal and we're working through the detail of that right now. And so we will work with the states and territories. Hotel quarantine is one of many links in the chain and what we have seen, whether it's been in New South Wales, indeed, Western Australia, Queensland, and now I believe what we will see in Victoria, it's not just hotel quarantine, which as you rightly say, 99.99 per cent effectiveness rate. If there any other country that has a more secure system than that, I would like you to tell me who it is. But beyond that, it is the ring of containment that is by contact tracing. The Victorian second wave was not just a product of obviously a quarantine failure, it was the product then of not being able to contain it once it got out. Now, all the other states and territories, and I think Victoria, has done the work to ensure that even when the things occasionally happen, and they will, that we can move quickly to ensure that that is contained. And that's how we have been so successful. I have seen the states and territories only improve their effectiveness on that tracing and testing, which ensures that we can keep Australians safe through COVID.

Rowland: You can increase Howard Springs, though, to 3,000. That's the maximum capacity. It is only up to 2,000. What is stopping you doing that?

Prime Minister: It is also used for other purposes. But we have got it from 850 to 2,000, Michael. And that's also a function of-

Rowland: What are the purposes, excuse the interruption. What other purposes is it being used for at the moment?

Prime Minister: It has been used for other purposes. My point is it is also about workforce, Michael. I mean, a quarantine facility isn't just beds. It's actually about the workforce you have to bring to support that and the facilities that need to be supported through infection control and support services of police and others. So they are the things that need to be brought to bear in a quarantine facility. And those are particularly involved around our major state capitals, where the flights actually come in. That's why it's important that we continue to work with the state and territories, so we have got a 2,000-bed facility. We're spending half a billion dollars on that, as it was recommended to do in the Halton Review. Now we're working closely with the Victorian proposal and we will see how we can work together on that initiative.

Rowland: Lots of potential election sweeteners in the Budget, but you are on record, Prime Minister, of describing yourself as a full-termer, full term means an election not until next year. Will you hold on to that pledge to the Australian people?

Prime Minister: The fight I'm in is against the pandemic. That's the fight I'm in. That's what we're contesting this year and I believe we will be for some time to come. It's the pandemic, it's the virus that threatens people's jobs and livelihoods and, indeed, their health. So, the only fight I'm focused on, the contest I'm focused on, is fighting this pandemic to ensure we can protect the lives and livelihoods of Australians. I will leave the politics to others. As I’ve said, the election is next year. I can't foresee all the circumstances that can contribute to things like that in this country. But my focus isn't on that. My focus is on this pandemic. That's why this is a recovery plan to get us through this pandemic and get us beyond that. Australia is doing better than almost every single country in the world and that can all be placed at risk, unless we continue down that path, going further, ensuring we're doing the things that back Australians in. Because it's Australians, their efforts, their sacrifices, them keeping Australians in jobs, just backed in by the Budget. Lower taxes, incentives for investment, supporting our manufacturing industries, securing supply chains, building the infrastructure, investing in the skills and training with more apprentices. All these things designed to drive growth in our economy, to ensure that we can continue to keep Australians safe, that we can keep Australians in jobs and in work, and we can improve the resilience and security of our country into the future.

Rowland: Prime Minister, we will leave it there. Thank you for joining us this morning.

Prime Minister: Thank you very much, Michael.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43386

Interview with David Koch, Sunrise

12 May 2021

David Koch: Prime Minister, morning to you. Seems to be universally accepted. Are you happy with the reaction?

Prime Minister: Well what's important, David, is that we’re in the middle of a pandemic, we’re still in the middle of this pandemic. This is our second pandemic Budget and this Budget is all about securing that economic recovery from that pandemic. I mean, Europe’s going into a double-dip recession, there are 800,000 cases a day, and we need as a Government to keep leaning in to ensure that the Australian economy comes through, we keep people in jobs and we put more people in jobs, because the more people there are in jobs, the more we’re able to support the economy and the Budget which is guaranteeing those essential services, whether it’s aged care, mental health or so many other things that Australians rely on. We’ve done very well as a country. We’re backing Australians in to get those results that we’ve been able to achieve through the pandemic, but we’ve got a long way to go, and it can all be lost unless we continue to do what works and we go further.

Koch: And I know we need to create jobs, but you talk to a lot of businesses and they say we just can't find the people to hire. Job vacancy rates are at record highs. Where are all the workers going to come from?

Prime Minister: Well this is why there's so much investment in skills training and apprenticeships, additional places in university, all of this to ensure that we deal with those workforce challenges. You’re absolutely right, the three big challenges we’re facing in our economy is getting that workforce, embracing the digital economy, which is changing the world, having reliable, affordable energy there to support businesses, particularly in manufacturing. The economic plan that is in this Budget to secure that recovery is about supporting those businesses, supporting innovation. There’s a new patent box which is there for research and development to see new inventions come through our manufacturing sector. Critical supply chains in areas like medicines and so on, to ensure that in the future we can always produce what we need to produce here in this country to deal with any situation that arises. So it is a plan to secure this recovery. We can't take our recovery for granted. There are more people working today than there was than when the pandemic hit. There’s no other major advanced economy in the world today that can say that. Australians have achieved that and this plan is backing those Australians in by investing in them being in jobs, investing in them investing in their businesses, because that is the way you grow your economy to support the services that Australians rely on.

Koch: The opposition leader told us just before the 7 o'clock news that there’s $3.8 billion unaccounted for in this Budget that you've squirrelled away in what he calls slush funds, because this is an election Budget. Is he right?

Prime Minister: No. The only opposition I'm focused on at the moment is the pandemic, that's what I'm fighting. Because it’s the pandemic that threatens people's health and threatens people’s jobs. And that’s why this is a pandemic to combat that. I’ll let others focus on the politics. As Prime Minister, I have to lead the country through this pandemic, and that’s the opposition that can take away things from people in this country - their health, their jobs, their economic security. So this Budget is very focused on addressing that pandemic. That plan now is over $300 billion, keeping Australians in work, protecting lives and protecting livelihoods. We’ve done well up to this point as Australians, and with Government supporting Australians. We see Australians as the answer as to how we come through this pandemic and we’re backing them in with investment incentives, with lower taxes, with health services that support them get through this very difficult time. That’s the opposition, that's the challenge, that's who I’m fighting. I’ll let the Labor Party fight amongst themselves.

Koch: Okay, a couple of things to hone in on the child care initiative. Why is it only starting in July next year? Why not, why not July this year? Why wait a year?

Prime Minister: Because of the changes you need to make to the systems in order, to be able to make the payments to people. Now if that can be done sooner David, then we will certainly, we will certainly move on that. When I was previously the Minister for Social Services and we were responsible for those changes many years ago. The systems changes that are required are quite complex, so we're not going to overpromise and underdeliver here. If it's possible to do these things earlier then we will certainly look at that. But right now what I can tell you is we can start it on that day, that is the date when our department says that we can get those changes in place. If we could do it sooner, we would. But right now that is the advice we have, and we’ve been following that expert ...

Koch: Seems a long time, 15 months, to get systems up and going.

Prime Minister: Well I can tell you, these systems have, you're dealing with millions of, millions of people around the country that use these systems and operators. And as a result, you know, we will work night and day to ensure we can do this as soon as possible. But what I can tell Australians in this Budget is that when it can be delivered by, and if it can be done sooner than that, then we will.

Koch: Okay, we’ll keep following that up. One point, almost $2 billion in funding for the vaccine rollout. Is there any funding for, for more quarantine places that people can go to? More Howard Springs equivalent, or is it just all to get vaccine?

Prime Minister: Well as you know we’ve put a half a billion dollars into the resilience facility up there in Howard Springs, and that’s got a capacity of 2,000. We’ve just gone from 850 last month, and in this month we’ll get to 2,000. Now, there’s a very good proposal that has come forward from the Victorian Government and we’re looking at that very closely, and I thank them for what is a very comprehensive proposal. And in that proposal they make it very clear that the state would run these type, this facility because they have the workforce and they have the systems, as they do right across all states and territories. But I’ll keep working closely with all the states and territories on those issues, their state public health orders they’re enforcing there, but as we say, we've put the, we’ve put the half a billion dollars into that facility in Howard Springs. When it comes to the vaccine itself, that’s some $7 billion we’re investing in that rollout. So we’re sharing these costs, but when it comes to what the Commonwealth has done through the pandemic, add everything up, everything the states and territories have done, double it, go more, and that's what the Commonwealth has invested to get us where we are today. You know David, if we had the average fatality rate of the OECD countries in the world today, more than 30,000 Australians additionally would have perished as a result of this pandemic. That's what Australians have prevented from happening, and with more Australians in work today than before the pandemic, I’d rather be in this country than anywhere else in the world. I'm so proud of what Australians have achieved.

Koch: Yep, absolutely. I think we all are. Look, the other big criticism of the Budget is you’ve splashed the cash, you put it on the credit card, because Government debt is, on my calculations, going to rise by 50 per cent, mind you the interest payments will only rise 18 per cent. What do you say to people saying, `look, we’re just going into hock with all of this’?

Prime Minister: We’re in the middle of the worst pandemic we’ve seen in 100 years. The worst economic crisis we’ve seen around the world since the Great Depression, and we’re rebuilding the country through this pandemic and onto the other side of it. That’s what’s necessary in this environment. This is a, this is a pandemic Budget to address the times that we have, and it is true, as the Reserve Bank Governor and others have said, borrowing costs are low at the moment and so Australians need their Government to lean in at this time. Monetary policies basically spent. We don’t have population growth because we need to keep our borders closed to keep Australians safe. And as a result, it still remains the task of the Federal Government to be there. But we’re responsible about it. Just remember what we did with JobKeeper - we knew when to bring it in and we knew when to take it off. That was a responsible economic decision. Others wanted just to see it run on forever. We knew that wasn't the responsible thing to do. So we will do the things that are absolutely necessary to get Australians through this crisis, and the way we do that is with the plan that backs them in. This is a plan for economic recovery and it can all be lost unless we keep doing what is working and we keep our focus and determination to keep bringing Australians through what is the worst pandemic we’ve seen in a century.

Koch: Alright, Prime Minister, thanks for your time.

Prime Minister: Thanks a lot, David.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43385

Interview with Sabra Lane, ABC AM

12 May 2021

Prime Minister: Good morning, Sabra.

Sabra Lane: This Budget is banking on everyone who wants a COVID vaccine getting one by the end of the year. So is the Government now guaranteeing that deadline?

Prime Minister: No, there's assumptions in the Budget. But as we've said repeatedly, we're working hard to get that first dose to all Australians as soon as possible. And when we're able to get a further understanding of how this will play out, well, we are updating people every day on how we're progressing the vaccine. We’ll hit around about three million people having been vaccinated soon. We've already got over 10 per cent of the eligible adult population that is vaccinated and a third of those aged over 70. So we'll keep progressing through that. But what is going to guarantee what's in this Budget is Australians continue to getting in jobs. That's what is actually sitting behind this Budget, backing Australians to get people into jobs and to get the businesses to be investing in this country. That's what this Budget is relying on.

Lane: We'll dig into more of that shortly. But if that deadline is not met, or people continue to hesitate about getting the vaccine, will that undermine Australia's economic recovery?

Prime Minister: No. I think what we will see, though, Sabra, is that we'll continue to make progress with the vaccination program. I mean, what we're seeing at the moment, and you're right to point out that this is a pandemic Budget. We are in the midst of a raging pandemic and all the health measures that we're putting in place to support the health of Australians are critical to our success. But the real issue that is keeping Australia's economy moving ahead in the way it is at the moment is we are not allowing the virus to come into this country. I mean, that is what has ensured that over the past 18 months we've been more successful than almost any other developed country in the world. I mean, Europe is going into a double dip recession. The strength of the jobs growth we've seen has become about by protecting Australia from the incursion of the virus into this country and border protection and keeping our borders closed has been critical to that.

Lane: There’s $68 billion in new government spending, much of that is on aged care and mental health and tax cuts. When will you explain to taxpayers how some of this debt’s going to be paid off?

Prime Minister: Well, what we see at the moment is the Reserve Bank Governor has advised for a long time with borrowing rates where they are at the moment it gives the Government the opportunity to step in to ensure that during the pandemic we can keep our economy whole, keep doing what's working, ensuring that more Australians are getting into work. Let's not forget that there's 500,000 people more employed than they were when we did the Budget just in October of last year. And there are 200,000 more employed than we thought would be the case at the end- in December of last year. I mean, we have more people employed now, 13.1 million Australians employed today, than they were before when the pandemic hit in March of last year. There are few developed economies in the world, Sabra, that can actually say they're in that position. So getting people in jobs, Sabra, is what restores the Budget because people go from taking support payments to paying taxes. That's how we brought the Budget back to balance before we went into the pandemic.

Lane: But to the point of the question, when and how will you explain to taxpayers how that debt will be paid off?

Prime Minister: Well, I was just doing that, Sabra. What we're doing is we're growing the economy by getting Australians to invest, by getting Australians into jobs. The way you actually support a Budget is by ensuring that there are taxpayers in the economy. You don't have taxpayers if you don't have people in jobs. And that's why this Budget has to focus in the middle of a pandemic, when monetary policy is basically spent, when you've got global borders shut because of the raging pandemic all around the world, which is worse today than it was a year ago. So the suggestion, the suggestion that somehow you might open up to that raging pandemic now, I think would be one of the worst things you could do for our economy. And so we have to continue to strengthen our economy. I mean, we've seen the results of what we've done to date and we need to go further and that's what we are doing in this Budget to ensure we get more Australians into work. That's why this Budget is so focused on getting people in jobs.

Lane: On aged care, the past is a good indication of future performance. The Government has struggled to meet demand for aged care home packages and now you're promising 80,000 new packages during the next two financial years. How will you make sure those are actually delivered, including appropriately qualified staff to care for older Australians?

Prime Minister: Well, I think that is one of the great challenges, and that's what was highlighted in the Royal Commission. And we've always understood, that's why at every single Budget update for years now, we've added more and more and more in-home care places. 

Lane: Sure, but how will you guarantee it? You’ve struggled to meet that.

Prime Minister: By investing in the… we’ve been adding an additional 1,000 places every week now for months. And we've been doing that because we've been supporting it with the funding that ensures this can be delivered. But a huge part of the aged care package is continuing investing in creating the workforce, some 30,000, 30,000 skilled places to get the workforce we need. Now, our response to the Aged Care Royal Commission, I think is a responsible one. It's over five years and it's understood that the scale of change that we're doing, you cannot do overnight. The system won't cope with it. And you can put people at real risk. Our focus here is very important that Australians can age with dignity and respect. That's what these changes are designed to achieve. And the governance reforms, how the funding is delivered, the oversight that is there for the condition and all of those measures are there to back in what is an enormous investment to really start improving a system that has taken 30 years, 30 years. That's what the Royal Commission was talking about. The problems we're dealing with go back a long time and many governments have wrestled with this and we're certainly addressing ourselves to this so Australians can age with dignity and respect.

Lane: And the Government is talking about beefing up governance of the sector. What will happen to the providers who fail to meet new standards?

Prime Minister: Well, the same thing that has happened for those as the Commissioner has brought down reports and ultimately, they could lose their ability to operate in the sector. But what we've been focusing on in this Budget-

Lane: But that just hasn’t happened in the past, Prime Minister.

Prime Minister: No, it has actually, Sabra, it has. But what is important is that we focus on ensuring we've got a viable-

Lane: Sorry, Prime Minister, we’ve had inquiry after inquiry. Australia got into this position where the Royal Commission found that there was a situation of neglect in the sector. That didn't happen.

Prime Minister: It is the case that on many occasions the sanctions that have been handed down by the Commission and acted upon it resulted in very serious sanctions to operators. That is true. But what we're doing is beefing up the capacity for the cop on the beat in this sector to be able to do their job. I don't deny that there aren’t serious problems here, Sabra, I think there are very serious problems. That's why I called the Royal Commission and that's why we've responded with $17.7 billion to ensure that we can address the quality issues, the training issues, the workforce issues, the governance issues, to ensure that with the care issues, the 200 minutes a day for each and every resident, of the home care places to give people choices. I said in the Parliament yesterday that our population aged over 65 has grown since we first came to government by just under a quarter. The real increase in funding, even just to now without these changes, is over 50 per cent. It's almost 200 per cent when it comes to what we put into in-home aged care places. So the challenge is huge. That is true. The demand has been great, but our funding and support into the sector has been increasing well above the growth in the population that depends on these services for many years.

Lane: The suicide prevention goal is zero. When do you want to achieve that by?

Prime Minister: Well, I think this is a goal that all Australians would want to achieve and we know how difficult it is and you can have no other goal than that, Sabra. You can have no other goal than that. We're realistic about the nature of this challenge. But how can you have a policy in this area where that is not what you're trying to achieve with any country. Whether any government, whether any society can achieve that, I think is incredibly difficult. But I can tell you, that's the goal that we should have as a country that does not want to see Australians die by suicide.

Lane: A billion dollars has been set aside for frontline services to help victims of family violence. That's over four years. Those agencies argue that there's a need for that kind of money each year. If you hear at the July summit that this money is not enough, will you commit to reviewing that?

Prime Minister: Well, you're right to say that the national plan that we've been involved with, going back to- it was first initiated by Julia Gillard, has seen states and territories work together with the Commonwealth to deliver these services to. Our Government has put a billion-

Lane: And the point of the question, sorry, Prime Minister.

Prime Minister: I'm getting to that, Sabra. We’ve put a billion dollars into that plan already, and last night we've doubled that. So we've gone for a billion dollars and up until now and we're putting in another billion dollars on top of that. So when we get together with the states and territories and fashion the next agenda on women's safety, then we've already put a lot there on the table. But we will always work in a bipartisan way with the states and territories to make sure we're addressing the issue of women's safety and children's safety, too, I would stress. And so we've demonstrated our ability to do that and meet the challenges that are there and to respond to the need that is there. Whether it's helping women go through the justice system or migrant or refugee women who can be terrible victims of violence and coercion and abuse, that's what this package deals with. And we will work with the states and territories to address the need, as the Commonwealth Government always has with the states and territories. No politics there, shouldn't be. This is about the safety of women and indeed of children.

Lane: Prime Minister, we're out of time. Thank you.

Prime Minister: Thanks a lot, Sabra. Thanks for your time.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43384

A New National Strategy to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse

11 May 2021

Prime Minister, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and Cabinet

The Commonwealth Government will provide $146 million over four years for the first phase of a new National Strategy to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse.

The Strategy will be a 10 year, whole-of-nation framework to establish a coordinated and consistent approach to prevent and better respond to child sexual abuse in Australia.

“Every child deserves safety and protection and today’s new measures will prevent, detect and respond to child sexual abuse committed within Australia, online, and by Australians overseas,” the Prime Minister said.

Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Ben Morton, said measures being announced today will lay the foundation for the landmark new National Strategy, which will be released in full in September 2021.

“The Commonwealth has a leadership and coordination role in tackling child sexual abuse, and many of these measures address our responsibilities under the Commonwealth Criminal Code,” Assistant Minister Morton said.

“These measures will deliver on commitments made in response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse.

“Any sexual crime against a child is one too many, and this National Strategy aims to deliver ambitious and world-leading measures to prevent all forms of child sexual abuse.”

The National Strategy will complement and align with other national policy frameworks, such as the current and future National Plans to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children, and Closing the Gap.

Key initiatives include:

• $59.9. million worth of initiatives to be delivered by the Australian Federal Police to combat child sexual abuse, including an additional $35.4 million for new frontline operational activities to keep our children safe.

• $13.9 million to bolster the capabilities of AUSTRAC, the Australian Institute of Criminology, the Australian Border Force, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, and the Department of Home Affairs to equip intelligence, research and border protection agencies to disrupt the cash flow behind child sexual abuse, prevent and disrupt livestreamed child sexual abuse, intercept material and offenders at the border, and enhance our ability to identify offenders within the community.

• $4.1 million for the Department of Home Affairs to work with Indo-Pacific partners on regional policy and legislative responses to child sexual abuse.

• $2.95 million to help the Department of Home Affairs build relationships with the digital industry to drive a coordinated and collaborative charge against offenders’ exploitation of online platforms to commit child sexual abuse related crimes.

• $24.1 million to strengthen Commonwealth capacity to prosecute perpetrators of child sexual abuse.

• $16.8 million for the Attorney-General’s Department to enhance and expand legal assistance concerning child sexual abuse.

• $10.9 million for the National Indigenous Australians Agency to co-design place-based Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander healing approaches to support survivors of child sexual abuse.

• $4.7 million for Sport Integrity Australia to enhance child safeguarding in sport.

• $3.0 million to the eSafety Commissioner to deliver targeted online education programs to support parents and families to prevent online harms to children.

• $5 million to expand the National Office for Child Safety’s national leadership role to deliver the National Strategy to Prevent Child Sexual Abuse.

Further announcements will be made with the full National Strategy, including additional measures to be jointly delivered by the Commonwealth and its state and territory partners.

The Australian Government is working with states and territories as well as non-government stakeholders to finalise the National Strategy for release in September 2021. For more information, visit: National Office for Child Safety.

https://pmtranscripts.pmc.gov.au/release/transcript-43383