Speeches
Remarks, International Women's Day Parliamentary Breakfast
14 February 2019
Canberra, ACT
Good morning, how good is Aunty Violet, how good was that? Thank you so much for your welcome to country. Can I also acknowledge that Ngunnawal people and elders past and present and indeed emerging, and pay my respects to Indigenous peoples all around Australia. It’s a very important day today for Indigenous Australians, for all Australians in fact, as we gather in the Parliament and we deliver the Closing the Gap report. And I can tell you in terms of a future Aboriginal Prime Minister Jacinta price is running in the seat of Lingiari and she's fantastic. So we wish her all the best.
Well good morning and thank you for being here today. Can I acknowledge the many parliamentary colleagues who are here with us today. Of course Kelly and Bill and Penny and Richard who are here. Can I particularly though, and I'm sure they won't mind, that we have so many people I'm not going to acknowledge each individually but I want to pay tribute to Julie Bishop for the wonderful work she's done all around the world for women.
[Applause]
Starting early gives us some time to reflect on the extraordinary achievements of women all around Australia and all around the world. Because the story of Australia is a story of strong women. Women who have had the courage of their convictions who have lived out their beliefs. They haven't all been famous. But they have all been brave. They've all been courageous. They have all showed a determination, a compassion, and a love that has extended beyond generations.
My late great great Aunt was Dame Mary Gilmore as the Member for Kennedy, as Bob said to the House the other day. And she has been growing up in our family, she was the great icon of our family. She wouldn't have shared the same political views of me today, I suspect. But that said, she was a great Australian woman who championed so many important causes and blazed a trail in this country that left her on the ten dollar note. But on this day of all days, Dame Mary was a woman who understood the disposition of Indigenous peoples probably better than anyone of her time and was speaking out about it at the time when it was neither fashionable nor popular and she blazed a great trail. And I'll be very pleased to stand in this Parliament today and speak of these issues knowing that Dame Mary had gone before me. She was courageous and determined.
It is those qualities that we can draw on to work to ensure equal opportunity and more choice for women in this country, something that I know Kelly O'Dwyer has been a real leader on I want to congratulate you Kelly for the work you've done in this portfolio.
[Applause]
Last year Kelly addressed the National Press Club and she had something to say that I think is timeless. She said, “Gender equality isn't about pitting girls against boys. Or women against men. It's about recognising that girls and women deserve an equal stake in our economy and our society. It's not about conflict.” It's about what the message of the day is about. Which is about doing this together. She said, “Life is not a zero sum game, we’re on a life journey together.” And she's right about that. Kelly said she was speaking as the mother of a son and a daughter. I suspect on occasion, those boys and girls are against each other occasionally but I'm sure Mom and Dad sort it out.
I'm the blessed father of two beautiful young girls and they are of course the joy of my and Jenny's life. And my girls, like all of our children, they allow us as parents to see the world through new eyes, through young eyes, through fresh eyes. And when I see the girls I want them to be able to pursue their passions. I want them to be absolutely confident that they can chase their dreams whatever they are. And receive the same rewards for their hard work and their beliefs and their passions as their male counterparts and indeed I've had the blessing to do over my life. I want them as adults to have real choices so they can decide what works best for them and their families and not be judged for it. I want them to be free from harassment and violence. I want them to be able to walk the streets of Australia. And I want them to be safe in their home, both today and always in the future.
Now our priorities. As the Prime Minister I've laid out three priorities from the very first day. Keeping our economy strong, keeping Australians safe and keeping Australians together. It is very much the theme of today. Economic opportunities, the choices and security that can come with it at the heart of what my Government is seeking to do for a more prosperous, safe and cohesive Australia.
Last year's landmark release of the Women's Economic Security Statement by Kelly delivered for women by helping boost their skills and employability, backing them to start their own businesses importantly, and giving women more options to secure their financial independence when they need it most particularly in their retirement. And that is the agenda we're working to with increased flexibility for paid parental leave and supporting entrepreneurship opportunities for women and the STEM programs for girls, which I know Karen Andrews as a keen and passionate advocate for as Science Minister.
And we've asked the Sex Discrimination Commissioner to inquire into sexual harassment in the workplace. We're fully engaged in keeping women safe by working together to combat violence against women and this is a shared and equal objective of all members of our Parliament. Too many women dying. Horrifically on average one woman every week. And far too many others suffering in silence. We've all reflected on the horrific death of Aiia Maasarwe which rocked the country and she was a guest to our country, she was a visitor to our country. But it really did shake us. It wasn't the first time this had happened, obviously. But it was an event I think that I think cried out to the country that this must stop, and stop it must.
Since 2015 we have invested more than $350 million in women's safety and on Monday I was proud to announce that the first funding to support the fourth Action Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children. A process started under the previous Government, a process passionately continued under our Government. The $78 million investment in emergency accommodation and in-home safety funding reflects two vital principles. First, we can’t ask women and children to leave dangerous homes if they had no place to go to. And where it is safe, women and children survivors should be helped remain in their homes and in their communities. They are the victims. They should not be the ones paying the price.
We'll be announcing further funding to support the Action Plan in the lead up to the release of that plan later this year. And we're also keeping women safe with the Women at Risk Visa sub-class. This was one of the first things I did when I was Minister for Immigration to lift the intake of women through our Women at Risk Program through our refugee and humanitarian program. And I'm pleased to say that since 2013, 7,046 women and children have found safe refuge in Australia since 2013. And that includes more than 2,100 in 2017-18 year alone.
It's not just about keeping women safe and their children. It's also about being able to live the economy that enables women to prosper and to flourish. An economy that determines choices and opportunities, and only a stronger economy can deliver those opportunities. A stronger Medicare, more and cheaper medicines, more affordable childcare. All of this depends on the strength of our economy and the entrepreneurs and small and family businesses right across this country which provide the prosperity for the country to live from.
And it's about jobs, because it's always about jobs at the end of the day. Whether you're leaving school, raising children, or preparing for retirement. Not having a job either yourself or within a family or being worried about losing a job robs you of those choices and of your independence. So over the last five and a half years with more than 1.2 million new jobs new have been created and more than half being taken up by women some 690,000, in fact. This is something we're very pleased to see. There are now more than 5.9 million Australian women in employment and female participation in our workforce is at record highs. We've appointed a record 45.8 per cent of government board positions to women under our Government. And the gender pay gap is moving in the right direction, now down to a record low of 14.5 per cent.
So we’re for jobs, but not just for the pay check. A job creating economy makes families stronger, communities stronger. Men and women stronger. Economic Opportunity and the greater choice and security that can come with it are at the heart of what we're seeking to achieve in our vision for a prosperous, safe and cohesive Australia. I want to thank the UN Women National Committee in Australia for hosting this breakfast today to support UN women's programs globally and to enhance the prosperity, economic participation and safety of women in our region and around the world. I want to thank you for your attention today and I hope you will enjoy the day's proceedings and Aunty Violet, thank you again so much.
Closing the Gap
14 February 2019
Mr Morrison: (Cook—Prime Minister) (10:02): by leave—I present a copy of Closing the gap: Prime Minister's report 2019.
Introduction
As we always do in this place, we meet on the land of the Ngunawal people. I acknowledge and pay my respects and our respects to Ngunawal elders past, present and emerging, and, indeed, to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across this nation, whether here today or right across our land.
I also acknowledge our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders who are also democratically elected representatives of this parliament: the member for Hasluck, the member for Barton and Senators Dodson and McCarthy, and I welcome them here.
I also welcome the co-chairs of my Indigenous Advisory Council, Andrea Mason and Roy Ah-See, and all the other members of that council, and all those who have travelled so far to be here today, including Warren Mundine—it's great to have you here as a great Aboriginal leader, Warren. I also want to acknowledge the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Senator Scullion, who has joined us here in the chamber.
And I also want to acknowledge the member for Warringah, both as the special envoy and as someone who has had a profound impact on my understanding and appreciation of Indigenous Australians and the challenges that they face in our country. I want to acknowledge the member for Warringah's longstanding compassion, advocacy, commitment and dedication to the First Peoples of our nation.
Reflection
I want Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children to have the same opportunities as all other children growing up in Australia. That is a goal that I believe is shared by every single member of this parliament. But it's not true for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children growing up in Australia today. It's never been true, and I don't know when it will be true, and that is the truth we must confront today.
I remind myself of this truth each day as I walk into my office, as I've done for many years, in different offices. In my office is a photo of a plaque embedded in a rock memorial at a remote outstation in Central Australia that I visited with the member for Warringah and Senator Scullion many years ago—in fact, back in 2009. It's outside a small school that was attended by Shirley Ngalkin.
When Shirley was away from her community in that remote part of Central Australia in 1998 she was raped and drowned by teenage boys in Hermannsburg. She was six years old. She would be a young woman now, probably raising her own family—perhaps even her own daughters.
On her memorial it says, 'I am Jesus' little lamb', with a prayer that she now rests in his care. And I pray that is true, because we certainly failed to provide that care here—and we still do.
I'd like to tell you that this no longer happens, but we all know it does, even though we're often told that we shouldn't say so and shouldn't talk about these things. But we should. Young girls are taking their lives in remote communities, as we've seen just over this past summer. So are young boys. In too many communities, lives are being consumed in a hopeless dysfunction that seems to defy any sensible response.
While I'm not going to pretend today that this situation does not remain in an unforgiveable state, I am going to say that we will all never rest as a nation until we change this for all time—all of us, together.
I'm here to say today, though, that there is hope, that progress is being made and can be further made so that one day someone will be able to stand here and say that a young Indigenous boy or girl is now growing up in an Australia where they have the same chances and opportunity in life as any other Australian. That is what closing the gap is all about.
Closing the Gap accountability
In 2008 we began this process of closing the gap. Successive Prime Ministers have reported since on our progress on meeting these national goals. It was born out of the National Apology. That was one of the first acts that I was involved in, in this place, coming in as a member of parliament, and I was pleased to do so. Closing the Gap was a recognition that words without deeds are fruitless, and Prime Minister Rudd should forever be commended for that apology and the process he began. That process that began in 2008 was born of a very good heart. It recognised that accountability is vital if we are to bring about a change and meaningful process that has eluded our nation for more than two centuries.
But I must say that, while it was guided by the best of intentions, the process has reflected something of what I believe is the hubris of this place: it did not truly seek to partner with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It believed that a top-down approach could achieve that change that was, rightly, desired—that Canberra could change it all with lofty goals and bureaucratic targets. That's not true. It was set up to fail—and has, on its own tests. And today I'm calling that out.
This was not a true partnership—not with the states and territories or, most importantly, with Indigenous peoples themselves. Yes, there was more funding, more programs, more workers—and more accountability, too.
But this was just another version of what we were already doing—tragically, so often unsuccessfully in so many different forms, for generations. So, while there has been incremental and meaningful progress on many fronts, as of 2019 only two of the seven Closing the Gap targets are on track. What we're doing has to change, and our government is leading a process to change it.
That is why, two years ago—and I acknowledge the former Prime Minister, Mr Turnbull—we embarked on a Closing the Gap refresh—because our efforts were not meeting our worthy ambitions, shared by all us.
Late last year, a coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peak bodies—and I acknowledge Pat, who is here with us today—made representations to me about closing the gap.
They came to me seeking a real partnership, one where we listen, work together and decide together how future policies are developed, especially at a regional and at a local level. This is a message I've also heard from Andrea and the Indigenous Advisory Council and Roy, and I thank them for the candidness of that message.
At COAG, together with the premiers and chief ministers, in December last year, all governments committed to share ownership of, and responsibility for, jointly agreed frameworks, targets and ongoing monitoring of a refreshed Closing the Gap agenda, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples at its heart. I thank all the premiers and chief ministers for their spirit, enthusiasm, dedication and commitment for joining this task. COAG asked that this work be finalised by the middle of this year. This is a major step toward the genuine and mutually respectful formal partnership between governments and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians that will empower individuals and allow communities to thrive.
Governments fail when accountabilities are unclear, when investment is poorly targeted, when systems aren't integrated and when we don't learn from evidence. This is true not only for Indigenous policy but also for any area of policy. That is why clear accountability will be at the centre of a new approach to closing the gap, with states, territories, the Commonwealth government and Indigenous Australians having clear responsibilities for delivering on targets. This is also why the progress we jointly make will be subject to regular independent Indigenous-led reviews. This is about delivering action on the ground. It's about giving us all the best chance for success, to match the best of our motives and intentions.
Our Indigenous communities in regional, remote and urban Australia need the jobs and economic growth that make true aspiration viable, and we need a renewed focus on education so that the next generation of Indigenous men and women will have every opportunity to participate in and contribute to our economic prosperity.
As we commence this refresh of Closing the Gap, it is important to report on what has occurred over the past 10 years of reports. While it is important to acknowledge the gap that exists and the gap that must be closed, we must be careful not to take a deficit mentality to our task. This is a long journey of many steps, and we cannot allow the enormity of that task, as great as it is, to overwhelm us and to overwhelm our appreciation for what we are achieving.
If we focus only on the gap and not on what is being achieved, we are at risk of losing heart. We may fail to recognise achievements and strengths that can be built upon. Sure, those achievements are still not enough. But, in this space, every achievement is hard won in every life, in every community and in every family.
Every Indigenous child that gets into school and stays in school is a victory that should be claimed. Every Indigenous child born healthy and that remains healthy is a victory that must be claimed. Every Indigenous parent in every town, in every place, who gets a job and stays in a job is a victory and it must be claimed, because it changes generations when it happens—as Warren Mundine pointed out to me not that long ago from his own experience. Every Indigenous woman and every Indigenous child who is kept safe from abuse every hour of every day is a victory that must be claimed. And every night a family can rest their heads in a home that is clean, safe and not overcrowded is a victory that must be claimed. This process must claim it's victories, while being honest about its failures and shortcomings. Because it is the victories upon which further success is built, and our failings from which lessons will and must be learned—so let's turn to those.
Life Expectancy
Over the past 10 years the life expectancy of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians has increased. Men born between 2015 to 2017 can expect to live for an additional 4.1 years and women 2.5 years compared to those born 10 years earlier. It's an improvement that is encouraging. It points to better work being undertaken, drawing together the different threads of health: physical, social, emotional and mental. This progress is the culmination of incremental progress in communities across Australia.
Across Australia there are hundreds of services making a meaningful difference. In Queensland, the Institute for Urban Indigenous Health provides clinics, eye examinations, dental examinations and support to deal with addictions. In Central Australia, the Purple House is taking dialysis services to patients—with a mobile dialysis unit, the Purple Truck. And in communities across Australia it requires sustained effort. It's intensive, and it's absolutely vital. However, despite the progress, we are not on track to close the gap on life expectancy by 2031.
Child Mortality
Since 2008 Indigenous child mortality rates have fallen by 10 per cent. The child mortality rate is a rate per 100,000 children, and so, with a small population, the rate does move around a lot from year to year. That means we have to be very cautious about any claims that we make of improvement.
While the Indigenous child mortality rate has fallen, the non-Indigenous infant mortality rates have fallen at a greater rate. While we welcome both falls, the gap has not narrowed. But there are positive signs: the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mothers attending antenatal care has risen from 41 per cent in 2010 to 60 per cent in 2016; very importantly, the maternal smoking rate has decreased from 54 per cent in 2015 to 43 per cent in 2016; and we are seeing significant increases in immunisation rates. I acknowledge the work being done on the ground that is making meaningful differences.
In Queensland, the Apunipima Cape York Health Council's Indigenous health workers, through the Baby One Program, are conducting health checks, immunisation and treatments in homes and through clinics. In the Northern Territory, a team of Aboriginal women is helping young mothers through the Nurse-Family Partnership Program and imparting an understanding of what contributes to good health and wellbeing. This is work that is extremely targeted and helping families make the best choices when it comes to the health and wellbeing of their young children.
Early Childhood Education
The target to have 95 per cent of Indigenous children in early childhood education by 2025 is on track. In 2017, 95 per cent of Indigenous children were enrolled in early childhood education. New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and the ACT now have enrolments at the 95 per cent benchmark rate or above.
We should note that attendance rates for Indigenous children were lower in remote areas—particularly very remote areas—and up to 16 percentage points lower than the rates for Indigenous children in other areas. So there is still work to do. Nevertheless, there is progress overall and this should be celebrated, as I have said, because enrolment and attendance are precursors to improving developmental outcomes ahead of attending school. Much of this work has been supported by national partnership agreements with the states and territories.
Educational Outcomes
Since 2008, there have been improvements in schooling outcomes. The Commonwealth, working with the states and territories through the National School Reform Agreement, is bolstering these improvements with $308 billion from 2018 to 2029, with a priority focus on driving improved outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.
The biggest improvement over the past decade has been in year 12 or equivalent attainment. We have witnessed an almost 18 percentage point jump in the proportion of Indigenous Australians achieving this milestone since 2006. More Indigenous students are now graduating and moving into employment or further studies.
We can be particularly proud of our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island young people who face the additional challenge of living in very remote areas. They have achieved the largest leap in attainment, with rates rising from 23 per cent in 2006 to 43 per cent in 2016. However, the target to close the gap in school attendance is not on track. Attendance rates for Indigenous students are at around 82 per cent compared to 93 per cent for non-Indigenous students.
Literacy and numeracy
While there is a disproportionate share of Indigenous students below the minimum standards for reading and numeracy, we have made progress over the past decade. The proportion of Indigenous students at or above minimum standards is 11 to 13 percentage points higher than in 2008—for reading in years 3 and 5 and for numeracy in years 5 and 9.
Indigenous employment
This government understands that one of the keys to transforming Indigenous employment rates is to encourage Indigenous businesses to grow, and I particularly commend the minister, Senator Scullion, for his work in this area. Indigenous enterprise means Indigenous jobs. Since the commencement of the Indigenous Procurement Policy 3½ years ago, the Commonwealth has awarded almost 12,000 contracts to over 1,470 businesses. Those contracts have a total value of $1.8 billion. Last financial year, 366 Indigenous businesses won their first Australian government contract. The Commonwealth and all portfolios exceeded their three per cent Indigenous Procurement Policy contract target.
To ensure this growth continues, from 1 July this year, we'll introduce a three per cent target based on value, beginning at one per cent and phased in over eight years. We'll also expand the reach of the mandatory minimum requirements for Indigenous participation in major contracts to include additional service categories from 1 July next year. It is through the development of small, family and medium sized Indigenous businesses that we will tackle the Indigenous employment gap.
Next steps
I am aware that many have entered this place in this role with grand plans and lofty promises on these issues—all soon forgotten. As Prime Minister I am not going to add further well-intentioned promises to what is a long and disappointing list. The Closing the Gap initiative seeks to promote action across a broad range of fronts. It must and will continue to.
As Prime Minister I intend to have a more specific focus: to concentrate my efforts, to seek to make an impact in just one area that I believe can really achieve generational change. And that's education. I want to get kids into school and I want them to stay in school for longer. That is what I wish to achieve.
Education is the key to skills. It is the key to jobs. It is the key to building enterprises—and giving young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians the opportunity to create their futures. It is the key to a good life. If you can't read, if you can't write, there is no possible way you can share in the prosperity of Australia in the way you would otherwise. I am yet to meet a person who says they regret studying. Because, even if we take a different path to our studies, it becomes a foundation on which to build.
As Ian Trust, the Chair of Wunan, an Aboriginal development organisation in the East Kimberley, puts it:
If you want to have things you have never had before, you must be prepared to do things you have never done before. For us, this will mean getting more of our people educated and into a job in order to break the cycle of poverty for our people.
Education is the foundation: for skills, jobs, health, prosperity, longevity, safety, society.
As the member for Warringah has noted, when Indigenous students finish school and complete a degree, they have much the same employment outcomes as other comparable Australians. We are seeing good signs from around the country. The number of Indigenous women enrolling in university education has continued to rise, and Indigenous women are graduating in increasing numbers. For example, only last month, five Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women graduated as doctors from the University of Western Australia. This is a tremendous outcome and I congratulate these new doctors. And last week, on the other side of the continent, in Port Macquarie, the first Indigenous graduate in the University of Newcastle's Bachelor of Midwifery completed her studies.
While there has been progress, we need to accelerate our efforts, particularly in our work in remote areas. We must start with incentivising and rewarding teachers in remote communities, as the member for Warringah has proposed. If you're a teacher in a very remote area, what you are doing is more than a job; it's a calling. It's an act, an expression, of love for your fellow Australians, and we should never take advantage of that great act of love. If anything—and we should—it must be rewarded. That is why the government will provide incentives to teachers working in very remote areas to help them pay their higher education loans. For these teachers, their HECS debt will be frozen. From today, teachers working in a very remote area will not have one cent of interest added to their debt whilst they are working in a very remote area.
For teachers who, from today, work for four years in a very remote area, their HECS debt will be scrapped.
As well, the Minister for Education, the special envoy, and the Minister for Indigenous Affairs will work closely with a small number of communities to improve attendance rates—community by community, school by school, child by child. This could include improving additional school facilities such as infrastructure and learning centres to help disengaged students return to school, the goal being supporting and addressing school attendance.
We have seen the success of organisations that provide scholarships and mentoring for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander boys and girls. The Australian Indigenous Education Foundation, the Clontarf Foundation—with which I have a long association—and so many other programs are producing great outcomes, and we need to invest in that success, helping indigenous boys and girls choose the futures they aspire to.
The government will provide an additional $200 million in support over the forward estimates for scholarships, academies and mentoring support. I want children, Indigenous kids, to get into school and to stay in school longer. The Indigenous youth education package will provide further certainty for scholarships, academies and mentoring of Indigenous students. This is an area which is working, and we will invest in its success.
The journey ahead
There is a change happening in our country—a shared understanding that we have a shared future. The change is manifesting itself in thousands of small ways.
On this issue, I remember as a boy, just 12, travelling with my older brother, Alan, to a property 30 kilometres east of Cloncurry in north-west Queensland. The member for Kennedy knows that property today is under water. It was the family property of my late Uncle Bill, the grandson of Dame Mary Gilmore, who sensed and wrote of the yearning and mourning of Indigenous Australians long before most others in this country. I remember being in awe of the land and marvelling at seeing a horizon on land, because I'd grown up by sea. I'd never seen that before.
There was a large Indigenous family working on that property with Uncle Bill and Aunty Robin. They were skilled stockmen. I had almost no interaction with Aboriginal people at this time in my life, and my first reaction as a young boy was to withdraw. We too often withdraw when we don't know or don't understand. My uncle sensed my unease and he helped me to connect, to see and to appreciate and understand. During the days that followed, I came to learn about their deep connection to land and country and got to know a family that was beautiful, generous and kind.
I fast forward a generation to the evening before Australia Day this year, when I took my own girls with Jen down to the shores of Lake Burley Griffin to spend time with the Ngunawal people. My girls are just a little younger than Alan and I were back then. But my children had no such apprehension, only enthusiasm, and they already had an understanding and appreciation of Indigenous culture that I didn't have as a child at their age. Things have rightly and positively changed. And on those shores of our man-made lake, they encountered the same beauty, generosity and kindness that we had a generation before.
That afternoon, as our faces were painted by our hosts and we danced—some of us not that well—we laughed and we listened. We listened not just to the elders but to the very country that is home. That afternoon, I again saw the great grace of Indigenous Australians. Despite the dispossession, despite the loss of identity, despite the renaming of their lands and despite the ignominy of our history on these issues—including the crimes and the misguided good intentions—there was a good and open-hearted grace. There was an offered hand where you had no right to expect one.
The miracle worked in an apology is not when it is offered but when it is accepted and forgiveness takes place. That is when true reconciliation occurs.
In an age of offence and where the bonds between us are often under strain, there is much we can learn from our First Peoples. So we draw strength from their grace and we renew our efforts to address the gaps that exist. We owe it to them, to our history, to our country, that we share, work together and make the difference that is vital to so many Australian lives.
I'm pleased to present the Closing the gap report for 2019.
Minerals Council of Australia Dinner
13 February 2019
Canberra, ACT
Thank you so much Vanessa for that introduction. I couldn’t agree more with the sentiments that you’ve expressed, talking about this most important of sectors which I want to talk to you about tonight. So members of the diplomatic corps and Parliamentary colleagues who are here, particularly the Deputy Prime Minister, Matt Canavan the Resources Minister I see over here, he’ll be talking to you at breakfast in the morning. Greg Hunt I can see here. But if I keep going and call the roll we’ll be here all night, because I know there are so many of my Coalition colleagues here. Maybe they might, if they’re here in the room tonight, maybe you could just stand so I can acknowledge you all in one round sweep.
[Applause]
Of course Melissa Price the Environment Minister and the president of the Senate and you can see the Government is very supportive in your presence here this evening. To the chairman of the Minerals Council of Australia Vanessa Guthrie, the directors of the MCA, to Tania Constable, ladies and gentlemen. Can I also acknowledge the Ngunnawal People, elders past and present and leaders emerging.
There’s a Shire expression. For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about it’s that wonderful southern part of Sydney. We have our own language and if we like something, this is what we say; “How good is mining?” That’s what we say. That expresses with a strong statement that we get it. We understand the value and we understand the contribution, we understand the complexities, we understand what you manage and this produces a good result.
As Prime Minister, you don’t have to have been a former Treasurer to understand how important the mining sector is, I know your tax bills. Thank you.
[Laughter]
You don’t have to hold the industry leaders in great esteem – which I do, it’s wonderful to see you Hugh Morgan here tonight, a wonderful pioneer and legend of the sector and industry, it’s great to see you Hugh –
[Applause]
And you also don’t have to just appreciate, as you were saying, the connection between mining and agriculture. The thing that is most pressing on my mind right now, more than any other issue, is what is happening in north Queensland. The devastation we’re seeing particularly in the cattle industry, which I know is not your sector but I know you care about it. Because I know the mining sector will be working hand-in-glove in all of those communities in north Queensland as we all work together to rebuild that great industry on the other side of these devastating floods. Give yourselves a round of applause, because I know you’re going to be there.
[Applause]
In these rural and remote communities, I’ve seen it; the connection between these powerhouse industries that drive the local economy and infuse the local community. The public relations manager at Glencore up in Cloncurry is the president of the Cloncurry Bowls Club. That’s not unusual, to have those connections that exist within these communities. So as a Liberal National Prime Minister I want to assure you that we understand the contribution at every level.
We also understand and you don’t have to be an economic genius to work out, that you always play to your strengths. As part of the economic plan that I announced a couple of weeks ago up in Brisbane, I said it’s our plan to drive forward all of our industries – not just the bright shiny new ones. Now they’re exciting, they’re great, they’re tremendous, the medical industry as Greg knows, we had that in the last Budget, technology industries, tremendous. But agriculture, mining, always our strengths. You don’t walk away from your strengths as a country and you always play to them. That’s what we’ll always do, in recognising the mining sector here in Australia and the resources sector.
It helped make us the success story that we are. It helped build a strong Australia and as a Prime Minister who wants to see Australia even stronger, how could you not have the strength and viability and sustainably for the long term in the mining sector, in such a plan? So we do.
It has given life to regional cities and communities, from Ballarat, Bendigo and Broken Hill, to Mount Isa, Karratha and Kalgoorlie. It has shaped the contours of our development, the design of our inland railways and almost every port in the country. It has provided long-term benefits for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through local jobs and opportunities for development. Warren Mundine is here tonight and it’s great to have you here with me Warren. It’s great to have you as part of our team.
[Applause]
Yeah, welcome Warren, a great Australian who understands this point very, very well. Cooperation has replaced conflict as Indigenous Australians and the mining industry have worked closely together over recent decades. Australian mining has resourced the astounding growth of our region, from Japan’s post-war development through to the rise of modern China. And I don’t have any issue, in fact I celebrate, as Australia should, the growth of China as an economic powerhouse. Its’ prosperity has meant prosperity for Australia. So don’t let anyone tell you that Australia does not similarly appreciate China’s continued economic growth, it’s been very important to our own success story and will continue to be. There are many companies represented here in this room that of course have been the mainstay of this history and it’s a proud one. It’s one that should be recognised, it should be defended, it shouldn’t be whispered, or not spoken about, as you just take the cheques and pretend the mining sector is not there, as some are prone to do. That’s something our Government will never do. We will celebrate the success of our mining and resources sector. We know the importance of that sector.
My time as Treasurer imprinted those lessons on me. Whether it was the monthly trade figures, the quarterly national accounts or the annual Budget. Mining accounts for almost 10 per cent of our economy. It drives our exports. Resources exports were at $221 billion in 2017/18, 55 per cent of Australian exports by value. You need these numbers. Now, Des was saying it’s more than the statistics; that’s true, but the statistics are pretty flash. Mining employs 240,000 Australians or thereabout, and pays the highest wages in our economy. I was also, as you’d expect, a close observer of commodity prices as Treasurer especially iron ore and coal. It’s 82 free on board US today. Knowing what an important role that plays in sustaining revenues in our tax system, mining remains the life-blood of many communities as I’ve said, directly and indirectly supporting jobs and the volunteer roles that exist around our country.
So we want to see you succeed. I want you succeed, because stronger mining industry means a stronger Australia. A weaker mining industry means a weaker Australia.
That’s why under the Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Matt Canavan, is guiding us in our policy to play to our strengths, while opening up new frontiers for Australian mining. Tomorrow, Matt will release the Australian Resources Sector Plan. I won’t spoil it tonight Matt. There you go, thank you. I could if I wanted.
[Laughter]
But in the spirit of our great Coalition, Michael. It plays to our strengths, it builds communities and I encourage you to come along in the morning and I want to congratulate you on the work that you’ve done on that Matt and engaging with the sector as you do, being a champion for the mining and resources sector.
[Applause]
We want to cement Australia’s resources sector as the world’s best. We’re working to boost minerals exploration and open new basins. Through our Exploring for the Future program, we’re investing $100 million to produce new pre-competitive geoscience data. Our Industry Growth Centres are driving innovation and competitiveness, including in our mining services sector. The Junior Minerals Exploration initiative is providing $100 million to assist junior exploration companies raise additional capital for greenfield exploration programs and I want to particularly acknowledge the work Mathias Cormann has done on that project. We’ve invested around $570 million in low-emissions technology support, through carbon capture and storage, methane abatement and low emissions coal projects. Through the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility, we’re investing $5 billion in loans over 5 years, for infrastructure projects to benefit northern Australia. I know they are now making loans, after we changed the mandate last year and I’m pleased to see that occurring. The Government is providing $84.4 million to two cooperative research centres conducting research into mineral exploration and today Karen Andrews the Industry Minister, who is doing a cracking job, announced $20 million for critical minerals under CRC project grants.
So we are determined to make sure your sector has the skilled workforce it needs to reach its potential and this is all part of our larger plan to keep the economy strong. At the heart of our plan is a mindset that says; “We want to see,” as I said “all industries grow and succeed,” making for safer, more productive, more sustainable mining, driving all industries forward.
Here’s another thing - I’ll say; “how good is mining,” in Townsville, I’ll say it here in Canberra and I’ll say it in Toorak. You won’t hear a different message from me about mining anywhere around the country, you’ll hear the same message and this is important, because if we want our mining industry to be successful in the future, we must counter those noisy voices which want to shut you down.
[Applause]
I was surprised when I went to Western Australia recently – another reason I like the mining sector is I like West Australians, There’s one down here, good on you Gary - but when they told me that mining engineers weren’t signing up to be trained, because they were being told by noisy, shouty voices that mining doesn’t have a future in this country. I was shocked. In Western Australia? This is something that has to be turned around and it’s not about money. It’s about countering these noisy, shouty voices that don’t understand exactly what Vanessa was saying about the sustainable contribution that will continue to be made, which works in harmony with our environment, in harmony with our community, engaging and supporting our indigenous communities, removing social disadvantage. These are the things our mining sector is doing. It doesn’t get the credit it deserves. I’ll stand up for you. I’m not sure some others will.
The reason I feel so strongly about a stronger economy is this; because if you’re doing well, Greg Hunt can list affordable medicines on the PBS. So when we list Spinraza for spinal muscular atrophy, or any of the other drugs, whether for lung cancer or as it was today, for ovarian cancer or any of these drugs, you are achieving this through what you’re doing. Your success is achieving this and when people try to shut you down, they are taking and robbing from Australians the ability for us to deliver those essential services on the ground. But we understand that and that’s why we’re so keen to see that there is a stronger economy.
The plan I announced a couple of months ago was a plan that has been built on some real success in our economy, in which you’ve played a key part. When we came to government in 2013, we said that we had a goal of 1 million jobs within 5 years. We smashed it, the economy smashed it, the businesses smashed it and we were able to achieve 1.1 million jobs within five years. That’s now over 1.2 million. Unemployment is down to five per cent, the lowest in 7 years. In that plan, I said that we would be able, through the contribution that will come from a growing economy, 1.25 million new jobs, created over the next five years if we stay on that track. But not if we don’t. You can make choices in economic policy, just like you can in any matter of policy. National security policy – take your pick – you make choices and when you make those choices, they have consequences. The consequences of the economic plan that I and my plan are taking to the next election, is 1.25 million new jobs and you’ll be playing a key role in ensuring we deliver on that.
So it’s a plan that keeps our Budget strong, delivers lower taxes and while I’m at it, it means that I can guarantee – on lower taxes – there will be no mining tax under our Government, none.
[Applause]
You might want to check that with the other bloke. And if he says that verbally, I’d get it in writing.
[Laughter]
Our plan will build the infrastructure Australia needs and we’re doing that now, a record 75 billion over the next decade. Highway upgrades, local road and rail projects, including the Inland Rail. The biggest projects, we’ve embarked on. It’s a plan to deliver even more access to overseas markets to you, for exporters.
Free and open trade has been a staple of Australia’s economic growth since forever and critical to boosting living standards. And on the global stage, our Trade Minister, our Treasurer, myself, our Foreign Minister, we have been the advocates for free and open trade, of expanding trade. The TPP, the best example most recently and as we work with EU – I was talking to the ambassador today – continuing to open up more opportunities, because we know that’s what makes us a prosperous country. So, we will always remain committed.
I remember in 2013, when we came to Government and Robbie, Andrew Robb outlined what his plan was. Greg will remember, he was there, he said; “We’re going to get a China Free Trade Agreement, Japan, Korea, we’re going to do it all.” And we had a discussion about how this was going to be achieved and of course there was the obvious – that no one has ever boosted their political credentials in this country by making this a big part of their economic plan. We acknowledge that. We’ve done a lot of work since then I think to communicate with the Australian people about how important this is and how their jobs are connected to it. We’ve been making that same case around the world. But we decided to do it because we knew it was the right thing to do.
Our Government is one of convictions, whether it’s on economic policy, whether it is on health policy, whether it’s on national security policy. It’s about the convictions that you have that drive your decisions. So there are many other issues, whether it’s energy, whether it’s meeting our environmental commitments, our 26 to 28 per cent reduction in emissions from 2005. I was asked the other day at the Press Club about this - and strangely, quite critically from the Press Gallery - I responded and I said simply this; “What is the measure by which you assess a government’s policies? Surely it’s, did they meet the goals they set out to achieve?” Our goal through the Emissions Reduction Fund and the suite of other policies that we have, was to make sure we met Kyoto 1. Which we did, we smashed it. Kyoto 2, which we we’ll meet comfortably and our 2030 target which we will also meet, as I constantly say, in a canter. That will be very clear as to how that will be achieved between now and the next election, 328 million tonnes we have to make up over the course of that period with measures. The Labor Party on 45 per cent emissions reduction targets – apart from wiping out a number of businesses in this room – requires more than three times that. So do the math yourself and go and see your accountant in terms of what it’s going to mean.
But let me finish on a positive note. Whether it’s ensuring that we keep the Building and Construction Commission, whether it’s keeping taxes down, building infrastructure or expanding our markets, all of this is designed to do one thing; that is to make sure you are successful. But don’t take it personally because there’s a selfish element to this. I know when you’re successful, Australia is successful and that our Government can build an even stronger society, an even stronger economy and an even stronger nation. So in that sense, I want to thank you for your service and I’m going to be calling on it in the future, because we’ve got a lot more work to do and I’m looking forward to doing it.
Thank you very much for your attention.
Press Conference, Canberra
13 February 2019
Canberra, ACT
PRIME MINISTER: Well not surprisingly, I understand that the Senate will be passing the Bill that went through the House yesterday. Earlier today, I convened a meeting of the National Security Committee to take the decisions that were necessary following on from the contingency planning that have been put in place over the last couple of weeks. That contingency planning and the decisions I've taken this morning, together with the other NSC Ministers, is there is a range of strengthening that has been put in place in terms of Operation Sovereign Borders and their operations. I want to stress that all of the actions and decisions that we are taking are implementing the recommendations of these agencies and the officials as presented to us this morning. We are adopting all of the recommendations they have put, based on their advice in response to the decisions that have been taken in the Australian Parliament. We're implementing them all 100 per cent. Everything they are asking for, they are getting and that has involved a strengthening of the capacity of Operation Sovereign Borders across a whole range of fronts. I am not at liberty to go into the detail of what they are for obvious reasons. This Parliament has already tipped its hand enough to the people smugglers. I won't be doing that in compromising our operations and how we now address the consequences of what this Parliament is doing to our borders.
Secondly, we have approved putting in place the reopening of the Christmas Island detention facilities and a series of compounds there, both to deal with the prospect of arrivals as well as dealing with the prospect of transfers. The full cost of those was set out in the declassified briefing which you've already seen and the final costings of those will be staged over the re-ramp up of those facilities, and that is taking place in accordance with the recommendations from the Secretary of Home Affairs.
In relation to the implementation of the laws passing that are through the Senate, I've asked the Department of Home Affairs for an implementation report. I will await for that report and then take further decisions on that once I have that information available to me. My job now is to ensure that the boats don't come. My job now is to do everything within my power and in the power of the Government to ensure that what the Parliament has done to weaken our borders does not result in boats coming to Australia. It is still the case that our Government is running border protection in this country and that, of itself, is a great deterrent, because they know our resolve. The people smugglers know my resolve. They know Peter Dutton's resolve. They know we will do everything in our power to stop them at every point. And we remain standing here to ensure that they don't come.
So if they don't come, it will be because of the work and the decisions we are now taking and the actions we are putting in place. If they do come, you can thank the Labor Party and Bill Shorten because he is the one who has led this process. He has led this process to weaken and compromise our borders. Now, I want to make a couple of other points because there is a lot of misinformation and, frankly, lies, that are being put around. There are more than 60 medical professionals on Nauru, for 420 people. If that says there is no medical facilities available on Nauru, then that is ridiculous. Tell me another part of this country that has one medical professional for every seven people. There is, in fact, one medical... I should say, mental health professional for every 14 people on Nauru.
On top of that, there is no one in detention on Nauru, not one person. And, as you already know, apart from the four who will be transferred to the United States, there are no children on Nauru. None. So the Labor Party cannot absolve themselves by telling themselves lies as motivation for what they did in the Parliament yesterday and what they are doing now. They have done what they have done. Bill Shorten has done what he has done out of manifest weakness, an inability to stand up to the left wing of his own party, the Greens and others who have applied pressure. He has no strength on this issue and he cannot be trusted to follow through on any of the border protection measures that our Government has put in place.
So we are taking the decisions and the action to clean up the mess that the Labor Party has once again created and we will be undertaking all our efforts to do just that. Happy to take questions.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, when you were Immigration Minister - and we hear it from Peter Dutton as well - you often talk about the messaging that comes from the shores of Australia, whether it encourages or discourages people smuggling ventures. Don’t you as Prime Minister have the responsibility to keep a lid on your language, lest it does encourage people smugglers?
PRIME MINISTER: I’ve just delivered that message. I'm standing between people smugglers and bringing a boat to Australia. Last time I did that, you didn't get here.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, you referred to lies, legitimately, before. Now your Government MPs, people like Tony Abbott, are saying that as a consequence of the Bill that passed the House yesterday, it's now: “Get on a boat, get to Nauru, get sick and get to Australia” - when the law that passed the House -
PRIME MINISTER: I’m sorry, but that’s entirely possible. That is entirely possible.
JOURNALIST: If I can finish? That... get to Australia. The law that passed the House yesterday, I don't know what will pass the Senate because it hasn't happened yet, but the law that passed the House yesterday clearly ring-fences to the current cohort. So what Mr Abbott is saying is not true.
PRIME MINISTER: No, I'm sorry Katharine, you fail to understand that people smugglers don't deal with the nuance of the Canberra bubble. They deal with the psychology of messaging, of whether things are stronger or whether things are weaker. It might be all fine and nice to talk about these nuances here in this courtyard. But when you're in a village in Indonesia and someone is selling you a product, there's no protections or truth in advertising laws for people smugglers. They just sell the message. What Tony Abbott has said is exactly what the people smugglers will be saying. Sorry, I’m going over here.
JOURNALIST: Prime, Minister, it’s not a nuance, it’s a fact. And if I may -
PRIME MINISTER: It is a nuance which the people smugglers will ignore. What is true today Katharine, what is true today is as a result of what happened in the Parliament yesterday and what is happening in the Senate now is our border protection laws are weaker than they were two days ago. That's a fact. Thank you, Phil?
JOURNALIST: If the consequences of this Bill are as dire as you are saying and require the response you have just outlined, why don't you prevent it getting Royal assent? If it's in the national interest to stop these laws going ahead, why don't you use your powers to stop getting it Royal assent?
PRIME MINISTER: I don't believe there’s an argument before us to actually advance on that front.
JOURNALIST: Can you elaborate on that?
PRIME MINISTER: No.
JOURNALIST: Why not just go to an election if you [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER: We will go to an election, we'll go to an election in May. I'm not going to be intimidated by the Labor Party from handing down a surplus Budget in April. I'm not going to be intimidated by the Parliament, from distracting my attention from the things that need to be attended to, which I’ve got to tell you right now, in addition to cleaning up the mess on our borders that Labor created yesterday, my focus is also very firmly focussed on what is unfolding in North Queensland and for our cattle industry and those devastated communities. Now, I haven't heard much, I haven't heard much on that front, but I can tell you there's a lot of that being addressed in my office just in here and in our Cabinet room and my meetings with Ministers. I'm very focussed on that issue at the moment as I am on this issue and will continue to be. I'm not going to be distracted by all the frankly - I know you don't like the phrase - but the bubble nonsense of people going on about all sorts of precedents, all the rest of it. Frankly, not interested. I’ve got too many other important things to focus on.
JOURNALIST: On the banks, the request for extra sittings. If you lose a vote on that matter in the Parliament, will you have lost control of the Parliament and go to an election?
PRIME MINISTER: I'm not engaging on those sort of issues, we will continue to work our issues through the Parliament and we will deal with them as they present. We will continue to take strong action when it comes to the Royal Commission. There are matters before the Parliament even now that we're working through. We're putting in place the arrangements - which doesn't require legislation - to activate cases and go back 10 years to be considered by AFCA and many other recommendations which we’re already moving on. We’re doing just that, we're taking objection on the Royal Commission. We will continue to do that and we'll do it in a calm, responsible way.
We won't - see, I'm glad you raised this - because we're getting an insight into Bill Shorten. He has taken a reckless approach to border management. I mean, last year he had his senators vote for this bill in the form which he told us yesterday, was dangerous and required amendment. Yet he was prepared to have his own members of the House vote for it last December. A reckless act on our borders which he only doubled down on yesterday. And now he says we should recklessly prepare legislation in response to 40 recommendations, without having the opportunity to consider unintended consequences and ensure the consultation is done and this legislation is done correctly, as the Law Council has advised.
Bill Shorten has a very reckless, opportunistic approach to these serious matters. I'm not going to take that approach. That is not how I do things, we will continue to govern in a calm and responsible way and that's exactly what we're doing today. Everybody else can flap their arms about, my arms are firmly by my side and I'm very focussed on the job I have got ahead of me.
JOURNALIST: Your Government has brought I think 879 of the asylum seekers and refugees from Manus Island and Nauru to Australia on medical grounds. Wouldn't that indicate that the medical services there are inadequate, if they're not why did you bring them to Australia?
PRIME MINISTER: No, we made those decisions consistent with the transfer processes that we have and were working perfectly fine. This was my point yesterday; what was done yesterday was unnecessary. There was no need to do what was done necessary, because the processes and the medical treatment that was in place, was already there and those processes were already working and had resulted in every single child coming off Nauru.
Now, I remember when I became Immigration Minister and I visited those centres both on Manus Island and on Nauru. They were in an appalling condition. The Labor Party hadn't properly funded them. They hadn't put the right medical staff in place. Let's not forget that the Labor Party put children on Manus Island. The Labor Party put children on Manus Island - so I'm not going to take lectures on humanitarianism from a Labor Party that put children on Manus Island and left those centres in such a state of disrepair when we came to Government, that they should be absolutely ashamed of themselves and to hear, to hear yesterday Tony Burke and others in the Parliament, and Labor members who I recall in those debates came in and wept openly in the Parliament, well, they have forgotten the tears of those days because they have repeated the mistakes that they put in place when they were in Government.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, a big part of Operation Sovereign Borders from its outset when you were in charge of it, was that you did not comment on ‘on water matters’. Will that be maintained? If a boat leaves Indonesia, will you not comment on it if it’s turned back at sea?
PRIME MINISTER: You can expect Operation Sovereign Borders to maintain all of its aspects and integrity on my watch.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Bob Katter says that he wants banking reforms separate to the Royal Commission recommendations and if you deliver that, that he won't vote for an extension of Parliament. Are you going to work with Bob Katter to try and do that?
PRIME MINISTER: I’m always working with Bob Katter and what I'm working with Bob Katter right now on, is the reconstruction of the cattle industry in northern Australia. We’ve had some excellent meetings on that and I want to thank Bob. He put a question to me yesterday on this issue and I responded in kind and we are working very closely on those issues that Bob has raised. Why? Because we should. Because the northern Australian cattle industry needs our support. This is an industry that has a huge future, but has literally been washed away in the last few days. They will need our help to get them back on their feet and that's what Bob and I are working on.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, just on medevac bill I know you don’t support it, but are you willing to say to would-be asylum seekers; “This will not apply to you if you come now?”
PRIME MINISTER If we're re-elected it won't apply to anybody, because I will reverse it.
JOURNALIST: But I mean right now as Prime Minister, will you say that to the people smugglers?
PRIME MINISTER: I can only say what the law says, it's not my law. I think it's a foolish law. It's a foolish law and it's not one that I support.
JOURNALIST: For the sake deterring arrivals, would you say that it doesn’t apply to new arrivals?
PRIME MINISTER: I'll be engaging in some very direct messaging as part of Operation Sovereign Borders with people smugglers and with those who might be thinking of getting on boats. Not the first time I have done that, to send very clear messaging that my Government is in control of the borders.
As long as my Government is here, you can expect strong border protection [interrupted]. Under a Labor Government, you can expect to see them fold, like a pack of cards. Like Bill Shorten did yesterday.
JOURNALIST: Aren't you weakening that message?
PRIME MINISTER: No.
JOURNALIST: But by not spelling out in some detail –
PRIME MINISTER: I didn’t say I'm wasn’t going to do that Michelle. I said I’ll be engaged in very clear and direct messaging to anyone who thinks they should get on a boat; I'm here and I will stop you.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Peter Dutton is very upset about this change. You talk about it happening “as a result of the actions of the Parliament”. Isn't it as a result of the actions of your Party, if Peter Dutton didn't want to be Prime Minister, you wouldn't have lost that vote yesterday?
PRIME MINISTER: That's a very long bow.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister how can you have it both ways? If you say a boat arrives, it will be Labor's fault but if it doesn't arrive, it's thanks to the Government?
PRIME MINISTER: Because that's true.
JOURNALIST: Are you in control of the borders, or not?
PRIME MINISTER: Of course I am, but what I'm saying is that the Labor Party has weakened our border protection. That is true. But what remains is the resolve and strength and conviction of my Government, myself as Prime Minister, Peter Dutton as Home Affairs Minister and that still remains a big hurdle for them to get over. But I can tell you; the bar they’ll have to clear if Bill Shorten is Prime Minister, is lower than a snake’s belly.
Thanks very much.
Remarks, Ovarian Cancer Australia Breakfast
13 February 2019
Canberra, ACT
PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you very much for that very kind introduction, can I also welcome all of my colleagues who are here today. Can I particularly thank Kelly and Gaye for the work that you do as patrons of this very important group and of course the Minister for Health, Greg Hunt who is here. Great to see you here too Jules and you’ve been a great supporter of this cause over a long period of time. But to all my colleagues here, we join together in support of those who have also gathered here today. You often come to these things and people say; “It’s nice that you’re here,” well, there are people who are in this room today, and it’s very nice they’re here. They’re here, they’re fighting, they’re with us, they are conquering, they are overwhelming, they are demonstrating hope. Their stories are the ones that you’ve come here today to hear from, not from politicians. You are going to hear from a number of the survivors today. But they’re not only survivors, they’re conquerors. They are paving that way and providing that hope to other women and I particularly want to thank them for their courage and what you’ll hear from them today.
Can I also thank Jane Hill for her welcome and can I also thank Paula Benson who is here also today, who stepped down just a few months ago after eight years as chair. She received the Jeannie Ferris Award in 2017, which I know is something close to the hearts of all us here in Parliament who knew Jeannie who was a colleague and lost her own battle with ovarian cancer back in 2007. So thank you very much to you Paula for the comfort you give and the leadership you’ve shown in this area over a very long period of time.
Four years ago, a friend of mine – we hadn’t known each other that well to be honest, but I know the family incredibly well – journalist and author Julia Baird was in her 40s with two young children, a book to finish, it’s a great book by the way, when suspected ovarian cancer reared its head. She described it this way;
“Your world narrows to a slit. Suddenly very little matters. If you ran 1,000 miles, aced a billion exams, hit a dozen home runs, nothing could reverse or erase the fact of cancer.”
In the tense days before surgery – a surgery that revealed thankfully that she actually had another but sadly a rarer kind of cancer, she learned a few things about life. First, that stillness and faith could give her extraordinary strength. Second, she drew her family and her tribe near. That family has been everything, that support network – and I’ve met support networks here this morning. She wrote in the New York Times;
“Those who rally and come to mop your brow when you look like a ghost, who try to make you laugh, distract you with silly stories, cook for you or even fly for 20 hours just to hug you, are companions of the highest order.”
Those who are here with you today, those who have turned up today, those who fight alongside you today - they are all companions of the highest order in the way that Julia set out, in terms of those who have stood with her and her beautiful family.
This is an insidious disease. It has the lowest survival rate of any form of cancer in Australia, as we’ve heard. It’s estimated that more than 1,500 Australian women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and this year it will claim around 1,000 lives. Unlike breast cancer, there is no early detection screening test for ovarian cancer. That’s why the work that has been done educating the public is so important and that’s why today is important. Making women aware - and men, I’ve got to say - of the signs and symptoms and giving them the best chance of catching it early, getting ahead of it, getting on top of it. That’s also why our Government has invested in the ground-breaking ‘Trace Back’ project, launched this time last year partnering with the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, we’re providing close to $3 million to trial this new approach to cancer control using genetic testing to identify women at risk.
When I made mention of this project earlier this year at the Glenn McGrath Foundation lunch in Sydney, where their challenge is obviously fighting breast cancer, there was a solidarity between those who fight breast cancer with those who fight ovarian cancer. And that received as strong as a response as all the other measures we announced for breast cancer.
I really hope this means lives will be saved. Women and families spared the worst. I’m proud that our Government is the single biggest investor in cancer research in this country. Over $1.8 billion invested over the last decade. Close to $80 million has gone into ovarian cancer research and, I’m proud to say, that we’re investing $20 billion in the Medical Research Future Fund to create one of the world’s largest medical research endowment funds. That means we’re investing in the science and the talented medical researchers and doctors who will lead the world in finding a cure. That is the dividend of the prosperous country we are and the economy that we have the good fortune to live in and that we must take keen care of to ensure that these dividends can continue.
And I’m very pleased to confirm that Health Minister Greg Hunt’s announcement that we’re making today and I’m making here, that the Australian Government will provide $1.6 million for psychological support services for women with ovarian cancer and their caregivers. And their caregivers.
[Applause]
This recognises the need for better support services for women living with ovarian cancer, particularly those in rural and remote areas of Australia. And I’ve met those women out in those stations, and they are a long way from where most of us are where they can access those services. And it’s important that these support services that go to their psychological wellbeing also reach out into those remote and regional areas where these services are just as necessary. We’ve also been successful in making treatment more accessible with more than 200 women now taking Lynparza, their drugs cost around just over $40 a script, or $6.50 for pensioners. If they weren’t subsidised through the PBS, they’d cost around $90,000 a year.
There are few, if any programs I am more proud of in our nation than the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, and the fact that we can continue to invest in this Scheme. I want to commend Greg Hunt for the outstanding work that he’s done listing drug after drug after drug. This is one of the, I think, strongest achievements of our Government when it comes to healthcare in this country. We will keep listing those drugs and we’ll keep ensuring that the economy is there to support those listings. We spend close to $22 million a year on medicines to treat ovarian cancer.
So you’ve come to hear the stories of those who are battling. I hope what I’ve shared with you this morning says that we’re battling with you. We will continue to do the research, we’ll continue to provide the support, we’ll continue to fund the drugs and we’ll continue to work together to raise awareness of all Australians to be there for you, to be with you. As Julia would say, “Companions of the highest order.” Thank you.
Press Conference Canberra
12 February 2019
PRIME MINISTER: Less than 24 hours ago, I warned Australia that Bill Shorten would make Australia weaker and the Labor Party would weaken our border protection. That they could not be trusted to do the right thing to secure Australia. Within 24 hours, Bill Shorten and the Labor Party have proved me absolutely right.
What happened in the Parliament tonight was proof positive that Bill Shorten and the Labor Party do not have the mettle, do not have what is required and do not understand what is necessary to ensure that Australia’s border protection framework and broader national security interests can be managed, by Labor.
The Labor Party have already said that if they were elected, that they will return to the policy of providing permanent visas, permanent visas that lead to citizenship for people who arrive or enter Australia illegally. That is the first tranche of the border protection framework that we put in place in 2013. They have said that they will abolish that and they will restore providing permanent visas to people who illegally enter Australia. Tonight and, I should say, last year, the Labor Party voted - on that occasion, in the Senate, without even taking any advice when it came to the national security implications - to abolish offshore processing as we know it.
This is the second tranche of the border protection regime that we have put in place. Now, the Labor Party may want to delude themselves that what they have done tonight doesn’t do that. But that would only further demonstrate their lack of understanding about these issues. The Labor Party have shown Australia tonight that they cannot be trusted on the second of those core planks of the border protection framework that have been so successful in stopping the deaths, getting the children off Nauru, getting children out of detention, ensuring that we can restore certainty and stability to our refugee and humanitarian intake.
So, when Bill Shorten tells you and the Labor Party tells you that they can be trusted to turn back boats where it's safe to do so, I think the Australian people got their answer tonight. He can't be trusted to do that either. The Labor Party and the Liberal and National parties are not on the same page when it comes to border protection. There is no bipartisanship on this issue. The Labor Party have now clearly demonstrated that under Bill Shorten's leadership, they want to go a different path. What we saw tonight was that yet again, the Labor Party have failed to learn their lessons of failure when they have had responsibility for border protection in this country. They have demonstrated yet again, that they just don't understand how to protect Australia's borders. The importance of the outcome of protecting those borders is to ensure we avoid the human carnage of what we saw last time Labor had this opportunity.
What is particularly amazing about this circumstance is Labor have not waited until they had the opportunity to be in government; they have demonstrated it even in Opposition.
So, it is a test that the Labor Party and Bill Shorten have failed tonight.
I made it very clear that the Liberal and Nationals parties would not be budging when it came to the issue of border protection in this country. We have had to clean up this mess twice. The Labor Party, when they have the opportunity, only break what has been fixed and they have been demonstrating that again tonight in the Parliament.
So, votes will come and votes will go, they do not trouble me. Where we will always stand and what the Australian people can always trust us to do, is to have the mettle to ensure the integrity of our border protection framework.
Bill Shorten and the Labor Party demonstrated tonight that they have no such mettle. That they will easily compromise these things and they will be blown about by the winds of whatever may push them one way or the other.
He cannot be trusted on our borders and Australia cannot trust Bill Shorten to make Australia stronger. He will make it weaker.
JOURNALIST: These amendments have been passed, assuming they get, well, assent from the Senate, will the Government [inaudible] Royal assent?
PRIME MINISTER: It will follow the normal process.
JOURNALIST: Is there any updated security advice on what the amended bill would mean?
PRIME MINISTER: My job now, as Prime Minister - my job up until now, I should say - is to do everything within my power to prevent these laws that weaken our border protection, that make all of us less safe when it comes to how our borders operate and now run the very real risk of seeing the boats run again and - and believe me, every arrival is on Bill Shorten and Labor's head, every arrival, every risk is on his head –
JOURNALIST: [Inaudible].
PRIME MINISTER: No, just to answer the question David has put to me - my job up until now has been to seek to prevent those bills passing. Those bills have gone through the House of Representatives, my job now is to work with our border protection and security agencies to do everything in my power to mitigate the damaging impact of what Labor have done tonight.
Now the Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs are meeting now with our Border Protection Command to work through the contingency planning that we have been putting in place for this outcome. This outcome was not unexpected to me and as a result, we have been putting contingency planning in place. I'll have more announcements to make about the actions and decisions the Government will be taking to address now the risk and the threat that Labor and Bill Shorten have created.
JOURNALIST: [Inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER: Can everyone stop shouting.
JOURNALIST: You're saying it’s a test for Labor but surely this is a control of you test, er, the control of the House of Reps which you have lost [sic]? Is this a no confidence motion in government?
PRIME MINISTER: No, of course it isn’t and I’d refer you to Kerryn Phelps herself. That was not what that vote was about this evening. If the Labor Party want to move such a motion, they should feel free to do so and it will fail. How do I know that? Because the independents have made that very clear. So, it cannot be contorted into that type of an outcome. Indeed, it was back in 2013 - I'll reference it specifically if you like - back in February of 2013, Opposition amendments were passed, so this is just back in 2013 - Opposition amendments were passed on a superannuation legislation bill, Service Providers and other Governments Measures Bill, in very similar, if not the exact same circumstances as these. The minority Government, which was a Labor Government at the time, was defeated. So as for the historical precedents, I think there has been a lot of hyperbole about these things.
JOURNALIST: But do you regard it –
PRIME MINISTER: I’ll just finish answering the question - the historical precedents need to be put into some context. So, when I made the remarks I did earlier in the week, this is not a matter that goes to the issues that you've raised. That's why it's not a matter I intend to act on with those types of consequences.
I'm going to get about the business that I'm about every day and that is to ensure we strengthen our economy, we make Australia more secure and we keep Australians together and we do the job we were elected to do.
JOURNALIST: Have you discussed this with General Cosgrove, you know, this scenario that this could occur?
PRIME MINISTER: No.
JOURNALIST: PM, under OSB, when boats come to Australia it usually takes us months, sometimes years to find out if they have arrived. Will you…
PRIME MINISTER: No, we know pretty much straightaway when they have arrived.
JOURNALIST: Well we don't sometimes find out how many boats have arrived because it has been a secret. So if a boat comes from tomorrow or the next day, will you tell the Australian people that one is on its way?
PRIME MINISTER: I'll tell the Australian people I'll do exactly what I told them I was going to do going into the 2013 election, and that is I will let Operation Sovereign Borders run the operations of that command. And they will do what is right and in Australia's interests and that's what I will do every single day.
JOURNALIST: Those contingency plans you talk about, does that include extra patrols? Is there specific intelligence out of Indonesia that the people smuggling...
PRIME MINISTER: You wouldn't expect me to comment on that. What I am telling you though is contingency plans have been put in place. The Ministers are now directly engaged with the operations side of OSB to be putting those in place and further decisions will be announced as and when that is deemed appropriate.
JOURNALIST: It’s not to frustrate the medical transfers from offshore detention, is it?
PRIME MINISTER: What I'm saying is that our operations will continue, as they always do and they'll be done in the way that they're always done. The Bill that is making its way to the Senate will follow its normal process and including through to Royal ascent. The Government will move to operate in accordance with the laws of the country. That's what governments must do. But what I will also do is make sure I take every action I can to ensure that Australia's border protection is not compromised.
JOURNALIST: If the Parliament's delivering laws that you don't agree with and you think create such a risk, then why not go to the polls and get a mandate to ensure that you can keep the policies that you think, and laws that should be in place, and call an election now.
PRIME MINISTER: There'll be the opportunity for that in May and the Australian people will have opportunity to decide on, not only these issues in May. Because Bill Shorten and the Labor Party have made it crystal clear that, at the next election, Australians will be deciding once again, once again, as they did in 2013, as they did in 2001, about whether they want the stronger border protection policies of the Liberal and National Parties or they want the weaker border protection policies of the Labor Party and in 2001 and in 2013, I thought they sent a very clear message.
JOURNALIST: Given the defeat in the House just earlier, do you now accept or prepare yourself for the possibility of extra sitting weeks before the election?
PRIME MINISTER: Those matters haven't been considered by the Parliament yet and we'll deal with those when they are.
JOURNALIST: Do you have a contingency plan for an early election?
PRIME MINISTER: The election will be in May after the Budget.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, do you regard the legislation of the amendments that passed the House of Representatives tonight as a matter of vital importance?
PRIME MINISTER: I've already said that these are not matters that go to issues of confidence and I don't consider them in those terms. The Government has never put them in those terms and the Independent members who voted on this Bill this evening did not consider them in those terms, which is related to the form of words that you've just put to me.
JOURNALIST: The changes that Labor agreed to will allow the Minister to reject people with serious criminal records. Can you just explain to us what is the main concern here now is?
PRIME MINISTER: Right now - I should say - still right now, the Bill has not gone through the Senate. The provisions that relate to character, the provisions that relate to criminal conduct and all of these are stronger than what has gone to the Parliament tonight. So it is, as I said, there was no form of this Bill that made our borders stronger and, frankly, there was no form of this Bill that made it more humane. There are more than 60 medical professionals and medical-related staff on Nauru. More than 60, per head of population, in terms of those they are treating, you will find that to be greater than any part of this country. There are no children on Nauru, other than the four that have their bags packed to go to the United States. So don't kid yourself out there, to the Labor Party and those who voted for this Bill today and those who will do it in the Senate. Don't kid yourself that somehow you have improved the situation - you've only made it weaker. And what you've done today is say to the Australian people, and Bill Shorten in particular and the Labor Party, that you're prepared to trade on these issues. Trade on these issues to compensate for your very real weakness and the Australian people have looked at Bill Shorten today and they have found him weak and he is. Thank you.
Remarks, Coalition Joint Party Room
12 February 2019
Parliament House, Canberra
PRIME MINISTER: Over the summer, Australians have had some very difficult times. It's been a privilege to be with colleagues, with Australians in the midst of these difficult times. We've had fires in Tasmania, we've had fires in Victoria, we’ve had fires in Western Australia. We've had floods in northern Australia, in particular in Townsville and we are now witnessing a full-scale national disaster - national disaster - of what is happening in Northern Queensland. And I want to particularly commend Linda Reynolds for the way that she has, not only managed and coordinated those efforts and particularly Linda thank you to the Australian Defence Force who have been there not just to do the work but to provide that great encouragement to Australians just by their sheer presence of turning up, but I want to thank you for the work you’ve done with emergency management to prepare. Because we knew it was going to be a difficult season with bushfires and to have the aerial assets ready and in place, I want to commend you for that. And to Michael Keenan and the work that has been done by Human Services to ensure that the payments have been getting out. I mean, just as of last Sunday as I said at the Press Club yesterday, almost $40 million in cash support within a week to get support to those families. That’s government in action, that’s government dealing with issues that the Australian people are facing and Michelle, I know, you have seen the same thing in your electorate.
You know, Australians are strong. Australians are resilient. And under our Government, we’re going to continue to make Australia even stronger. That’s what we’re about. A stronger economy, stronger borders, stronger services. That’s a stronger Australia and that’s what we’re doing. Our opponents have plans that will make Australia weaker. To weaken the economy, to weaken our borders, and you can’t pay for services with money that’s not there, and we all know Labor cannot manage money.
So here we are colleagues, taking up this fight on behalf of a strong Australian people. Backing them in, backing small business, lower taxes, the infrastructure they need. Whether it’s supporting farmers in drought or supporting farmers in flood - we are there and we’ll be there not just in the crisis and the recovery, but we’ll be there for their prosperity in the future. Because those days will come and we believe in that and we believe in them. So that is our charge, that is our mission, and we are united together in doing that.
But before I go any further, there has been one element in our team that has been missing. And his name is Arthur Sinodinos.
[Applause]
And Arty, why don’t you say a few words mate.
SENATOR ARTHUR SINODINOS: Thanks PM. All I’m going to say is, first and foremost, when I have been out there talking to our people as I have come back to work, there is a real fighting spirit out there. A view that we can win this. And as long as we provide a clear alternative, articulate that alternative and work as a team, we will get there. We can win this. The only other plea I’d make is Michael McCormack, no more singing.
[Laughter]
PRIME MINISTER: Well, let’s get to work. Thank you very much.
[Applause]
Statement On Indulgence - Australian Natural Disasters
12 February 2019
Mr Morrison: (Cook—Prime Minister) (14:25): I rise to update the House on the many floods and fires that have ravaged parts of our country in recent weeks and months. As we know, across our nation we are seeing incredible efforts from tens of thousands of Australians in response to the national disasters that we have faced. In north-west Queensland, flooding rains have brought devastating stock losses to lands and communities that were scarred by years of drought. The heartbreak that is occurring in those communities is hard for us to imagine in this place.
As a result of a monsoon low, Townsville's Ross River hit a record peak, with flood waters damaging thousands of homes and buildings. More than 7,700 damage assessments have been completed across the state. We know that two men lost their lives and another man is missing near Ayr, and our prayers and support are with their families. There is also a livestock tragedy in North Queensland currently unfolding, with stock losses at inestimable levels.
Right now, a whole-of-government response is underway, with Emergency Management Australia, the Defence Force, the Australian Taxation Office, Department of Health, the Department of Human Services and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources all working with state and local authorities to direct the recovery and the response. The Defence Force has established a joint task force, which is working closely with local authorities and emergency services to help remote communities. They're helping farmers sustain livestock cut off by flooding and transporting patients and critical supplies. They are also involved in the removal, wherever possible, of the carcasses of thousands, if not tens or hundreds of thousands, of stock losses.
The ADF has liaison officers in Cloncurry, Julia Creek and Richmond to drop fodder to local communities, working closely at the direction of the local communities. The RAAF and the Army's 3rd Brigade, 17th Brigade, 6th Brigade and 1st Division—around 2,800 ADF personnel, all based in Townsville, many of them with flooded homes and properties themselves—have helped evacuate people and transport sandbags from Brisbane.
The Commonwealth government, working closely with the Queensland and local governments, has already contributed over $100 million in financial assistance to the recovery effort. That means payments to people whose property has been damaged to assist with their emergency needs; support for affected primary producers, raising recovery grants from $25,000 to $75,000, consistent with category D status; recovery grants for small businesses to help them clean up and reopen their doors; payments of $1 million each, as I announced yesterday, to the current eight council areas west of Townsville to help them with a broad range of recovery activities; and funding for the restoration of damaged infrastructure such as roads and bridges. As of two days ago, we've extended the availability of disaster recovery payments to eight flood-hit shires across western Queensland. We all know it is difficult to get things done when roads and communications are cut, and that's why I'm pleased at the speed of the response on the ground to date, but it must be maintained.
Over 33,000 claims for disaster payments have been processed in Townsville alone, already providing over $39 million directly into the pockets of those affected, and I particularly want to commend Home Affairs and the Department of Human Services for their swift action in getting that support to people as quickly as they can. As well, the government has extended a further $3 million to boost mental health services on the ground, complementing the support being provided by the Queensland government. My great concern is for those farming communities who are absorbing the horrible impact of this. They need our mental health support, and those services have been funded and provided and extended.
As we've seen before, while one part of the country is under water, another part is in flames. We've had fires in Western Australia and, as we gather, 28 bushfires are still burning across Tasmania. These fires have burnt more than 205,000 hectares, including almost 90,000 hectares in the World Heritage area. Firefighters have come from around Australia and across the ditch in New Zealand to help. Miraculously, no lives have been lost there. We've activated disaster recovery funding arrangements in the Derwent Valley, the Huon Valley, the West Coast and the Central Highlands to help cover the costs of firefighting and evacuation centres, as well as recovery payments for affected people and freight subsidies for farmers and producers. We have also activated the Australian government Disaster Recovery Allowance, providing assistance to employees, primary producers and sole traders who have experienced a loss of income as a direct result of the bushfires. There are also fires burning in Victoria, with three uncontrolled blazes at Walhalla, Thomson and Timbarra River. Again, there has been some damage and loss of properties, but thankfully no lives have been lost.
Every summer, as waters rise and fires rage, nature seems to hurl challenges and pose questions of readiness, courage and compassion that Australians answer in the affirmative every time, showing the strength and determination for which Australians are known. Once again, we have seen that response.
Our message to all affected, whether in the black-soil mud of western Queensland or the water-sodden houses of Townsville or the ravaged fire areas of Tasmania, is: as we've stood with you in this immediate response, we will stand with you in the recovery and we will stand with you in the rebuilding. Just as was said in the condolence motion relating to the 10th anniversary of the Black Saturday fires, this will be a decade worth of work, and perhaps more. I've engaged with local mayors throughout western Queensland and in Townsville itself. I want to thank all of those mayors. I must say that local government, state government and the Commonwealth government, from whichever political persuasion, have worked together hand-in-glove—no fingers pointing anywhere; just hands out to help each other. I want to thank in particular Premier Hodgman and Premier Palaszczuk, who have been open and direct and have been tremendous in their support, and we have responded in kind. There is much work to do and there is much rebuilding to do, and this place and our government will certainly support all of that.
Statement On Indulgence - Black Saturday Bushfires 10th Anniversary
12 February 2019
Mr Morrison: (Cook—Prime Minister) (14:10): I would like the House to extend its deepest sympathies to the many people devastated by the Black Saturday bushfires, which scorched Victoria on 7 February 2009; place on record its profound regret at the deaths of 173 people; record its admiration for the courage shown by communities, families and individuals in the face of this natural disaster; and acknowledge the incredible efforts of the emergency workers, police, Defence personnel and volunteers in responding to this disaster and helping to rebuild over the decade that has since passed.
In the past weeks, many if not most of the members of this House, particularly those from Victoria, have been recalling the Black Saturday bushfires of a decade ago that impacted 78 communities across Victoria. I had the opportunity to be present with the Leader of the Opposition, the Speaker and other members at the service that was held in Melbourne to mark that event, joining together with those who endured those terrible days to be with them again together. Ten years have passed since that terrible day and the days that followed. Remembering it can be painful and is. It's unsettling but can also help make sense of the past, as we've sought to learn from it since. In remembering Black Saturday, we remind ourselves of what was faced but also what has since been overcome.
A decade on, the scale of the Black Saturday fires still defies explanation and comprehension. The human toll is unimaginable: 173 lives lost, over 400 injured, thousands stricken with emotional scars to this day and beyond, and the grief of loss. Nineteen thousand CFA volunteers and volunteers from other agencies fought hundreds of fires that eventually would burn over 450,000 hectares of our country. According to the RSPCA, over one million animals perished, incinerated.
Fire has always been with us in this timeless land, but these were no ordinary fires. I remember in this place when the member for McMillan stood here and gave what I would have to say was the most moving speech I think I've ever heard in this place. I want to thank the member for McMillan and the other members who spoke in that debate—those who were here at that time—because you helped the country grieve and understand the momentous nature of this loss. The member for McMillan had been a volunteer firefighter, as many are in this place, for many years, and he told the House about the fire coming up out of the Bunyip state forest. He said:
The awesome fury of this fire cannot be comprehended by the thinking of any reasonable person.
Of the scale of loss, he said:
I know there are people who will wake every morning believing that it was all a dream; that it did not happen. And then they will realise it was not a dream and they will cry and they will cry again.
And cry we did in this chamber. The Speaker himself will recall that well. The loss at the time seemed more than we could bear. When we heard of the bravery, though, and the selflessness, we shed tears again: firefighters who travelled from around Australia, as they have indeed been doing in recent weeks and months; volunteer responders who put the safety of others ahead of the defence of their own properties; neighbours who defended neighbours, only to be caught by the fires themselves.
Those who saw those terrible blazes will never forget them. They were days that rained fire, they said, when the smoke was so thick that it turned day into night. Through it all, people took refuge wherever they could: under lily pads, in dams, in fishponds, in creek beds. Emergency services were unceasing, pushing through so many physical limitations. Parents tried to be brave for their kids; kids tried to be brave for their parents. One young man, helping out a family he knew, was caught in the deadly fire's path. With no escape, he called his dad to let him know, and then he sent a text: 'Dad, I'm dead. I love you.' Ten years on, it still breaks the heart, as it does today, as we hear these things. The rescue efforts were nothing short of remarkable and astounding. The fire and emergency services, the police, the Defence Force, the hospital staff, the paramedics and the many support organisations that responded on that day and in the weeks that followed are heroes.
Yet, as so often happens in this great nation, terrible suffering walked hand in hand with kindness and generosity. Our whole nation rose up in support. Everyone dug deep into their pockets. In Ingham, in North Queensland—the member for Kennedy would know—where floodwaters at the time were still receding at the time, local residents arriving at the community recovery centre donated from their emergency grants to the recovery in Victoria. How amazing is that? How good is that? Some gave their entire grant. Ten years on we remember. At the memorial service that we attended together, Dr Kathy Rowe told a beautiful story of how first the parrots came back and then, as the land healed, the insect eaters came back. Then the honeyeaters came back, as the bush regenerated. She told us that two-thirds of the species are back, but the lyrebird isn't back yet. There's still healing of the land and the people to come.
So, we remember, 10 years on, that from deep suffering came deep selflessness, that from terrible consequences came lessons—lessons that have been and must still be learned and still must be implemented, even from the royal commission many years ago. Through it all, Australians turned to each other. They supported each other through the long, dark days of rebuilding. To everyone affected by the Black Saturday fires, as you contemplate these things and you relive the hurts and you look at the wounds and you look into your future—and especially as you look at someone dear—we offer our heartfelt sympathy of this parliament and the nation. We will never forget.
Condolence - Gordon Denton
12 February 2019
Mr Morrison: (Cook—Prime Minister) (14:02): I refer to the death of the Hon. Gordon Scholes and I move:
That the House record its deep regret at the death, on 9 December 2018, of the Honourable Gordon Glen Denton Scholes AO, a former Minister and a Member of this House for the Division of Corio from 1967 to 1993, place on record its appreciation of his long and meritorious public service, and tender its profound sympathy to his family in their bereavement.
Gordon Scholes had a fighting spirit and a gentle soul. When he walked the corridors of this building and the more intimate ones of Old Parliament House, he wasn't hard to spot. He was a big unit, six foot three in the old measurements—190 centimetres tall. He was an imposing presence in the Australian parliament for a quarter of a century, and, as a former Victorian amateur heavyweight boxing champion, I'm sure he knew how to land a blow, but Gordon rarely brought, I'm told, that pugnacity to this place. Like Ben Chifley, he had been a train driver. He was inspired to enter politics after a local kindergarten was closed down. In 1967, Gordon won Corio for the Labor Party at a by-election—no small feat. In fact, former Prime Minister Bob Hawke had tried to capture that seat four years earlier.
Gordon said later in life, 'My prime interest in my early years in parliament was being in parliament itself.' He loved the parliament, and it was his lot to be the Speaker during what would become the most tumultuous time in our country's political history in 1975. But it says something about him that he was one of the few not diminished by those events nor embittered by those times. As we all know, the tide turned against his party at that election, but Gordon Scholes survived that term, having won by just 20 votes after three recounts.
Gordon Scholes served in the Hawke government as a minister, and during his time in this building and the other down the hill he was re-elected 10 times by his local community—a great tribute from his community. Gordon Scholes is remembered as a man who loved his family, who loved his community. He loved this parliament and he was a patriot. He loved our country. I offer the heartfelt sympathy of this parliament, of the government and the nation to Gordon Scholes' family—in particular, to his daughters, Kerry and Anne, and to his grandchildren.
Honourable members: Hear, hear!
National Press Club Address - 'Our Plan for Keeping Australians Safe and Secure'
11 February 2019
National Press Club, Canberra
PRIME MINISTER: Well thank you Sabra and thank you for the welcome here today and can I acknowledge the Ngunnawal people, elders past present and emerging.
Can I thank the members of the press gallery for being here today. As one of them remarked to me today, “Welcome back to the bubble.” Thank you very much for the welcome.
To all of my colleagues who are here with me today, thank you. There are too many to mention but I’m so pleased that you are able to be joining me here for today’s important address talking about a safer Australia.
A few weeks ago, I had the great privilege as Prime Minister of awarding Kate and Tick Everett the honour of being Local Hero Australians of the Year.
Now, Kate is with us here today, she’s up the back. Give her a round of applause. Every Australian parent can only try and begin to imagine the pain of Kate and Tick when they lost their daughter Dolly to online bullying just over a year ago.
Through Dolly’s dream, they are transforming what I can only describe as indescribable grief into a force for change to protect the children of our country.
For parents, security used to mean warnings of ‘stranger danger’ and keeping an eye on the kids as they played in the front yard or on the nature strip.
The online world has opened up a dangerous place for our children. It is the terror of parents everywhere, including Jen and me.
Just over a week before that, I met Saeed. He is the father of Aiia Maasarwe.
Aiia was a kind hearted, beautiful and generous human being who was brutally raped and murdered in Melbourne only a few weeks ago. It’s not the first time we have seen terrible acts like that.
Now, Saeed and I are from different nations, different faiths, different cultures, but we share one thing in common. And that is understanding the special place a daughter has in her father’s heart. And I can tell you, nothing prepares you for a meeting like that.
But despite his pain, Saeed reminded Australians to “see light in the dark” because that’s what Aiia believed.
But the other truth is that women in Australia are still the targets of violence, abuse and disrespect. And this must stop.
Last year I also visited the scene where a radical extremist Islamic terrorist murdered Sisto Malaspina on Bourke Street in Melbourne. Sisto was rushing to the aid of the man who became his murderer.
An act of violence not just against a fellow Australian, but against our very way of life and who we are.
And just this past week, as Linda Reynolds and I were together, we stood with those who had been fighting fires in Tasmania down there in the Huon Valley, and we stood with the families returning to their flooded homes in Townsville.
Across the range, farmers were being hit with something they had never seen in their lifetimes and the lifetimes of generations prior to that. The loss of their livelihoods as hundreds of thousands of cattle were washed away or died stranded in flooded mud.
It’s heartbreaking. Soul destroying. And it’s still happening right now, those animals are dying as we speak. And Linda and I and other ministers were on the phone to the mayors this morning once again.
That same week I joined hundreds in Melbourne to remember the Black Saturday bushfires, and we’ll do that again in Parliament tomorrow, where families still grieve and communities are still healing ten years on.
And just before Christmas, I had the great privilege of visiting our troops in Iraq.
Australians putting themselves in harm’s way to stabilise a land far away from here. But there they serve, as Christopher Pyne knows, who saw them in January, bravely and gladly in our nation’s interests.
I’ve told you those stories because the point I want to make is that keeping Australians safe and secure is not just about discussing the great geopolitical tensions of our time.
It’s much more personal than that. It’s much more meaningful than that. It affects your every day, it extends to our communities, our families, women, children and individual Australians.
That’s how I see my national security and safety responsibilities to the Australian people.
For the past five and a half years, our Government has taken these responsibilities extremely seriously, dealing with the world as it is. Uncertain, often dangerous, uncompromising and, at its worst, simply evil.
Every day we have been taking action to build a stronger and even more resilient Australia to deal with whatever comes at us.
That’s why today I am releasing our forward plan to keep Australians safe and secure in the future. Our plan to keep Australians safe and secure.
The plan builds on our achievements and addresses the newer and emerging threats we face. Plans must always be updated to achieve that.
Regional tensions between the world's great powers, heightened global instability; stiff headwinds facing, as Josh Freedenberg knows as Treasurer, the global economy, and Mathias Cormann; foreign interference; radical Islamist terrorism; people smuggling; natural disasters; organised crime; money laundering; biosecurity hazards, cybersecurity; the evil ICE trade; violence against women on our streets; online predators and scammers who seek to rip off older Australians; cyber-bullying and elder abuse.
Our plan to Keep Australians safe and secure, to address these threats, is straightforward.
Keep our economy strong to provide the surest foundation for our security.
Defend Australia with a record investment of over $200 billion in our nation’s defence capability over the next decade.
Continue to protect our borders with proven policies that work and not changing them.
Keeping Australians safe from terrorism, by disrupting and denying terrorists the ability to undertake attacks in Australia.
Combat violence against women and counter the culture of disrespect towards women that can lead to that violence.
Protect our children online and in the real world, going after sexual predators and countering bullying behaviour.
Secure our region and our sovereignty by prioritising cooperation with our Indo-Pacific neighbours and family, as Marise Payne does on a daily basis.
To protect Australians from organised criminals by ensuring we give police and security services the resources, technology and the powers that they need.
To fight the menace of drugs – especially ICE, with coordinated law enforcement and anti-gangs initiatives.
And to protect our communities in times of natural disaster by continuing to invest more in our preparedness and capability, so we can respond quickly and help Australians get back on their feet as we are doing even as we speak right now with the disasters that face us.
So let’s talk about that plan in a bit more detail. Economic strength and our country’s security are interdependent. You can’t have one without the other.
That’s why, a fortnight ago, I released our Plan for a Stronger Economy, up in Trevor Evan’s electorate in Brisbane.
It’s also a straightforward plan. A plan for lower taxes and strong budgets. Backing small and family businesses and building the infrastructure that we need to support our growth and maintain our quality of life. In particular that congestion-busting infrastructure that Alan Tudge has been putting together all around the country.
It’s a plan that has already generated more than one million jobs in less than five years, ahead of what we promised.
It’s a plan that will deliver the essential services that Australians rely on into the future, and it’s a plan that’ll deliver a million and a quarter more jobs as our pledge over the next five years.
But it’s also a plan that will ensure that we can underwrite our Government’s commitment to keeping Australians safe and secure.
This is our objective. This is our plan.
Australia’s national security is also intertwined with that of the Indo-Pacific region.
Australia and our partners face diverse security threats that challenge our interests, from North Korea’s long-range missiles and nuclear programs, to state fragility, and radical Islamist terrorism in our own region.
We want to see an open, rules-based Indo-Pacific where the rights of all states are respected.
So my Government, our Government is strengthening our partnerships in the region and beyond, to protect our security and our sovereignty, consistent with the 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper.
Our step-up in the Pacific reflects a simple reality - the Pacific is our home and our Pacific neighbours are our family. They are fuh mouh, they are vuvale, as we’ve spoken about in the region.
We are working with our neighbours and others to support the Pacific’s long-term stability and economic prospects, by re-focusing our aid budget on our neighbourhood, and supporting infrastructure development and bolstering maritime security capability, just to name a few.
When we took office in 2013 coming into government, Defence spending was at an all-time low. In 2012-13, as a share of our economy, it was just 1.56 per cent - the lowest level since 1938. Shameful.
Under our Government, we are delivering the biggest rebuild of our armed forces and their capability in a generation, and boosting Defence spending to 2 per cent of GDP by 2020-21 ahead of our promise.
The rebuild is based on the strategy laid out in our 2016 Defence White Paper - investing over $200 billion in our defence capability over the next decade.
A doubling of the submarine fleet, a new fleet of nine frigates, as well as a new fleet of 12 offshore patrol vessels and 21 Pacific Patrol Boats.
All 54 vessels will be built here in Australia - built by Australian workers with Australian steel.
It is one of the biggest naval transformations occurring anywhere in the world today - a stark contrast, I must say, with Labor’s failure to commission a single naval vessel when they were in office for six years. Asleep at the wheel.
And earlier today, Chris Pyne and I, together with other ministers who were there, signed our Strategic Partnership Agreement with the French Defence Minister which delivers on our commitment to build 12 new submarines. And Steven Marshall, the Premier of South Australia, had a particularly big smile on his face, as he should. But so should all Premiers, because this work extends right around the country.
The Air Force will gain unprecedented combat capacity through the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.
And the Army is getting new body armour, weapons, night fighting equipment and new Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicles, which I know 3rd Brigade up there in Lavarack, Townsville are very, very excited about, particularly Brigadier Winter.
Operation Sovereign Borders has been one, I would argue, of Australia’s greatest national security policy successes.
I have had the privilege to lead it, as has Peter Dutton. I know what compromise and poorly thought through changes can do to our borders. Labor proposes to do both, again. They have learned nothing from their failures on border protection.
Our successful border protection framework has three core elements, and you’ve heard me say it before, but it bears repeating.
First, the denial of permanent residence and therefore citizenship to people who illegally enter Australia.
This was achieved by the restoration of temporary protection visas when we came to government. Labor has promised to abolish them.
When Labor did this in August 2008, thinking it would make no difference, it fired the starter’s gun for the boats to return, and the deaths, and the tragedy and the chaos.
Secondly, regional processing of people who seek to illegally enter Australia.
This is conducted at the Nauru regional processing facilities.
Labor have already voted in the Senate, as you know, to undermine these arrangements by removing authority for transfers to Australia from the Government. They will abolish regional processing as we know it.
And thirdly, disrupting people smuggling activities through the supply chain, as General Molan and I know as we did all those years ago, right up that chain using a web of intelligence and regional cooperation and the physical turn-back of boats.
Operation Sovereign Borders has worked, it’s delivered a human dividend that is both compassionate and fair.
We’ve stopped the deaths at sea – there were over 1,200 that we know of;
We’ve closed 19 detention centres;
We’ve removed all children from detention - remember over 8,000 were put into detention under the previous government - and the last four children on Nauru have their bags packed for the US. All the children are off Nauru;
We’ve expanded our humanitarian program;
And here’s some figures you might not have heard. Right from the outset, and I did this, as did Peter and David Coleman now following, we have expanded our Women at Risk program, which has seen 7,046 women and children find safe refuge in Australia since 2013.
That’s what strong border protection delivers when it comes to human beings.
Our plan is simple. We won’t change it, not one jot. Labor will.
Our Government will also continue to do everything that must be done to combat radical extremist Islamist terrorism.
So far our record includes 12 tranches of national security legislation passed.
But I’ve got to say, on almost every occasion, Labor has been dragged to support this vital legislation and then only, having sought to water it down, try and claim bipartisanship.
$2.2 billion in extra funding for our law enforcement, intelligence and security agencies. Restoring what was stripped away.
Funding for 100 more intelligence experts, over 100 more tactical response and covert surveillance operators and almost 100 forensic experts at the AFP.
$294 million to upgrade airport security around the country, including in regional airports, and $45 million in programs to counter radicalisation.
The creation of a new Office of National Intelligence and the Home Affairs Department, the expansion of the Australian Cyber Security Centre, and a significant boost in resources, all of this will ensure that our security agencies are stronger and better coordinated and integrated.
In the wake of the Burke Street terrorist attack, I decided more needed to be done when it came to countering radicalisation. I met with Muslim leaders in Sydney and I have since approved another $14 million, working with David Coleman as the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, for additional programmes to work with local community organisations and Muslim leaders who are prepared to take a stand. These are brave people, to prevent radicalisation destroying their own communities.
But the achievement we can take most comfort from is that since 2014, our security agencies have disrupted 14 major terrorist plots.
90 people have been charged with counter-terrorism offences, and hundreds of Australian families have loved ones with them - instead of facing grief, pain and loss because of the excellent work of our security agencies.
And under laws passed by our Government, we have stripped 12 terrorists of Australian citizenship.
That’s what keeping Australia safe looks like.
We might not thwart every attempt by terrorists to damage our democracy, but we have put our intelligence and security services on the best possible footing to do so.
Our Government is also fully engaged in working together to combat violence against women. And I acknowledge Kelly O’Dwyer who is here today, and I acknowledge the work she has done, as well as Paul Fletcher in this area as the Minister for Social Services.
As I said before, it must stop.
Nearly ten years ago, state and federal governments came together with the community to put in place the first National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and Children.
The Fourth Action Plan will be finalised in the middle of this year.
But where immediate action is needed we have delivered, including committing a further $20 million just in the past year for 1800RESPECT.
Today I am announcing the first of the Commonwealth measures towards the Action Plan - a $60 million investment in emergency accommodation and $18 million of continued support for state and territory governments to keep women and children safe in their homes.
These two measures reflect two important principles, and I can reflect on this back from my time in Social Services Minister, as Paul knows very well.
We can’t ask women and children to leave dangerous homes if they have no place to go. And where it is safe, women and children survivors should be helped to remain in their homes and in their communities. You’ve got to be safe in your own home.
We have listened to the frontline workers and survivors throughout the consultations we have had over the past year.
That is why one focus of our measures also we’ll be announcing soon will be on prevention - on changing the attitudes to violence, and on helping those who think violence is an option, to stop.
This new commitment will build on the more than $350 million our Government has invested since 2015 to stop this violence against women and children.
Our Government has also been at the forefront of efforts to keep children safe online with over $100 million invested so far.
Mitch Fifield will know that we’ve done this with the creation of the world’s first eSafety Commissioner who has tough powers to take down cyberbullying content, by funding new resources to support parents, and are making a new $10 million investment to allow charities like the Alannah and Madeline Foundation and the Carly Ryan Foundation to develop new tools to protect children online.
We have passed Carly’s Law that makes it a crime for an adult to use carriage services in relation to sexual activity with a minor.
And we have provided almost $69 million to establish the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation, which is a national approach led by the AFP, championed by Peter Dutton, to combat a global epidemic of child abuse. We’re serious about this stuff, we are very serious.
Our Government will continue to take action also to protect Australians from criminals.
Across my time as Immigration Minister and on Peter Dutton’s watch and now on David’s watch, we have cancelled the visas of the equivalent of the gaol population of South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory combined.
We have cancelled the visas of 4,150 dangerous criminals, sent them packing. In six years, Labor cancelled just 643 visas. Labor were soft.
We cancelled around 800 last year alone.
That included 13 murderers, 34 rapists and sex offenders, 53 for domestic violence, 56 for armed robbery, and 100 child sex offenders, punted by our Government.
Specifically, we have cancelled the visas of more than 300 child sex offenders and stopped hundreds more at the border.
We have introduced a national approach to strip criminals of their illegally obtained wealth no matter which jurisdiction they operate in, which strikes at the heart of organised crime. And I particularly acknowledge Michael Keenan for his work when he was Minister on those issues.
We’re giving our law enforcement agencies the tools to read the encrypted messages that violent criminals and child sex offenders are currently using to evade detection, and we had to fight for it in the Parliament to make sure we got it. We are also seeking to legislate to ensure that police have appropriate powers to assess and disrupt potential security and criminal threats at airports.
Our Government is taking an uncompromising approach to fighting the menace of drugs.
Last financial year, the AFP and Australian Border Force seized more than 17 tonnes of drugs and precursors at the border.
The AFP assisted its international counterparts to seize more than 28 tonnes of drugs and precursors offshore. All of these efforts are protecting lives from being destroyed by drugs in our communities.
The scourge of ICE is one that I know affects communities right across Australia, not least the families and children of ICE addicts.
The Government has invested $450 million to help these communities fight the impacts of ICE, including funding for more than 220 Local Drug Action Teams.
Our joined-up strategy includes international cooperation to stop drugs at their source, with enhanced intelligence sharing, as well as better controls on precursor chemicals and stronger law enforcement.
In total, we are also providing more than $720 million over four years to help communities reduce the impact of drug and alcohol misuse. Forgive me for listing such a long list of actions, but there’s a long list there in terms of what we’ve been doing.
But finally, let me talk about natural disasters. It’s our job, together with States and Territories and local government, to support Australians when nature doesn’t.
We are investing in our national emergency capability and resilience through the government’s Preparing Australia Package – with support for emergency text alerts, aerial firefighting and bushfire shelters, which have come in very useful, as Linda and I have seen in recent weeks and months.
At the national level we have contracted over 130 aerial firefighting assets for this season, bringing the total to over 500 aerial assets available when state resources are counted.
Emergency Management Australia administer, on average, about $1 billion in disaster recovery payments each year, as well as operate our 24/7 Crisis Coordination Centre.
Our Government is also now funding up to 75 per cent of disaster assistance to individuals and communities, most of which is provided through State and Territory Governments. So up there in Townsville at the moment, those state agencies that are providing payments, 75 per cent of that is being funded by the Commonwealth Government, not just the individual payments that we do on top of that.
And once again we have seen the best of Australians in response to these recent fires and floods. It’s no surprise, but it never loses how impressive it is.
And I particularly want to thank, on behalf of our country all of the volunteer emergency services personnel, to state and territory governments, to the ADF, who have just been doing an extraordinary job, an extraordinary job, all around the country, for all that they have done. It’s just not what they do, it’s when they show up, it lifts the spirits of those who need help.
As of 5pm yesterday, over 32 thousand claims for disaster relief payments have been processed in Townsville alone, in just one week. And we have already paid over $39 million in assistance, just in one week. That’s cash straight into the pockets of those impacted by the floods.
Further, effective 11am today, we have extended the availability of disaster recovery payments to eight shires across Western Queensland - the funds will start flowing immediately and Centrelink are putting people on the ground ready to process it immediately.
This morning I again spoke, as I said, with the mayors of the flood impacted shires in Western Queensland where we are seeing a national disaster unfold in terms of damage to our beef and cattle industries.
As a result, and further to my announcement of Category D assistance, which is national disaster status - there is no technical national disaster declaration in any act. Category D is what it is, there is a national disaster unfolding in northern Queensland. And we announced that assistance on Friday, and today I am announcing that my Government will provide an immediate ex-gratia payment of $1 million to each of the affected shires. That is necessary for them to just get on and do the enormous amount of work they need to support their communities. They raised it with me this morning, it’s announced by this afternoon.
This payment will be for them to use on the priorities that they deem most urgent - whether that be rate relief for impacted properties, reconstruction of infrastructure, or the disposal of cattle that have perished, which is being coordinated and also assisted by the ADF.
Our disaster assistance funding to North Queensland in response to this flood is already over $100 million, in addition to massive support from the ADF.
I want those farmers to know up there in North Queensland that we will stand with them all the way through this disaster, but we will be standing with you on the other side as you rebuild the great prosperity that we know is there for you in the future. We will be there to rebuild with you.
So in conclusion, national security is all about making the right decisions. Because, as a Government and as a Prime Minister, you make them every single day.
You make these decisions - this is how I make them - based on your values, what you believe, your instincts, your experience and, when required, courage.
Our Government has demonstrated we have the mettle to make the right calls on our nation’s security:
Repairing our borders;
Investing in our defence forces;
Deporting violent criminals;
Taking on domestic violence to protect the women and children in this country;
Disrupting terrorist attacks.
We have led, we haven’t followed.
We have taken decisions rather than put them off to another day.
And we have embraced tough calls rather than seeking to buy weak compromises for the purpose of politics.
This is our form, not just of our Government. But as Michael McCormack knows, the Deputy Prime Minister, the form of Liberal National Coalition Governments going back 70 years.
It is why we are trusted.
The plan I have announced today is built on our strong record and sets out plainly what a re-elected Morrison Liberal Nationals Government will continue to do to keep Australians safe and secure.
Remarks, Last Post Ceremony
11 February 2019
Australian War Memorial, Canberra
PRIME MINISTER: We meet here today on the land of the Ngunnawal People and we acknowledge their elders past, present and emerging. I also acknowledge here today the serving men and women of our Australian Defence Forces and any veterans who are present here today. I simply say thank you for your service.
We gather in the most sacred location in our Commonwealth. Madame Parly, who I welcome today, it’s wonderful to have you with us on this important occasion. A century ago, the families of the 60,000 men and women who died in the First World War had no place to mourn. For many, it was almost impossible to imagine heading to France or Gallipoli or to Egypt. So this hallowed place became where Australians would mourn and remember those who were lost.
Today many of our Members and Senators are gathered here for the Last Post. We do so to remind ourselves that our affiliation is first to our country. Tomorrow, the chambers, halls and corridors of Parliament House will spring to life again, with the resumption of a new parliamentary year. But in this moment, we stand together, quiet and aligned. The founders of this capital ensured that the Australian War Memorial was built in a direct line of sight with the Parliament. It was done so to remind every single member that no decision should be taken lightly and that some decisions exact an incalculable cost. No cost runs deeper than the loss of life inflicted by war. The freedoms and values that Australians hold dear, the right to debate and determine our destiny in that House across the lake, have been hard-fought and hard-won, through courage, mateship, sacrifice and endurance.
Gallipoli, Kokoda, Long Tan, Uruzgan, the skies over Germany, the waters of the Pacific. The names of these places are etched, written on these walls. But there is one that we particularly remember today; in September 1941, Sister Alma May Beard left Australia for Singapore, with the other gallant nurses of the 13th Australian General Hospital. She never came home. Her fate was one of the most cruel and barbaric of any man, woman or child who perished in that war. An evacuee on the Vyner Brooke who escaped drowning when it was bombed, only to be captured, held prisoner and then slaughtered on the beach. A nurse, whose only motivation was to help and care for others. It is right that we remember her, and tell her story today. Her story, like all the others, kept here in this sacred place, speaks to us of how much has been laid down. We owe every member of our armed forces past and present our gratitude for their commitment to act in our name. Here, the parliamentarians who have gathered, are reminded of our great responsibility. We remember, and we dedicate ourselves once again to this country that we love and those who have served and lost so much.
Lest we forget.
Remarks, Strategic Partnership Signing
11 February 2019
Russell Offices, Canberra
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much for that introduction and can I begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal People, elders past and present and emerging. I also extend a very warm welcome to Minister Florence Parly, it’s wonderful to have you here with us today. I know you’ve made a special effort to be here with us today and I think that’s a mark of the wonderful relationship that has been formed as we’ve moved to this day and so thank you so much for making the effort to be here today and please pass on my kindest regards to President Macron. This is a day, as I was just mentioning to you, that he and I have been looking forward to as we discussed when we were in Buenos Aires not too long ago.
To his Excellency Christophe Penot, thank you very much for all of your efforts in bringing us to this point today, working so closely. To the Premier of South Australia Steven Marshall, it’s always good to see your smiling face whether in Canberra, South Australia, it’s wonderful to have Steven here, such a passionate advocate for this programme. To my ministerial colleagues who are joining us today, particularly the Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne, congratulations Christopher on your stewardship of this programme over a long period of time and it’s wonderful that we can join together with your other ministerial colleagues who are here today to mark this important occasion.
This really is a great day for Australia. It’s a great day for our Royal Australian Navy. I reckon it’s the greatest partnership between Australia and France since Nancy Wake was let loose on the Nazis in the Second World War. It really is a wonderful partnership. The Australian Government regards the safety and security of its people and its territory as our greatest duty and calling. As ‘a land girt by sea’, as our national anthem proclaims, a great Australian Royal Australian Navy is what is necessary.
What that means is that ensuring we are at the front of the pack when it comes to the latest naval vessels and firepower. As part of our Government's plan to keep Australians safe, we’re celebrating a milestone today with the next phase of our Future Submarine Program. In 2016 the Government selected France and Naval Group as our international partners to deliver a 12 strong fleet of cutting-edge submarines, as we promised to do. The signing today of the Strategic Partnership Agreement to deliver these submarines underscores the longstanding and strategic partnership between Australia and France.
A spirit of defence cooperation and collaboration between our nations reaches right back to the First World War. But this program brings a new depth to that partnership through a multi-decade program to build and sustain these submarines in Australia. It’s more than a contract.
This is a project that will not only keep Australians safe, but it will deliver Australian jobs. It will build Australian skills. It will be made and require Australian steel and it will mean a stronger Royal Australian Navy.
Our Government is committed to maximising Australian industry content in the Future Submarine Program. This was a conscious decision of our Government. Beyond construction, the program will provide Australia with an independent, sovereign capability to sustain our fleet, including the upskilling of Navy and industry workforces. We will see long-term strategic cooperation, not only in defence industry as I know Minister Ciobo will be excited about, but across other sectors, creating even more jobs through more high-tech, high-paying jobs.
Hundreds of Australians are already employed on the Future Submarines Program and thousands more will be through the supply chain during the construction phase. So, as pleased as I know Premier Marshall is about the jobs in South Australia, these jobs reach right across our great continent.
The signing of this agreement today demonstrates our Government is delivering on our promise on the naval shipbuilding plan. It is a $90 billion commitment to build in total 54 new naval vessels and grow a strong, sustainable and sovereign Australian naval shipbuilding industry.
This is a very audacious plan. This is what vision looks like. The number of shipbuilding programs we are launching is beyond what just about any other country - including the United States - has done since the Second World War. The number of new starts on these projects is almost without parallel. This is a big project, this is an audacious program that we have set before us and we are committed to achieving it. 12 attack class submarines will be a cornerstone of that plan and it’s all part of Australia's biggest-ever peacetime investment in defence. The strategies were laid out in the 2016 Defence White Paper and we are getting on with the job. Over $200 billion is being invested in Australia's Navy, Army and Air Force defence capability over the next decade. With the signing of today's agreement, we are strengthening our region, something I know Minister Payne cares about deeply and is part of her ongoing discussions not only in the Indo-Pacific region, but all around the world. This is a key part of our participation in creating a safer and more peaceful world.
Our region, which we keep secure, in close partnership with our valued allies. So we are delivering for our Navy, our nation and our people as we promised. We are delivering for our defence industry and jobs and we are delivering on our steadfast commitment to keep Australians safe and secure.
I conclude by thanking again all of those who have brought us to this point today, but I particularly want to commend Ministers Pyne and Parly for the wonderful working relationship they've had to bring us to where they are today and look forward to that relationship continuing into the future as we get this done. Thank you.
Press Conference - Sydney
8 February 2019
Sydney, NSW
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you for coming along. I wanted to provide you with an update on our actions in relation to the terrible floods we’re seeing in North Queensland. Earlier today and prior to coming here to provide this briefing I have spoken again with the Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. We have been in close contact as we’ve ensured coordination and concurrence in the action we’re taking to provide support. We have all seen, I think, the images, the devastating scenes, of what's occurring in North Queensland. This is a very significant flood event. We are expecting hundreds of thousands in terms of stock losses. This will be heartbreaking to these communities, that have been experiencing years of drought, only to see that turn into a torrential inundation, which threatens now their very livelihoods in the complete other direction.
Already, as you will know, there has been work that is being done to support these communities through fodder drops, and through the supply of particularly gas to ensure that the fodder can be distributed from local community distribution places. The situation on the ground is very disparate. It's different in different shires, and so it's very important that the distribution of the fodder, and how it is done, and with what craft, is very much determined on the local level. And to that end, this morning, I convened a teleconference with all the key local shire mayors, together with Emergency Management Australia, Defence Force, the CDF, and particularly the Emergency Management Minister, Linda Reynolds, and the Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud, the Defence Minister, myself, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Finance Minister, to review how this distribution process was proceeding. It's very clear from that, and my discussions with the Queensland Premier, that the ground-up model of ensuring that we're getting this right is the way to continue to achieve this. The local shire mayors are in very close contact with the station owners and those running those stations, and they're in the best position to say where the feed should go, how it should get there, and how it should proceed.
In the short term, we have asked specifically about the supplies to those towns in terms of their current food stocks, and in the short term that is not an issue that they're raising. But we're obviously talking with them every day, and should that be a necessity, then we can obviously take decisions to support airlifts to that end, as the roads are cut off to those communities. Yesterday, we announced that we were moving to Category C recovery grants, together with the Queensland Government, in response to their request. That means that up to $25,000 can be provided in grants for a range of purposes - hiring, leasing of equipment or materials to clean premises, removing and disposing of debris, damaged goods, materials, purchasing fodder, salvaging crops or feed or stock, repairing or conditioning essential plant and equipment. Now, that was put in place in seven shires, local government areas: Burdekin, Cloncurry, Douglas, Hinchinbrook, McKinlay, Richmond and Townsville. That was extended today to Winton and Flinders.
I'm announcing today that, after further discussions with the Queensland Premier, together we are moving all of those local government areas to Category D. That will mean those payments of $25,000 will be available to $75,000. Our initial estimate of this cost will be $100 million from the Commonwealth's share perspective. But as we've seen in other disasters, whether it's Cyclone Yasi, that cost could end up being far greater than that. But the Government has been unhesitating in moving to ensure that the level of assistance that is needed will be provided, and that we will stand with these communities every step in the way, and stand in very close contact.
And what I'm also announcing today is that we will be providing $3 million in additional support to complement the measures already being put in place by the Queensland Government to support mental health services. Through a surge response team to support health professionals in north, central and western Queensland, including workers on the ground to work with those who are impacted. It will be a very, very difficult time. And while there are services in towns, those who are out in stations, those who are out dealing on the ground with their stock, who are dying in some of the most horrific circumstances, they will need our support. And they will need significant mental health support. And I would urge all of them to reach out for that support. It will be provided and it will be done by people who know how to help you in these circumstances.
We've seen the best of our communities in recent times, as they've supported each other through fires and through floods. And it's very important that we not only provide those services, but those who need them reach out for them. We are there to help you and to support you. Also in the call this morning, we were asked to raise with the banks, seeking their support to assist their customers through this period of time. The Finance Minister got in immediate contact with all the major banks, as well as Rabobank, who is a significant rural lender. All of those banks are in direct contact with their customers in these areas, and their clients. We have already in place the drought task force, where we're working with the banks, dealing with similar issues but from a very different weather context. And so that has enabled us to ensure that they'll be able to have ways of supporting their clients in those circumstances. They already have a range of policies in place which can deal with everything from deferral of interest and relaxing of interest, and putting those mechanisms in place for each of the clients' specific circumstances. So, I would encourage those affected to deal directly with their bank, and we will continue to work closely with them to ensure that they are doing the right thing in these circumstances, to relieve any possible anxiety or burden that might come from that commercial relationship, because right now we all need to be there for them.
So, those decisions have been taken today, through the National Security Committee of Cabinet, which I have just left now, to brief you. And so our prayers and support are with everybody up there in North Queensland. Not to forget, though, the disasters that have been occurring in other areas. The fires in Tasmania, where I was earlier this week. You know, there have been fires in Western Australia, in Victoria. It is a difficult time of the year, and we're seeing some difficult conditions. But particularly for those floods up in North Queensland, we will continue to do everything we can. Linda Reynolds, who is the Assistant Minister, she is on the ground up there in Townsville and working very closely with the local authorities. But what you are seeing is governments at all levels working closely together to support those most in need. Happy to take a few questions, but then I will have to leave.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, The Rocky Hill thermal coal mine planned for New South Wales Hunter Valley...
PRIME MINISTER: Can we talk about the floods, please?
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, in terms of fodder, we're getting anecdotal evidence relayed to us from individual farmers - and I appreciate you're coordinating with the shire mayors - that fodder drops are useless to them at the moment because they get wet and there's nowhere for aircraft to land. So how effective is that at the moment?
PRIME MINISTER: That's the feedback we have also been getting and that's why we've changed the practices to work through the local communities. In some cases, they want us to hold back on some of those fodder drops until, particularly in the black soil area, it dries, which they're hoping might occur by later in the weekend. The great risk is when you've got livestock that are in mud and they seek to move, they can do even more damage to themselves and of course, then you have the issues of where the fodder is and what happens to it. We also have to be careful that some of the bio risks about where we bring the fodder in from.
So, those things are being carefully considered in how we're doing it. You also can't go and land, you know, drop it with a Chinook in some of these places. I mean it blows buildings away and certainly isn't good for livestock in a very sensitive condition. That's why we're using local aviation providers and that's why getting the gas in is so important, so they can go out and do the fodder drops wherever they can get to. So, the shires are the right place to work through, because they're talking to the farmers all the time.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, there are MPs on your backbench arguing that these events - floods, fires - are building community support for your Government to take a new climate change policy to this election. Will you do such a thing? Will you have a new climate policy?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we already have a significant policy on these issues and I'll be announcing more on that between now and the next election. But can we just focus on the recovery and the response to people who are in quite desperate situations in relation to the floods, please?
JOURNALIST: In terms of the funding and the mental health support, when can members of the public actually expect to receive that?
PRIME MINISTER: This is flowing pretty much immediately.
JOURNALIST: And what services, which providers are -?
PRIME MINISTER: We're providing that through the State Government's arrangements. The Queensland State Government has the infrastructure in place to deliver all of these services. Whether it's how we coordinate drought assistance and payments, or otherwise, and we'll work through their systems. The Queensland and the Commonwealth are working very closely together and the Premier and I are working very closely together.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, with full respect to the chaotic scenes that we are seeing up north, unfortunately there were some chaotic scenes as well at the franking credit inquiry in Chatswood today?
PRIME MINISTER: Can we please focus, how many times do I have to say it? There are people facing floods, I'm here to brief the country on what is happening to help them. They're worried about them, I'm worried about them. I'm happy to take questions on these issues, please. I'm going to take a question up the back here.
JOURNALIST: In terms of banking, banks right now. Right now banks are very much on the nose and farmers have the appreciation of the whole country. Are banks willing to do whatever it takes to help these people? We're also hearing evidence from farmers that they have lost three years' worth of income and there's no possible way they will be able to pay banks back for whatever lending in that time?
PRIME MINISTER: There's a very hard road ahead. The initial indications back from the banks, I think, are positive in terms of what they're prepared to do. I mean, they're basically locked into this process as well, with their clients. And in order to find a way through, there's going to have to be, I think, a lot of mediation done and remediation done to the financial position of these station holders. They need to get their breeding stock back in place. I mean, you can't pay off a loan if you don't have breeding stock. And what we've seen with the drought is that, where they have had to off-load, and where they've had to sell their livestock to actually stay ahead, or just keep their heads above the line, these are the stock that are now have been washed away or are dying, literally as we speak. And so they will need to be able to, to make these properties viable, get their breeding stock back in place. And so that's what we'll have to work closely with the entire sector, and with the State Government and the shires to ensure that North Queensland can get back up on its feet.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, has a foreign government breached the Parliament House computer network?
PRIME MINISTER: I might come back to that in one sec, unless there are any other questions on the floods. No? Okay look, that is a matter that we have been briefed on during the course of the day. I should stress that there is no suggestion that government departments or agencies have been the target of any such incursion. But on the other one, I don't propose to go into any sort of detailed commentary on the source or nature of this. Once further information is available, then we'll be in a position to provide further detail.
JOURNALIST: Can you describe what kind of data may have been - ?
PRIME MINISTER: No, we're not in a position to do that at this point.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Bill Shorten has accepted agreement on the Phelps bill. Do you think he will listen to that advice and possibly vote against it?
PRIME MINISTER: I hope he does listen to the advice. It's taken him five days - five days - to actually agree to have a briefing on the impact of the Phelps bill. So you can draw your own conclusions, I mean, they voted in the Senate for what is effectively the Phelps bill without even having a briefing and wanted to see that all passed before the end of last year. What I know is this; we opposed that bill and we will oppose that bill. We will do everything we can to ensure that bill - which is acceptable in no form, no form - because it will undermine our border protection. We believe in having strong borders and we put in place the system which achieves that. This bill is an attempt to undermine that and anyone who is supporting this bill is not for stronger borders.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, how concerned are you by the Reserve Bank's revised economic growth figures? Do those lower growth figures undermine your economic argument going into the Budget and the election?
PRIME MINISTER: No, because they're now consistent with our Budget forecast.
JOURNALIST: Hakeem Al Araibi was granted refugee status by Australia. How concerned are you about his welfare?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I have been keeping in close contact with that issue. I've made two direct representations to the Prime Minister. It is within the executive authority of the Prime Minister, of the Government, to be able to have Hakeem return to Australia. We will continue to argue for the Thai Government to do that. We will continue to do it patiently, respectfully, because we want to see him get home. He has been granted protection here in Australia for very legitimate reasons and he should come home. And I think that's what the Australian people would absolutely want. So we will continue to press that case.
JOURNALIST: The thermal coal mine planned for New South Wales Hunter Valley has been rejected due to the "dire consequences of climate change" following a landmark ruling in the Environment Court. Do you think that this means that this is the end of coal, or new coal mines in this country? Because it's set a disturbing precedent. Will the Government intervene?
PRIME MINISTER: I haven't had the opportunity to review the case.
JOURNALIST: Should Ken Henry depart NAB immediately and is it appropriate he plays any role in choosing a successor?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I said the other day that the Royal Commissioner had some fairly sharp assessments to make and that people would reflect on those and they have. Thank you very much.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, were you warned about Scott Buchholz's behaviour on his defence trip before you promoted him?
PRIME MINISTER: No.
Remarks, Paralympic Funding Announcement
6 February 2019
Please forgive my husky voice at this early time in the morning and thank you all for joining us this morning which enabled me to be here. And to Bridget and to all our distinguished guests, particularly the athletes, their families and supporters who are here with us today and all the officials from the Paralympic movement.
This is a very special day. Some years ago - and Kurt and I discussed this - it was 10 years ago in fact, I walked the Kokoda Track. Now for me, it was tough. But it wasn’t courageous. What you do is courageous. There’s lots of people who play sport, there’s lots of people who give everything they have. There’s enormous stories of great feats of endurance and physical performance of our elite athletes. And sure it takes determination and persistence and commitment and dedication. That’s the starting line for you guys. When you achieve, it’s more than that. It’s a courage that goes beyond anything I have seen in sport. Anything that I have seen.
So when Kurt got himself across the Track - and he told me he’s not going to do it again in a hurry, by the way - that was courage. I was down at the Australian Open this year with Bridget and we saw amazing performances. Ash Barty, we were there on that day to see Ash hit herself into the final round, and we saw the great Roger Federer, emerging new talents coming through. But I got to have a hit with Dylan Alcott, and not only is he cheeky as, but he is a five-time Australian Open winner. Again, it’s the difference between being an elite athlete and being someone incredibly special.
The reason I am announcing two elements of funding today - there’s $12 million in total for Paralympians today - $8 million to support the team to Tokyo and your preparation. But $4 million also down in Melbourne to support the ongoing training facilities and engaging people in Paralympic sport in this country. The inspiration that you provide to Australians is something this country needs.
Australians are a very special group of people and I saw that first-hand yesterday when I was up in the floods in Townsville and down in the fires in Tasmania the day before. But what you do demonstrates that spirit every day you train, every day you set your mind to that goal. It doesn’t matter whether you’re playing bocce or you’re playing wheelchair rugby out of Port Macquarie or whatever you’re doing. You are every day doing it, saying to the rest of Australians, regardless of what their ability is, their background is, you can do it. You can do anything you set your mind to. And all Australians need that message. Not just those with disabilities who turn them into abilities, all Australians need that inspiration.
And that’s why as a Government we are so pleased - I mean, they had me at hello when they came to see me last year, they really did. I already got it, and so I want to thank you for what you’re doing. This is our investment in an investment you’re already making in our country and a contribution you’re already making through what you do. My parents always taught me life is about what you contribute, not what you accumulate, and you’re living that principle.
So I’m incredibly proud of what you’re doing. I can’t wait to see when you’re there in Tokyo. It isn’t just about the competition, as you know. At the Paralympics, everybody cheers for everybody. Because everybody is a champion. But I’m pretty sure we’re going to have some champions beyond that as well with a lot of medals around their necks which will be your reward, your own personal reward and your own acknowledgment of the wonderful things that you have been doing.
So $12 million dollars, it is a contribution we’re pleased to make it out of the Budget. We took the decision towards the end of last year and I’m just so pleased that I could be with you today. I wish you all the best for your preparations over the next few years, I wish the movement all the best as you continue to raise your profile and you get more and more recognition. Whether it’s from the broadcast networks or others, that they see what is the amazing story that is Paralympic sport here in this country. We’re a world leader athletically and I think more than that, in terms of how we run the show here, and I think we have things to teach the rest of the world. But in Tokyo, I’m looking forward to you teaching them a few things as well.
Thank you very much.
Remarks, Opening Ceremony of Melbourne's Official 2019 Chinese New Year Festival
2 February 2019
Melbourne, Victoria
Nǐ hǎo. Gong hei fat choy. It’s wonderful to be here - can everybody hear me? It’s wonderful to be here with the Lord Mayor, it’s wonderful to be here with my wife Jenny who has joined me and come down from Sydney today. It’s great to be here with Gladys Liu, my Liberal Candidate here for Chisolm and Kate Ashmor, the Liberal candidate here for Macnamara and all the other distinguished guests who are here. Members of the committee, those who have been part of this celebration for so many years.
It’s a great thrill for me to be here as a Sydneysider because so often we come down to Melbourne to see how these things are done and they’re done so well here in Melbourne. And it’s wonderful to come and enjoy the celebrations for Lunar New Year, as Jenny and I have often enjoyed the celebrations for Chinese new year up in Sydney and Chinatown there with our magnificent Chinese community as well. So it’s great to be able to bring those two together here tonight.
Now, Chinese New Year has a very long history here in Melbourne. Indeed, right across Victoria, as you go back into the 1860’s where the Chinese has been celebrating this most important time for their families and their communities. And there was the famed Imperial Dragon Loong who was brought to Melbourne from Bendigo in 1901 to take part in the procession and to celebrate Federation. So when our very nation, our very nation was formed, there in the middle of the procession was Loong the Chinese dragon that was a part of those celebrations and continues up until 1970. I understand the same dragon was part of the celebration here in Melbourne every single year.
So this is a wonderful time for family, it’s a wonderful time for community and it’s an opportunity for me as Prime Minister to say to all Australians of Chinese heritage and to those who celebrate the Lunar New Year out of Vietnam, out of Korea, out of other places, to say thanks for the wonderful contribution that all of you have made to Australia over so many generations. Not just recently, but over 160 and more year where we have seen the Chinese community first of all coming and making a great contribution.
Now I look over here at the emblem of the pig, the twelfth of the Chinese zodiac as I understand it. And it is the year of prosperity, it is the year of working hard, it is the year of wealth and that’s why Chinese immigrants came to Australia so long ago. To understand that they could have the opportunity to work hard, to start businesses, to support their children in education and to be able to go on and do such tremendous things. Helping build our cities, helping build our regions. This is the great legacy of Chinese Australians over such a long period of time.
We have 1.2 million Australians of Chinese heritage here and Gladys Liu is of course one of them. When she first came here in 1985 as a student and studied speech pathology and went on to become an Australian citizen in 1992 and raised here family here as so many Chinese Australians have come and done that very thing.
So that’s what we celebrate. Chinese New Year is now a great Australian celebration, not just a celebration within the Chinese community. And as I look out tonight, I see Australians of all backgrounds. I see Indian Australians, Namaste to all the Indian Australians who are here tonight. And Australians from so many different backgrounds. I see children, I see people of all generations and that’s so wonderful that we can celebrate it here as a true Australian community tonight. So xièxiè and thank you all very much.
Remarks, Box Hill 2019 Chinese New Year Opening Ceremony
2 February 2019
Box Hill, Victoria
This is the year of the pig, which means it’s the year of prosperity and wealth, and this is something that I know the Chinese community understands here well in Australia, coming to Australia more than 160 years ago to find both prosperity and wealth here in Australia.
There are 1.2 million Australians of Chinese heritage here in Australia. There are some 200,000 more Chinese students studying here in Australia and almost 560,000 or thereabouts who have been born in China and come to Australia.
You have worked hard for what you have achieved here in Australia. You’re working hard here in Australia and I want to thank you on behalf of all Australians for making Australia stronger, for making our economy stronger, and for making Australia a more prosperous and wealthy nation.
Australia brings stories from all over the world and our timeless indigenous stories to make Australia what it is today, and the Chinese Australian story is a very strong one and a key part of who we are as a modern nation. And it is important that we celebrate here, as a local community, this wonderful Chinese heritage here in Australia. May it forever prosper.
So to all of you, to the organising committees, to the sponsors, to the leadership of the local Chinese community here in Box Hill and the city of Whitehorse I say thank you very much on behalf of Jenny and I for your welcome here today and the wonderful presentation that you have put on. I trust you will enjoy today, I trust you will have a very prosperous, a very happy new year with you and your family.
Xièxiè, come and say hello to me on WeChat at ScottMorrison2019.
National Flag Raising and Citizenship Ceremony
26 January 2019
Canberra, ACT
Well good morning and happy Australia Day.
Today of all days I want to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, the Ngunnawal people. To elders past and present, I say thank you for the wonderful inheritance you have given to us today, and to the elders of the future, I say thank you as well.
To Your Excellency the Governor-General and Lady Cosgrove, to all our honoured guests here today, colleagues, those who are serving all around the country today and right around the world.
To our new citizens, Australians all.
It was more than a century ago Sir Henry Parkes, the father of our federation, put forward a vision of a united and diverse Australia, intergenerationally bound together by a liberty that transcended race, ethnicity, history and even religion.
Parkes said:
“What we are doing by this great Federal movement is not for us, but for them, for the untold millions that will follow us; until this land of Australia shall gather within its bosom all the fruits of the culture of the world; and until the flag of freedom shall be planted here so firmly and guarded with such a fervent patriotism, that all the powers on earth shall never assault it.”
Today, on Australia Day, we celebrate Parkes’ vision for our nation. A nation that indeed has gathered the cultures and peoples of the world, the most successful multicultural nation on earth, that began with our first peoples.
Yesterday, Jenny and I took our girls to join with the Ngunnawal people here in Canberra, not far from here, to acknowledge and pay tribute to our first Australians and 60,000 years of Indigenous culture and history.
We honoured their resilience, their wisdom, their custodianship and stewardship. The world’s oldest living culture.
A stewardship of sea, mountains, rainforest, deserts, river and rock.
We sat together, Australians all, paying our respects – to those with us now, those who come before and for the future we share together. Acknowledging the first peoples who began our great Australian story.
The next great chapter in that story began 231 years ago today.
It was not a good day for my fifth great grandfather, William Roberts.
Bunkered down in the light starved bowels of the Scarborough with 207 other convicts, he had arrived in Port Jackson after a long and treacherous voyage from Portsmouth.
He was transported for stealing 5 and a half-pound of yarn valued at 9 shillings. It was January 26, 1788. It was a new beginning for him, but it would have seemed a particularly grim one at the time and life was indeed about to get a lot tougher.
Sick, poor, destitute, thrust into an unknown place and an uncertain future.
When the Scarborough returned to New South Wales with the notorious Second Fleet, below deck on the Neptune was Kezia Brown. She was a gardeners’ labourer who’d been transported for stealing clothing. She was my fifth great grandmother.
Seventy-eight female convicts, some with children and infants, were all accommodated on the Neptune, as were some 420 convict men.
The contractors were paid a bit over £17 for each convict embarked. There was no financial incentive to ensure those convicts arrived safe and healthy in New South Wales.
During her voyage, more than a quarter of the convicts died and over a third were hopelessly sick when they landed, with 124 to die soon after arriving.
The Rev Richard Johnson reported the misery of the scene of their arrival as “indescribable ... their heads, bodies, clothes, blankets, were all full of lice. They were wretched, naked, filthy, dirty, lousy, and many of them utterly unable to stand, or even to stir hand or foot”.
These were very humble and the worst of beginnings.
William and Kezia were married at St Phillips in Sydney a few years later. They then carved out a future for them and their family in a harsh colonial environment we now know as western Sydney. They are buried at St Matthews in Windsor together.
The wonder of our country is that out of such hardship and cruelties would emerge a nation as decent, so fair and so prosperous as ours today.
That is what we celebrate.
While our beginnings were marked with the cruelties and dispossession of empire, they were also accompanied by the idealism of the enlightenment age. Australia was to be a great project.
As Doctor Kemp has written this new settlement was “the ideal place to experiment with such radical ideas as broad individual liberty and equality, universal education, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, a new land without slavery, the rule of law, the classless society, private enterprise and later, the political and social equality of men and women”.
It was these ideas, not the cruelty and the dispossession, that prevailed to make Australia great.
These great ideas are the foundation of our modern Australia and that have transformed us into this most recent chapter of our great story – the one we write together today in the spirit of Parkes great vision.
It’s the one that the men, women and children who will join our company today as citizens will now have a hand in writing.
Across our land today 16,212 men, women and children will become citizens today in 365 ceremonies.
They – you – will be endowed with the same rights, the same opportunities, the same privileges and the same responsibilities as each and every other Australian.
You will be passed the inheritance of our history of over 60,000 years in all its chapters and those freedoms.
Recently I received a letter which to me captured what this day and this ceremony are all about.
It was a letter from a man named Vernon, who realised it had been 25 years since he had escaped war and he simply wanted to say thank you.
He wrote of his family’s Australian journey.
“We have not looked back since then, keeping our promise to Australia and its people.
“My wife is a nurse, my older son a teacher. I engage in my passion, art, and my family duties while also helping youngsters in cricket. Like the majority of migrants we pay our taxes without grudge, obey the law, and are grateful for the opportunities offered by this country to live as free and independent citizens.”
Vernon and his family, and the families and individuals here today are all making Australia a better place.
We can be so proud of our national story. Sure it is not perfect, but no country is.
The story of Australia is not the story of a land mass. It is the story of a living, breathing, good-hearted people making the best choices we can, but always striving to be even better.
And now as we begin this citizenship ceremony, you too get to become part of this great story of Australia.
I am glad William and Kezia made the journey, and I’m glad you have too.
Welcome.
Happy Australia Day.
Remarks, Australian of the Year Morning Tea
26 January 2019
Canberra, ACT
PRIME MINISTER: Well thank you very much and good morning everyone. Can I start by acknowledging the traditional owners, the Ngunnawal People here in Canberra, and their elders past, present and of course to acknowledge those in the future, who carry forward Australia’s oldest and indeed the world’s oldest living culture. This is a very important time to be acknowledging that.
Can I acknowledge my colleague who is also here, Steve Irons the Assistant Minister and can I particularly acknowledge Jen and the girls, who are very happy to be here hosting you all today for this very special gathering. To Danni Roche and all of her fellow board members and can I thank you in particular Danni on behalf, I think, of all of those who are participating here today, for the great work that you’ve done in bringing this all together. It’s such a big job to work through the incredible contributions that you have all made and it’s a great privilege for Jenny and I to host you here and welcome you here and most importantly, to hear all of your stories.
Doing this job is a wonderful privilege and you wake up each day in awe of the privilege you’ve been given and of course, the responsibility that you have. But today is a very special day, because today and tomorrow we remind ourselves of our shared history as Australians and we re-dedicate ourselves to Australia’s future. Our Australians of the Year, our Local Heroes, our Young Australians and Senior Australians of the Year, are a reflection of the very best of Australia. The very best of our stories. The very best of our contributions.
I was raised to understand that life wasn’t about what you accumulate, it’s about what you contribute – and everyone here is I think a model of that way of life and that way of thinking. You’re all incredible contributors to making Australia the strong nation it is today and even stronger into the future.
You’re very different. It’s a very eclectic bunch and you all got to know each other last night, I understand, on multiple occasions as the fire alarms went off at the hotel.
[Laughter]
You could all get together, so you’ve had some real togetherness time and I’m sure you enjoyed that on top of the additional chances you’ve had to meet in recent times. Paralympians are here, police officers are here, researchers, rescuers, mathematicians, mavericks, veterans, volunteers, footballers and fundraisers. You’re all here and you’re all Australians first and foremost.
In other ways you aren’t that different. As I’ve just mentioned, you’ve all grasped a very important truth; that a truly successful life is always one that embodies service to others. You love our country, as we all do. You love it so much that you’ve done exactly what you’ve done to bring you here today.
The story of Australia Day is the story of a country that is always trying to do better, that understands its past, it understands its failures and it understands how it has achieved its successes. No country is perfect. We’re not, but we have a lot to celebrate and we’re celebrating that in all of you and your contributions today. Our national story is one of good-hearted people making the best possible choices that we can, always striving to be better. You embody that. You’ve had a go. You’ve taken risks, you’ve suffered great setbacks. You’ve dealt with very difficult challenges in your lives, many of you and the most tragic and saddening of circumstances. But you’ve all gotten up, you’ve all risen up, you’ve all faced those challenges. Success in life is never linear, it’s always a result of struggle. It’s the resilience that comes from that struggle and learning from those failures and successes, that have brought you here today. In that, you are exemplars, demonstrating the power of a life dedicated to something bigger than each and every one of us individually.
I am very grateful for that spirit of generosity that you have demonstrated in each of your lives and I particularly want to thank the support people here today; wives, husbands, mums, kids, grandmas, whoever is here I want to thank you for the support that you’ve given those award recipients here today. They know better than anyone that those who are being honoured here today could not be standing here without your love and support and sharing their passion.
In politics it’s often said that we are the volunteers and our family are the conscripts. I’m sure that’s often the case in your service. But in your case also, you know that love and support and I’m pleased that you can come and share this with your family and your friends today.
So thank you for turning your own mistakes and your own misfortunes and struggles, turning that into making Australia stronger and better. So I honour you all. I particularly want to welcome today those who have been serving in these roles for the past year. I want to start by acknowledging Professor Michelle Simmons who is here with us today. I’ve had the opportunity to meet her on numerous occasions both in my former role as Treasurer and now as Prime Minister. Michelle’s work in quantum computing is opening new worlds. Not just for Australia, but the world and where we go as a world and our opportunities into the future. It’s incredibly exciting stuff. I don’t understand it.
[Laughter]
I’ve tried, I’ve got a pretty good idea of what it’s trying to achieve, which is the important thing. But so long as you do, I know we’ll get there.
[Laughter]
This time last year she was whispering to herself; “What on earth am I doing here?”I see a few nods of understanding today. She didn’t see then what we see; leadership, brilliance and above all, service. She’s got a pretty good sense of humour too. Service to science, to advancing our human cause and our nation. This past year, she has travelled right across our country, speaking to schoolkids about the wonders of science and seeing them just light up before her, as she opens their worlds to new possibilities.
She wasn’t the only scientist that we acknowledged last year, our 2018 Senior Australian of the year Dr. Graham Farquhar is also here. Graham, I want to thank you also for the great job you’ve done and your life of service, again. Graham, as you know, is a biophysicist who is helping reshape our understanding of photosynthesis.
I also want to acknowledge our young Australian of the Year Samantha Kerr, one of Australia’s great women’s soccer players. It’s so good isn’t it Samantha, to see the rise of women’s sport in this country? We’ve got our first women’s AFL umpire here today who has been recognised and when we were down there last Sunday with Jen and the girls, seeing Ash Barty play her way into the quarter final, it was not surprising that when we met Ash’s mum and dad, and groundedness she had, this is what is seeing, I think, the great success of Australian women’s sport. We want to see that go forward, so thank you Samantha for your year of service.
And of course, Local Hero and mathematician, teacher – sometime tutor to myself at various functions - Eddie Woo. Thank you Eddie again. Like most dads, it takes a lot for me to impress my kids. But when I told them I was meeting Eddie – and other kids around the country - they thought that was not bad.
[Laughter]
It was great to join you on Instagram and Facebook, social media and all of those things and hopefully I pass the test mate. What you’ve been able to do to enliven young minds to the wonder of mathematics and learning and to do it in such an exciting and accessible way, that’s what we need. It just shows that it is teachers that make the difference, because they’re people and they relate and they connect and you do that so well Eddie. I know you’ll keep doing it as you move on from this wonderful recognition that you’ve had.
So to our winners in past years and to our nominees this year, I want to thank you for everything you do for your country. I want to thank you, that you’ve done it for Australia and that we’ve joined today, Australians all, to celebrate the achievements of a nation, but in particular the contribution of you who are with us today.
So all the best for tonight’s announcements. It may surprise some outside of this place – you all know – but these awards are determined by the Australia Day Council, by Danni and her team. They don’t bring in a list and put it on my desk and say: “Prime Minister can you pick one please?” That’d be fun and I’d have a view I suspect, but that’s not how it works. This is an independent process, this is about Australians recognising Australians and to ensure we recongise the best in Australians.
I know you won’t consider yourselves as ‘winners’, because that’s not how you see your contribution. You just see it as service and that is a truly tremendous thing. I think that’s what we celebrate above all. So thank you all for being here today, it’s great to host you and it will be good to get around and have a chat to you.
I thank you again, for your wonderful efforts to make Australia even stronger.
Thank you.
National Flag Raising and Citizenship Ceremony
26 January 2019
Canberra, ACT
Well good morning and happy Australia Day.
Today of all days I want to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, the Ngunnawal people. To elders past and present, I say thank you for the wonderful inheritance you have given to us today, and to the elders of the future, I say thank you as well.
To Your Excellency the Governor-General and Lady Cosgrove, to all our honoured guests here today, colleagues, those who are serving all around the country today and right around the world.
To our new citizens, Australians all.
It was more than a century ago Sir Henry Parkes, the father of our federation, put forward a vision of a united and diverse Australia, intergenerationally bound together by a liberty that transcended race, ethnicity, history and even religion.
Parkes said:
“What we are doing by this great Federal movement is not for us, but for them, for the untold millions that will follow us; until this land of Australia shall gather within its bosom all the fruits of the culture of the world; and until the flag of freedom shall be planted here so firmly and guarded with such a fervent patriotism, that all the powers on earth shall never assault it.”
Today, on Australia Day, we celebrate Parkes’ vision for our nation. A nation that indeed has gathered the cultures and peoples of the world, the most successful multicultural nation on earth, that began with our first peoples.
Yesterday, Jenny and I took our girls to join with the Ngunnawal people here in Canberra, not far from here, to acknowledge and pay tribute to our first Australians and 60,000 years of Indigenous culture and history.
We honoured their resilience, their wisdom, their custodianship and stewardship. The world’s oldest living culture.
A stewardship of sea, mountains, rainforest, deserts, river and rock.
We sat together, Australians all, paying our respects – to those with us now, those who come before and for the future we share together. Acknowledging the first peoples who began our great Australian story.
The next great chapter in that story began 231 years ago today.
It was not a good day for my fifth great grandfather, William Roberts.
Bunkered down in the light starved bowels of the Scarborough with 207 other convicts, he had arrived in Port Jackson after a long and treacherous voyage from Portsmouth.
He was transported for stealing 5 and a half-pound of yarn valued at 9 shillings. It was January 26, 1788. It was a new beginning for him, but it would have seemed a particularly grim one at the time and life was indeed about to get a lot tougher.
Sick, poor, destitute, thrust into an unknown place and an uncertain future.
When the Scarborough returned to New South Wales with the notorious Second Fleet, below deck on the Neptune was Kezia Brown. She was a gardeners’ labourer who’d been transported for stealing clothing. She was my fifth great grandmother.
Seventy-eight female convicts, some with children and infants, were all accommodated on the Neptune, as were some 420 convict men.
The contractors were paid a bit over £17 for each convict embarked. There was no financial incentive to ensure those convicts arrived safe and healthy in New South Wales.
During her voyage, more than a quarter of the convicts died and over a third were hopelessly sick when they landed, with 124 to die soon after arriving.
The Rev Richard Johnson reported the misery of the scene of their arrival as “indescribable ... their heads, bodies, clothes, blankets, were all full of lice. They were wretched, naked, filthy, dirty, lousy, and many of them utterly unable to stand, or even to stir hand or foot”.
These were very humble and the worst of beginnings.
William and Kezia were married at St Phillips in Sydney a few years later. They then carved out a future for them and their family in a harsh colonial environment we now know as western Sydney. They are buried at St Matthews in Windsor together.
The wonder of our country is that out of such hardship and cruelties would emerge a nation as decent, so fair and so prosperous as ours today.
That is what we celebrate.
While our beginnings were marked with the cruelties and dispossession of empire, they were also accompanied by the idealism of the enlightenment age. Australia was to be a great project.
As Doctor Kemp has written this new settlement was “the ideal place to experiment with such radical ideas as broad individual liberty and equality, universal education, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, a new land without slavery, the rule of law, the classless society, private enterprise and later, the political and social equality of men and women”.
It was these ideas, not the cruelty and the dispossession, that prevailed to make Australia great.
These great ideas are the foundation of our modern Australia and that have transformed us into this most recent chapter of our great story – the one we write together today in the spirit of Parkes great vision.
It’s the one that the men, women and children who will join our company today as citizens will now have a hand in writing.
Across our land today 16,212 men, women and children will become citizens today in 365 ceremonies.
They – you – will be endowed with the same rights, the same opportunities, the same privileges and the same responsibilities as each and every other Australian.
You will be passed the inheritance of our history of over 60,000 years in all its chapters and those freedoms.
Recently I received a letter which to me captured what this day and this ceremony are all about.
It was a letter from a man named Vernon, who realised it had been 25 years since he had escaped war and he simply wanted to say thank you.
He wrote of his family’s Australian journey.
“We have not looked back since then, keeping our promise to Australia and its people.
“My wife is a nurse, my older son a teacher. I engage in my passion, art, and my family duties while also helping youngsters in cricket. Like the majority of migrants we pay our taxes without grudge, obey the law, and are grateful for the opportunities offered by this country to live as free and independent citizens.”
Vernon and his family, and the families and individuals here today are all making Australia a better place.
We can be so proud of our national story. Sure it is not perfect, but no country is.
The story of Australia is not the story of a land mass. It is the story of a living, breathing, good-hearted people making the best choices we can, but always striving to be even better.
And now as we begin this citizenship ceremony, you too get to become part of this great story of Australia.
I am glad William and Kezia made the journey, and I’m glad you have too.
Welcome.
Happy Australia Day.