Speeches
Remarks, Opening of Macquarie Telecom Data Centre - Macquarie Park, NSW
25 March 2022
PRIME MINISTER: Can I acknowledge also any veterans, who are with us today and indeed, members of the defence forces who may even be here, and say thank you for that incredible service you do to your country. Peter James, Chairman of Macquarie Telecom and its founders David and Aiden, two brothers, who clearly must have got on when they were younger and still working out alright now. And they've been an incredible partnership. And I've known David for many, many years, probably 20 years now and can I tell you it's a great delight to be here because there have been many businesses that have come and gone. We were just chatting about that on the stairs on the way down. But Macquarie has remained because they know what they do, they do it incredibly well. They seek to do it better than anyone else, and I think they achieve that. And in addition to that, they keep looking forward about how to deal with each of the challenges. So to Aiden and David, thank you so much for your success because we're all beneficiaries of it. To Councillor Jordan Lane, Mayor of the City of Ryde, to Damien and Victor, Victor like me, and Damien, we're tenants here as well, with a few people in between us and Macquarie and how that's managed. And of course, to JA who was here, John Alexander the Member for Bennelong, who has worked so hard and I've been up in this precinct with John on many occasions, there he is, being all very quiet and reclining back there. But John's passion for this whole precinct, from the very day he became elected and over his period that he served in the parliament has never wavered. He's he's always got it, whether we've been with the med-tech firms or the telco firms, or the data firms or all the various different businesses that go right across this dynamic electorate of Bennelong. John has been there as a cheer squad, an enabler, a supporter, a problem-solver, and he's done a tremendous job and I'm sort of pleased I'm here, it won't be too long before we'll have an election, of course, this year due in the middle of May. But to be here with John today in his community with people he's worked with and to say to you John, thank you. Thank you. Can you give John a round of applause.
John will be the first to tell you, we've gone for the Apres. We've gone for the new model, in his usual, self-deprecating way and I know he'll agree, because Simon Kennedy is our Liberal candidate for Bennelong and he joins me here, having been preselected less than 48 hours ago, but knowing Simon before he has come into this role, and he has a great reputation and record as a great champion of government services that meet the needs of citizens but he has an incredible background in the private sector and a real problem solver for his many clients over a long period of time, and now he gets to do it for the people of Australia, but in particular the people of Bennelong if he can be successful, which I believe he will. Can I echo what others have said. And of course, welcoming all the staff at Macquarie and people [inaudible] and the clients and others who will join us here today. Can I recognise that yes, I'm coming to you from the cloud today. Those of you who are watching from other places, a real place, a real place, you'll be pleased to know that all the cyber defences don't involve people wearing suits of armour, outside of the various lines and rows of computers, all done by incredibly savvy technicians and cyber security professionals who I had the great pleasure to meet before coming in here. Quite a number of them from the Shire, which I was pleased to see as well.
Coming out of great universities, whether it's the Macquarie or University of Wollongong. I think that's one of the great virtues of where we are today, and one of the reasons why investments like this are made in Australia. Because of the amazing people that we're training and bringing into our companies and our organisations, that is enabling infrastructure such as this, private infrastructure such as this, to be built for it to be taken to boards for approval and they can go, 'yes, I can see that, we can make that happen, we will turn a dollar, it will pay for itself.' And there is, I think, a great set of confidence. It's great to be here today to open something that, I'm sure my parliamentary colleagues would agree with, that we didn't put a cent into. They paid for it all themselves and I say that as a compliment, but I think the Tudehope brothers will be first to say that it didn't happen without a government context. And what we sought to do as a Government is provide the environment for the success of our data and digital businesses. The same is a true statement in the New South Wales Government, providing the environment where companies will confidently invest in building this infrastructure, several hundred million dollars, of investing their hard earned and putting it all on the line. And they can do that in the context of a federal government and the state government here in New South Wales, where they can get on and they can do the business. It's Australian-owned, it's made right here. And can I tell you, particularly in a more troubled world, especially from a data security point of view, where supply chains are frankly more about trust now than they even are about efficiency or cost. And we see that in the most terrible events unfolding, whether it's in Ukraine, or the stresses that have been placed on our own country here in the Indo-Pacific when it comes to your data security. You've got to be dealing with someone you trust. And so words like sovereign really means something. Secure really means something. And for, whether it's a government client – such in our case, or the New South Wales Government's case, or it is a financial institution, or any company that needs to ensure that its data security, they can assure their clients and those who they work with. I mean, you're all part of a trusted chain here. You've all made a promise to a customer somewhere in this business that you will be looking after their data. You will be looking after their business and their services that they depend on from you. And you make a promise, and when you come here and you invest here, and you put your equipment here as we have done, then you know you can keep that promise. This is what this business is all about.
Australia is one of the most trusted and certified in the areas David alluded to, when it comes to the data industry. A highly qualified team of trained engineers here, up to 40, up to 50 megawatts of data storage capability. And this is all helping us as a country to help achieve our goal of being a top 10 digital economy by 2030. We have a five-point plan to grow our economy, and this is one of those points in that plan. The fourth point in that plan is about ensuring that we are enabling the investment, certainly the technology, the infrastructure and also the skills that drive all of that as well. These all come together because during the pandemic, I think we learnt pretty quick that how much we were relying on centres just like this and to have the capability and the capacity of that area quickly moved, I think, businesses and consumers and others forward about five to eight years in space of about two months. And so there's a much deeper understanding about what is required of facilities like this and the regulatory environment in which they operate.
And so whether it's our regulatory systems or investments we make ourselves, we need to be constantly confident about being able to address the cyber challenges we face. Espionage, disinformation, cyber-attacks, foreign interference, economic coercion. There is a lot of malignant activity out there that we need to address together, and this is all increasing and the incidents are increasing and to see the reports downstairs of what was being coming through in real time didn't surprise me at all. And so we need to continue to lift our game. Just earlier this week the Minister for Home Affairs, Karen Andrews, announced the opening of a new AFP led centre in cyber-crime. Those investments have meant we've been able to identify more threats, destruct more foreign cyber criminals and they're not just state based criminals by the way, they're often criminal based actors, we've dealt with these issues and I'm sure it’s been same in New South Wales, they’re often criminal based actors, they're opportunistic actors, they're mischievous actors. There's a whole range of threats that can come our way. And so these activities that we're engaged in only adds to that, it only adds to that. It's estimated that increased digitalisation could add some $315 billion to our economy and create 250,000 new jobs in the near future. And that future is already a reality right here with what we're opening today. And so it's why our digital economy strategy, we're looking to have an ecosystem that lists the literacy skills in digital issues in the workforce, it grows the R&D investment in areas like AI and quantum. And on that, I note that the recent AUKUS arrangement agreement, that we were able to secure with the United States and the United Kingdom, something that no one thought would be possible, particularly, everyone's aware of the pointy end of this being around nuclear propelled submarines. But actually, AUKUS was about more than that and AI and quantum are actually specifically as part of that arrangement. And all three of us wanted it in there because we knew how important that would be to Australia's future security. But whether it's the engineers, the scientists, the technologists. Ensuring that they're coming through the system, the barriers to innovation, the barriers to the approval process for the facilities like this in the future. We've invested some $2 billion already in our digital economy strategy, and it's really, really pleasing to come here today and see that strategy being reality, very much before our own eyes. So to David and Aiden and everyone who has played a part in bringing IC3E to life, I want to thank you very much. The builders, the architects, the engineers, the tradespeople, the whole team. I think you can be very proud of what you've been able to achieve here and the role that this will play in Australia's economic plan in the future and the prosperity that will come. Thank you for keeping us at the leading edge at the front of the pack. Thank you very much.
Press Conference - Clayton, Vic
24 March 2022
GLADYS LIU MP, FEDERAL MEMBER FOR CHISHOLM: Good morning everyone, and welcome to Chisholm. This is a new addition to my electorate of Chisholm after the boundary redistribution, but this part has been neglected by previous Labour representatives, but as your federal member for this area, I'm very glad to be here at the Nanofabrication Centre and I had a tour to see the amazing scientific facilities that we have here and today, I'm very lucky to have the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Minister Greg Hunt, Minister for Health and also Professor Susan Elliott and also Mr Michael Azrak. This is an exciting time. We have a very exciting and important announcement to make. As your federal member, I'm here to work with everyone. And I do look forward to this very exciting announcement.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much, Gladys. Well, Gladys, Michael, it's great to be with you again. It's great to be here, Greg. Congratulations on where we've been able to get to today. And to Susan and all the team at Monash and particularly, I just want to thank Sean for that tremendous tour you were able to take us around the facility today. And of course, when we came here today, we went past the [inaudible]. And another incredible piece of scientific infrastructure. Yesterday, I was announcing a very big piece of infrastructure, a dam in North Queensland, and that's important for the prosperity of our country. But so is the science infrastructure that we're standing in here to see it from down the road and the many other big investments that we have made on science infrastructure in this country. That's important because it drives the research and development and the and the new technologies that will fuel so many Australian businesses and entrepreneurs and scientific advancements. And there is no place in the country that's doing it better than what's happening here in Victoria and in the electorate of Chisholm. We've had the opportunity, Gladys, to meet some of your, some of the very new constituents who have come to this part of Melbourne because they can participate in a world class facility like this. So boys and girls studying science today when they go to school today and they're sitting there like science like this would have to be one of the most exciting times for any young person studying science, school or university because they are going into should they choose to continue down that path to one of the most exciting areas of Australia's economic advancement.
And so today is another big investment in that future. The science and technology, which is such a central part of our economic plan because a stronger economy means a stronger future. And whether that's building dams or whether that's investing in new clean energy technology and research, in particular hydrogen, or it's indeed investing in high end leading edge high value vaccination manufacturing capabilities. This is Australia's future, and it's built on a very strong foundation of our traditional industries, whether in the resources sector or the agricultural sector, and so very exciting to be here today with Moderna.
Last year, we announced that we had an in-principle agreement between the Commonwealth Government and Moderna for us to have the first manufacturing plant of the production of mRNA vaccines in the southern hemisphere. And today we have that deal between the Commonwealth Government, the Australian Government and Moderna. And this means an Australian shot in the arm for our pandemic preparedness for Australia's health, but also for the future of Australian manufacturing in the medical sphere. Medical manufacturing is one of the six core areas of our manufacturing plant, which is a core component of our economic plan. You know, over the course of this pandemic, Australia has demonstrated a resilience like few other countries in the world. We know that we have had one of the lowest death rates from COVID in the world. We have saved over 40,000 lives over the course of this pandemic right here in Australia. We have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, and today we meet the 95 per cent double dose vaccination rate for Australia. And Greg, I can remember going back some years before we began the vaccination programme last year and they were asking us what's the level you've got to get when it comes to vaccinations? And the highest level that anyone ever anticipated has been necessary was 95 per cent. And Australia today meets that mark, and I think that shows the success of a programme that has reached out to all corners of the country.
But we've had an economy that has outperformed all of the G7 advanced economy nations in the world. France, Germany, Italy, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, we've outstripped them all, both in jobs and economic growth. And we've done that because we've had a resilience in our economy. We've invested in the strength of our economy by getting taxes down, by cutting red tape, by enhancing our data and digital capabilities, by ensuring affordable and reliable energy for our businesses, ensuring that we're investing in the skills and the infrastructure and what this arrangement with Moderna does. A multi-billion dollar investment that provides for the future resilience of this country when it comes to not just pandemics. But many other areas in which we have to deliver vaccines. mRNA before the pandemic began was largely looked down as almost science fiction, and now it's a science reality and it's a science reality here in manufacturing in Australia. There are few countries in the world that have been able to get to this point through the course of the pandemic and certainly not in the southern hemisphere. Parts of North America and Europe, which have these capabilities before the pandemic started. And now Australia moves into that league of nations on the basis of being able to deliver that here. Now the reason we can do it is because we’ve got the people, we've got the commitment, we've got the infrastructure and it's all here in Melbourne. This is a hub for medical science. It's a hub for medical manufacturing and it's a hub for science jobs. So I go back to where I started with those kids going to school today and studying science. You have a very bright future because of what our government is doing here in partnership with Moderna today in ensuring that we will be at the leading edge of the manufacture of mRNA vaccines, not just here in Australia, but all around the world because of what will take place because of this farsighted investment. And with that, I'll leave it to Minister Hunt to take you through the details and then of course, pass on to Moderna.
THE HON. GREG HUNT MP, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: Thanks very much to the PM, to Gladys, to Michael Azrak, the CEO of Moderna here in Australia and to Susan Elliott and her incredible team here at Monash University. And Sean, who obviously leads the Centre on which we're standing. Bringing Moderna to Australia, bringing Moderna to Melbourne is like bringing one of Apple's global R&D and manufacturing hubs to Australia in 1990. We're in on the ground, but we're here for the long term. It does a number of things. It's about saving lives, protecting lives. It's about pandemic resilience. But it's also about the broad vision and horizon of job creation and ecosystem for world-class research and translation.
And there are three things which come with this agreement. An agreement which has been done in just a matter of three months. One is about a manufacturing hub for up to 100 million mRNA vaccines a year, both for annual needs in respiratory conditions, so not just COVID, potentially flu, potentially many other respiratory conditions, potentially Michael, combined flu and COVID shots in years to come. Two, it's about having one of Moderna's global R&D hubs in Australia, in Melbourne. And three, it's about having their regional headquarters. So Moderna has looked around the world and they partnered with Australia and we have partnered with them. And what that means is jobs, it means economic prosperity, but above all else, it means creating a world class ecosystem. It's about saving lives and protecting lives. And mRNA isn't just about public, it isn't just about vaccines. It's also about the precision medicines of the future. So we can literally tailor the treatments for individuals over the course of the next decade. And the other thing will be done in the budget will be the 10 year Medical Research Future Fund plan, which is about tailored medicine and treatment and diagnosis, so we will be the world leader in precision medicine and genomic medicine and mRNA is the most flexible platform to deliver those outcomes.
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: Prime Minister, Minister Hunt, Gladys, other colleagues. I am immensely proud to represent Moderna today on this landmark occasion. It is a landmark occasion for Australia, for Moderna, our medical research community and a high tech industry. This is the first, Australia is the first country in the world to reach an agreement with Moderna for onshore manufacturing. As the Prime Minister said earlier, we were with you around three months ago, and this talks to the commitment of the solid partnership between the Commonwealth, Moderna and the Victorian Government to make this a reality. Australia is going to have onshore capability of the most cutting edge research available today for mRNA prescription vaccines. Yesterday it's COVID, but tomorrow the influenza respiratory system virus and other respiratory viruses in the future. We're investing heavily in developing combinations. Just yesterday, we announced we are going into the clinic for a triple combination for COVID, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus for at risk populations over the age of 50. We've all seen the burden that respiratory disease caused and ravage one of the economy and on our loved ones. And today's agreement will ensure Australians will be manufacturing respiratory vaccines right here in Melbourne. But I'm really excited about the R&D collaboration.
If we think about the pace of science. Science has never been faster than it is today, if we just look back at the last 15-20 years, the first wave of amazing science was the emergence of the monoclonal antibodies. And then more recently, you're seeing, you know, quality therapies. And now the next wave is mRNA. And Australia is going to be a pioneer and frontier R&D community that's going to drive that next wave of science. And I'm immensely proud that Moderna will be a bedrock within the R&D community. We want to drive and embed ourselves end-to-end, looking at preclinical and clinical trials. And, most importantly, developing work force capabilities for the future. Today's partnership is a 10 year agreement, but Moderna talks in decades, and we think and plan in decades. I'm very confident we'll be here for much more than ten years, Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: I have no doubt.
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: And finally, I really want to thank so many people that made this a reality. Many colleagues within the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry and colleagues on both sides, as well as legal teams, who worked around the clock to make sure Australians get access to first onshore manufacturing mRNA facility. So with that, thank you Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you. I want to join with you in thanking everyone who got us here today and getting us together on such an important arrangement to give this Australian made shot in the arm, not just to our medical manufacturing capability, a shot in the arm. An Australian made shot in the arm for jobs. An Australian made shot in the arm for protecting our health both today and in the future. So thank you to everyone who worked so hard to get us there in three months and off we go. We've got lift off. So, happy to take some questions. Let's stay on the mRNA Moderna announcement first, but obviously happy to take other questions after that.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, you say it's a multi-billion dollar investment. What's the figure of such a facility?
PRIME MINISTER: Multibillions.
JOURNALIST: Can you give us a bit more insight into that figure?
PRIME MINISTER: The ultimate position as you expect to be commercial in confidence, but I can tell you it's multi-billions.
JOURNALIST: And some of the considered locations?
PRIME MINISTER: I'll let the Minister speak to that.
THE HON. GREG HUNT MP, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: So ultimately, that's a decision between the Victorian Government and Moderna, but Victoria is going to complete its agreements with Moderna. I will say that there are a number of sites under consideration. Gladys has been advocating very strongly for Monash.
PRIME MINISTER: Very strongly.
THE HON. GREG HUNT MP, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: And this is a leading candidate and we've been in discussions this morning. But ultimately, that's, once Victoria has completed its agreement, we will be position to announce that but Monash is right at the top of the list.
JOURNALIST: And just, this might be one for you Michael, what would be the most immediate production once this kicks off in 2024.
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: So absolutely our COVID vaccine, and I would anticipate influenza would not be too far behind, and very quickly we'll be [inaudible], but we could very well have a COVID-influenza vaccine ready by the time production commences.
JOURNALIST: So we could have that ready to go by 2024? That combination?
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: Yeah. Yep.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible]
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: That really depends on the regulators, depends on the advice at the time and the demand. Absolutely. And the pathogens that are prevailing. But Australia will definitely be 100 million if need be.
JOURNALIST: And how many [inaudible].
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: Yes, so I think once the facility is up and running, we'll see up to 150 high-skilled jobs on the site.
PRIME MINISTER: I think Greg makes a very good point. When you make the comparison, if Apple had come here in 1990, I mean, so we've got Moderna here in Victoria because of the amazing ecosystem we have built here and the infrastructure that is being built, new science and medical research and manufacturing. Up in Sydney, there's Google, one of five cities in the world that got billion dollars going into their research hub up there in Sydney, one of only five cities in the world. So Australia is attracting the world's biggest and most innovative companies, and they're coming here to Melbourne and they're come to other parts of Australia and they're coming to where the infrastructure is, where people are and where they got, clearly got a government in our government working with other partners to back them in, because it's central to our economic plan. I want to stress that. What we're announcing today is absolutely essential for future pandemic preparedness, and we're already ranked number two in the world on pandemic preparedness for a country that saved over 40,000 lives. And one of the highest rates of vaccination in the world. And an economy has become through the pandemic better than every single G7 nation in the world. That says a lot to our preparedness and our, really resilience to date. What this is about is ensuring that we're doubling down on our future preparedness and we're looking forward. This is about our forward planning for jobs. Our forward plan for protecting the health of Australians.
JOURNALIST: Is priority access for Australians part of the deal for mRNA vaccines?
PRIME MINISTER: Yes.
MR MICHAEL AZRAK, CEO OF MODERNA AUSTRALIA: The Australian people have the number one priority for this facility and all doses that will be manufactured at the facility.
JOURNALIST: Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated that he'd like to the G20 but do you think he should be allowed to go?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we've been raising concerns about this and, Russia has invaded the Ukraine, has invaded Ukraine. I mean, this is a violent and aggressive act that shatters the international rule of law, and the idea of sitting around the table with Vladimir Putin - the United States are already in the position of calling out war crimes in Ukraine - for me is a step too far.
JOURNALIST: Do you think Australia would and should boycott the G20 in Indonesia?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we want to make sure that the G20 for Indonesia is successful. We want to work closely with Indonesia as our partner, and I've been in direct contact with President Widodo about these issues. The G20 isn't just one meeting at the end of the year. The G20 is a series of meetings. The first of those come up in April, for finance ministers and central bank governors. Now, of course, at that time, I don't think it's any secret, but by that time, I think you can assume rightly that we'll be in a caretaker period, given an election is due in the middle of May. And so that will obviously impact on Australia's participation at that time.
But in terms of all the other meetings, we've been making very clear statements and representations about our very strong concerns about the involvement of Russia in the G20 this year. We want the Indonesian G20 to be a great success. We want to focus particularly on the challenges of our region, the Indo-Pacific and Indonesia and President Widodo is a great champion, when President Widodo and I spoke about the G20 last year, at the last G20 meeting, he agreed that we were going to put taking on the big social media giants and ensuring that we were getting some consistency to protect not just Australians, but people all around the world from how people be victimised and bullied and using social media, ensuring those companies took their responsibilities seriously with what they were enabling to be done online. Now, that's a serious issue, and it's one of the serious issues that the G20 deals with. And I think we need to get on with those issues. And I would be disappointed if the G20 and I'm sure President Widodo would feel the same, that the real purposes of it were not able to be achieved. So I think we need to have people in the room that aren't invading other countries.
JOURNALIST: The US this morning formally accused Russia of war crimes.
PRIME MINISTER: Yes.
JOURNALIST: Do you agree with that statement?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I think that they've gone through the evidence and made those claims. And yes, Australia would share their assessment based on what we have seen. The Foreign Minister, as you know, on Sunday drew some obvious links between what we've seen happen in the Ukraine and the actions of Russia. And let's not forget that we are currently with the Netherlands taking Russia to court on the issue of their complicity in the shooting down of MH 17. So we know Vladimir Putin's form when it comes to taking the lives of innocent civilians. Russia has form. I'm not shocked by the report. I'm not shocked by their arrogance in what they're seeking to impose on Ukraine. And that's why Australia has been one of the strongest in taking action in relation to Russia.
Just on the weekend, I announced that in direct response to the request from Ukraine and Poland, 70,000 tonnes of Australian coal from Whitehaven is going there to power on their resistance. The alumina that was going to get on a boat this week and go back to Russia, which could be used in the production of weapons, that boat is not going to Russia, and we introduced sanctions to prevent any of that alumina or similar materials being sent to Russia. And I know Ukraine's president, President Zelenskyy and the Prime Minister are very grateful for Australia's response and the strong stand we've taken. And the United States singled Australia out for our very strong stance. And one of the reasons they are so encouraged by it is that in Australia, we're a long way away from Ukraine, but we can we can see a bully when we see them and we always call it out under my government.
JOURNALIST: Speaking of bullying, Anthony Albanese is refusing to call an enquiry into allegations of bullying Senator Kitching. What would you do if you were faced with this situation?
PRIME MINISTER: You can look at exactly what we have done when we have gone through circumstances like this. We have had inquiries and we've been able to ensure that we have a better system, better support for the victims of this type of behaviour, and you know, they're positive developments and we've also sought to do that in a bipartisan way. But Mr Albanese continues to look away when it comes to this issue, and that's a matter for him to address. I think Australians honestly can see the double standard here. He's happy to throw stones when it comes to these issues, but clearly not happy to hold himself to the same standard, he wishes to impose on others. And that's called hypocrisy.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, on COVID, isn't it time to end COVID mandates and go back to living life as normal?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the first point I'd make is that with 95 per cent of the country double dose vaccinated today, those over 16, and we're well over 60 per cent now Greg, as I understand it, when it comes to a third dose.
THE HON. GREG HUNT MP, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: Two-thirds.
PRIME MINISTER: Two thirds, I can tell you and I'm sure that Gladys would agree with me, for two people who have had COVID. I'm really glad I had the third dose. Because my experience was a bit like the Treasurer's, not that flash. But I was sitting there thinking, I'm glad I had my third dose because I would be feeling a whole lot worse. And so that's why I would encourage people to go out and get that third dose. That's your best treatment to ensure that if you contract COVID, that the illness that you experience will not be severe but will be moderate. I spoke to the Chief Medical Officer this morning, Professor Kelly, and I had a meeting with the medical expert panel yesterday with the constant contact, of course with Greg Hunt. And he tells me that our hospital system is functioning well within the, in terms of the impact of this latest wave. And we're not being complacent about this wave, but we also know the severity of the disease for this wave is not what was under Delta. We're keeping a very close eye on other strains, which are being examined. But at this stage there's enough information to have opinions about that. And so we'll continue to proceed cautiously as we have throughout the pandemic, and that's why we've saved over 40,000 lives. And this is why Bill Gates himself has said that if you want to avoid a future pandemic globally, do what Australia did during this pandemic. And I think that was a great vote of confidence in Australia's handling of the pandemic.
But when it comes to issue of mandates, I want to be very clear about this. The Australian Government, my Government has only supported vaccine mandates for aged care workers, disability workers and those in high risk health settings. Every other vaccine mandate has been imposed unilaterally by state premiers with no endorsement of the Commonwealth Government. I want to be very clear about that. That has been imposed unilaterally by state governments and the powers which they have to make those decisions and they have those responsibilities but they have the accountability for those decisions as well. And we are progressing well incredibly well through this latest wave. But, you know, we have to be cautious. And I am seeing Australia come back to life. I am seeing Australia reconnecting. I am seeing people coming back into businesses. We've got unemployment down four percent and life is getting back to normal. People are back to the football, people are back at the cricket and people are back to the netball. Kids are playing sport again. People are going to barbecues again, they're going to the pub. They're going out to dinner. How good is all of that? But we want to make sure we keep it. And so we will continue to be careful with the medical advice. But we'll get the balance right, which is what my government has always done. I particularly want to thank Greg Hunt for the amazing work he's done as Health Minister. We've always said it's about saving lives and saving livelihoods, and no country has got that balance right better than Australia.
JOURNALIST: Do you think, the Victorian Government has announced a mental health levy, to fund their $3.8 billion mental health spend. Do you support the imposition of levies for an ongoing and sustainable funding for mental health?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's not our approach. The Labor Party increases taxes. That's not what we do. We just make sure things are funded. The mental health package that we funded in last week's budget, the largest ever by an Australian Government has been delivering on the ground. I'll have a bit more to say about those things today at another event. But I think the Royal Commission here in Victoria and the Premier and I have discussed it on many, many occasions. And I think there are many, many very important issues which they're proceeding with, and we endorse and support that. But how they finance it, through higher taxes, well, that's a matter for the Victorian Government. That's not our approach. Under the Liberal Governments, Liberal-National Governments, as you've seen, we reduce taxes. That's what we do because we know that when you can keep more of what you earn, whether you're an individual or you’re a business, then that's a great incentive to keep earning and you keep going forward. And these are very important services. But the best way to guarantee the essential services that Australians rely on, whether it's Medicare or whether it's the pension or whether it's the National Disability Insurance Scheme or indeed important investments in the health care space and all of these things is a strong economy. If you don't have a strong economy, you can't pay for the essentials that Australians rely on. You can talk about all you want. That's why we're building dams. And that's why we're investing in new energy. That's why we're investing in critical science and research infrastructure. And you've got to keep Australia safe, and that's why we've got record investments in our defence forces.
JOURNALIST: What was your reaction to hearing Brian Houston's resignation from Hillsong yesterday?
PRIME MINISTER: I think it's entirely appropriate, and I must admit that we were very disappointed and shocked to hear the news, we heard the same as, about the incidents took place. My first thoughts were with the victims, as they've been rightly described and so very concerned and the actions that have been taken are entirely appropriate and I'm sure they will continue down that path as a church. I mean, I haven't been at Hillsong now for over about 15 years. I go to a local church in my own community, a Pentecostal Church. I think everybody knows that. But, you know, I was quite shocked, and I'm sure like many, very disappointed.
JOURNALIST: Minister Hunt, if I may, was there any indication from ATAGI that they will be introducing or recommending a fourth dose to the general public, either now or in the near future?
THE HON. GREG HUNT MP, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: So I'm expecting to get the advice over the course of today and then we'll consider it and have more to say, probably over the next 48 hours. At this stage, I haven't been briefed on it, but we're foreshadowed that a fourth dose most likely for seniors and possibly some for who are immuno-compromised is under consideration. We'll get that, as we've done, as the PM was saying, right throughout. We'll follow that, follow that medical advice. The other thing that I think is very important just in relation to the question, is that we're now, on yesterday's numbers, at 26 Australians who are on ventilation. We have a seven and a half thousand person capacity and with COVID, there are 26 vaccinations and treatments that are available, the capacity of our hospital system. All of those things have come together and that's one of the elements which contributed to one of the lowest rates of loss of life in the world.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, can we expect an announcement today on a New Zealand refugee deal?
PRIME MINISTER: I will allow those announcements to be made in due course. As you know, we've been working closely with the New Zealand Government for some time on those issues. I'm looking forward to a resolution and announcement on some of those matters soon. Thank you very much everyone.
Press Conference - Rockhampton, QLD
23 March 2022
MICHELLE LANDRY MP, FEDERAL MEMBER FOR CAPRICORNIA: Well, it is absolutely wonderful for you to be at the Rockhampton Showgrounds today with the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister, and we're here today to make an announcement about Beef 24. $6 million towards running, running the show. I had the Prime Minister and Barnaby up here last year and they just absolutely loved it. I think I had to drag them both out of here. They just had so much fun, just with the international exhibitions that we have here with the cattle, with the amazing food and the chefs. And this just showcases the whole of Rockhampton, the whole of our region. And I think the whole of Australia. Last year, we saw over 116,000 people walk through the gates, and that was a record. And that is absolutely fantastic thing. We had COVID and we didn't have any international people here, and they still broke records. So congratulations to the board. They did an amazing job. And also to add to that, I had the pleasure last Friday to be down in, down the Sunshine Coast for the Australian Tourism Awards and Beef Australia won gold down there also, as well as the Empire Hotel. So I think it's amazing what we can do here in central Queensland. We really punch above our weight, so this is a fantastic way to showcase the beef in Australia. We're all looking forward to Beef 24 and it's a pleasure to have the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in town.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks a lot, Michelle. It's great to be here with you, Michelle. Great to be here with Barnaby, to Bryce and your whole team. It's great to be here with you as well. I'm really pleased to be backing in this important announcement today. $6 million for Beef 24. And if it's half as good as Beef 21, it is just going to be an absolutely, absolutely tremendous event and congratulation on taking you out of the Australian Tourism Award. But can I commend you, Michelle? Because you know you are such a determined advocate for the community here in Rockhampton. You get this and you have been consistent in raising these issues, so we go into next week's budget. Our investment in Beef 24 is, of course, about supporting what is just an amazing event here in central Queensland. Tourists, visitors come from all over the place and it is quite something to behold. Last time I was standing right here pretty much with Bryce and others, this entire showground was just brimming. And you know what, I really loved about it, apart from the massive economic benefits that come for Rockhampton. More importantly than that though, Beef 24 will once again showcase the world class beef producers of Australia. And just how important our primary producing industry is to our country, economically. A strong economy means a stronger future. And that means doing the things that we do well and doing them even better and doing them well into the future. This is an industry that is inextricably linked to Australia's economic future, and that means that Central Queensland has a bright future when we continue to back in our livestock industry and particularly our beef producers, which is on showcase.
The other thing I love about Beef, what was before we called Beef Week and Beef 24, is it brings the whole sector together to learn from each other and to see the advances in technology in particular. I was really impressed at Beef Week 21, of the most growing area of the event was the technology section, and that's where you've got bankers and financiers with technologists and with farmers and producers all sharing the best new technology which can actually take our agricultural sector, our livestock industry, into the next tier of competitiveness and making sure that we are the best in the world. So, you know, Beef 24 is a fantastic event, and if you haven't been to it, then make plans to be here wherever you are in Australia. But even more significantly, it's a great time to come and celebrate what our beef producers do for our country. Without them, you can't pay the bills. Australia can't pay the bills and that's what our beef producers do. And that's why the Liberals and Nationals stand so firmly in behind our livestock industry and our primary producers because they're the ones who help us pay for the pension, pay for the National Disability Insurance, pay for our Defence Forces, and I'll pass you over to the Deputy Prime Minister. Barnaby.
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Well, OK, Michelle, congratulations once again. Michelle has come through with the goods for Rockhampton Beef Week isn’t it important [inaudible because as the Prime Minister clearly stated, your standard of living is reflecting what goes on a boat so that you can wear the shirts that you wear that come from overseas. The phones in your pocket that come from overseas, the television you watch that comes from overseas and somebody somewhere must be putting something on a boat. Cattle producers [inaudible], Victoria got the Dairy Week a great show. Casino, we've got another Beef Week. Great show and my acknowledgement and my concerns go out to the people of the Northern Rivers all the time, especially in the late of most recent circumstances. But for your nation, Beef Week is an incredible thing to go to. You don't have to be a cattle producer. You turn up, you have a look around, but you get a pride out of your nation because we're one of the best in the job at doing this. And this is probably the epicentre of the, it's the biggest beef producing area in Australia. And this is jobs out there, out there, in the abattoirs there. They're, there are thousands of jobs that are part of the, of the beef industry. And it's not just in the boning room, it's in computer programming. It's in, it's in biotechnology, it's in genetics. People at the University of Central Queensland University, University New England getting better genetics so that we can do a better job so that we can be the best at our game, in the globe, in the globe so that we can become as strong as possible, as quickly as possible and everybody's going to do their part. And Beef Week is another fundamental part of that, fundamentally part of the Coalition plan to make sure our nation is as strong as possible as quickly as possible, so if you can get a fellow from the Shire to come up to Beef Week and enjoy it and enjoy it, then, you know, learn more about your country. Come to Central Queensland. Understand the beef industry. Have some fun. Buy yourself a hat. And congratulations, Michelle.
PRIME MINISTER: Bryce, do you want to say something, great to have you here.
MR BRYCE CAMM, CHAIRMAN OF BEEF AUSTRALIA: Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. It is. It is so good to have both the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister of our nation here in our beef capital. Beef Australia 2021 was a record breaking event, as Michelle said over 116,000 people through the gates. A record. $100 million impact economically for our nation, and as we celebrated last week, you know, a gold tourism award to boot, but particularly to the Federal Government and the announcement of $6 million of commitment to Beef 24 to plan for our next event speaks to the strength and commitment to this event. The Prime Minister, when you first took office, you went and saw the people in our industry that had struggled from the floods. And it's important when you have a leadership team that backs in industry both in bad times, but most importantly, in good times and a commitment of $6 million speaks to the strength that is existing currently in the Australian beef industry. And I thank you and your government for this tremendous support. To Michelle Landry, we call her our local hero here in Rockhampton, she fights so hard for this city and for the entire region of Capricornia. Thank you for your ongoing support of Beef Australia and our entire team. It's now some 774 days away, till will open the gates not just to a record breaking crowd again, but particularly to our international visitors that we will be so keen to welcome back to Central Queensland. Welcome back to the beef industry. And to celebrate a great Australian product, a great Australian way of life. We welcome you all in 24 in the first week of May. And again, thank you for the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister for their support.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you. Before I take some questions, I just want to say that on the way here we learnt of the news that Ash Barty would be retiring from tennis, and I just was able to leave a message for Ash just before we got out of the car and to her an Garry, I want to wish them all the very best for their future. But I particularly want to say thank you to you Ash for inspiring a generation of young people and particularly a generation of young indigenous people in this country. You are all class. Your commitment to excellence in your chosen field in tennis, and you are a great cricketer, you are a great tennis player. I'm sure, anything you turn your hand to, you are going to be a great success and I have no doubt that will be the case as you go forward with the next, the next chapters in your life. But I do want to say thank you to Ash for inspiring a country, inspiring a nation at a time when this country really needed a good shot in the arm and none of us will forget, of course, her triumphant win in Wimbledon and none of us will ever forget that incredible comeback down there at the Australian Open this year, which once again showed everybody what you can do when you really apply yourself to it. So thank you Ash on behalf of the very grateful nation.
JOURNALIST: With this announcement, the federal opposition also pledged $6 million back in January. Why has this announcement taken so long?
PRIME MINISTER: Because the Budget is next week, and we're making our announcements in relation to the Budget and it's something we've always supported and we've been passionate supporters of Beef Week, as Bryce will tell you. I mean, we've we've been the ones who have been their partners and stayed with them all the way through, and we were looking forward to making that announcement in relation to the Budget. This isn't a promise. This is in the books.
JOURNALIST: Anthony Albanese says he won't be called gutless by a politician that avoided meeting with flood victims on the streets of Lismore last week and instead careful, carefully media managed your trip. What do these personal attacks on each other achieve?
PRIME MINISTER: What I simply would say in reply to the leader of the Labor Party is this. You can't have double standards, and he's very quick to apply standards to other, on the others on these issues. But if you seek to be the Prime Minister, you can't apply one standard to someone else and not the same, be yourself. And in refusing to deal with what the allegations are by the Labor Party themselves, the Liberal Party, I've made no against allegations on these matters. These are things that the Labor Party themselves have. And so why he is continuing to dismiss these very serious allegations around bullying and the culture of the party he leads, then they're questions he has to answer.
In relation to the Northern Rivers. I completely reject that. When I went to the Northern Rivers indeed, as the Deputy Prime Minister did, and so many of my Ministers. I wasn't going there to put cameras in people's faces. I went and met with people on their dairy farms and their businesses in their homes and walked through the ruins of their homes and the cleaning out of their homes. And I listened carefully, and as they poured their heart out to me, I was listening. I don't need a camera pointing at me to talk to people. And for those who want to engage in political protest, well they can. But I'm going to spend my time with those who were cleaning up their homes, dealing with the tragedies that they were facing, walking through the businesses that had been completely destroyed and with $1.7 billion being invested by my Government in the rebuilding of the floods in New South Wales and up here in Queensland, over half a billion dollars, we've already committed in what's being done to support the flood victims in South East Queensland. We're getting on with it. Anthony Albanese needs to deal with these very serious allegations. You can't run away from them. He needs to face up to them and deal with it because if he can't deal with the bullies in your own party, then how on earth is he going to stand up for Australia in against those who would seek to bully Australia in our own region?
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, $10 million has been appointed for a business case for the Inland Rail Gladstone to Toowoomba connection, has anything being done on that so far because people are wanting the Federal Government to get on with it?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, well, I'll ask Barnaby, may want to speak to this because you will find no more passionate advocate. He is the founder, sponsor, chief champion of Inland Rail. Barnaby.
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Well, thank you very much, Prime Minister. And yes, the 1,716 kilometres, which is the inland rail, which we are building between Melbourne through to Brisbane, which right now as we speak, they are working on, it is our vision and it is my vision, it is the vision of this Government to continue on to Gladstone. And yes, the business case is coming forward, but we are so very confident that this is going to be successful. Absolutely, and our intention 100 per percent is is to build this. Why? Because it makes central Queensland even stronger. There's a clear statement that connects Gladstone to Melbourne, Newcastle to Brisbane, Brisbane to Melbourne and to all those towns in between. So that we get an increase in growth in regional areas that we've never seen before. Into Parkes, into Narrabri, into Goondiwindi, into Toowoomba, into Gladstone, into Gladstone. Remember, remember this. The Coalition, the Liberals and the Nationals and Nationals and the Liberals put the money on the table to build the inland rail. Others talked about it. Others dreamt about it. Others now try to claim it. But we're the ones that built it. We are the doers. So we say to the people of Gladstone, we are so proud of your industrial city. It is one of the gems of industry in our nation, and the vision of the Coalition of the Nationals and the Liberals is to make that city even bigger, even better, to make sure we stand behind the products that we load. We believe in the people who export the products to give us security, to give us, well, that pays for your social security, that pays for your education, pays for your schools, pays for your child care. We believe in these people and therefore we are driving this railway line through to Gladstone.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, just a question about the Budget. Will there be a cut to the fuel excise in next week's budget? And what other measures can we expect to address the rising cost of living?
PRIME MINISTER: It's less than a week to go now until the Budget, and what we have been doing as a Government is seriously addressing in the measures that will be outlined in the Budget, the impacts on cost of living that are being felt, particularly because of the rise in fuel prices. And we all know that that has been caused by the terrible events with the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, and we've taken a very strong stand when it comes to supporting the people of Ukraine. On the weekend, I announced further support that involved taking coal from Australia, some 70,000 tonnes of it to ensure we could keep fuelling their resistance, there supporting power for some a million homes in Ukraine. Increased military assistance, increased humanitarian support. What does that mean here in Australia? It means that there's a shock to the world's energy prices and we're seeing that in fuel, in petrol. And it just doesn't hit the family budget. It works its way through the whole economy.
And so what the Treasurer and I do, together with the Deputy Prime Minister and others is we've been carefully pulling together a package that we know can address the rising cost of living, but do so responsibly and in a balanced way, just like we did when we put JobKeeper in place that saved 700,000 jobs, just like we did when we did the cash flow boost, which kept businesses in business. And it means they're in business now, and as the recovery kicks in, those businesses are there to take advantage of the opportunities and which ensured that when we came through the pandemic that our economy has come through stronger than all the advanced G7 economies in the world, Australian, in Australia, we just didn't save 40,000 lives. We just didn't achieve one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. We did this while protecting and strengthening our economy through the pandemic. And so on the other side of the pandemic, we got more people employed. The unemployment rate is lower and we can face the future with great confidence, but you can't take that for granted. And next week in the Budget, what you'll be seeing is a well reasoned, responsible package of measures to address the challenges that Australians are facing right now and to secure their opportunities in the future.
And another important part of that is I'm standing here in central Queensland with the Deputy Prime Minister, and Michelle Landry, is that regions are such a massive part of our economic plan. I understand and the Liberal Party and the Nationals understand that Australia is more than our eight capital cities. The Labor Party can barely see out of the inner suburbs of cities, let alone out of the capital cities themselves into the regions of Australia and the regions of Australia have great wealth. And so whether it's supporting the beef industry here or whether it's supporting the agricultural industry where the Deputy Prime Minister and I were this morning up in Townsville with the Hells Gates Dam, $5.4 billion of catalytic transformational investment, which is going to spur the growth of that region and have a wealth effect not just across North Queensland, but across central Queensland and across the whole country. They're the investments that make the difference. That's how you achieve a strong economy and that's how you have a stronger future. Thanks very much, everyone.
Press Conference - Townsville, QLD
23 March 2022
MR PHILLIP THOMPSON MP, FEDERAL MEMBER FOR HERBERT: Well, thank you, everyone, for coming today, it is a really important special announcement for the Townsville region. I'd like to welcome back to Townsville, the Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison. The Prime Minister has a lot of frequent flyer points coming into North Queensland, coming in doing some really good announcements, but also taking time and speaking with members of the community, which we spent some time yesterday afternoon doing really good feedback and speaking about some really good projects in our region. And of course, the Deputy Prime Minister, Barnaby Joyce. I spent yesterday afternoon with Barnaby walking around talking to people and having a chat with what's important to locals here in Townsville. And he was telling me that what's what's important here is just as important out in the regions. It's about ensuring that we create jobs and drive our economy. And also, we've got, Bryce, who is our LNP candidate just north of me, in Kennedy, joining us for this really important announcement. We are here at the Port, what is a significant place for Townsville and Renee, the CEO, has been very kind to show us all around today. And of course, Claudia, who is the CEO of Townsville Enterprise who completed the business case, completing the business case for Hells Gates Dam.
This $5.4 billion investment does a few things. It creates jobs and drives our economy, but it benefits our region. We're not just talking about a dam full of water. We're talking about the agricultural benefits that will support northern Australia and also go out through our port, because our port is the fastest port to the South East Asian market. Now, this was my first announcement when I came back when I was a candidate with the Prime Minister about a port-widening project, a $75 million investment that we committed. Now that is coming to completion and the really good thing about the port widening project is it means the ships don't go past us. They come here. They're getting bigger and we want more ships coming into Townsville and more ships coming out. So the agricultural benefits around the country and around the world will come out through our port and that will benefit us through the Hells Gates Dam project. 7,000 jobs. That is massive. That is so good for our region and every person that I've spoken to this morning and late last night about this project is extremely pleased and extremely happy. And my phone's been going off all morning. People going, this is a fantastic announcement. This is a nation building announcement and this announcement is happening here in Townsville. It's going to benefit our region tenfold. I just want to thank the Prime Minister, thank the Treasurer, thank Barnaby for being here today and I thank him for his efforts in ensuring that we can announce this and this will be in the budget, this isn’t pie in the sky, is about us delivering for North Queensland, northern Australia and especially Townsville. Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much, Phil. Well, it's great to be here with you, Phil. It's great to be here with the team, particularly great to be here with Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, this is a big day for North Queensland, but it's an even bigger day for Australia as we commit to funding 100 per cent of the funding of one of the biggest dams we've ever built. When I stood here just over three years ago before Phil was elected as the Member for Herbert, I said we were going to invest in Townsville and in North Queensland's future. I said we were going to dreg out here, and I said we were going to invest in the port. And that follows when I came as Treasurer and I said, we're going to build that stadium and there it is. So when we make these commitments, they come true. And you can see that here and you can see that the greater number of ships that are coming through this port. You can see the prosperity returning to North Queensland, particularly here to the great city of Townsville. Because I know as Barnaby constantly reminds me, you know, Australia is more than the eight capital cities of this country. And it's great wealth, and it's great opportunities extend far beyond the capital cities of our country, and they extend in to the important regions right across Australia. And North Queensland is an incredibly exciting region where it's where we're standing right now in this industrial hub and and tourist mecca, or as you get out across the ranges and head out towards the Minerals Province, to the West, out to Mount Isa and the projects that are working to unlock that area.
But right here, the the Hells Gates Dam, $5.4 billion investment to build a dam that has a carrying capacity four times as big as Sydney Harbour. They're the sort of projects that shift the dial, that move the needle when it comes to the wealth and the jobs and the strengthening of the economy that our country needs. Because in these uncertain times, what you need is an economy that is resilient, that is strong and is being built to last for the future. And as Barnaby reminded me today, no one's ever wanted to tear down a dam because they know how important those dams are to their economic success. So why are we standing here in a port announcing the building of a dam? Well, I'll tell you why, because the agriculture that is going to be produced and the 10,000 jobs that are in the benefits of this dam being built. That produce is going to come to this port, and it's going to go out on ships and in seven days it'll be in Singapore. That is what these dams do. They unlock the opportunity and wealth of this region that is there ready to be tapped. And that's going to generate the incomes and that's what supports things like the pension, supports the National Disability Insurance Scheme. It supports the expansion of our Defence Forces. 18,500 additional people will be in our Defence Forces. We're expanding them. That's what pays for putting the Apaches in. That's what pays for building the nuclear powered submarines in the Land 400 programme and all of these important defence projects, which ensure that we can keep Australia safe.
So the Hells Gates Dam is a big rock in the jar. It's actually is the big piece of infrastructure that enables Australia to grow and realise its potential and become more resilient because the resilience of our economy, which is what will enable us to continue to be successful. You know, we've come through this pandemic with an economy stronger than all the G7 advanced economies across the world, stronger than the United States and stronger than Italy and Canada, and stronger than Japan and France. Our economy has come out of this pandemic and is and is launching into this next period of opportunity. But you can't take it for granted. It just won't happen on its own. It needs a government that understands the importance of these projects. We knew at the last election, the Labor Party opposed one of the big mines right here in North Queensland. They were against it. How do you actually think the Greens are going to be in favour of building this dam? The Greens will be in there whispering in the ear of the Labor Party about what they want if they are elected at the next election.
So to get this dam, to get these jobs, to get this economic infrastructure, there's only one way you achieve that and securing that, and that is to support the LNP here in Queensland, in all the seats right across the state. We've got the track record. We started this in 2018. You couldn't have got to where we are today to make this commitment unless we've done the homework, the feasibility studies, all of the economic analysis and the detailed business cases has brought us to this stage. $5.4 billion, an investment in Australia's future and an investment in North Queensland’s future. And if you really want to understand the comparison about where we invest as a government, we want to put $5.4 billion into building this dam. All the state government has to do is get out the big stamp and go approved. That's all they have to do. They don't have to drop any coin to do this because we knew they probably wouldn't anyway. And so we're saying to them, 100 per cent, we'll fund it. You approve it. Let's get on with it. My opponents, the Labor Party, wanted to spend $6 billion on paying people to have vaccines they already had. That gives you a really clear contrast between the way we manage money and the way Labor puts money up against the wall. What we do is we build a wall, a big dam wall and a dam wall that's going to create jobs and economic opportunity. Now I'm going to allow, of course, the Deputy Prime Minister who has responsibility for this project, I want to thank him for his passion for building dams right across the country, but particularly here in Queensland. And he can beguile you with the amazing facts of this dam, which I've heard ad nauseum. But can I tell you for the last three years, he is so passionate about building dams and we need them. Barnaby, it's great to be with you.
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Well, thank you very much, Prime Minister. I'd like to acknowledge our local member who's done such a great job we're going to call it the Port of Thompson and off he goes. For Bryce, knows the area, getting around the area, cane farmer. Townsville Enterprise, is this the dam you want? There you go. Water is wealth and a dam is a bank and this is the biggest bank for North Queensland. It's a marvellous outcome, a marvellous outcome. We say all the time to, you're probably sick from hearing it. Australia has to become as strong as possible as quickly as possible. I repeat that. Australia has to become as strong as possible, as quickly as possible, but they're merely words unless you back it up with the capacity to grow the economy, to give us that strength. And this grows the economy to give us that strength. As the Prime Minister rightly pointed out to you and quoted from a veritable source none other than myself. No one in the nation in history I've ever heard of wanting to pull down a dam of wanting to get rid of the dam. Why? Because all the wealth that's attached to it downstream. 60,000 hectares of new irrigation, creating the food not only for Australia, but for the world to help us in that global food task. A righteous task, the task of feeding and clothing people. And we also have the capacity to provide hydroelectricity. You want to do it, dispatchable power, hydroelectricity does this provides hydro electricity. We have a myriad of mines that are just on the cusp of coming online. You know what they want? Reliable power. You know what this provides? Reliable power. It's part of that process. And you know what those mines do, out there, out there. They are export dollars. That is a ship on its way to Asia. It'll earn you money to pay for the NDIS, pay for your social security, pay for your defence, those new nuclear submarines were getting we need many, many thousands upon thousands of boats moving, moving out and earning us export dollars. Just think of your own life, think of what you're wear, the shirt you're wearing right now watching this. I don't believe you got tie on, but I bet you've got a watch on. Where did your watch come from, where did your shirt come from, the strides where'd they come from, the car you drove in, where'd that come from, the fuel inside it. Think of your stove. Think of your television. Think of your fridge, which I'm buying a new one of today. Think of all these things. They all came in on a boat and somebody somewhere must be putting something on a boat and sending in the other direction. That's that. And our job is to say we get it, we understand this economics. So we're building on it.
Now I've heard some other people say, oh, we're just as strong on defence as you are. That's just words. You've actually got to stand behind a mechanism to pay for it. And we're doing that. The Prime Minister is doing that. We understand the task that's before us in these uncertain geopolitical times, we get it. We are planning for it. We are building for it. And we know that in some instances, the cynics will karp. The Green cynics will turn up, they'll find something out there. It's going to stop it. I bet your life. There's a there's a moss, there's a frog. There was a beetle. There's something that's going to stop it. But we know that the future of this nation depends on us doing it. We are doers, not talkers. We are builders. We are makers. We are the people that I'll be happily frank, you've got to give the security of your nation, the strength of your nation to someone who's strong enough, competent enough, is willing to push through these things that make us stronger, make us thrive and survive into the future. And dams are but one section of it. Dams inland rail, roads, health, education, all through to all the things that that manifestly make this the great place it is to live. Our freedoms, our liberties if we want to protect, but we have to have a holistic plan to do it. And ladies and gentlemen, Hells Gates Dam is yet another example of us doing it now.
Finally, say finalise on this. I say to the Queensland Government, the Queensland Labor, Labor, Labor Government. All you have to do is say you approve it. That's all you have to do. We've given up asking you for money, so Urannah Dam, all you have to say is you're going to approve it. Hells Gates Dam, all you have to say is you're going to approve it. That's all you have to do and we in the Commonwealth have been fair players. You came to us wanting money for Paradise Dam, which you built and which fell over. So we're rebuilding. And we put money in the taxpayers pocket of Australia to help you rebuild your dam. And that comes with a form of quid pro quo of goodwill that you now reach forward and say the Commonwealth has done us a good deed on helping us out with that. And all we have to do is approve this. So do it. Otherwise, you're only got one place to reside. You're owned by the Greens.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you, Barnaby. Claudia.
MS CLAUDIA BRUMME-SMITH, CEO OF TOWNSVILLE ENTERPRISE: Look, this is a great news story for North Queensland, but also for Queensland and for northern Australia. This is the first dam development in our region for many decades, and we're so excited about the $5.4 billion investment by the Morrison Government who have been supporting this project right from the beginning. And I would like to thank the PM, the Deputy PM, Phillip, as well as Susan for their ongoing commitment to this project. The business case is in its final stages. We submitted the draft report in January this year and it's looking positive. Investors are ready to come in and irrigate the land up in the Highlands and we're really looking forward to working with the state and federal government to get this project over the line. There's 3,200 ongoing jobs that will be created, there's 10,000 construction jobs. Don't get me wrong, this is a project that will have a huge impact on our economy now, but long term this is going to create jobs not only for our children, but the children of our children. So it's a generational building and it's a real nation building project, and it takes a bold and visionary government to support this development, and I really appreciate the funding support that was announced today.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you very much. Well, happy to take some questions. Let's stay on the dam first and if you want cover other things, that's fine, but let's talk about this exciting project.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, when do you actually expect work will begin on the dam, once the business case has been approved, if it is approved?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, look, I'm very confident about the detailed business case. This stacks up, but we've had to do the work to make sure it does. This is not being plucked out of the air. This has been a now a four year process to get to this point to know this is the right dam to be built in the right way and Claudia has led that business case process to make sure that is the case. And so the sooner we get it approved, and I mean the detailed business case, I have no doubts about that. The sooner we can get the state government to approve building this dam, then we can get underway. And so that is the next key step. So when they tell us it's approved, we can get moving.
JOURNALIST: Why wouldn't they approve it, if it is such a strong business case?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, look, I can't speak for the Queensland Government, but you know, it took a long time to get Adani underway and that was a strong case and that is transforming North Queensland. And we went through all those approval processes and we got there, and I'm really pleased that we did. But what I can say about this is, I mean, I would hope they would. I mean, I don't think there's a case against this. I think there's only a case for this dam. And anyone who wants to see thousands and thousands of jobs here across North Queensland will support this dam and particularly when all they have to do is get out the big stamp. Now, the only thing that will stop it, I think, is if the Greens get in the ear of either the Federal Labor Party, which we've seen them do that before. Or they get in the ear of the State Labor Government. But as far as the LNP is concerned here in Queensland, we're all for building this dam and many more.
JOURNALIST: Is there anything you can point to from things the state government said that would make you think they're not going to approve it?
PRIME MINISTER: No, not at this stage, no. That's why I'm optimistic, and I would hope that they would, but you know, I do worry about the federal Labor Party and for this reason, if they were to be elected. When we tried to get the changes to the EPBC act through the federal parliament. Now this was a project, and what it meant was that the environmental standards were going to be maintained absolutely as they are right now. All we wanted was a single touch approval process between the federal laws and the state laws, and the federal laws provide for that, but it required some alterations to the legislation. So I went to the National Cabinet. And I said and I went there actually with Premier McGowan from Western Australia who understands how important that is to get mining projects going in his state, and it's important to get projects like this going in this state and all of the premiers and chief ministers agreed that this is something we had to do. When we tried to get it through the parliament, Labor, Albanese Labor opposed it. And so there is a real difference, I think, between a Labor Party led by Anthony Albanese at the federal level and what we've seen, I think with Labor leaders at a state level. Now, I've worked through a lot of projects with Annastacia Palaszczuk. I just announced some further south earlier this week. I was standing up with Premier McGowan. I've stood up with Premier Andrews, we're going forward with our mRNA project down there in Victoria. I work with premiers who want to get stuff done. It doesn't matter whether they're Labor or they're Liberal. But what matters is getting stuff done. What I found with Labor, is the Greens put the pressure on Labor and particularly on Anthony Albanese, and they go to water. There isn't the strength to actually stand up to that and make sure that we get big projects like this going. So I think a vote for Labor at the federal election is a vote against this dam.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Bob Katter said he'd be against any proposal where the dam walls were below 395 metres. Is there any scope to make it bigger than the current proposal that's come from TEL and [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I might ask the DPM to speak to this, but Claudia you might also want to speak to that as well. I mean this proposal, this project is the one that has been worked up and the detailed case studies. Look, whatever project you do, people might, well, you know, I'd like it to be this colour, not that colour. I'd like it to be like this and like that. All I know is under our government, it's going to happen and we're at the point of go now. So you want to build this, then get on board.
MS CLAUDIA BRUMME-SMITH, CEO OF TOWNSVILLE ENTERPRISE: Look, certainly the business case has looked at many options. But we are in need to, you know, comply with the environmental regulations and therefore the size that we have designed is the right size for this scheme and it is the state's largest dam ever being built. It is massive, it will you know, almost irrigate 60,000 hectares of land. That's a big dam developments not only North Queensland, but for the nation.
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Look, it's started already, hasn't it? You know, we've got to make sure if we facilitated every theory on that's ever been made, there would never be a dam built in this nation. There'd never be a railway line built in this nation that there'd be never a road built in this nation. And you get to a point where you just got to go. You've got to go, go, go, get moving. I was so frustrated. I'll give you an example of how this cafe-esque confusion, stars to evolve and inhibits our capacity to become as strong as possible as quickly as possible. On one section of railway line that I'm driving through with the government to build the inland route to make our nation as strong as possible, as quickly as possible. On one section, about 150 [inaudible]. 13,600 pages of a review. 71 scientists employed, over a thousand years experience, two reviews, reviewed by two reviews, reviewed by two reviews. And you know what they want, another review. Now you get to a point where you say the people of the Commonwealth of Australia say, just get into it, go. And that's what we're going to do.
PRIME MINISTER: Well said, Barnaby. Well said.
JOURNALIST: If you don't have Bob Katter's support, is that going to be a worry heading into the federal election if there is a hung parliament?
PRIME MINISTER: No, I don't believe so. I mean, we work constructively with Bob. Another very important project up here which we've been working closely on, I was a big fan of this one, and that's the obviously the Copper String project. The Copper String project is going to unlock the western minerals province of North Queensland and the Hughenden Irrigation Scheme is another one that we've committed to and that was working directly with Bob, but you know, it's as, love Bob, but it's not about Bob and Bob would agree it's not about Bob. What it's about, it's about the jobs, it's about the agriculture. It's about the wealth being created, and we're all committed to getting this stuff done. And I said, said we'd do the port, we’re doing the port, it's right there in front of you. It is a reality. Said we would build the stadium. Built. Cowboys are winning that's even better, unless they're playing the Sharks. But course, it's happening. This stuff is happening and we really want to get on with this. We spent four years doing the homework to get to this point. So it's time to put the pedal down and get on with it.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, I might ask a question away from the dams?
PRIME MINISTER: I think we're still dealing with dams.
JOURNALIST: If you don't get the approval from the Labor Government, will that $5 billion stay in Townsville?
PRIME MINISTER: We're going to build the dam. But when it comes to other projects, as you know, when we were dealing with the Townsville City Deal and Phil was the big champion of this at the time. There were some changes to what we're doing, and the water project was a key part of that, and we kept the money in Townsville. But I want the money in the dam. That's what I want, and I think that's what the people of North Queensland want. They want this dam because they know it is their economic future. It's what's going to pay the bills. It's what's going to keep the pressure off inflation and interest rates. These are the things that you do to manage your economy well, you invest in this. As I said, our opponents thought the best way to spend $6 billion was to give it to people as an incentive to have a vaccine that they'd already had. I think, spending $5.4 billion on a dam that's going to unlock the wealth of this region is a much better idea. And that is the difference when it comes to economic management and the judgement and decisions you need to make as a Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister to secure Australia's future for a strong economy, because a strong economy means a stronger future.
JOURNALIST: Is this likely to increase the cost of water in North Queensland?
PRIME MINISTER: No. I'm not sure what that's based on.
JOURNALIST: Down south, water is a lot more expensive [inaudible].
PRIME MINISTER: Do you want to comment on that?
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: The Commonwealth are putting in the money. So if the state come out and said [inaudible], well you'd better send it to us because we're paying for it. This is about, we're building this 2.1 million megalitres of water. Can I just give you one other fact? You know when they built Burdekin Falls, they said it probably wouldn't fell. You know when it fell? The next year. You know the lowest it's ever gone? 38 per cent. Water as well. And the Commonwealth are putting in the money for this. So the state saying we demand a return for something they might as well ask for a return for, I don't know my vegetable garden.
JOURNALIST: Mr Joyce. Sorry, one more, please. Has the federal government received any feedback on the new Bradfield Scheme at all?
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Well, we received feedback on these all the time and we are doing, look we're doing Hughenden. The Hughenden Irrigation Scheme is vitally important. We have other dams on the western side, there's one down in my area. There's Dungowan Dam, which are, it's being held up by reviews, and we are making sure that we, where it is suitable that we expand, we expand, that we expand our capacity, our agricultural capacity. In 1972, Emerald had 2,000 people. They built, they burned down, but now it's 16,000 people, so we know what this can do. And there is an abundant capacity of agricultural land that resides on this site. We can do that. We got 60,000 hectares, 60,000 hectares. And guess where that money turns up. In Phil Thompson's town. It turns up in the hairdressers, in the tyre shops and accountants and the solicitors, in the fabricators, in all those businesses. All those businesses, the wealth comes into this part of the world making our nation as strong as possible as quickly as possible.
JOURNALIST: There's been a slew of funding announcements for dam projects. Were these projects like Hells Gates what the Nationals asked for in return for supporting net zero?
THE HON. BARNABY JOYCE MP, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT: We just believe that we're making our nation as strong as possible, as quickly as possible, and you are dead right. We have been announcing dam projects. Rookwood Weir, now very long while for the state government to actually get on board. You know, we finally got there. And Paradise Dam. They said, look our dam's fallen over, can you help us out. So the Commonwealth picked up a tab for $600 million to get it rebuilt. Urannah Dam, the private enterprise said we can't wait for the state, we'll put in our half, the other half for you. Emu Swamp. You know why we're building dams and you go down to Dungowan Dam, and you go down to Tasmania, Scottsdale Irrigation Scheme. You go to MacAlister Irrigation District. [inaudible]. Why are we doing this? Because we make our nation as strong as possible, as quickly as possible. And you're getting sick of me saying that aren't you? But I'm not going to stop because that's the message to the Australian people have got to get, and they've got to make this decision. This election is a choice. It is a choice. Are we able to make a nation as strong as possible, as quickly as possible or are the Greens and the Labor Party, the ones who are going to rely on? And that is a self-evident answer.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, you've referred to cutting the green tape to get on with the project, what green tape are you referring to?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I just pointed out one of the most important issues we want to see passed through the Parliament and that's to ensure we can get single touch approvals when it comes to EPBC Act. This is a massive one. The Minister Assisting the Prime Minister is here with me at the moment. This has been a great frustration. I mean, I'll tell you the sort of red tape we've been seeking to cut. Yes, we've done, sought to get the change to the EPBC Act. We also sought to get greenfield side agreements through the industrial relations law changes, you know who opposed it? The Labor Party. Who opposed us on the EPBC Act reforms, the Labor Party, not state Labor, Federal Labor, they're not the same thing. Anthony Albanese is not the state Labor Party here in Queensland. He is the federal Labor Party, the most left wing Labor leader, probably certainly in living memory. And I don't think I can even say Gough Whitlam anymore. I think you've got to go back to Doc Evatt, and he's trying to change his spots before an election and pretend he's nothing he's been for the last 30 years. Well, I know who I've been for the last 30 years, and that hasn't changed, and I think Australians know that. That means some like me, some don't like me, but they know what I stand for when it comes to the economy, when it comes to national security, standing up for Australia, getting jobs, all of these sorts of things. Anthony Albanese, he was for higher taxes on superannuation, was for higher taxes on self-funded retirees. He was for higher taxes on building a house. He was for higher prices on electricity. He's voted for all of those things. He supported all of those things. And now he's pretending to be something very, very, very different now. I think people can see through all of that. Another one is occupational licencing. That means a tradie, an electrician who may have got their ticket down in South Australia can come up here and work in the mines or indeed on this very port as an electrician here, and their trades are recognised. Now we were able to get that through, you know, who opposed it? The Labor Party. Anthony Albanese Labor opposed that. We even had the Victorian Greens in their state parliament vote for that legislation for occupational licencing reform, but the federal Labor Party under Anthony Albanese voted against it. This is what people need to understand about federal Labor. What happens at the state level, happens at a state level, whether it's South Australia, Western Australia, anywhere else but federal Labor under Anthony Albanese is not the same. It is a very, very different animal.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese says no complaint was made in relation to the allegations against Kimberley Kitching. If he's not going to launch an investigation, are there any avenues for the government to?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what strikes me about this issue with Anthony Albanese and the rather disturbing claims of bullying by Labor members themselves. This isn't an accusation that the Liberal Party has put forward. It's not. This is something that has been put forward by Labor Party members, members, Labor members of Parliament, former Labor members of Parliament who know the culture of the Labor Party. And what I find distressing about this is firstly the double standard that he's applied. He's very quick to throw stones on these issues. But when it comes to actually meeting the very standard that he seeks to apply to others, then he fails at the first hurdle and he goes to ground. So I think the hypocrisy and double standard of that, I think, really just doesn't sit well with the Australian people.
But the second thing about this is if Anthony Albanese cannot stand up to the bullies in his own party, then how on earth is he going to have the strength to stand up to the bullies in our own region? How is he going to stand up to the bullies who seek to coerce Australia's interests? That's not that's not a good sign. And so our government, I think, has been really clear that we stand up for the interests we stand up for building dams, to stand up for the big projects that make a big difference that actually drive the wealth of this nation so we can have a strong economy, for a stronger future.
But it's great, great to be here in Townsville today. I love coming to Townsville. And it's because it's great to see so many of the projects that we announced many years ago, all coming to fruition or making a big difference. And I'm particularly thrilled to be here at the port where so much of that investment has taken place and is really transforming. I remember what Townsville was like back in 2016. And Townsville was in a really hard place and I'm just so proud of the people of Townsville about how they pick themselves up. What we've simply done, is just back them in and back them in with important investments that they've said, this is what you need to do, Prime Minister. We need the port upgrade. We need the Hells Gates Dam and we've done the work and this is the way it should be done. And we've come in and said, yes, yes, yes. That's what you'll get from us. Great to be here with the DPM. Great to be here with you, Bryce, Claudia, and thank you all very much for coming out today.
Press Conference - Cairns City, QLD
22 March 2022
The Hon. Warren Entsch MP, Federal Member for Leichhardt: Well, first of all, thank you very much indeed for being here today. Here we are at the Casino, of course, just coming back from showcasing some of our very, very friendly locals at the CaPTA’s Wildlife Dome. Given the Prime Minister another experience in Cairns. And of course, Ken Chapman chair of TTNQ. I've got to say to you, it's wonderful to have you back here so soon, Prime Minister. It seems like only yesterday we were sitting on the bow a Quiksilver vessel going to Green Island and I said to the Prime Minister, I need you to come and sit out on the front here. I've got, I've got something that we need to put to you and and I had Ken and of course, Mark Olsen, our TTNQ CEO. I said they got something they need to share with you, and you sat down there for quite a while, actually and went through a process on what was required as we recovered from COVID. At the time, both of these guys reported that they were well received and believed that the message had got there. A couple of weeks later, I get a phone call from none other than the Prime Minister, saying: ‘mate, I really got it, I think it's a great idea, I'm sure we can work on that’. And so the process has been going through. And then recently I mentioned to the Prime Minister that I was having a bit of tourism AGM and dinner here, a lunch here today. And he said: ‘mate, I would love to come up there myself and be part of this’. Such is his passion and commitment to the area. So thank you very much indeed, Prime Minister. I'm going to stand back now and ask you to make the announcement.
Prime Minister: Thanks very much and Warren can I thank you, and Ken and Mark. And can I thank all the amazing tourism operators up here in Tropical North Queensland. This is the best of the best. And it's not just the best of the best experiences when it comes to tourism in Australia, but anywhere in the world. But they're also the best of the best when it comes to how to get tourists here to Australia, how to make sure they have a great experience and how to maximise the economic benefits of tourism while looking after our fragile environment, respecting our indigenous culture and ensuring that the whole tourism ecosystem benefits and is sustainable for the future. From my own time back with Tourism Australia many, many years ago now, that was the reputation of TTNQ then and only has continued to grow in stature over time. We have done a great deal together with the tourism industry around the country, but particularly up here in Tropical North Queensland. We have worked together on particularly things like the Wildlife Dome here and so many other zoos around the country to keep them in business, to keep them intact throughout the pandemic. Because even when the visitors don't come, the animals need still to be cared for. And that's the science program. It's the research program. It's the care and support for the animals. And when you go around, you talk to staff, whether it's here at the Wildlife Dome or the many other similar places all around the country, what you see is a passion from the staff, both to care for the animals in their care, but also to convey the real stories about these animals, whether it's the young kids who are coming to visit or the tourists that are coming from overseas. Through the TANS program, which meant we kept the planes in the air, through the discounted airfares that we were providing, through JobKeeper through the cash flow boost. Time and time again, we understood what was needed to keep the tourism industry as whole as it possibly could be until we could look forward to that day again when we opened the borders and we were welcoming the tourists back.
Now there is no part of Australia that has been more dependent on international tourism than here in Tropical North Queensland. No, no part of our tourism industry is more dependent, and no part of our tourism industry has been more successful in the past in developing those markets and nurturing them in the relationships that were needed to continue to allow them to grow. And up here, the tourism industry knows how to deal with setbacks. I go back to the time of the pilot strike, and we go back to the time when the Japanese market moved on and we had to go and secure new markets. They know how to do the business up here, and that's why I am full, brimming with confidence about what I know is going to happen here in Tropical North Queensland. It has been heartbreaking to have been coming up here well before I was in parliament and I've known Warren since well before I was in parliament. It's been heartbreaking to see the streets and the cafes and the many operators not realising what they love to do. When people start tourism businesses, sure, they want to be successful, but it's a lifestyle choice as well. They love what they do. They love showcasing Australia and particularly this region to every single visitor that comes.
And so during the course of the pandemic, we supported North Queensland, Far North Queensland with $10 million in supporting them to attract the domestic industry to ensure that they could keep afloat. We supported the maritime operators here by actually turning them into reef maintenance and monitoring operators, and those programs continue in the billion dollars I announced for the Great Barrier Reef with Minister Ley when I was up here with Warren just a few months ago with Jenny, and at that time we did work through what we needed to do to ensure that we can get the tourists back here as soon as we open up those borders. Well, those borders are open and the way we need to do that is we need to convert that incredible love that visitors all around the world have for this country and particularly here in Tropical North Queensland.
And so we are announcing a package of $60 million today, which will be for the next financial year and the financial year after that, because we know this is not just a one time thing, this is going to require a dedication to building our tourism industry back up here and right across the country. So the $60 million, but of that $60 million a quarter of it is going directly to TTNQ because they're at the cutting edge. They're at the leading edge of our tourism industry. And when TTNQ and Tropical North Queensland more broadly is doing well, then the Australian tourism industry is doing well. They're out there selling Australia like like few can, and they've got some of the best products in the country to be able to do that. And once people are captured by what is on available here, I know from experience that they start looking at all the other options, whether it be in Western Australia or down in Tasmania, over at The Rock and down in Sydney and Melbourne. All the experiences that Australia has to offer. TTNQ, they're out there, right out front, and I want to make sure that they can be up there, right out front as we go into this new phase. And what they'll be focusing on is converting that love of Australia into getting bums on seats, on planes and getting there as soon as possible.
There are two ways you market tourism as Ken knows and Mark knows. One is you build up awareness in Australia. Well, we know that. And the other part of it is converting that into real business and getting people here, spending money, particularly in Cairns, across Far North Queensland again. So $15 million is going directly to TTNQ, and I encourage the State Government to match that. It's not a condition of this funding that $15 million is coming, rain hail or shine it's coming, absolutely. But I would encourage the Queensland Government to join us in supporting TTNQ to ensure this region can get back up on its feet as quickly as they can.
There's $45 million that is going into Tourism Australia and that will be spread across three activities. But the main one will be exactly what TTNQ is doing, and that is working with airline partners, working with the travel agents and the wholesale operators in the international markets all around the world and making sure that will be great product together with a great airline package and get on a great price, which means they'll get here. That's what will drive tourists to Australia again, and we need to get about it and fast. Tourism Australia has been preparing for this moment, just like TTNQ had been preparing for this moment, and we're backing them in 100 per cent with the $15 million here and the $45 million otherwise. There'll be some further extension of the consumer marketing activities of Tourism Australia. And there'll also be a $5 million focus on business events as well. So it's, I'm confident about where tourism's going to go. I'm confident in the product that's on offer. I'm confident in the people who put that together and work in our tourism businesses every day. I'm confident about their passion for what they do, and I know that that is infectious and that people will come back to Far North Queensland. They will have an awesome time like I have had here today and every single time I come up and they'll go back and they'll tell their friends and they'll tell their family. And before long we will see this absolute amazing tourism region at a global scale back, realising what it was and realising before the pandemic.
So can I thank TTNQ in particular. Thank you, Ken and Mark, for working with us and to work this out. You guys have done a lot of experience. And I thank Dan Tehan, the Tourism Minister, for his enthusiasm for this package. He would love to be here today, but we're working on a trade deal with India at the moment. I had a great meeting with Narendra Modi last night and that was another important market to be highlighted in our discussions last night. We want to see Indian tourists coming back here as well, as well as the students. So exciting times Ken and I know our trust, our trust is well placed in you to get the job done.
Mr Ken Chapman, Chair of Tourism Tropical North Queensland: Well, thank you very much, Prime Minister, and you heard it right from from the top man. He gets it. Everything he said is really what I was going to say and didn't need to because the PM came up here just a few weeks ago. He knew what tough times we've been through. He knew also the opportunity to bring back the international tourism visitors that we used to get. It's a big job. The international travel trade is also been decimated by the pandemic. And while we were the most successful international tourism destination, regional destination, in the country and we can be again, the work we've got to do in rebuilding those relationships and converting the interest in Australia to actual bookings to come to Australia is a big job. But we can do it. The PM got it. Understood. Listened to our proposal and backed it, frankly, and that's going to make the difference.
Pre-pandemic, we generated a billion dollars of tax revenue. That's the tourism industry in this region alone. A billion dollars of tax revenue every year. We need to get that back, not just for this region and jobs and and the spread through the economy, but for the whole country. So we will do that. So I really have to say thank you very much to the Prime Minister. And also I have to acknowledge the great efforts of Warren Entsch. He's been he's been fighting for the tourism industry in this region so hard right throughout the pandemic. It's not just this announcement, frankly, you know, it's it's the JobKeeper, it's the regional aquariums package, the various funding programs for the different tourism businesses, reef operators et cetera. That has saved tourism businesses and jobs in this region and around the country throughout this pandemic, and it allows us to come back as an industry now with this support. And, you know, you've just got to give credit where credit's due in that case. We will come back. I really want to thank the PM particularly for having that confidence in us to back us. We'll make it happen.
Prime Minister: Thanks to everyone at TTNQ and well done Warren. A champion of the north.
The Hon. Warren Entsch MP, Federal Member for Leichhardt: Can I just acknowledge we've got Michael and Ben and Peter tonight over here from Capital who hosted us, a fabulous, fabulous experience for the PM and I warned him about the koalas when you're held on a [inaudible], but there was no marks on his shirt whatsoever, so you trained them well. Thank you.
Prime Minister: Well, the girls would be very jealous. Ok, happy to take some questions.
Journalist: Prime Minister, when do you anticipate the travel restrictions regarding COVID will be eased which is helping to get more people on planes?
Prime Minister: Well, when it comes to the international borders, they're open and there are no caps on flights, people can come. And in the very near future, the Health Minister will be making some further announcements about things particularly involving pre-testing of flights of those who are getting on flights to come to Australia. That will be an important milestone that's not too far away from us now. And as Warren reminded me before, cruise shipping, the 17th of April, we're open, we're open and it'll take some time just to build that up again. But the work that is being done up here to prepare for the cruise industry previously, that will now be able to be activated. And so, you know, while we're never complacent about the challenges that COVID can present and new variants, but we're watching all of those closely as we keep looking through that that windscreen, hopefully we can continue to see COVID in the rear vision mirror.
Journalist: Will any of this funding be focused on backpackers, because obviously a lot of tourism and hospitality businesses up here have been reliant and are still struggling to get the stuff that they really need from backpackers.
Prime Minister: Well, I'm glad you asked that for two reasons. One is one of the announcements I made last year was we increased the funding for backpacker tourism to Australia for funding to market to backpackers by $10 million. We got Tourism Australia that support last year, but I have no doubt that a big part of the TTNQ will follow will be in that space. So we're not going to tell them all, that they know where they need to go to space. And but the other thing I'd say to those backpackers who are here in Australia, it's time to come back up north because there's going to be lots of tourists coming and the businesses here are going to need you here now to be working here as well. And I want to encourage you to make your way north and be back here. There there'll be a lot of opportunities, and I'd say that to other Australians too, the jobs will be coming back here in far north Queensland and they will need you to ensure that we can meet the demand that is already on its way. I've got some information from Tourism Australia this morning that on advance bookings, forward bookings, we're almost back up over 90 per cent out of the UK what we've seen before. So, you know, we think that the UK market is going to come back strongly. I think that will be also followed by the North American market. There is still some travel restrictions on return to country and places like Japan and Korea, China, and so they're not within our control. We can't we can't affect what countries are doing when tourists go back to their country. But we will see this build up. Kiwis will be back in course, no doubt. And and it'll be great to see. Did you want to talk about backpackers and where you might want to focus?
Mr Ken Chapman, Chair of Tourism Tropical North Queensland: Yeah, as the PM said, TA is actually already, Tourism Australia, is already pushing the backpacker market pretty far. You know, they'll be the first to come back here and and we're backing that now with some of this funding because it is very important. We had, you know, about 5,000 backpackers working in tourism hospitality in this region pre-COVID. We want them back and they have a great time, where where else would you want to work but paradise out on the reef or in the rainforest? So, yeah, absolutely. We'll be pushing that hard, but not just that. All the markets, you know, and including, you know, meetings and exhibitions as well, you know, room series out of North America. We want to get all of this, we want to get the flights back and we want to get the businesses and the economy back to where it was, as I was saying, generating a billion dollars in tax revenue. That's what this is about. This is this is investing really in the future of this region and the country.
Journalist: Can you give just give a little bit more detail on where this $15 million is going to be spent? Can you just give us a bit more detail on that?
Mr Ken Chapman, Chair of Tourism Tropical North Queensland: Yes, so a particular focus is on trade marketing, which means so historically, we're the heroes really of trade relationships, meaning travel agents all around the world. We’re working really well. You know, the industry works together. We had impacts. We get out there and we had 30 years of fantastic relationships, which is why we're the most successful regional destination for international tourism. But those travel agents around the world have been decimated. They've had two years without income as well. So they've got all new staff, so there is a particular focus on that, on reinventing those relationships, teaching them about the destination, getting them down here, but also supporting our operators to get out there and work with us to make that happen. So it's a team effort and you've got to remember the businesses in this region, they've had two years without cash flow. So, you know, it's really tough. They actually need help because, they're the A-team, we want them back. So we're doing a lot of that sort of stuff. Also, a lot of you know, more traditional things, social media, but this is about conversion. It's not about brands so much as actually turning that enthusiasm to travel. They've been stuck at home for two years. But they've always wanted to come down and see the Great Barrier Reef and the rainforest and Australia more generally. We need to get in to convert that interest to actual bookings and that’s the focus.
Journalist: Prime Minister, are you cutting, or freezing, petrol excise in the Budget?
Prime Minister: The Budget is next week and the Treasurer is hard at work together with the Finance Minister, we are extremely conscious of the impact, particularly of the rise in fuel prices on the cost of living and the cost of doing business because fuel prices flow right through. The terrible things we're seeing in Ukraine, as you know, on the weekend, we announced further measures to support the people of Ukraine, including sending 70,000 tonnes of coal, which the Federal Government purchased from Whitehaven, and to get it there to power up their resistance of the Russian invasion. But these terrible events are having a big impact on the global economy and particularly on the price of oil by the barrel. And that is pushing these costs up. Australians understand. And so the Treasurer and I have been working carefully to ensure we get our response right in addressing these cost of living pressures that Australians are facing right across the spectrum and that's what we do. That's what we did when we went through the pandemic. You don't get knee jerk reactions from this government. You get carefully thought through responsible policies that perform to their task. That's what JobKeeper did. That's what our zoos programme did. That's what our cash flow boost did. And that's what our programmes to ensure with IFAM, I remember being up here with Warren during the course of the pandemic, and we were we were getting the fish up into Asia with the subsidised flights to ensure that we could keep a lot of that freight moving. And that was a lifeline to so many industries here in Australia.
So what the Treasurer and I do as economic managers, is we get the design right and we do and we put in the work and we ensure that that support that we provide is effective, but it's also responsible. I've heard the Shadow Treasurer today thinking that he's got a blank cheque, that he can spend as much as he likes and he's talking about ‘oh quality spending’. Well, I remember the quality spending, so called, for Labor last time they were in government. I remember the pink batts disaster, I remember the overpriced school halls. I remember the terrible programmes like Cash for Clunkers and all of these sorts of things. Now that's the quality that Labor talks about. That hasn't been our programmes. Our programmes, particularly during this pandemic, has saved the Australian economy, 700,000 jobs alone, and that came from getting the balance right and getting the targeting right and the discipline right. See, we know when we need to go and spend, but we also know when we need to stop. And under the Labor Party's financial management, yeah, they know how to start spending, but they never know how to stop. And that's what Jim Chalmers has said today that he won't be constrained and that he is spending won't stop. And that's why you can't trust Labor with Australia's finances.
Journalist: Prime Minister, you mentioned that international tourism is so crucial to the far north.
Prime Minister: Yes.
Journalist: Is this two year investment enough to keep the tourism industry afloat up here?
Prime Minister: Well, I've got great confidence that over the next couple of years, the Australian tourism industry will get back strongly on its feet. And of course, our support for tourism is ongoing. It always is. What this is about is giving a strategic boost to the tourism industry to get back up on its feet because as the operators here know, tourism is a very competitive business globally. I know that from my own experience and you've got to be out there and this has going to help the Australian tourism industry burst out of the blocks as the rest of the world is opening up, as are we. And this is a safe destination. This is an amazing destination. People who come here, you know, talk about their experiences here for the whole of their lives, and that's what our tourism industry does. And there's no better set of operators anywhere in the world. So yeah, just like during the pandemic, we backed Australian businesses, we backed in Australia and we're backing the Australian tourism industry with TTNQ at the tip point of the spear as we go back out and we reclaim those markets.
Journalist: But is this a sustainable solution for the future, for the long term?
Prime Minister: Well, this is exactly what TTNQ asked us to do because they know that once we get the business back up on its feet, that its strength will continue to take them forward. But we continue to support Tourism Australia year in, year out. We continue to support the promotion of events and particularly here in Queensland. We promote and support many events. And with the 2032 Olympics, I'll tell you, when people come for those Games, they'll be coming here and they'll be coming here in large numbers. And so the opportunity to build to that opportunity, I think, is just tremendous. So yes, my short answer is yes. This is the injection that is needed to boost the far north Queensland tourism industry in the future, but not just the tropical north Queensland, the whole country.
Journalist: Anthony Albanese says there's a constant review of bullying claims in the Labor Party, does that put the matter to rest?
Prime Minister: No. I mean, honestly. Yesterday was an important day for Kimberley Kitching's family, and I'm pleased that she was able to be honoured in the way that she was with so many of her family and friends and there were people from both sides of politics to pay tribute. I welcome the fact that she'll be honoured within the Labor Party with an ongoing recognition award to those in the Labor Party. I think that's very fitting. But that does not dismiss the fact that serious allegations have been made. Not by the Liberal Party, but by members of the Labor Party, about a toxic culture within the Labor Party, which the leader of the Labor Party, Anthony Albanese, is in hiding and won't address. He can't just dismiss away hard issues. That's not what prime ministers can do, and this is someone who wants to be prime minister. You face up to these things as my government has and dealt with difficult issues and work them through and had the reviews and had the inquiries and ensured that we've made the system better for all of the parliament. But what we've got from Anthony Albanese at the first sign of hard questions and we're not even into the campaign, he has gone into complete hiding. Frankly, I think it's pretty gutless.
Journalist: Will the Federal Government go halves with Queensland on the $771 million flood package and will hardship payments be increased to bring Queensland in line with New South Wales?
Prime Minister: Well, we're considering the proposal that was given to us by the Queensland Government on the weekend and that's going through its normal process of assessments. The support that we've already provided here in Queensland is over half a billion dollars directly by the federal government. Half a billion dollars has already gone and that's including almost with, we’ve been pushing $300 million that we have already directly provided to those impacted by the floods in Queensland through our disaster payment. Now, I can't tell you how much actual dollars have gone out from the Queensland Government to support floods victims. I know that we had a $535 million partnership from their first request and we said we'd happily meet half of those costs. And that was in addition to the Commonwealth meeting the disaster payment 100 per cent. That was in addition to the Commonwealth committing to the Disaster Recovery Allowance, which is the 13 week payment for those who can't earn an income because of the disruption impact of the floods. Now we're considering the further proposals that have been made by the Queensland government and how they fit in the scope of what is done on a Commonwealth response to floods in New South Wales, the flood experience is very different and we're talking about a one in 500 year flood in northern New South Wales.
Journalist: How long will the consideration take, I mean people are homeless, there's real crises going on, how long will it take to consider this?
Prime Minister: Well, what we're talking about now, we're already making payments. That's my point. The Commonwealth Government has already put cash in the pockets of those who have been impacted by the floods and frankly, the Commonwealth as yet is the only one who's done that. And so we need to get of that half a billion dollar package that we've already signed up to, which goes to the many of the issues you're talking about. Those funds are delivered by the state government that they already have over half a billion dollars that we've agreed to pay half of. And I want to see that support getting out there and and that should be happening now and there should be no delay to that. And we will consider the other measures that have been put forward to us, which are much longer term measures. And an important one of those that we're looking at is ongoing flood mitigation because dealing with climate change isn't just about getting emissions down, and our emissions are down by around 20 per cent. Now, the United States can't say that Canada can't say that, New Zealand can't say that, Japan can't say that, none of those countries can say that. But Australia can.
But it's also about climate resilience and it's also about climate adaptation. And that means that you build the dams and we want to build more dams, and we want the Queensland Government to start supporting us to build those dams because they're the ones who have to approve it and we've been seeking to build more dams in Queensland for many years and have been frustrated day after day. Now I'm hoping that that will change and we will get greater support now from the Queensland Government to support our dam projects that we want to see built in Queensland, which will both deal with important issues of managing floods and at the same time, open up major agricultural opportunities right across Queensland.
But today it's wonderful to be here in tropical north Queensland. It's wonderful to be here with TTNQ. It's great to be here with Warren, who's just been an absolute champion for this region, whether it's the reinsurance pool, $10 billion, to make sure that people can live and work here and get access to that insurance, particularly on the difficult strata issues, or whether it's the Link Road or whether it's what we're doing on the Bruce Highway. I mean, the achievements list of of Warren Entsch when it comes to standing up the region over a very long time has been extraordinary, and he's and he's as fired up today as when I first met him, gosh, when was that Warren, was about twenty five years ago, and he's still a great champion. So thanks very much, Ken. Good on you, Waz. Good on you, thanks Mark.
Remarks, Virtual Annual Leaders’ Meeting with Prime Minister Modi
21 March 2022
PRIME MINISTER: Kem Cho from Brisbane, Prime Minister Modi. Thank you for joining us today for our Virtual Annual Leaders’ Meeting. I very much wish we could be together with you in person, but that day I hope, will soon come.
I hear you’ve just hosted our dear friend, Fumio Kishida, the Japanese Prime Minister, and I hope you celebrated a joyful Holi on Friday.
I'm very glad to have this Virtual Meeting to drive our bilateral cooperation to new heights, but you are already ascending those new heights and I congratulate you on your five election victories in the, in the states recently, particularly in Goa. That must have been a tremendous result for you, and I congratulate you.
Our meeting today is, of course, set against the very distressing backdrop of the war in Europe, which must never happen in our own region, and I very much want to thank you for the partnership that we have. While we are obviously distressed at the terrible situation in Europe, our focus, of course, is always very much on what is occurring in the Indo-Pacific and ensuring that those events could never occur here in the Indo-Pacific.
Our region is facing increasing change and much pressure, and I think our Quad Leaders’ call recently, which gave us the opportunity to discuss Russia's unlawful invasion of Ukraine, but it also gave us the opportunity to discuss the implications and consequences of that terrible event for our own region in the Indo-Pacific and the coercion and the issues that we face here. The tragic loss of life underlies the importance, of course, of holding Russia to account. But cooperation between like-minded liberal democracies is key to an open and inclusive and resilient and prosperous Indo-Pacific, and I welcome your leadership within the Quad to keeping us focused on those important issues.
Our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, though, reflects the ambition that we share and we hold for our relationship, and the pace and scale of that cooperation, since we lifted ties back in 2020, has been remarkable. But I am ambitious, as I know you are, to make it even closer, particularly when it comes to our economic cooperation, which I hope we're able to advance further today.
We've made great progress in defence, maritime cooperation, science, technology, clean energy as well, which is something I know that Australia can work together closely with India on, and I'll be delighted today to announce some more initiatives that build on that foundation towards our post-pandemic world. Science, technology, energy and especially critical minerals and rare earths, and we'll redouble our efforts, as I said, on our interim Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement to unlock new opportunities and benefits for both our economies. It will bring us closer to a full agreement as soon as I hope we can achieve that.
Prime Minister, it's wonderful to see you, Narendra, and I invite you to share your opening remarks.
THE HONOURABLE SHRI MR NARENDRA MODI, PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA: Scott, good afternoon. Thank you for your good wishes for Holi and also your congratulations for my election victory. I'm very grateful to you for that. On behalf of all Indians, I would like to express my condolences for the loss of lives and property due to the floods in Queensland and New South Wales.
During our last Virtual Summit, we elevated our relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and I'm pleased that today we are establishing an Annual Summit mechanism between our two countries. This will give us a framework for regularly reviewing relations. It will give us a structured framework for that.
Excellency, in the last few years we have made significant progress in our relations. We have very close cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, defence and security, education and innovation, science and technology. In all of these areas we have very close cooperation. There are many other sectors as well in which we have practical cooperation between us. For example, critical minerals, water management, new and renewable energy and technology, COVID-19 related research, and our cooperation has been moving forward at a fast pace in all these areas.
I welcome the announcement of the establishment of a Centre of Excellence for Critical and Emerging Technologies in Bangalore. It is essential that we have better cooperation between us in the areas of cyber and critical and emerging technologies. As countries that share similar values, it is our responsibility to adopt appropriate global standards for these emerging technologies.
Excellency, we have made significant progress in our Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement, CECA, in a very short time, and we have made great progress and I am very sure that we will reach an agreement very soon on the remaining issues, as well. The quick conclusion of CECA will definitely give a boost to our economic [inaudible] and economic security.
There is also good cooperation between us in the Quad framework. Our cooperation under the Quad demonstrates our commitment towards a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific. The success of Quad is essential for regional and global stability.
Excellency, I would like to especially thank you for the initiative to return ancient Indian artefacts. These and the artefacts that you have sent back, these include statues and paintings that are hundreds of years old and that have been illegally taken out of various Indian states, including Rajasthan, West Bengal, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh. So on behalf of all Indian citizens, I express my gratitude to you for this initiative. You have given back these artefacts to us and now we can return them to the places where they belong. On behalf of all Indian citizens, I once again express my heartfelt gratitude to you for this initiative.
Australia's women's cricket team has performed very well in the Cricket World Cup. My congratulations to you for that. Australia won the match on Saturday, but there are still more matches to be played. My very best wishes to the teams of both countries.
Excellency, I would like to now thank you once again for the opportunity to exchange thoughts with you. I'm very pleased about that. I would like to now thank our friends from the media and close the open session. And after that, after a few moments, I would like to share my thoughts with you on the next agenda item. And I would like to request all my friends from the media to leave us so that we can continue with the rest of the program. Thank you very much to all our friends from the media.
Press Conference - Brisbane, QLD
21 March 2022
PRIME MINISTER: Well, good morning, everyone, it's great to be here at the Gabba. It's great to be here with Premier Palaszczuk and Lord Mayor Schrinner and all of the South East Queensland mayors joined, of course, by Steven Miles and Paul Fletcher and my colleagues here in Brisbane, federal colleagues here in Brisbane. This is an exciting day and it's a day that we've been working together towards now for several years as we worked through COVID together. This partnership was always very much close to our heart, and it's a great thrill that we've been able to come here today. All three levels of government all here in South East Queensland to deliver what is a $1.8 billion boost to the South East Queensland economy. But not just that. It's a boost to the wellbeing and liveability of this incredible area of Australia in South East Queensland, a booming area of the country, a booming area of the country when it comes to innovation, to technology, to infrastructure, to manufacturing, to advances in waste management and dealing with the environmental challenges that we have right across South East Queensland, which are which are caused by the positive issue of growth. And we want to have a South East Queensland that is growing, but we also want to have a south east Queensland that is managing that growth responsibly and is ensuring that we're protecting the liveability of the cities that make up South East Queensland.
And I particularly want to thank all the mayors for their tremendous work in pulling this together. Many councils involved in these projects and are working together with the Premier and myself and our ministers. We've been able to land on what I think is a great portfolio of projects that will take South East Queensland forward, over not just the next decade but beyond. And to be doing it here at the Gabba is exciting, not just because of the Gabba metro that sits at the heart of this arrangement, particularly between the Commonwealth and the State Government. But of course, here we are at the Gabba with the Brisbane 2032 Olympics, which is an Olympics not just for Brisbane or even South East Queensland, but indeed all of Queensland and all of the country. And to be here at the Gabba, as we're announcing this important set of arrangements, which really does provide a platform for the further cooperation there will be as we move towards the 2032 Games.
But today it's all about the challenges and the growth opportunities that come from South East Queensland. The Commonwealth is very pleased to be contributing $667 million to this partnership of $1.8 billion and this means 2,000 jobs, 2,000 jobs importantly for the state of Queensland and particularly here in South East Queensland. So I want to thank you Premier for the partnership. We work together on many different projects and this one has been incredibly important and it's great to be joining all three levels of government here today to make this announcement. And I'll pass you onto the Premier.
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Thanks Prime Minister and of course, I join with the Prime Minister in saying that this is a great day for SEQ. This City Deal signifies that all three levels of government can work very constructively and very well together when it's in the best interests of the people of this state. And as the Prime Minister says, of course, that this City Deal is also really important because it's also a catalyst for the Olympic Games, the Olympic Games here in 2032, where we'll see the Gabba completely rebuilt. But right across from the Gabba, of course, is the Cross River Rail and also the new interchange with the Brisbane Metro. So this is about connectivity. It's actually another chunk in that armour of infrastructure that is absolutely necessary for the growing population of the South East delivering jobs. We know how important it is for people to have jobs because that is so important for a family. So we're very pleased that this City Deal provides a whole range of initiatives, whether it's studies into transport corridors liveability. There's also funding for a business case or a cultural centre for First Nations people. Infrastructure upgrades whether it's the entertainment precinct up in Toowoomba, ferry terminals out at a Dunwich. These are all really important infrastructure pieces for the South East. Of course, this builds on the City Deal that was done in Townsville. And what we saw there is that all levels of government continue to contribute money, creating more jobs in the north of our state. So I always say we work best when we work together. It's great to be joined by the Prime Minister here today, my Deputy Premier. It's great to see my good friend, the Lord Mayor. And of course, we also have a very common factor too not only just doing this City Deal, but of course when it comes to shaping the legacy that will need it as part of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
COUNCILLOR ADRIAN SCHRINNER, LORD MAYOR OF BRISBANE CITY COUNCIL: I have no doubt that this is a day that will change the history of our region. This is not a deal for a city, this is a deal for a whole region. We have 11 different councils across this region now involved in a region shaping deal, a deal that will deal with the growth that our region is facing and supercharge its investment where it is needed. Last year, on the 21st of July, we also had a day that will change the region and that is the hosting of the 2032 Olympic Games, the announcement on the 21st of July last year. That is a day that will change the future of our region. Today, equally is another day that will change the future of our region. People want to come and live here, and I know why. We all know why all of us here know why people want to come and live in South East Queensland. The critical thing is dealing with that growth, with investment in infrastructure, with investment in the liveability of our region. And this is exactly what the deal does. It will create a more liveable region, a more connected region, a region with more jobs, and it will be a region that we are able to welcome more people to because of that investment that is being done today. What we're seeing today is the first five years, the foundation of a City Deal that will last for 20 years. It's never been achieved before to see the three levels of government here in South East Queensland working together in this way, it is an incredibly positive thing. And as the Premier and the Prime Minister have said, we can achieve more when we work together.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you. And can I also thank the Premier and the Lord Mayor and and all the mayors here for the great working partnership we've had, particularly over these last few weeks, and I'm sure we'd all want to join in thanking the people of South East Queensland for the way they've responded to the most recent floods. We'll continue to keep working together on the rebuild and the clean up and all of those issues. But the partnership between the three levels of government, I think, has been first class and very much want to thank the Premier and the Lord Mayor, but particularly the other mayors who are with us, but the people of South East Queensland. Happy to take some questions.
JOURNALIST: Why did it take you all so long to agree on this, were there some tense negotiations, Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, when you bring together any partnership, there are many views you've got to put around the table and you've got to prioritise them, of course. The early, we first announced going ahead with this back in 2019, but obviously we've been dealing with the issues of the pandemic over the last couple of years and that, that obviously had an impact on the progress of those discussions. There were other issues we're obviously focusing on very intently and particularly with the Premier and I in working through the pandemic. But, you know, getting the deal right is always important. The Premier's right to mention the deal that we've had up in Townsville, which has really transformed that city and really, I think, lifted that region. And the centrepiece of that is, of course, the stadium up there in Townsville, where the Cowboys had a pretty good win on the weekend. There were a lot of good Queensland wins on the weekend. There was a pretty nice win down a Shark Park too, I note in passing. But what is great...
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: [inaudible] Queenslander.
PRIME MINISTER: It is. Queensland have had big wins over the weekend. So you know, these things take time to get right and to get the priorities put forward. And I think we've worked through them well and I thank everybody for the way they've worked to get to it to a good result.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible] question why is this being announced now, just weeks out from a federal election, after three years [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER: Because we've been able to complete the deal and as soon as we've been able to complete the deal, we made the announcement. The urgency around this is the need, particularly as we're moving forward into the next phase of getting arrangements together for the Olympics is that this is a foundation I think that we build on and a very strong one because as the Premier said, it doesn't just go to the economics of this and the 2,000 jobs, it goes to the liveability and connected connectivity of this entire region. And that is where I think we're going to see the big benefits come because as the Lord Mayor has said, bringing people to the region, people want to live here and more and more people want to live here. And there's good reason for that. Jobs, economic opportunities, the liveability of the South East Queensland region, we're seeing in the regional areas of South East Queensland more pressures coming as people see the opportunities to live and work in South East Queensland. And this deal really speaks to the opportunities and meeting those objectives. But the Premier or the Lord Mayor may wish to comment as well.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, just on, like, we're here in Queensland today, obviously on a federal level very safe for the Coalition, 23 of 30 seats belonging to the Coalition, is Queensland going to be the lynchpin state for the election?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, every electorate in every part of the country obviously matters. Today, we're coming here as a partnership to talk about what's happening in South East Queensland. I'm happy to deal with some political issues later, if you'd like to. But I think in the spirit of the partnership we're dealing with today, it's all about the work that we're doing together, the work that we've done together over the course of many years now, and particularly most recently in how we work together to both respond to the to the terrible floods that have been experienced here in South East Queensland and in the recovery and clean up operations that are well underway.
JOURNALIST: With this infrastructure, and the flood recovery infrastructure as well, has all of that taken into account the prospect of future flooding and sea level rises [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the Premier may wish to talk about this as well, but she and I had a very positive discussion just a week or so ago when I was up on the road to Gympie, in fact, and we were talking particularly about a number of the flood mitigation projects. And so we'll continue to work together on those matters. I think whether it's here or particularly down and also in the northern rivers of New South Wales, where they had a one in 500 year flood, which is just hard to get your head around. Take the worst flood you've ever seen in Queensland here in Brisbane and then at 2.14 metres to it, that's what occurred in the Northern Rivers and the Minister for Recovery and Resilience, Bridget McKenzie, announced down there the other day $150 million going into some important resilience works which go to river management. But even within this deal, as the Lord Mayor has said, there is an important projects that are addressing those issues because that's about the liveability and sustainability of South East Queensland.
JOURNALIST: Have you accounted for further floods?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, of course, but I mean, the Lord Mayor or the Premier may wish to comment, because they do the building. We do the funding.
COUNCILLOR ADRIAN SCHRINNER, LORD MAYOR OF BRISBANE CITY COUNCIL: Yes, it's a really good question. The reality is anything we build these days is built with flood resilience and climate resilience in mind, and that's that's evidenced by the new infrastructure that's been built in recent years. I guess, two really poignant examples are we built two ferry terminals just before Christmas. One at Howard Smith Wharves and one at South Bank. Those ferry terminals are still standing strong after this dramatic flood that we've had because we built them strong and that will be the same for every piece of infrastructure. The one thing I wanted to point out was, which is really exciting, is that this deal has a $40 million investment into resilient rivers. And we all know one of the big challenges with any flood in South East Queensland is the rich, fertile soil from the Lockyer Valley getting washed down into the Brisbane River into people's homes and businesses. Resilient rivers will help address that issue by keeping the soil on the land where it belongs. So this is a really exciting programme. It will clean up our waterways, clean up our river, clean up our bay.
JOURNALIST: The City Deal in Townsville built a whole stadium for $250 million and the City Deal in Darwin is about relocating a university campus into the CBD, also for $250 million. Why is the new Gabba station for the Brisbane Metro costing $450 million?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, again, I'll pass that on to my colleagues in terms of the costings. Paul Fletcher may wish to comment on this as well. The City Deals are developed as a partnership, so the priorities for the projects are worked up between the parties. And you're right, the city deals in Western Australia, I was standing with Premier McGowan just the other day, which we did a top up of because of the increasing costs of delivering those projects or the arrangements down in northern Tasmania, where we've made investments, which have focused a lot on education. In Darwin in particular, that project focused on a green city in the middle of Australia's tropical capital up there in Darwin. And so the projects are different and they are defined by the needs and the planning of the future in those cities and the projects which are involved in here, particularly the transport ones, they're complex. But Paul, did you want to add to that?
THE HON. PAUL FLETCHER MP, FEDERAL MINISTER FOR URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE: Look, as Commonwealth Cities Minister, can I say first, I'm really pleased to be here with the Prime Minister, with the Premier, with the Lord Mayor and with the Deputy Premier. And Lord Mayor and Deputy Premier, can I thank you for the many hours that we have spent together in working through and arriving at the elements of what's being announced today. And can I thank your respective officials, officers, departments and can I also acknowledge the, all the Commonwealth officials. It's been a great teamwork across three levels of government, and that really comes to the question, I think about the Gabba metro station as a real centrepiece of this deal. As the Prime Minister said, this is about three levels of government coming together to identify priorities. What we know is that we need to prepare for the growth in South East Queensland is experiencing also the Olympics. While this is not the Olympics deal between governments, it's an important precursor and demonstration of our collective capability to agree priorities. And so that Gabba station is going to be enormously important as the interface between heavy rail between Brisbane Metro. Very important to meet the needs of the city as it grows and people commuting into and out of the city, but also very important to meet the needs for the Olympics.
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: I might just let the Deputy Premier say a few words.
THE HON. STEVEN MILES MP, DEPUTY PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Thanks Premier. The south east is the country's fastest growing region and with this deal, all three levels of government commit to work together to maintain its liveability to make sure people can get around, as well as crucial things like our waste treatment, recycling and resource recovery embedded in this plan as a plan to make sure we also create jobs and support the growing corridor, particularly to the north with our growth area compacts for Caboolture West. So I've been really pleased to work with Minister Fletcher and the Lord Mayor in putting this, putting this deal together. The centrepiece of the new Gabba station is much more than a new station. It's a major new transport interchange linking our flagship cross river rail of around heavy, heavy rail upgrades with the Brisbane City Council's flagship metro project. People will be able to change from metro to trains here, access our new train stations and of course get to and from the fantastic Olympics venue the Gabba that will be rebuilt.
JOURNALIST: Premier, until now, the State Government has resisted funding or supporting Brisbane Metro. Why now?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Well, it's absolutely a critical piece of the infrastructure, so, you know, we're very much committed ...
JOURNALIST: Why wasn't it before?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Sorry?
JOURNALIST: Why wasn't it before?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Oh, I think it was because, you know, we have been working with the council about the alignments, I think the Lord Mayor would testify to that as well. But this one now is the major connectivity when you're looking at this being a Central Olympics venue, but also to the number of people that use this Gabba on a weekly basis. The connectivity between your new metro interchange and the Cross River Rail is the, you know, the final signature piece. The final signature piece of the interchange on public transport to get to this venue.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible] Gold Coast not proceeding, what would you say to the people of the GC about how they benefit from all this?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Well, well, what I can say there is that there has been a lot of infrastructure that's gone into the Gold Coast, even when we look at the Commonwealth Games, we had the Queen's Baton Relay just come here the other day. A lot of that infrastructure that was built for the Commonwealth Games is going to be used for the Olympics. So and also too we've committed a lot of money for the continuation both at the federal level, state and Council for the Light Rail as well. So when you add all of that in as well, it's a very huge piece of investment in infrastructure.
JOURNALIST: Premier, when will the Gabba interchange be ready for people?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: I'll just double check, I think it's going to be aligned, definitely in time when the Cross River Rail starts in 2024/25, do you think maybe earlier? Yeah, we'll get get the final date for you.
JOURNALIST: When do the bulldozers move in here?
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: What we're doing first is finishing Cross River Rail, and it actually works really well because Cross River Rail will be finished and then the demolition work can start on this. So we're doing one one piece first and then the next piece, but it'll all be finished well in advance of the 2032 Olympics.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible].
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: Ah yeah well, the Prime Minister and I actually agree to the funding envelope for that, so there's no issues with that at all. Yeah.
PRIME MINISTER: Just let's wait for the plane to go over.
JOURNALIST: [inaudible].
PRIME MINISTER: In New South Wales, we have delivered $1.7 billion in commitments, both in the flood response and the flood recovery. And around the country, in fact, our Commonwealth Disaster Payment now has supported 1.2 million people and over $1 billion has already been paid out. It's already out the door supporting people, and that has been, in addition to that, there's the support that we've provided, both in partnership with the New South Wales State Government as well as up here in Queensland. And we're working through some additional requests that have been made by the Queensland Government that we received on the weekend. These floods are the worst we've ever seen in the northern rivers, and I can understand the frustration. But what I can assure you is that the commitment both in people, defence forces, the support for the state government's packages of measures that the direct support which is already seen, as I say, $1.7 billion to support the people of New South Wales, and the majority of that is going up into the Northern Rivers area. I mean, we will be there with them to build back and to ensure that they can reclaim what was one in 500 year flood. I think the politicisation of natural disasters is very unfortunate. Everyone is just working together to do the best they possibly can to support people that are in terrible need. My government is doing that. State governments are doing that. Local councils are doing that. We're all working together to help people, and I don't think the politicisation of that is a helpful thing.
JOURNALIST: Is next financial year the right time to be withdrawing the low and middle income tax offsets, given the cost of living at the moment?
PRIME MINISTER: The Government is very conscious of the cost of living impacts, particularly at the moment with the war in Ukraine and the impact that is especially having on fuel prices because fuel prices just don't hit the economy and family budgets when they fill up that they have a knock on effect across the economy. And so we're very conscious of those cost of living pressures that have been caused by these awful events we've seen with the unlawful invasion of Ukraine by Russia. And so the budget is on next week, and we've been carefully considering our response to ensure that we can deliver a budget that addresses those immediate needs, but also ensures that we continue on with our strong economic plan for a stronger economy, which means a stronger future for Australia. And that includes our ability to be able to be investing in the very projects we're talking about here. You can't invest in these projects unless you're running a strong economy. That's true at the state level, as it is at the federal level, and our economic plan is very much designed to achieve that. But I want to thank everybody again for coming here today. I want to thank especially the Premier and the Lord Mayor and the other mayors who are joining with us today, the Deputy Premier here in Queensland, of course Minister Fletcher. And for the great work that they've done together to bring this deal together. And we look forward to working to the 2032 Games Premier and Lord Mayor and all the mayors because this is a games for not just Brisbane, not just South East Queensland, it's a games for Australia, a games that is well beyond politics. It's a games that I think Australians will be looking forward to. And those kids would have been out swimming in the pools of Brisbane this morning ...
THE HON. ANNASTACIA PALASZCZUK, PREMIER OF QUEENSLAND: That's right.
PRIME MINISTER: With their dreams very much alive for 2032. Thanks very much, everyone. Thank you very much.
Press Conference - Kirribilli, NSW
20 March 2022
Prime Minister: I'm joined by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Women, and the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs. Australia joins the international community as we continue to condemn Russia's unprovoked, unjustified invasion of Ukraine. And we continue to call on Russia to immediately withdraw its forces from Ukrainian territory, consistent with the legally binding decision of the International Court of Justice. And to engage in dialogue and diplomacy in good faith. Russia's actions are a gross violation of international law. They're a gross violation of the principles that support a rules based order that favours freedom. And as a result, are a threat to all who rely on that, including here in Australia and in our own region.
What happens in Ukraine does not just affect Europe. As we're seeing here in Australia, it affects, of course, the rules based order upon which our own region depends. But it also is obviously affecting terribly Australians here with family in Ukraine. Some 40,000 Australians of Ukrainian descent. It's having a significant impact on the world economy. So the relevance of what's occurring in Ukraine reaches well beyond its borders and its immediate surrounds. It indeed shakes the whole world. And as a result, we have joined with like minded countries around the world in condemning the actions of Russia and giving them no quarter and ensuring that we are encouraging all others to do exactly the same. To bring this situation, this terrible and awful situation under control.
Russia must pay a very high price for its brutality. It must pay that price economically. It must pay that price reputationally and in diplomatic terms as well. And it is indeed paying that price and the incredible the incredible resistance and courage that has been displayed by Ukrainian and Ukrainian people, by President Zelenskyy, the Prime Minister and his government has been extraordinary and inspirational all around the world, and Australia has played its part in providing encouragement to the people of Ukraine and to their government and the discussions that I and the Foreign Minister have had with senior members of the government, including, in my case, President Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Shmyhal. The people of Ukraine have been defiant and they've asked for more help. They have been greatly appreciated, greatly appreciative of the help that Australia has provided and the recognition of what they're facing. But in our discussions over the last couple of weeks, they've made requests for more arms, for more humanitarian support, and they've also asked us for our call to assist help power their resistance to help them to deal with the energy situation and needs in their own country.
And so that is exactly what we are going to do today. The Australian Government announces that an additional $21 million support package of defensive military assistance will be provided to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, ammunition, body armor, things of that nature, and that will be bringing our total military support now to Ukraine to some $91 million Australian dollars. We know that Russia's actions have targeted civilians, and it's disgraceful, causing carnage and devastation, unimaginable suffering and the exodus of over three million people. This is creating a humanitarian crisis, a humanitarian crisis that I have discussed with European leaders, particularly those on the border of Ukraine, and talked about what their needs are. So Australia will provide an additional $30 million in emergency humanitarian assistance to help meet the urgent needs of the Ukrainian people, taking our total humanitarian assistance to $65 million Australian dollars and the Foreign Minister will speak more to those issues in a moment.
To help Ukrainians forced to flee from Russia's war, the Australian Government will also continue to provide support to those who are coming here from Ukraine. Already, we have been able to grant 5,000 visas since I announced that we were putting Ukrainian visa applications to the top of the list. And I want to thank all of those in the Department of Home Affairs who have worked so assiduously. And I want to thank the Ukrainian community here in Australia who have worked closely with us. And I particularly want to thank Stefan Romaniw, who we've worked closely with and all of his state leaders, many of whom I've now met with personally. In order to support those 5,000 already visa'd Ukrainians to come to Australia, and they are coming across a range of different visa programs that are coming on skilled visa programs on family programs. They're coming on student visas, they're coming on tourist visas. In all of these cases, when they arrive in Australia, we will make available to them a temporary humanitarian visa. This visa will be valid for a period of three years. They will have the opportunity and be invited to apply for other longer term visas should they wish to do so. This temporary humanitarian visa will give them the opportunity to work, to study and to access Medicare.
In lockstep with our partners also, Australia will continue to impose high costs on Russia. So far, we have imposed 476 sanctions on 443 individuals and 33 entities. And today, in response to a direct request from Ukraine, Australia will donate 70,000 tonnes of thermal coal. This will help Ukraine's power generators operating and supplying electricity to the power grid at this critical time. They need that before the end of May, and we have arranged the shipping for that to take place and are working with other countries to ensure it can get to the Ukraine. So it's our coal. We dug it up. We've arranged the ship. We've put it on the ship and we're sending it there to Ukraine to help power up their resistance and to give that encouragement. We understand that it can power up to about a million homes and this is incredibly important. This was a request that was made of us, and Australia is in a position to fulfil that request. It was also made to me through the Polish Prime Minister, and we're very pleased to be able to meet that need.
In addition, though, late last week it came to our attention that there was a ship that was due to dock in Australia this week to collect a load of alumina bound for Russia. That boat is not going to Russia with our alumina. Last night we put the sanctions in place, which will prevent that from occurring. The government has imposed an immediate ban on Australian exports of alumina and aluminum ores, including bauxite, to Russia, which will limit its capacity to produce aluminum, which is a critical export for Russia. Aluminum is a global import across the auto, aerospace, packaging machinery and construction sectors. And it's a critical input into weaponry, including guns, ammunition and missiles. Our decision here should say very clearly that to all countries, all companies operating in Australia, we are watching these things very, very carefully. And it's it's vital that we ensure that we diversify away from and not be providing any support to Russia, particularly at a time when they're invading their neighbours. This significant steps demonstrates our absolute commitment to holding the Putin regime to account. And we won't cease until we're doing everything we possibly can. We are identifying new things that can be done every single day, every single day with our partners, with those around the world to put the maximum cost, put the maximum pressure on the Putin government to withdraw from Ukraine and doing everything we can to continue to support the brave and courageous resistance that we're seeing from the people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine. With that, I'll hand over to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and then the Minister for Immigration, who can speak to those individual matters. And then I'll return to some comments in relation to the election of the new Premier in South Australia. And, of course, make some remarks regarding the departing Premier.
Senator the Hon. Marise Payne, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Women: Thank you, Prime Minister, and to reinforce the Prime Minister's views. There is no question that the Russian war on Ukraine is extracting a catastrophic humanitarian toll. It is creating the fastest growing refugee crisis since the Second World War. Currently, we see around 6.5 million people internally displaced and a further 3.3 million having fled to neighboring countries. More than half of those are children. That actually represents about a quarter of Ukrainians forced to leave their homes. The Russian military has bombed at least one maternity hospital. More recently, a civilian shelter, a theater with families sheltering inside, and those civilian casualties continue to climb. The targeting of innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure are war crimes, and President Putin must be held to account. Many people remain trapped in areas of escalating Russian aggression, with essential services disrupted and unable to access sufficient food or water or medications. And we know that the situation in Mariupol is particularly dire. Australia is further increasing our assistance and strengthening our sanctions, as the Prime Minister has mentioned.
We are today committing an additional $30 million in humanitarian support, bringing our contribution thus far to $65 million. That will be directed in the following ways. $10 million through NGOs for education and critical protection for children, for people with disability and those at risk of gender based violence. $8 million to the United Nations Population Fund to protect displaced women and girls from gender based violence and to ensure access to sexual and reproductive health services. $10 million to the World Food Program to address critical food shortages and $2 million for the Emergency Action Alliance Ukraine Appeal, which Australian NGOs and their partners will attract matched private donations to the government contribution. We are also amending the Overseas Aid Gift Deduction Scheme. That means that donations to approved aid organisations that are directly supporting Ukrainian refugees in other countries, so in Poland, in Romania, in Slovakia and in Hungary will soon be tax deductible here in Australia for contributors. And as the Prime Minister has also said, we have imposed a ban on Australia on Australian exports of alumina and aluminum ores to Russia. This will limit Russia's capacity to produce aluminum. That is a critical export for Russia. This demonstrates our commitment for holding the Putin regime to account for its actions. Australia will also support the energy security of Ukraine by donating at least 70,000 tonnes of thermal coal, and that follows a request from the government of Ukraine. As a government, we have consistently reiterated our absolute support for Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity. We do so again today, and we call upon Russia again to end this unprovoked illegal war and to remove their forces from Ukraine.
The Hon. Alex Hawke MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs: Well, thank you, Prime Minister, and thank you, Marise. It's obviously a privilege to add to the Prime Minister's remarks about what we're doing for Ukraine-Australian community here and people who are coming from Ukraine with four million people displaced already and potentially many more in coming weeks, we've been proud to issue visas on a very, very fast basis to 5,000 people now who are connected with Australians who have an Australian connection and want to come here. So far, we've seen about 700 of those arrived, but we now know every day we will see more people coming who are in a very bad way, who need more support and assistance.
So firstly, I want to thank the Australian Ukrainian community for what they've done in recent weeks. Many of them have given up their jobs, they've worked around the clock, they've worked through the night with the department, with the government to support these movements of these people. So from today, we announce that anyone coming here will immediately get access to our generous humanitarian support provisions, which means they will be looked after on arrival. They'll be able to access support through the community and through the government. That will mean they can be looked at for whether it's accommodation need, whether it's a trauma need. And we are now sadly seeing people who are very traumatised by the experience they've had and have gone through some very significantly difficult things. And they will also be able to then immediately be certain about making arrangements for whether it be access to Medicare or health services they need. And as the Prime Minister said when they settle in in the weeks ahead, if they choose to want to go to work and some of the people we're seeing are doctors from major cities there, they're skilled professionals, they're people who want to do something here and we they will be able to then work or study in Australia.
And so further from that, the government has also announced today that we're working with the states to work on those accommodation needs and their access to the hospital system, and they'll be able to access whether it's a hospital and they're in need or their children go to a state school where they're settled. All of those needs will be met and that won't be met from their arrival. We also say today that we are supporting the Australian Ukrainian community to the tune of $450,000 directly, and that's to recognise the fact that in coming weeks, those 5,000 people that we've announced more and more will be arriving in more and more difficult states, and the Ukrainian community will employ people to directly support those arrivals wherever they arrive in Australia. So that will work to support all of the people who again, I just thank for their generosity in giving up their time and working around the clock with the community and the government to support a very difficult and dangerous situation. Thank you, PM.
Prime Minister: Can I thank, of course, all the agencies have worked to bring this package together over at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Department of Home Affairs, of course the Department of Defence. Can I also thank the Ukrainian association, they've done a tremendous job right around the country and we're pleased to be able to provide that support. I also want to thank Whitehaven Coal Company. When we had to put this together, Minister Pitt, who's done a terrific job on this, was able to work with them to access those coal supplies and then to be able to work through to arrange the shipping at very short notice. Much of Australia's coal exports are contracted. And so this this was not a simple matter, and it was able to be resolved quite quickly.
In relation to the election of the Labor Government in South Australia. I've already been able to speak to the Premier-elect Mr Malinauskas and to convey to him my congratulations and his wife, Annabel. It is a significant victory and they are elected with a very strong mandate to move forward with the many issues that they intend to take forward. We had a very constructive discussion about the many projects that are already underway in South Australia and our keenness to cooperate and work on those, whether it's the programs or with the National Space Agency, the defense industry programs that are operating there, our manufacturing incentives and investments. And I look forward to working with him on on those many projects and welcoming them to the national cabinet, which is not scheduled to meet until June.
To my dear friend Steven Marshall, who has been an outstanding premier, I want to wish him all the very best and I want to thank him for the tremendous role that he played in turning around his own state. The entrepreneurial spirit in which he pursued that role, which has seen projects like Lot 14 and so many others bringing industry back into South Australia, bring jobs back into South Australia, seeing people move back to South Australia. These are all significant achievements and I want to thank him for his great leadership. I also want to thank him for the very positive and constructive role he played around the national cabinet table during the course of the pandemic. Steven was there from the first meeting to the one we just had the other day, and at all occasions I think he took a very, very responsible and measured approach to these issues. And I greatly appreciate his support in working through what has been one of the most difficult times for Australia over the last few years. And his contributions in South Australia, particularly. This is how we kept 40,000 people from dying in Australia. We did it together as a team and we continue to do it together as a team. And the Premier-elect will be joining that team now and I look forward to working with him to that end.
Journalist: This is the first incumbent government...
Prime Minister: If we could just focus on Ukraine first, that's the serious issue today. There are other serious issues like the election of the new government in South Australia, but with the Foreign Minister and the Minister for Immigration, who are here with me. If we could focus on that, I'd be grateful.
Journalist: 5,000 [inaudible] so far, how high is Australia willing to go?
Prime Minister: Well, 750 people, I'm advised, have already arrived of that 5,000, we'd obviously expect more to be arriving and we are prepared to meet the demand. We haven't set a limit on this. I've said we'll do what we need to do. What is interesting, though, in my discussions with European leaders and is that many of those who have become displaced, three million people have been displaced. Their intention at this time, as we understand it, is to remain in Europe, largely with the hope and expectation of being able to return to their homeland. That is what they want to do. Now, undoubtedly, there will be a call on both humanitarian visas around the world, including here in Australia, and we will play our part in that. But what we're already seeing is that there are many Ukrainians who are actually applying to come to Australia on the many under the mainstream programs, and we welcome that as well. And with the announcement we've made today, it just means that when they come, particularly if they've come on a tourist visa or something of that nature, then they're being afforded the work rights, medical support and settlement services support, particularly when you think about things like trauma counseling and accommodation, things of that nature. So we'll just keep stepping up on that. But in all the discussions I've had with European leaders, it is not yet clear what the scale of that demand is going to be. And so it's premature to start making estimates of this. What we should be doing is exactly what we're doing and saying you're welcome, please apply. And when you come, you'll get a very warm welcome and a lot of support from Australia.
Journalist: [inaudible re: separated child].
The Hon. Alex Hawke MP, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs: Yeah, thank you for the question. So from the beginning, we were keen to make sure there were arrangements in place to address all of the issues of transit, including vaccination, and the Border Force Commissioner has been applying exemptions since the beginning of the invasion. And the Chief Medical Officer of the Commonwealth as well has been addressing any medical concerns from the beginning, and that process has been very smooth and very effective. In so saying, there are some problems from time to time with different airlines or different posts. But I'm happy to say to you now the Commonwealth stepped in overnight and that child will be flying here in the next day. So that was an airline issue, not a policy or Commonwealth issue. In fact, we were able to work directly with the airline to make sure that child will be flying to Australia.
Prime Minister: I think it's important to just keep in mind that we're dealing with a situation which is a war zone. And so not everything is always going to be as clear as you would hope it to be. And whether it's our consular support, which is being provided through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, immigration support through the Department of Home Affairs, that this will be testing all of their skills in dealing with some very unconventional situations. And as you can see from this case, they will just work the issue, work with everybody, work with the Ukrainian association here in Australia, to give people that confidence and assurance.
Journalist: Prime Minister, 70,000 tonnes of coal today.
Prime Minister: Yeah.
Journalist: Are you prepared to send more if that is required?
Prime Minister: This meets the request that have been made of us, this will arrive there in May and we haven't had any further requests at this point. But as we are constantly liaising with Ukraine's government and and speaking with their Prime Minister and President and the Foreign Minister and other government to government level contacts, as well as our partners and as we identify needs that we think we can, we can meet. Well, we go out there and we meet them.
Journalist: A lot of resources are already contracted before they are dug out of the ground. Was it difficult to [inaudible] without affecting companies [inaudible]?
Prime Minister: No contractual obligations were impacted, and that's why I'm genuinely thankful to Whitehaven for working with us and Minister Pitt. He got onto this. I got off the phone and got straight on to Minister Pitt, and then he went to work and he sourced the coal with the company, and the company did a fantastic job in freeing that up. And and I want to, I really appreciate the speed with which they acted. That's all on Ukraine?
Journalist: Just with regards to [inaudible], do you think that the allegation [inaudible] inquiry? And should that be handled by the Labor Party or independently?
Prime Minister: Well, this is a very, very serious issue. The reports that I have seen of members of the Labor Party, Labor, members of Parliament, senators, members of the union movement coming forward and making some very, very serious allegations against not only the leadership within the Senate of the Labor Party, but more broadly in terms of what involvement there has been in turning the other way by the Leader of the Opposition. Now, these are very serious issues, and they're serious issues that Anthony Albanese has to deal with. This is on his watch. This only happened weeks ago, weeks ago, and he can't duck and run on this. He needs to be able to face up to this and say what he's going to do about it. So far, he seems to just dismiss the issue completely. And so right now, it's incumbent on Anthony Albanese to address these very serious issues and say what he's going to do. That's what leaders need to do.
Journalist: Do you think the Labor Party [inaudible] double standard [inaudible]?
Prime Minister: Well, the Labor Party was always very quick to accuse, but when they have to address these very serious allegations themselves, well, they're very hard to find. I mean, they're living in glass houses. Some might say even a crystal cathedral on these things where they're pretty quick to throw stones. But when it comes to facing up to issues in their own party and addressing what a very serious allegations, and I'm not in any position to to know the veracity of those things. These are things that the Leader of the Opposition that Anthony Albanese has to face up to. I mean, the campaign hasn't even begun, and already when he gets hard questions, he goes running.
Journalist: What are the internal party processes that you currently have in place that would handle a situation like this if it were in your own party?
Prime Minister: Well, we have processes as a government, and we have those processes set out through the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and particularly in the executive wing of the government. And those support mechanisms are already in place. That's how we deal with it as a government and there are processes within the parliament. And if there are any members of the parliament who feel that they have been harassed or in any of these ways, then I would encourage them to access the services that my government put in place to support them. OK.
Journalist: Did Steven Marshall run a weak campaign?
Prime Minister: Steven Marshall turned the state of South Australia around. He turned their economy around. He brought business back to South Australia. He created a new buzz in South Australia, which was drawing investment in technology firms, securing important defense industry for his state. Steven Marshall ran a good show for the time he served as Premier, and I was very pleased to work closely with him on turning the state around, you know, getting people into jobs, getting investment in the businesses and putting that confidence back, even going through a pandemic. And so his record as a Premier, I think, will hold him in good stead in South Australia. Elections are tough and I'm sure that those involved in the specifics of elections, campaigns and how they run will look carefully at the tactics that were employed. I'm not making any comment about that today. I'm simply saying that my good friend Steven Marshall did a great job as a Premier and I look forward to working with the new Premier.
Journalist: This is the first incumbent government to lose power, surely that must make you nervous, Prime Minister?
Prime Minister: I think the lessons from state elections and the new Premier made this very point even before the polls were open, and that was that this issue, this election was being fought on state issues. The federal election will be fought on federal issues. And what I know is that Anthony Albanese is not Peter Malinauskas. He's not any of the other premiers. He's not Annastacia Palaszczuk. He's none of these other premiers. He's the federal Labor leader. And one thing that I've noticed is there is a big difference between Anthony Albanese as the federal Labor leader and what we see in the performance of some of his state colleagues. Mark McGowan's a good example of that. Anthony Albanese is no Mark McGowan. That's that's for sure in terms of focusing on the things that drive the economy of that state. I work with all premiers and chief ministers all around the country, whatever their stripes are to focus on the things that are important to all Australians. And that's what the federal election will all be all about. Who is best able ensure that we secure our strong economy for a stronger future, who can best ensure that in this very troubled circumstances and times globally, who has the experience and the ability to make the calls that keep Australians safe and keep our economy strong. Thanks very much, everyone. Thank you.
Remarks, Multicultural Community Awards Mirrabooka, WA
16 March 2022
Prime Minister: Thank you very much, Vince. Can I acknowledge you, of course. Can I acknowledge my colleagues who are here with me today, the Attorney-General Michaelia Cash, or MC as I call her. Senator Dean Smith, it's wonderful to be back with you here in Cowan. Now, I've been to Cowan many times and I've met many of you before. And usually when we meet you are more less constrained because of COVID rules. And it is usually quite a flourish and there's a lot of activity and there's a lot of movement. But you don't need to convince me of all that because I've seen it before and I know the passion that is in this community, and I particularly want to thank you Dean for the great work you've been doing in Cowan, and teaming up with Vince now. I am so thrilled Vince is standing for our candidate for Cowan after having done such an extraordinary job as the member for Stirling, which he continues to do now.
Can I acknowledge the Indigenous owners of the land on which we meet and thank you Len for your very warm Welcome to Country. Can I also acknowledge any veterans who are with us here today, and serving men and women of our Defence Forces. I’ve just been over with the SAS Regiment to lay a wreath there and had a chat to the team there and thank them for the tremendous job they do on behalf of our country. And just how much we respect and honour their service. The SAS Regiment is a great credit to our country and a great credit to Western Australia too and I know people feel very strongly about that all around the country.
But one such veteran is, of course, Vince himself, and I really want to thank Vince for the way he has conducted himself as a Member of Parliament. And that is what presents him so well to be the next Member for Cowan. The reason for that is Vince is 100 per cent hard and he is 100 per cent determination. He's also been incredibly [inaudible], he’s been able to draw on his experience in so many different walks of life, and his passion for supporting the ongoing care of veterans in this country is second to none. And I know he will seek to continue to serve out that area of passion as the Member for Cowan. But I tell you the other thing, he's also been a great champion of multicultural communities, not only in his current role, but also I know he is very familiar with the community here as well and the great work Dean has always done, particularly amongst the Burmese community. And I want to acknowledge the community down there and particularly the challenges they have been facing in Myanmar.
We have all been seeing what is occurring in the Ukraine, with the invasion by Russia. Sometimes you can allow to pass with our gaze the many other troubled parts of the world. Australia has not allowed that to happen in terms of our gaze and what’s occurring in Myanmar, and the terrible events that have occurred there, and we will continue to do everything we can to support the people of Myanmar. I know that must be terribly devastating to the Burmese community here in Australia. You have dealt with so much, and you have built such a wonderful life here in Australia, and this is your home, as you know, but your homeland is also something you will always feel a deep connection to. You have family there as well and I know you will be concerned.
In speaking, though, also about Ukraine, whenever something happens in the world, there is always a community here in Australia that is directly touched by it. There are some 40,000 Australians with Ukrainian descent in Australia. In Perth, in Sydney, Melbourne and so many other parts of the country. But this is also true when we saw the terrible blast in Beirut in Lebanon - tens of thousands of Australians, indeed living overseas in Lebanon, and also the enormous Lebanese community across Australia was touched by those events. And this occurs without exception as we see terrible events that often play around the world, and they will link back and they will touch a community here in Australia. And Australia I believe is the most successful multicultural and immigration nation in the world. Not arguably, it is. And the reason for that is because of how Australia embraces community.
Now, Vince was making this point, Dean’s made this point. Community is what binds us together. Not governments. Governments have jobs to do and they're important jobs to do in supporting and helping community, but it's actually community in the first instance that actually grabs the greater society. Community built on family. Built on the great aspirations of family and how that is nurtured within a community, and in the various ethnic communities of our country we have seen that over generations and generations and generations. As people have come to our shores, where have they first gone to seek support and comfort? They've gone to their communities of those who have come before, whether it's in my own hometown in Sydney, whether it was the Greek communities or the others who came, they'd be down with the Archbishop or they'd be down there at, whichever Greek Orthodox Church it was or Maronite Church, you’ve got Lebanese or others, and they would go there and they would find their comfort in their community, and they would be able to get on their feet today, and over the last 50 years. The Sikh temples have done the same. The mosques have done the same, and there has been a great work done to transplant and grow that community.
As a Government, we really understand that, and that's why I was pleased to come here today and honour the work that you have done as community leaders, because the stronger you are in your communities, the stronger Australia is. Now governments will do what we do to strengthen our Defence Forces and to do everything we can to get Australians into jobs and build our manufacturing industries. And ensure we have the support services that we can provide, be it the pension or the National Disability Insurance Scheme or the support we provide to support the victims of domestic violence and all of these things. But you know of all of that, because you assist us as the primary interface with the community. And we're at some risk, I think, we're at some risk that community might be handed over to the Government and that we will neglect community and think, well the Government will come in and do this, the Government will come in and do that. No. If we go down that path, Australia will be weaker because our communities will be weaker, and community is based on our fundamental sense of obligation and responsibility to each other. And that's what you live each and every day. The reason you lead a community and the way that you do is because you are motivated out of both your care and compassion and also your sense of responsibility to those sitting alongside you. And that's how you build a great country, and that's why we are a great country.
So it's been good to come here today and to thank you because these communities are the building blocks of Australia. And the fact that they are multicultural communities only highlights, I think, our strength as a nation, and it's with some pride I'm able to say to other leaders around the world, when I speak of them, most recently, the Ukrainian community in Australia. And how devastated they have been. But I've been able to say that they have been comforted by the so many other different multicultural communities here in Australia, because in Australia every community that has often come here has come from a position of suffering or discrimination, and they’ve come here to find peace and freedom and comfort. And so, the many ethnic communities in Australia have an empathy and an understanding of that hardship. And so when one is hurting, then the hand reaches out. And this is what makes our country I think incredibly strong.
And so I would encourage you, I would just encourage you to keep doing it. Keep feeding people, that 3,000 a week you feed isn’t it Margaret, or thereabouts. Amazing work. And so many of you doing so many more. At the Sikh temple, how many are you feeding a week? 3,000 too, we’ve got an auction going on here, but a positive one. See, it doesn't matter what your faith is or what your background is, we all come together in Australia, we all help each other. And that is what makes us strong, and I’m seeing this in my own home state of New South Wales at the moment with the terrible floods. And I say to all Western Australians, I met Western Australians up in the flood zone, up there helping. They're in our Defence Forces, they've been sent up by Emergency Management. They’ve been sent over also as volunteers and they're there and I can't tell you the encouragement that gives to people who have been so devastated by floods. And some will turn and say where are you from, and they'll say, I'm from Perth. They've come all the way across the country, come up from Tasmania, they've come down from Northern Queensland to help each other. This is what makes our country strong. So I want to continue to encourage you to go on that path. And I know that's what gets wins to this [inaudible].
I have seen in many communities. I've been around politics for some time. I know the difference between people who know how to do their job and one who doesn't. And Vince is one of those who knows how to do the job, and he knows that the best way to get results in his community is to knit his community together. To be the one who brings them together, to understand what the needs are. But also, it brings a great resource to the table. See, some think it's just a matter of, ok, here's a need, I'll ring up the Minister for this or the Minister for that. Sure, that happens. But the first response is how as a community can we meet this need. And then how can the Government then support that act and that effort that has been put in place in that community. And that's why Australia's a great multicultural society and why we are such a strong community, so let us never forget that we're strong because of what you do. And I want to thank you for that.
I'm so pleased that Vince you're able to acknowledge that together with Dean and Michaelia. And Mark, thank you for being here as well and part of this. You understand that as well [inaudible]. And I look forward to coming back on many more occasions, next time without the COVID restrictions and there will be much dancing, they’ll be much jumping up and down and playing the table tennis, and goodness knows what else occurred last time, it was quite, it was quite an occasion. But for now, thank you for everything you're doing with COVID. Western Australia will come through this, just like the rest of the country has, and before long we truly will be all together again and the way we really wish to. God bless and thank you all very much.
Address, Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA
16 March 2022
PRIME MINISTER: Well, thank you very much, Nicolle, for that that great welcome, it's great to be back here in Western Australia. You should have heard Joe and Boris say AUKUS for the first time. And they're as passionate as I am.
Can I also thank you Professor Hayward, Aunty Colleen, for your Welcome to Country. Kaya. And if we were in Ngunnawal we'd be saying yuma, and it's great to be here with you all here today.
Can I also thank you, Chris, for your introduction. Can I thank you for the partnership, and I call it that, that we've had with the Chamber here in Western Australia. The thing I really love about the Chamber here is you just don't throw rocks from the sideline and just make daily complaints. You actually roll up your sleeves here in the Chamber and you work with governments. You work with our Government, you’ve worked very closely with our Government, you work with the state governments. You’re a very practical organisation focused on getting the right outcomes for the Western Australian economy. And what I know is what's good for the Western Australian economy is good for the national economy. And so I do want to thank the Chamber for their partnership they’ve had with us. I'm sure Premier McGowan feels the same way, just about the constructive way the Chamber engages. I think it is a national standout when it comes to representative bodies in this country, in the pragmatic, respectful and I think very diligent way that you conduct yourselves. So to you, Chris, and to you, Nicolle, thank you very much for your leadership in that regard.
On the, can I acknowledge, of course, all my colleagues who I can see here with me, and we've already called the role for them today. And so it's a shame we can't have more in the room today. Every time I've spoken here in the West, the Chamber has turned out in large numbers, and I particularly remember the last time up in Kings Park, which was a great time, but we've been through a lot since then and it's tremendous to be back here with you. But to Michaelia, of course, and to Linda and Melissa, who's here, and Bennie Morton and the team who are with us here today, I want to thank you for the leadership. I mean, this is just a fraction of the Western Australians in my Cabinet, in my Ministry. There are many more. Of course, if there were a change of Government, well, there wouldn't be, I'm not even sure they'd be one, frankly. There certainly hasn't been in the past often. And so under our Government, we've had tremendously strong, passionate, dedicated representation from our Western Australia members and they are such an important part of our team.
So it was on the 24th of June in 2019, after the last election, that I made my first major economic speech after that election. And I did it right here in Western Australia, Perth, to the Chamber. And I said to you then that whether it's the GST or other economic debates, the Chamber would always come to the table and express their views in the way that I've already mentioned. So I appreciate that.
I was here, as I just said, at Kings Park in April last year. And so, again, it's great to be here. May I firstly, as I have already, acknowledged Aunty Colleen, but can I acknowledge the traditional owners, the Noongar people, and pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Can I also acknowledge any members of the Australian Defence Force and veterans who have joined us here today. I was out at the SAS Regiment yesterday and was out there thanking them for the amazing job that they do for our country. I'm very proud of the SAS Regiment. I’m very proud of the work that they do. They're proud Western Australians, even if they've come from all over the country. And I know Western Australia’s very proud of the SAS Regiment as well. The SAS Regiment, right now, is over with their other colleagues from the Defence Forces cleaning up what has been one of the worst flood I’ve ever seen in the Northern Rivers of New South Wales. It is absolutely heartbreaking to see what's occurring there, and I've seen Western Australians there in those flood impact zones. Those have come from government agencies here in Western Australia, those who’ve been part of the Defence Forces, volunteers who have just turned up. And, you know, we're one big country and I'm so pleased that we're all together again. And I think that was demonstrated in the presence of Western Australians, Tasmanians and Victorians, South Australians up there, Queenslanders in the middle of those terrible floods. So thank you, Western Australia, and thank you to our Defence Forces in particular.
We find ourselves in very different circumstances, though, to when we last met. COVID, of course, has been the test of our times and the people of Western Australia, I think, can be rightly proud, rightly proud of how Western Australians have met this test. Today, on the other side of the country, as I've said, many, many, many thousands of Australians continue to deal with those devastating floods in both New South Wales and Queensland. Again, an enormous test of national resilience.
And at the same time, we're facing a pivotal moment, I believe, in world history - an uncertain time, a very uncertain time for our global economy and global stability. Russia's illegal, unjustified, unprovoked war in the Ukraine, invading their neighbour is an unconscionable assault on freedom and national sovereignty and a rules-based order that favours freedom. And so we stand with the people of Ukraine, and I met with the leaders of the Ukrainian community yesterday in Mirrabooka, and with many other ethnic community leaders here in Western Australia, with Vince Connelly, who's doing a terrific job as our candidate for Cowan and the ongoing member for Stirling.
And we stand with those in the Ukraine, and we've stood with them in practical ways, not just in words, tangible support from medicines to missiles. That's what we're doing to help Ukraine right now, and we’ve been processing visas of Ukrainian applicants that come to Australia at unprecedented levels. And we'll be welcoming many Ukrainians to Australia in that way.
But I think, more than anything, the people in the Ukraine, and particularly those who have ancestry here in Australia, will just want the best for their homeland and for people to be able to return there in peace and live there peacefully.
But what all this shows is the conflict in Europe means the global economy faces new headwinds, and we're not immune from the negative impact and the fallout from Russia's war of choice and their violent threats and following those through. We are facing the biggest energy shock since the 1970s, and that is likely to depress global growth, and we know high oil prices means greater pressure on family budgets at the petrol bowser. We know that, we're all experiencing that, and we know what's caused it. And the challenges therefore are very great.
But so are the opportunities, and this is what I love about Western Australia. The most optimistic place you could possibly find. And it's why I love coming back here over and over again, and have done so well before I even went into Parliament, because it's such a positive, optimistic place. And I want to commend Western Australians for that positivity. But I also want to commend you for your patience and your perseverance and public spiritedness over the last three years. We're coming through this latest wave in a once in a century pandemic. And while I know in WA case numbers are just peaking now from the Omicron wave, your relatively low hospitalisations, almost completely zero hospitalisation rates at a severe level, and death rates, are a testament to the strength of the public health response here in Western Australia. And WA now has the highest vaccination rates in the country. And I think that's to the great credit of the Western Australian people and the Government's actions. And I'm advised that today Western Australia will reach six million vaccinations, and that's quite a milestone, and I congratulate you.
Here in the West, the virus experience, though, has been different to the rest of the country, especially to the eastern states. You've travelled a somewhat different path, and throughout the pandemic I have always acknowledged and respected Western Australia's unique situation and the path that WA has taken, and I continue to, and I do so. And Premier McGowan regularly acknowledges this. As we've gathered around the National Cabinet table 67 occasions in the last two years, and they aren’t ten minute meetings. These meetings will go for two, three hours, on occasions even longer than that, particularly early in the pandemic, and as particularly as the pandemic moved from a national impact and it became quite specific to the experience in each state, we became very conscious of the need for different pathways because of the way the virus was impacting. And that was particularly true here in Western Australia. And I'm sure Mark would agree, as he has acknowledged that there has been a different path here in WA, which has been necessary.
And we’ve backed this up, though, not just saying that, with direct financial support. In addition to increasing our funding contribution for public hospitals here in Western Australia by 84 per cent since we first came to government, to $2.5 billion now a year, that’s current year 2020-2021. We have so far provided $803 million in funding to support the WA health system to respond to COVID-19 outbreaks - $803 million. We also established 11 Commonwealth-funded GP respiratory clinics, fully funded by the Federal Government, here in Western Australia, and that support just doesn't stop that the borders are now open.
We have stood with Western Australians every step of the way and we will continue to do so. We’ll continue going 50-50 with Premier McGowan and his Government on COVID health costs as the state reopens and faces new challenges. That 50-50 covers everything from the test you have, to treatments that you receive, to containing COVID. And through our Community Health and Hospitals Program, our Government is investing over $140 million right across Western Australia to fund projects and services to support patient care while reducing pressure on community and hospital services. Now that includes $25 million for the expansion of the Peel Hospital Campus and more than $25 million, which I know Melissa Price is very pleased about, for the WA Country Health Service Cancer Strategy, including the oncology, Radiation Oncology at the Geraldton Health Campus.
We've also turned up with more than $14 billion - just think about it, fourteen thousand million dollars - in direct economic support to Western Australia during the pandemic - JobKeeper, cash flow boosts, payments for veterans, carers, other income support. And that's on top of all the health spending that I've talked about - some $803 million, which has dealt with everything from vaccines through to mental health support and picking up 50 per cent of the hospital bills that relate to COVID.
Now, as we were reminded by Chris, that comes on top of the additional GST that WA has been receiving as a result of that fair GST deal that we worked together to deliver, and I was able to deliver back in 2018 as Prime Minister in Parliament, and as Treasurer before that, securing that agreement. Now I always talk about this when I come to Western Australia because it's important we do, because it wasn't a one off. It wasn't just one year when WA got a top up payment. This is a forever agreement. It certainly is under my Government. WA’s top up payments over the last three years over, the last three Budgets - $4.9 billion, $4.9 billion. And from this coming Budget year, out to 2026-2027, WA will receive around $2.6 billion additional revenue every single year on average for a total of $13 billion as a result of our fair GST deal. Now that's a significant change, and it's a fair change. It's the right change. It's not some special concession to WA. That's not my, that's not my point at all. It's recognition of the unfairness of what was there before and what you can achieve when you work together and you take on the argument, you prosecute it, as I did as Treasurer and as Prime Minister, to ensure that Western Australia didn't get some parochial payback. But actually it was recognised that this was in the national interest and that's what carried the day. And that's the argument I was pleased to progress.
And so that's, over $2.5 billion every year is going into the Western Australian Budget to pay for hospitals, for schools, for police forces, for emergency responses, for all of the things that state governments do. And that is as a direct result of the intervention, the initiative that our Government took. Now plenty of other people will say, oh yeah, we agree with that. We agree with that. Yeah we’re just the same as you guys on that. It’s what the Labor Party says - oh, we’re just the same. Well, they didn’t do it. They didn't take it on, they didn’t make the case. They’d say something here in Western Australia - oh, it's very unfair what's happened to you on the GST. And then they go to Tasmania or Queensland, and say the complete opposite, and they're still doing that on so many issues today.
In fact, who knows what they stand for. I don't know. They clearly don't seem to know, and aren’t prepared to tell anybody about it anyway. And the election is not far away, and it's time they started coming clean with the Australian people. But you know where we stand, and particularly on the issue of GST, because we just didn't agree with someone else about it after the fact and after all the hard work was delivered and it was done. We were there at the start. We took on the risks. We made the case. I made the case in my own home state on the east coast, and we took that on. And could I tell you, one of the big reasons that happened was because of the big chorus of WA members and senators that sit in my Party Room. Steve Irons, in particular, who is retiring at this election, who I flatted with, I don't think I could come home on any night for years without Steve raising this issue. And so do not underestimate the strength of the Western Australian voice in my Government. It's big, it's loud, it's determined. It's very Western Australia and it never lets up. But that's how you get results like the change that we were able to deliver for the GST. It happened because of the, of the voice of Western Australian Liberal members and senators who work so well together, and particularly under Michaelia’s leadership, as she is our senior Western Australian member.
So we are one of the few countries that have had a success through the pandemic, that few have also been able to experience. We have saved more than 40,000 lives here in Australia. As I remarked to a group last night, it's the number of lives that were lost by Australians in the Second World War in combat. We saved 40,000 lives in this country in our national pandemic response, working together with the states and territories, working together with the Western Australian State Government here, and National Cabinet cops a bit of a bad rap. But I'll tell you, Mark and I understand its value because we know what it's been able to deliver. How do you measure its success? 40,000 lives saved is a pretty good place to start, and I think that's what it has achieved. Others have been critical of it. Others say it should be abolished. In fact, the Labor Party want to abolish it. I don't know what they’re going to replace it with, the thing that was there before was hopeless, wasn't working at all. And this has enabled us to achieve one of the most significant responses that we've ever seen to a national crisis through the course of this pandemic.
We've stepped up world leading vaccination rates, and WA now leading the pack. We’ve out-performed major advanced economies. Our economy is now 3.4 per cent larger than when the pandemic hit. Around 260,000 more Australians are in work today than at the start of the pandemic. There are more Australians of working age in jobs today. Let me say that again. Of everybody of working age in this country, 76.3 per cent of them are in a job. That is the highest proportion of people of working age in jobs in Australia's recorded history. How do I know our national economic plan is working? Because Australians are working. And that is the ultimate test. Australia's unemployment rate is at a 13-year low at 4.2 per cent. Our AAA credit rating remains intact, one of only nine countries to achieve this. There used to be more before the pandemic. There are a few of us now, and Australia is one of them.
And the WA economy has also shown incredible resilience. State final demand was 6.3 per cent larger at the end of 2021 than its pre-pandemic levels, the highest growth rate amongst all the mainland states, and having entered the pandemic with an unemployment rate of 5.6 per cent, WA now has the lowest jobless rate amongst all states at 3.7 per cent. Now that's a stunning achievement and one of our our Government is driving towards national outcomes as well.
So our goal is an Australia wide unemployment rate now with a three in front of it. This would be the lowest unemployment rate recorded since monthly labour force records began in 1978, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us to seize this, and we can't take it for granted. It just doesn't happen. You don’t just turn up and sit in Cabinet and Budget Committees every day and this is just a natural consequence. You have to do things, as we've been doing, to achieve this, particularly in the middle of a global crisis and a pandemic, as we've seen.
And WA remains the powerhouse of Australia's export earnings, led by the resources sector. WA iron ore exports alone brought in more than $151 billion in 2020-2021, and that's out of record resources and energy exports of $349 billion, which is projected to grow to $379 billion this financial year. Agriculture also - barley, oats, sheep meat, wool, fruit and vegetables, forestry products, wine, wheat, WA rock lobsters and many others, providing excellent returns of hundreds of billions of dollars. All commodities I’ve become closely interested in as we’ve negotiated some of these free trade agreements, particularly with the United Kingdom. Boris and I had dinner at Number 10. I've never had a discussion which has spoken as much about sheep meat and the weight of carcasses than Boris and I had around that table that night. He thought I drove a pretty hard bargain. I’ve got to tell you, I did, and I was really pleased with the result we were able to get for Australian producers.
Our Government's economic plan is about backing Australia's economic recovery out of this pandemic, but one driven by the private sector. This is really important. There are some out there who think this is an opportunity to build back better. Now that sounds good, doesn't it, build back better. I know what that means. I know what it's code for. And that was there was something wrong with how our economy worked before the pandemic. There was, there was too much business-led growth. There was too much market-based support for growing the economy and jobs, and you got to get the Government more in the centre of the economy. That's what that means, whether they call it build back better or build back stronger, it means the same thing. It means government more in your face, in your business, in your life. And that's not something my Government stands for, but that is the path that our political opponents would go down.
Though, them and their progressive fellow travellers in other places see this as an opportunity to rewrite the rules. Now, what we need in this country is business-led growth, and Western Australians understand that better than anyone. Our plan is one to create jobs, support future growth and most importantly, resilience across five core elements: keeping taxes low and cutting red tape. That's the first one. Secondly, investing in the infrastructure and skills that Australians need for a growing economy. The biggest challenge our economy faces today is labour force and the skills that that labour force needs to be able to deliver to our economy. Thirdly, it's about delivering affordable, reliable energy that Australian businesses need. Electricity prices fallen by eight per cent in the last two years as a result of the policies we pursued, while our emissions have fallen by around 20 per cent. You know, other countries can't claim that, can't say they’ve cut emissions by around 20 per cent in the United States, in New Zealand, in Canada, in Japan. Yeah we have, and our plan for net zero by 2050 is based on technology, not taxes. It's based on choices, not mandates. And this is the path we believe which will see us achieve success.
Fourthly, it's about making Australia a top 10 data and digital economy by 2030, and I’ve spoken to you about that before. And fifthly, securing our sovereign manufacturing, our Australian manufacturing capability, so we continue to make things here in Australia, particularly in the areas which are so critical to our resilience, and unlock a new generation of high wage, high skilled jobs.
And in just under two weeks, the Treasurer, who I spoke to on the way here this morning, will outline the Government’s Budget and the next phase of our plan for a stronger Australian economy, because a strong economy means a stronger future for all Australians, and that's what's at stake at this next election. Our economic plan is vital to our nation's economic security, but also to all other goals we have of Australians. It underpins, yes, our defence security. It means we can make investments to strengthen our Defence Forces, like the ones we’ve, we announced yesterday in supporting the development of the dry-dock out at Henderson, the $30 billion of investment in our naval shipbuilding here in Western Australia alone, increasing the size of our Defence Forces by 18,500. And that starts straight away. These are the things that a strong economy enables us to do. It supports the government services and essentials that all Australians rely on.
Plenty of people talk about what they want to do for services, but the reason we have record spending in health and education and mental health and supporting the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the pension increases that put in place this week, which are costing $2 billion a year, is because we know how to run a strong economy, even in the midst of a global pandemic. So it means we can continue to do that. Schools, hospitals, roads and the GST fair deal, particularly here for Western Australia. It buttresses our energy security and sovereign capability. It's about backing our strengths, backing Australians to unlock the opportunities that they see before them, that Western Australians are always so clear eyed about. It is a plan for WA Unlimited, based squarely on backing business-led growth.
Today I want to focus on a couple of things. I want to talk about resources. I want to talk about manufacturing. But, firstly, on resources, let me say this. We know that WA resources sector is a pillar of economic strength for our nation. Mining sector this year accounted for well over 40 per cent of gross value added in WA. Traditional strengths in sectors such as iron ore, gold, LNG, have made WA one of the world's great mining provinces. Our resources companies are world leading when it comes to competitiveness, efficiency, technological innovation and searching for new growth markets, but also in energy transformation and what they're doing in emissions reduction - world leaders.
Our Government will continue to back in the WA resources sector unequivocally, just as Liberals and Nationals always have. And if you want an example of what that means in practice and a comparison with our opponents at this election, here in Western Australia, the Premier and I agreed that we needed to change the EPBC Act. We needed to change it. We needed to get single touch approvals for major projects, in particular, and get rid of all that red tape that was blocking investment here in Western Australia. And the Premier and I said, this is what we have to do, and all the other premiers around the table agreed. So we worked up legislation which we took into the Parliament and I want to acknowledge the work that Ben Morton did on this, who leads our regulatory reform agenda for the Government, working with Sussan Ley, and we said we need to make these changes. We put the Bill into the Parliament. Labor and the Greens opposed it. So if they want to tell you that they're for the resources industry here in Western Australia, why did they vote against the legislation that encourages investment in resources here in Western Australia?
And we're seeing a lot of this as we move up to this next election. We're seeing a lot of, oh, we agree with them on this. We agree with them on submarines, but we just don't agree with them on where they want to have fleet bases and infrastructure built. You know, each way on all of these issues. It's one thing to say you agree with something, it's another thing to do it, and we've been doing it. And I think the scrutiny on the alternative at this election is very important for the future of this country. We know what we stand for. Australians don't know what our opponents stand for, and these are key issues. And when it comes to the crunch, when you can vote for the resources industry in Western Australia by supporting that legislation or voting against it, the Labor Party chooses to oppose it.
I want to particularly acknowledge, of course, the Minister for Resources and Water Keith Pitt, who is a magnificent champion for our resources industry in our Government. As the global economy changes, there are exciting new growth opportunities emerging in new areas such as rare earths and critical minerals. I think the Greens think they're things you put in the bath. They're not. They're very important to Australia's future and particularly to Western Australia. Australia produces around half the world's lithium and we are the second largest producer of cobalt and the fourth largest producer of rare earths. Western Australia holds the majority of Australia's critical minerals and rare earths resources. Increasing demand for the critical minerals required for the global transition to clean energy will present significant opportunities here in Western Australia for decades to come, but we have to seize them. It won't just happen on its own.
Demand for critical minerals is also increasing due to the expansion of their use in aerospace and defence and other high end technological applications. And it's not just an economic imperative and opportunity for us. It's strategically imperative. It's an area of vital national interest, and not just for Australia. That's why we're working closely on critical minerals and other supply chain challenges with our like-minded partners and allies, especially through the Quad, which is the group of leaders - myself, President Biden, Prime Minister Modi and Fumio Kishida, the Prime Minister of Japan. The Quad dialogue we've ensured and led the debate in focusing on the issues of reliable supply chains, endurable supply chains, and alternative supply chains around critical minerals and rare earths. And our goal is to make Australia a critical minerals powerhouse in the new global economy. And I remember Linda Reynolds making exactly these same points as we began this process some years ago, passionately speaking up for Western Australia.
Our 2022 Critical Minerals Strategy is delivering on this commitment. We have significant reserves across a range of critical minerals, with a notable footprint in mining and first stage processing. For example, WA supplied approximately half of the world's unprocessed lithium last year. A key focus of our strategy is to build capacity in downstream processing to feed new industries across energy, transport, aerospace, defence, medical, automotive and telecommunications sector. We've already made $2 billion available as part of our Critical Minerals Facility to provide large scale debt finance to advance projects that are ready to commence construction. We know we have to get in and give it a big push. Funding is also available through the Northern Australian Infrastructure Facility for advanced critical minerals projects in northern Australia, while the Clean Energy Finance Corporation is providing additional funding nationwide.
And today I'm announcing further significant investments and initiatives as part of our Critical Minerals Strategy. Through our Critical Minerals Accelerator Initiative, our Government, my Government will invest $200 million over the next five years to support strategically significant critical minerals projects. That's what backing the resources industry looks like - following through on the commitments we've already made and doubling down to make sure it becomes a reality. This will back projects at crucial points in their development process to accelerate the market and drive private sector finance and investment. This initiative will consider proposals ranging between $1 million to $30 million for each project, and each project is expected to contribute 50 per cent of co-funding. Now, this isn’t a handout. This is a partnership.
As part of our Critical Minerals Strategy, the Government is also committing $50 million over three years to establish the Virtual National Critical Minerals Research and Development Centre. Now this will drive breakthrough collaborative research, drawing together the expertise from CSIRO, Geoscience Australia and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, ANSTO.
Critical minerals are key to a stronger economy for Australia and are therefore key to our stronger future. And as we face a more uncertain world, we're setting up Western Australia to be the powerhouse and reliable partner that our allies and partners need right here in Australia to develop these resources. We're going to dig them up right here. We're going to refine them right here, and we're going to make the products that use them right here. Every part of that supply chain we want WA to be the partner of choice. A partner whose products are high quality and consistent. A partner who people can trust to deliver, as the world has depended on us for iron ore.
Another key element of our Critical Minerals Strategy is our Modern Manufacturing Strategy. Now the pandemic has demonstrated the imperative of domestic manufacturing to national health, security and resilience. Making things here in Australia is important for our national resilience. And we see WA having a big role in that as well, as they always have. It's about building a strong and durable manufacturing ecosystem for high-skill, high-wage jobs. Now we're already going from strength to strength here in manufacturing in WA. The sector here has made the largest contribution to WA’s real gross state product growth in the last financial year, and that's remarkable when you think of everything else this state does.
Around 90,000 people are employed in manufacturing here in WA, and the Australian Government's Modern Manufacturing Strategy is focused on building scale in six areas of advanced high-value manufacturing: space, medical products, food and beverage, recycling and clean energy, defence, and resources technology and critical minerals processing. Now under this Strategy we've committed $535 million to boost manufacturing capability and supply chain resilience. That's leveraging over $1.25 billion more in private investment. Again, it's a partnership. Western Australia is well placed to capitalise on these incentives, with more than 14,500 manufacturing businesses right here in this state. And growth is not just in the traditional strengths of food, machinery, metals and engineering. WA is developing new advanced manufacturing capability through new precincts and innovation hubs to support start-ups, SME partnerships and technology and knowledge sharing.
And we’ve backed this up with $78.2 million already invested in 20 manufacturing projects under the Model Manufacturing Initiative right here in WA. And we know from lived experience that a strong private sector such as here in WA is our first line of defence for supply chain resilience. $107 million in our Supply Chain Resilience Initiative is providing targeted grants to establish scale in domestic manufacturing capabilities. And I particularly want to thank Melissa, Melissa Price, for her tireless work in supporting the development of critical minerals, space and defence industries, especially here in WA, which are central to our Manufacturing Strategy.
So today, again, I'm pleased to announce that further Government investment will be made, of some $243 million in just four projects, four projects, under the resources and critical minerals stream of the Modern Manufacturing Initiative, and this investment will leverage another $944 million, almost a billion dollars, in private sector investment, delivering an estimated 3,400 direct and indirect jobs across regional Australia. It adds to the $688 million we have already committed to critical minerals.
Now two of these projects, two of the four, are here in WA. The first is a $119.6 million support for Pure Battery Technologies in Coolgardie to build an integrated Nickel Manganese-Cobalt battery material refinery hub. Don’t try to say that too quickly. This will be the first integrated battery material refinery hub of its kind in Australia. The project will support collaboration between Pure Battery Technologies, Poseidon Nickel and a number of local and global industry partners. And the facility will initially support 380 construction jobs, with 175 permanent jobs from late 2023, and an estimated 1,729 indirect jobs out to 2031, many in regional areas.
Now the second WA project will see us invest just under $50 [million], $49 million, to Australian Vanadium to develop Australia's first active Vanadium mine and downstream processing at Tenindewa. I hope I’ve pronounced that right for the Western Australians - I’m getting the nod from Melissa, thank you. The project aims to supply the vanadium redox flow batteries to be installed in industries from agriculture and mining through to residential energy storage and charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. And Vanadium represents an opportunity to develop a differentiated product in the battery industry, in addition to lithium batteries.
That's what climate change action looks like, by the way. Exactly what I'm talking about now. That's what it looks like. You're taking that issue seriously, you're doing this, which is what we're doing.
Both projects will strengthen Australia's global position as a battery precursor manufacturer, and underpin increased downstream processing of critical minerals. And these projects take us further up the value chain and unlock downstream investment in industries that will underpin our clean energy transition as we move further into the digital age and new energy age. These projects do more than just create jobs. They build economic diversity and national resilience.
Now, finally, let me just talk a bit about defence industries. Recent events have underlined that Australia faces its most difficult and dangerous security environment that we have seen in 80 years, 80 years. The events unfolding in Europe are a reminder of the close relationship between energy security, economic security and national security. There is a clear threat. The Henderson Maritime Precinct, 23 kilometres south of Perth, where I was yesterday, is the heartbeat of WA’s defence industry. And as our Government invests $280 billion in Australia's defence capability over the next decade, it’s important to the defence of our nation that this only grow. Henderson is one of Australia's two principal naval shipyards and serves as a critical sustainment for the Navy's surface and submarine fleets. We've been investing in Henderson, particularly through our national shipbuilding and sustained programs.
Yesterday I was pleased to announce our Government is investing up to $4.3 billion in a large ship dry-dock at Henderson. This nation building infrastructure at Henderson will support our continuous naval shipbuilding program, enabling the build, as I said earlier, some $30 billion of new naval shipbuilding over the next two decades right here in WA, as well as supporting Henderson to enhance its commercial shipbuilding and sustainment activities. Our nationwide investments in naval shipbuilding will create 15,000 jobs across the country by the end of this decade, with more than 50 vessels being built or upgraded here in WA. And over 2,000 of these jobs will be right here in WA.
The impacts of our investments are already being felt. Luerssen Australia, with Civmec, is building 10 of our 12 Arafura Class Offshore Patrol Vessels here in WA. They are expecting to have more than 40 vacant roles to fill - almost all of them here in Perth. There are jobs for engineers, jobs in design and configuration management, jobs in integrated logistics support. At its peak, $3.9 billion Offshore Patrol Vessel project will support 295 WA jobs, and anyone who has ventured inside Civmec’s assembly and maintenance hall, where the OPVs are taking shape, will have an understanding of the sheer scale of the construction taking place. Standing at 18 stories tall, the remarkable shed has 53,000 square metres of usable floor area, more than twice the size of the Optus Stadium playing surface. Companies like Civmec don't invest in infrastructure like this without having confidence in the future, and we have provided them with that confidence.
A couple of kilometres north in Henderson, Austal is building 21 Guardian Class patrol boats for our Pacific neighbours - a $510 million project, six evolved Cape class patrol boats to help protect our borders. Some $343 million for the project. And combined they support 630 WA jobs. And there are many other projects too. In fact, more than a dozen major shipbuilding and sustainment programs delivered at Henderson over the coming decades, and there's more than 1,000 businesses being supported by defence projects here in WA. And last financial year, 208 small and medium Western Australian businesses were engaged to perform critical work across the Defence estate, sharing in $109 million in contracts. This included 11 Indigenous businesses sharing in $31 million worth of work. And so far this financial year, the number of SMEs engaged to work across the Defence estate has grown to 215.
So there's a lot going on, a lot going on. And as a Government, we've had to deal, of course, with some of the biggest challenges that governments have seen in the past century - COVID, a global recession, natural disasters, economic coercion, a war in Europe, amidst a heightened geopolitical uncertainty, and the biggest global energy shock in almost 50 years. It's a testing time. It requires resilience. It requires experience to manage through these difficult waters ahead. It requires a Government that knows what it stands for and knows what it's about. A Government that has taken the decisions, not just sought to pretend to follow others, but has had the initiative to do these things and move forward and stand up for Australia. As a Government we have taken some hits, no doubt about it, but we keep coming back, and I can assure you we will, making the big calls for Australia's future, because there's too much at stake. Western Australians understand this. You understand the choice that is before you.
Change governments, change the course of the country. The direction we're heading in is one of a stronger Australia. The direction we're heading in is one of a strong economy for a stronger future. The direction we're heading in is the investments and the belief and the backing of Australian businesses and industry, particularly here in Western Australia, to realise the opportunities that you see, and are seeking a partner in the Government, not a master. Now that's the difference between Labor and the Liberals when it, at a federal level. At a federal level, that is the difference.
With us, you’ll have a path. With those, you’ll have a master. And the ones who are pulling the strings will be the union movements and the Greens in particular, calling the shots from behind the scenes. With us, it's very open. It's very transparent. You can see the plan, you can see the path we’re on, and now is not the time to turn back. Getting the big things right. Keeping our economy strong. Keeping Australians safe. Our future depends more than ever on these things, more than ever. So Australians will have a choice very, very soon, and that choice will have consequences. It’ll have consequences here in the West, it’ll have consequences right across the country. And those consequences will be felt in the economy that you, your business, your kids, your parents will live in for the next three, five and 10 years. It's no time for amateurs. It's no time for those who don't have the experience in dealing with these serious issues in financial management, economic security and national security. These are the things that my Government do every single day, and have done so in a way that few governments before us have.
So it's great to be back here in the West, and feel the energy and the spirit and the optimism that is always here. We’re committed to backing the people of Western Australia. And you know that's true, because you've seen us do it. Thank you very much for your time.
Press Conference - Henderson, WA
15 March 2022
Prime Minister: Well, g’day, everyone. It's great to be here in Western Australia. It's an absolute thrill to be here in Western Australia, and, of course, to be joined by Minister Price, the Minister for Defence Industry and Science and Technology, Minister Morton, and of course, the Assistant Minister for Defence Andrew Hastie.
This is an exciting day for Western Australia, but it's an even more exciting day for the defence of Australia because the integration between what happens on our western coast and on our eastern coast is incredibly important for how we defend our nation, and to have the capability to support those efforts is absolutely critical.
We've just undertaken a tour here with ASC on the latest mid-cycle docking which is taking place here in Western Australia. And one of our Collins, our Collins-class continues to be an incredibly effective submarine and plays a very important role in our operations in the Indo-Pacific region, and is highly respected by our partners, whether they be our AUKUS partners, Quad partners or those who have come from further afield and joined in the many exercises that we undertake. We work closely, hand in glove, with our partners in this part of the world.
And to ensure that we can support that capability into the future, here at Henderson today we are announcing that we'll be moving forward with some up to $4.3 billion in investment to establish a large vessel dry-dock and associated infrastructure here at the Henderson shipyard. This will be used to build and sustain large naval vessels and other commercial vessels. It provides redundancy, importantly, nationally, to the Captain Cook graving dock in Sydney. There's up to almost $30 billion worth of shipbuilding projects planned right here in Western Australia out to 2040. And this will be delivered through Australian Naval Infrastructure, a government business enterprise that is delivering the Osborne Shipyard in South Australia. This work will ensure that we can maintain our sovereignty, our flexibility, and offer long-term value for money outcomes for the Australian public.
We expect construction to commence in 2023-2024 with initial operational capability by 2028, and a final operating capability by 2030. 500 jobs in the construction of this world-class shipyard to put a large vessel dry-dock in place, and around 2,000 jobs for the ongoing works that will be taking place right here in Henderson, which will make and transform this precinct once again.
Last time I was here I think I was at the common user facility, and the investments that are being undertaken there. There's $1.5 billion worth of infrastructure investments going on both here and at Stirling. And we support, there is also support of some $90 million in a regional maintenance centre and the $30 billion I’ve mentioned when it comes to the shipbuilding projects that are going ahead here in Western Australia.
In addition, I want to touch on another announcement in relation to HMAS Stirling and Fleet Base West. Stirling will remain home to Australia's current and future submarines. Now this is a recognition of the enormous expertise that is here in the West, along with the strategic reality of our region and the Indian Ocean. Recent announcements about the east coast submarine base, they’re a critical part of the puzzle in terms of our expanded national operating capacity. But here at Stirling and Fleet Base West, they remain at the heart of our Navy and our submarine fleet, and we'll be investing even more. Of course, already committed more than $1.5 billion to improvements in naval infrastructure at Stirling and Henderson. But we will do more at Stirling.
To that end, I announce that the Government has directed Defence to commence their studies into what infrastructure and services are needed right here in the West to support the more frequent presence of United States and United Kingdom nuclear-powered submarines right here in Western Australia. We expect the results of that work to come back later this year and to get moving as quickly as possible. The ability of US and UK nuclear-powered submarines to be here on the west coast, and ultimately we’d like to see them on the east coast as well, is all part of what our plan is as we continue to push forward our AUKUS partnership - the Australia-UK-US partnership, which we were able to form last year and which is already underway. Admiral Mead has already been out here in Australia as we've been working through those initial phases, as we work towards the selection of the appropriate vessel, which will be part of that nuclear submarine fleet that we will eventually have here in Australia, and I suspect it'll be well before 2040.
But in addition to that, it's about the capability that we’re continuing to put in place in our naval operations, and that includes the Collins-class submarine, the life of types extensions, the mid-cycle and the full-cycle docking that is occurring with that important fleet of submarines. In addition to that, it's the work that we're doing in cyber, the work we're doing in AI, and other critical technologies for defence that is all part of that partnership.
But another part is to ensure that we can bring more of our partners’ vessels here to Australia, have them here for extended periods of time, and ensure that they can maintain and perform operations out of Australia. This is part of the AUKUS partnership, delivering early results to ensure that we can keep Australia safe, and our ability to build the facilities here at Henderson will play an enormous role. There’s enable the service and support naval fleets from all around the world who work with Australia, but particularly with our friends in the United States and UK, and what we're be putting in place over there at Stirling that will ensure that we can maintain those operations and play our role as part of this important partnership that is keeping Australia safe.
Now I particularly want to make mention of the fact that with our submarine operations here out of Western Australia, that they will remain critical to our future. And that is a key reason why I wanted to come here today and make those announcements, not just about Henderson, but also about Stirling. This is very much at the centre of our operations and will always continue to be so. So thank you very much for being here today. I'm going to ask Melissa Price to make a few comments as well, and then we'll be happy to take some questions.
The Hon. Melissa Price MP, Minister for Defence Industry: Thanks PM and welcome to Western Australia. The Morrison Government has a very ambitious shipbuilding program. Already here in Henderson, Western Australia we have got $5 billion worth of naval vessels being constructed. We announced turbocharging that $5 billion to a $30 billion shipbuilding program. Right across Western Australia, here, also in Henderson, shipbuilders doing the best they can, and as the Minister for Defence Industry, I'm incredibly proud of our world-class shipbuilding industry that we have here in Western Australia.
With today's announcement of the building of a dry-dock, what that says to West Australian shipbuilders is that the Morrison Government has full confidence in your abilities and full confidence in what you are able to achieve in the future. At the moment in Australia, if we wanted to build a large naval vessel like an LHD, that would not be possible. So the message to Western Australia and the shipbuilding industry is that we are backing you 100 per cent because these are, these are the types of vessels that we will be able to build here in Western Australia. Yes, more jobs, the creation of more small and medium-sized enterprises to help with this incredible enterprise here in Western Australia. But just as importantly, this announcement today says to Western Australia how important you are to the defence of our nation. Thank you.
Prime Minister: Happy to take some questions.
Journalist: Is it the consolation prize in terms of full-cycle docking, though, that the Government [inaudible]?
Prime Minister: Not at all. This is part of our core operations. This is the role that is played here in Western Australia. We’ve put capabilities where they're, where they're best delivered, whether that's here in Western Australia or on the east coast or South Australia or anywhere else. We operate a national network. And the more than $4 billion worth of investment that is being put here recognises the
need for that capability here in Western Australia. These decisions, like all of our decisions, are made on their merits, in the best interests of Australia's national security. That's how we make these calls, and we've been making a lot of these calls. Let me be clear. I mean, we have lifted defence spending in this country from 1.57 per cent, the lowest level that it had been at since before the Second World War, to 2.1 per cent today. Now, to understand what that means, if we kept our defence spending at the same level we inherited from the Labor Party, that would have meant $55 billion less spending on our Defence Forces than has occurred under our Government - $55 billion. And in this year alone, it would have been $10 billion less than would have occurred under what Labor’s settings were when we came to government. So we've made sure that we've got a stronger Defence Force right now, and have had every single day that we've been in government constantly rebuilding and re-equipping our Defence Forces, and we have the strong plans going out over the next 20 years, of which the announcement we've made today is a key part of.
That's the difference between the Liberals and Nationals and Labor and the Greens when it comes to defence. You know, others can talk about what they might do. I can tell you what we have done, and that demonstrates what our capacity is and what our commitments are to defence. You know, defence is not something that you can just talk about. It's something you deliver, which is what our Government has done.
Journalist: Prime Minister, you mentioned that Defence would look at what additional infrastructure was needed. Paul Papalia said he believed a dry-dock would cost about $2 billion dollars. You’re committing $4.3 billion today. Is that because you're adding a second channel dredging to be able to support the nuclear submarines?
Prime Minister: All of these issues will be worked through as part of the program that we’re now engaged in with partners on how [inaudible].
Journalist: Prime Minister, it's been a long time between visits, largely out of your control. But has that …
Prime Minister: Completely outside of my control, actually.
Journalist: Has that left you open, though, to criticism that WA’s been neglected? Do you get WA?
Prime Minister: Well, the reason I haven't been here has been because the borders have been shut and there has been, I myself had to go into isolation because of COVID. And the minute I got out of that isolation, I went straight to the Northern Rivers of New South Wales, which I think all Western Australians would want me to do because of the utter devastation that has occurred in that part of the country. For those Western Australians who have family back east, it's the worst flood they've seen in 500 years - a one in 500 year flood.
But having attended those important responsibilities, I'm very pleased to be here. But, you know, every single day during that period of time, the amount of GST that the Western Australian Government has been receiving from our Government because of the deal that I put in place has continued to go up and up and up. Over $5 billion in extra GST has been provided to the Western Australian Government since we were re-elected, in the last three Budgets that we delivered. And on top of that, some $14 billion was provided directly here in economic supports to Western Australia, and almost half a billion dollars to support the health system, as the health system has prepared itself for the very phase that Western Australians are now in. Putting the mask on again today - well, have to get back in the habit of that. On the east coast they’re not wearing them anymore, but I'm looking forward to the time where Western Australia similarly will be in that phase. Western Australians have done incredibly well to come through COVID, and we've been investing heavily in Western Australia to support the Western Australian State Government to bring the economy through, carrying that burden equally, and in many ways, more so, particularly when it came to the direct economic supports of some $14 billion.
You know, when you put that together, the $14 billion on support for COVID and and the $4 billion and more when it comes to the GST, extra GST, we're talking about around $6,500 direct support per head of population in Western Australia. That shows I think our commitment more than any have done before.
Journalist: Will you do something to reduce the fuel excise? Will you do something now to ease the cost of living burden that’s happening for families?
Prime Minister: We're very conscious of the significant impact of the rising fuel prices on Australians all around the country. And all Australians understand that that is being caused by the terrible war we're seeing in Europe and the invasion of of Russia on the Ukraine. We all understand that's what's driving oil prices up and fuel prices up around the world. We haven't seen oil price per barrel hit these levels for many years. In fact, it's happened about three times, including this one, over some period. And so the Budget’s at the end of this month. And that's when Parliament will obviously be coming back and the sort of things you’re talking about actually require legislation.
Journalist: Barnaby Joyce says that that the changes to fuel excise are off the table. Is he right?
Prime Minister: Well, I haven't seen those comments.
Journalist: Prime Minister, Australian families are hurting now, though. They're struggling to pay their mortgage now and fill up their petrol tank now. You’re telling them they won’t know what help they're going to get until the Budget in two weeks’ time. Why can't you give some sort of indication about how you're going to help them now?
Prime Minister: Well, let me tell you what we're already doing. I mean, if you're on $90,000 bucks a year right now, you are paying $50 a week less tax under the tax cuts we’ve delivered and the tax system that we put in place, than the tax regime we inherited from the Labor Party. If you're under Labor's tax regime, you'd be paying $50 a week more if you are on $90,000 today. And so whether it's tax relief, the pension next this week goes up by $20 a fortnight for singles and $30 for couples. Electricity prices have fallen by eight per cent in the last two years. And so we've been doing everything we can to ensure that we can keep downward pressure on these increases in prices. The inflation rate in Australia, at 2.1 per cent, compares to almost eight per cent in the United States, over five per cent in the United Kingdom.
But these pressures are real. The fact that it's worse in so many other parts of the world says that in Australia we've handled these issues better, but it doesn't take away from the fact that people are paying more at the bowser. Now we have carefully considered these issues and we are still finalising arrangements for the Budget in a fortnight's time. But I can assure you, the Treasurer and I have been keenly focused on ensuring that we can address some of these immediate pressures when it comes to the cost of living that Australians are facing. But we make these decisions carefully. We do our homework, we make the assessments. We understand the pressures that are there and make sure we can tailor the support in the best possible way we can.
Journalist: The GST deal was struck in 2018. You're heading to the northern suburbs this afternoon. What was the last thing that Vince Connelly or Ian Goodenough talked you into doing for WA?
Prime Minister: Well, I can remember, particularly for Vince. Vince has been, and Andrew will know this as well, Vince - yeah, I’ll come to the dry-dock in a second - but one of the things that Vince has always been a keen advocate for is support for veterans, and particularly support for veterans in his community. Now, all of our local members, Ian and others, they are very active, whether it's on issues of local roads or local health support, COVID arrangements. But I tell you, every single Western Australian Member of Parliament that serves in my team understands the absolute central benefit of this Henderson facility, and what it means for the Western Australian economy. And, you know, it's going to be challenging, of course, because as the economy continues to grow, the competition for workers is going to be very significant, but it's reassuring that those who’ve worked in the mining industry are now here working at ASC, and they're working on fitting out and retrofitting, I should say, and maintaining our submarines and the many other vessels that will be built here, they'll be involved in that sort of work. We have created, as a Government, I think, a pipeline of work which is bringing highly-skilled workers and investments here into Western Australia, which is going to support the Western Australian economy for decades to come.
But all of my members have been so focused on those issues, but I can tell you, it was the Western Australian MPs who were the ones who were most active when it came to ensure that we not only got the GST deal, and I joined with them in convincing our eastern, my eastern state colleagues that this was essential and in the national interest. I argued for it. I delivered it. And about $5 billion more has come into the coffers of the Western Australian State Government to pay for police and for hospitals and nurses and schools. That has been made possible because of the decision our Government, my Government, put in place, strongly supported by the great WA team that I have around me.
Journalist: What do you think of Mark McGowan being in quarantine when he doesn't need to? Do you think that sends the right message to a community trying to come out of the COVID fear factor?
Prime Minister: Well, as a leader that spent plenty of time in quarantine, I can send him a few tips and a few puzzles or, but like me, I don't think he would have, be having much time to be turning on the Netflix or doing anything like that. I'm sure he's remaining hard at work, as I always have been when I've been in periods of isolation or quarantine.
Look, I think Mark, the Premier, is ensuring that he's showing that there aren’t two rules here, and he's seeking to show that example and and I commend him for that. We work very closely together. We were on the hook up the other day on Friday where we made the decision that it was important to move beyond the close contact rule, which will happen first on the east coast states. But I look forward to that coming in place here in Western Australia. Premier McGowan's had the opportunity to have a ringside seat when it comes to what's happening on the east coast in management of COVID, and I'm sure those lessons are being applied here in Western Australia. The hospital system here is managing well and that, at the end of the day, is the purpose of how you're managing COVID - that your hospital system does not get overrun. And on the eastern states, we didn't see those peaks achieved from the modelling that was done as we went through that Omicron strain. And, similarly, I think it will be the case here that the careful, pragmatic management of this will ensure that people can get back to their normal lives, hopefully as as soon as possible. And there won't be the need for the masks and the close contact isolation or any of those things, because that only slows the economy down. Western Australia has done a great job in keeping their economy going strong, and we want to see that resurgence take place as soon as we can get through these next, this next month or so.
Journalist: Apologies, he's not on the ballot, but is Mark McGowan your pseudo shadow challenger in WA? Labor’s pointing out today that he's providing free RATs, but your, you didn't provide any free rapid tests. Are they setting him up as your real opposition in WA, and the face of Labor in WA?
Prime Minister: Well, whichever way people vote at the next federal election, I can tell you one thing for sure. And that is Premier McGowan will be the Premier the next day. That won't change. And Western Australians have made their choice about Premier. Now, Western Australians are being invited to make a choice about who they want their Prime Minister to be. Not who they want their Premier to be. Premier McGowan will tell you himself that he and I have had a very productive and very successful working relationship on so many projects, and that will continue if I'm re-elected as Prime Minister. And those projects are the ones we're talking about here today. And that has been, I think, a very productive partnership.
But, you know, I'm not pretending to be someone else. I'm not seeking to ride on someone else's coattails when it comes to being re-elected as Prime Minister. People, they might not agree with everything I've done, but they know what I'm about. My opponent is trying to pretend to be everything from John Howard to Mark McGowan or even Bob Hawke, and you can't present yourself to the Australian people as something that you’re not. You are who you've been for the last 20 or 30 years, and that's, we've got a Leader of the Opposition in Anthony Albanese who’s not being upfront with people. You know, he hasn't, he's not able to walk the talk when it comes to the things he's spoken about on economic management and defence, because it's, frankly, not his history. He was the one who was in favour of the mining tax here in Western Australia. The superannuation tax, the retirees tax, the housing tax, all of these things. And on border protection, he was the one who said that he couldn't do turn backs because he couldn't ask someone to do something that he wouldn't do himself. Well, as the Minister I was the one who put that policy in place, and put an end to the madness that was occurring on our borders under the former Labor Government.
So leopards don't change their spots, even if they change their glasses and their suits. They're still the same, and he's the most left wing leader of the Labor Party at a federal level we have seen since probably Gough Whitlam, if not before that. And so that's the choice - myself as Prime Minister and my team that have been delivering for Western Australia $14 billion in additional support economically through the pandemic, and around $5 billion of extra GST, which has flowed into the coffers here because of what we put in place - or a Labor Party at a federal level who, frankly, don't measure up to the McGowan model here in Western Australia
Journalist: How do you think Australians will view you charging $14,000 a head for a fundraiser, when they’re struggling to fill up their petrol tank?
Prime Minister: Sorry, I couldn’t hear what you said.
Journalist: How do you think Australians will feel about you charging $14,000 a head for a fundraiser, when Australians are struggling to fill up their petrol tank?
Prime Minister: Well, these are matters that are arranged by the the Party here in Western Australia. I attend numerous events, just like the the Leader of the Labor Party attends many events. So, you know, that's …
Journalist: Do you think it passes the pub test, though, to charge $14,000 a head?
Prime Minister: This is the democracy in which we work. And, as a result, we we seek support for our campaigns. The Labor Party does the same thing. In many cases, they get it from the big unions who take it out of people's fees that they pay to the unions. I’m not sure how they feel about that, either, when they're trying to fill up at the bowser and unions are channelling money from their union dues to pay for Anthony Albanese’s political campaign.
Journalist: Is it a low blow to criticise Anthony Albanese’s glasses and his recent weight loss? You know, are you making appearance a factor here?
Prime Minister: No, I'm not. I mean, I'm sure he's not that precious. Last night, I was having a giggle at myself. I was talking about the fact that I hadn't lost any weight and I hadn't changed my glasses and that I'm still wearing the same suits. But, you know, what glasses you wear and what suits you wear, that doesn't make you a Prime Minister. It's being able to make the decisions to support our Defence Forces. It's about making the decisions to ensure we keep our economy strong. Australia has an unemployment rate of 4.2 per cent. We’ve got 250,000 more people in work today than we had than before the pandemic. We've got one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, and I want to commend Western Australians on achieving that result here in the West. I mean, it was harder to achieve here because you didn't have the same number of cases that we had on the east coast and you had to work harder for it. And I commend Western Australia for that, as I did the Premier when we were on the call the other day. And most importantly, here in Australia we have saved more than 40,000 lives during this pandemic. So on all of those issues it demonstrates that we've made the decisions that’s kept Australia strong, that's kept our economy strong for a stronger future, and we’ve kept Australians safe. And what we're doing here in Henderson is all about that - more jobs, more security, more opportunity for Western Australians. Thank you.
Remarks, Opening of Central Coast Clinical School and Research Institute Gosford, NSW
14 March 2022
Prime Minister: Well, thank you very much, Lucy. It's tremendous to be here with you on this very important day and with so many faces and so many individuals who have been part of this journey over the last decade, as as Lucy has just shared her story. Carol and Alex, and everybody who's been involved.
Can I, before making some remarks, though, also acknowledge the Darkinyung people, and thank you for your wonderful welcome to country here today, and to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Can I acknowledge any serving members of our Defence Forces or veterans who are amongst us, and thank them for their service.
I want to congratulate everyone who’s been involved in delivering this incredible world-class health and medical precinct. Of course, there’s Chancellor Paul Jeans and Vice-Chancellor Professor Zelinsky.
The Gosford Hospital and Central, sorry, I should say, the Central Coast Local Health District, including Scott McLachlan, the Chief Executive of the Local Health District.
The New South Wales Government, and I want to acknowledge as well, they’re a partner in this this great venture. And Adam, to you, who have been carrying this dream along with Lucy over a long time. Congratulations to you, and I acknowledge the Premier, who’s obviously not here today for for obvious reasons, but I know about his passion as well.
There are so many people who have been involved in this, but I think you'd agree with me and indulge me in really thanking Lucy for what she's done here. When my girls were younger, I came home one night and hanging above, I think it was Lily's bed, was this strange, macrame looking woollen thing. I don't know how to describe this. And I said, “Darling, what is that?” And she said, “It's a, it's a dream catcher.” Ok. Well, this is, this is what Lucy's like. She is a dream catcher. I think it's very modest of her to say that it wasn't her dream, but I think she's right in saying it was a dream of the community. And as a local Member of Parliament, she's been catching the dreams of this community for a very long time and she's been turning them into reality, which makes her such a fine Member of Parliament. But more importantly than that, such an incredibly important member of the Central Coast community. And I'm very proud of what she's achieved here, as a dear friend of hers. But I think you’re even more proud than I am, because we are now all standing in the product of your collective efforts, that she's played such a significant role in bringing together here today.
It is true that when, it was Caroline at the time who came and sat in my office with a whole bunch of people as we talked about this project when I was Treasurer. And yes, we did run the numbers up there and it did make sense. I was very pleased that I did say yes, and kept saying yes. And I do look forward to saying yes to stages two, three, four and five, and being there to give you the answer. Because this project is more, even more than just a clinical college and research institute. See, the way we understand, as a Government, how regions fire and how they work is Australia is just not the eight capital cities. It's way more than that. Australia is far bigger than those major cities that we call our capitals, and it extends into the regions. And when I look at the regions, I see the future income and powerhouse of the Australian economy, and the future well-being and livelihoods of countless, millions of Australians who will increasingly take up that dream - where you can go and live and work in a place like the Central Coast. We feel that same way down in the Sutherland Shire. You can live and work there, well, you've got the absolute lottery of life. And I know people on the Central Coast feel that way. I know people in Newcastle feel that way. I know people, you know, down out in Geelong and places like that all feel that way, because such is the passion for living in these parts of our country.
But for that to work, you've got to have a community base of infrastructure and services. And what makes all of that work, is an economy that can support that. And what excited me about this as Treasurer, I wasn't the Minister for Health, I was the Treasurer, and a university sits at the heart of pretty much every successful economic regional plan you care to nominate anywhere in the world, let alone in Australia. But not any university that, you know, keeps itself separate from the rest of the community and walks around in gowns and looks down on everybody. And, you know, only looks at things that are remotely interesting to anyone. It's a university that's very practical and understands the opportunities, whether it's in science or medicine or in any other areas or fields of enquiry and research, and is raising up a workforce and a generation of people that can actually transform the region in which they're living. Now that's what the University of Newcastle’s been doing.
The campus has been here for many years. But what captivated me in that original meeting - I don’t know if ever I’ve told you this - was that vision of the University of Newcastle to be really a, a university for the whole Central Coast Hunter region, and to be firing up the enterprises that are across the Central Coast and the Hunter to bring the best possible researchers into these universities in regional areas that make them world leaders.
And I I agree with you, and Christopher would be over the moon that you mentioned him today, but as for the Members of Parliament they’ll all know Christopher Pyne well, he loves a mention. But Christopher was right. And when I look at our regional universities, I get really excited. I get excited about the University of Newcastle. I get excited about the other universities like University of Western Sydney or the University of Wollongong or or Griffith or all of these, Deakin and so on, because what I find in those universities, and forgive me, Lucy, if this is a bit off topic, is I see a dynamism, I see an innovation, I see an engagement with industry and the community, and I see a connection to the services. And this is what I want for universities in Australia. I don't want them to be remote. I want them to be part of the community in which they sit. And not just, and I mean, the the economy of that community.
One of our most important parts of our economic plan is a sovereign manufacturing capability, and for that to occur in the six areas that we've nominated, and one of those is medical, medical manufacturing, medical instruments and pharmaceuticals, and all of these - exactly what a research institute will be doing. And I want manufacturers, more and more of them, coming here and basing themselves on the Central Coast and making things and inventing things and developing things and selling lots of them, not just in Australia, but all around the world. And that's going to happen here on the Central Coast because this institute is here, and those who will work at this institute and were trained here at the clinical school, who will be caring for patients across the road, they will be moving in and out of companies that will be based here on the Central Coast, and this will become quite a, quite a place for this area of activity.
And I know that Newcastle University gets that, because I had the same conversation with them up the road in the Hunter when we're talking about hydrogen and all of those areas of energy, new energy technologies and research. And so that's why I’m excited about this. This is what sold me - she had me at the University of Newcastle, and because I could see the linkage between that, the service delivery, the economic growth that would come, and you know, at the end of the day, which is what I think makes Lucy so excited about it all, is what it means for young people growing up on the Central Coast. To think you can become one of the world's leading Michael cardiologists - Dr Feneley’s here with us, Dr Feneley, our Liberal candidate for Dobell.
You can achieve anything you want as a young kid growing up here on the Central Coast, and you never have to leave the place to achieve it. And that wasn't always true, it wasn’t true. But that is becoming more and more true for another generation of young people growing up on the Central Coast. So we were really excited to put $45 million into this project. I love investing in things as a Government that works, and that transforms regions and transforms lives, and I think this scores on on all of those points. And I was really excited when we drove up here because I remembered the day when I stood right out the front there with Lucy and we announced the funding for the project. And it was basically a a site full of rubbish and rolling down the hill and into now, I couldn't have even conceived this, what this building would look like on this site. But I had no doubt that those I was with that day would, could certainly see it, and it will look a lot like that [inaudible]. A lot like that in their minds.
So look, I want to thank you, Lucy, for having me on part of this journey over the last five years to see this realised as Prime Minister and initiated as Treasurer. But to those more than 200 medical students, 600 nursing students, 20 graduate and postgraduate midwifery students, the first intake from this site this year, the PhD students that will be here, this, they will create a legacy here which will endure, and endure for generations to come. So thank you for the great privilege of being involved and congratulations to all of you. It’s a, it’s a big deal for the Coast. Cheers.
Remarks, 20th Anniversary Of Kookaburra Kids Afternoon Tea Kirribilli, NSW
12 March 2022
Prime Minister: Well, thank you very much, Chris, and can I also - thank you, Buddy - can I thank you, mate, and everyone who's come together here today to celebrate the start of the 20-year acknowledgement of the wonderful work of what I remember as Camp K, as I was first introduced to it many, many years ago. And, of course, Kookaburra Kids.
Can, I can I acknowledge the Gadigal people, the land on which we meet, their Elders past and present. They had a pretty good view from here, as we can all see, and we want to acknowledge them.
Can I also acknowledge, importantly, as I always do, any veterans who are here with us today, and particularly when it comes to talking the Kookaburra Kids and the parents who are represented here today.
To Patricia, who you'll hear from in a second, to John and Lucy, who I've known forever. You may know them from such things as running Lifeline and the Mental Health Commission and so many other great works that they do. And but they are a fellow traveller. They're both fellow travellers when it comes to Kookaburra Kids as well. It’s been a passion of ours for a long time, and to all the others who are here today, the new Ambassadors we have - Belinda and Ben. To Allan Sparkes and Mark, who, as a Board Member, I’ve known for a long time. Haven’t caught up for some while, look forward to doing that a little later. But, of course, Peter Overton and Jessica Rowe, who can't be with us. I know what those sniffles start like, and I can tell you, it gets a bit worse than that, Pete. So take care, mate, and look after yourself in the days ahead.
Twenty years - you know, a lot can happen in 20 years. But when you look at what's happened with Kookaburra Kids, they really live up to that. It's been an extraordinary achievement. I know Dianne, Dianne introduced me to Camp K all those years ago back in the Shire. Took me down to the camps and and it was just such a compelling idea. I mean, so much of what is done in mental health support, and rightly, is to address the needs of those who are suffering with mental health challenges. But what everyone here understands today is that when mental illness strikes a family, strikes a community, it doesn't just affect those who are directly impacted through mental health. There are all of those who are around them - their kids, their family, their friends, their community, and to work through mental health and the challenge of it and become well doesn't just require the direct clinical support that is provided to the individual themselves. But it's healing and a support that is done through the whole family and the whole community.
And this was Dianne’s genius, and she could understand this better than most because she went through it herself. And that is so often the case. And to play, provide a place of safety, a place of respite, a place of renewal and refreshment, particularly for children. Young kids, as you say, Chris, can get together on their terms and their space, learn from each other, gain strength from each other. This was an amazing idea, and the way that it's been able to be put into practice so professionally, and we acknowledge Di, absolutely, but we acknowledge Pam as well, and through to the work you're doing now, Chris. This is an extraordinary organisation that just brings people into its orbit because it's such a passionate place, and what is being done is just so positive and people just want to be part of it.
I want to thank all of those who’ve supported Kookaburra Kids over these last 20 years. Those who’ve supported it financially, of course. But those who’ve supported it as volunteers, and we have many volunteers who are here today and other volunteers who have gone on to be staff, volunteers who have served in various governance roles within the organisation. At its heart, it's a volunteer organisation and it speaks to how the community responds to challenges and then the the professional and clinical and other supports that come around it only enables it to achieve a scale that we're really seeing achieved here with Kookaburra Kids.
It was a number of years ago, I was Treasurer at the time and we were dealing, of course, with the significant challenges faced by Defence Force families as they were coming back and after many tours, many tours in Afghanistan, and the impacts that was having on our veterans and continuing serving men and women in our Defence Forces. And there were children who were simply saying, ‘my dad has come home physically, but he's not home’. I couldn't imagine saying that as a kid. And I knew there was an organisation that could help those kids, and it was Camp K.
And together we worked up the pilot, first, of the Kookaburra Kids programs for Defence families. And it wasn't just about Defence Force kids coming along to a camp with all the other kids, because Defence Force kids have particular challenges. They have a different experience - they've moved around a lot, they've dealt with, you know, dealing with families in the Defence Forces has its own challenges. And so they needed to be in a place on their own terms, in their own space. And so we did the pilot - several million we put in at that time, as Treasurer.
A couple of years later, we upped that up, because it was working. I love investing in things that work and with Camp K, they just kept working, so we kept investing. And we upped it to almost $8 million.
And now, today, to kick off the the celebrations for the 20th year, I'm pleased to announce today that we will be supporting this program with a further $13.7 million in the Defence Kids program. This this will expand the program into more regional areas. How good’s that? It's going to be in Wagga, it's going to be in Albury/Wodonga, it's going to be in the Mornington Peninsula, Bendigo, Ballarat and Geelong. And for the first time, children in the north and south of Tasmania will also have access to these services, and that's incredibly exciting. And I know they're going to do a great job in taking that forward in the future.
I joked with Chris yesterday, people are going to say this, that you're just, you know, showing favouritism to a great organisation coming out of the Shire. I said, well, I'm going to find that really hard to defend. But that's not the case. Whether it's a great community organisation coming out of the Shire that is now helping kids and families nationally, I see that all the time. I see organisations all around the country that start off in a community response to a community need in a town or a city or a suburb, and it's a great thrill to see that go to a national scale.
And, so, congratulations. I am so glad for Jenny and I to be part of this, and we’ll be part of it long after, I'm sure, our time working in parliamentary life is there, because it's just an area of great passion for us, and I want to thank everybody for being involved. And, welcome.
Press Conference - Windsor, NSW
12 March 2022
Patrick Connolly, Mayor, Hawkesbury City Council: Good morning, everyone. I'm Patrick Connolly, the Mayor of Hawkesbury City Council. This has been a devastating event here for us in the Hawkesbury. It's come a year after another devastating flood we had last year, and before that, bushfires. Our community is has been through so much and so many people are struggling. Today and and the last couple of days, we're moving from immediate response into the recovery. And so we're very, very happy to have the Prime Minister here today. We've had a chance to talk to him about what Councils response is like and what we're going through. And and I know Sarah Richards has had a chance today to to show him some of the impacts on the ground. So very happy to have the Prime Minister here with us.
Prime Minister: Well, thank you, Patrick. And thank you for the opportunity to come here today. I want to thank particularly all the local command here, where they've been doing such an incredible job. I'm joined of course by Sarah. But I was also joined today by the State Member Robyn Preston and the Federal Member Susan Templeman, and the opportunity to get briefed across all the agencies and all the services in terms of the impact of a flood yet again here out in the Hawkesbury. It wasn't even a year ago when Jenny and I were here and seeing the terrible damage that occurred on that occasion. Here we are less than a year later, and we're dealing with a flood of a similar magnitude, in fact, just a bit bit more than that, in fact, here in the Hawkesbury.
But wherever I go to these terrible events, I see the same thing every single time, and that is such a strong community resilience and response. And here in the Hawkesbury on this occasion, after the events of less than a year ago, the preparedness, the resilience that even has been built up in the last year - the way that homes have been fitted out to better equip themselves to face a flood, the fact that we've had large containers being put on people's sites so they can get their property into a secure place. One of the families I was talking to this morning on the phone that we met last time was able to do that.
And so that doesn't mean the flood doesn't have a terrible impact. Of course it does. But the readiness and the way that people help themselves or help each other is always a part of the response to natural disasters in this country. It's a conversation I've been having with other leaders across the country - premiers, local governments, and even when I spoke to the Governor-General last night. You've heard it from Peter Cosgrove, former Governor-General, and both of the former heads of the Defence Forces. In Australia, the community response mixes together with the local government response, with the state government response, with the Federal Government response. It's not one or the other. The reason we're able to push through so many of these events is they all come together. And, of course, those who were first here are always going to be the local community, neighbours helping neighbours. That has always been an important part of our natural disaster response, and always will be. State, local and Federal Governments aren't there to replace that, but to aid it, to support it and continue to build on it. And that is especially true once you get past the immediate impact of the flood event itself and you start moving into the rebuilding phase and the recovery phase, which is going on all around us here today.
A couple of things I want to bring to your attention. Across the country, as of this morning, 766,000 individuals have been supported by the Commonwealth Disaster Payments and Recovery Allowance support to date. That's $631 million which has gone out the door and into people's bank accounts and their pockets about the last two weeks. Here in New South Wales alone, $423 million makes up that $631 [million] across the country, and that says something to the scale of the floods that we've seen here in New South Wales. Here in the Hawkesbury alone, there are 8,671 claims and over $7 million in direct support that has gone in.
There are over 4,000 [ADF] boots on the ground here in New South Wales, and we have over 6,000 right across the country, operating as part of Operation Flood Assist. And they're engaged in a myriad of tasks, from the initial phases when they were winching people to rescue, to now, as you see them with boots on the ground, as we see them here in the Hawkesbury out there assisting with the clean-up and the recovery. That presence is a very welcome sight and I know a great encouragement. And I want to thank all those Defence Force personnel who have been out there doing that, and particularly the reservists who have been part of those call outs, and up on the Northern Rivers especially. Those reservists, I want to thank their employers as well. Employers have released them to go and serve their communities and serve their country in the way that they are doing now. It's a very important part of our ability to respond.
In total, here in New South Wales, the Commonwealth and the State Governments have already committed and spending around $1.5 billion to support the flood recovery and response effort. The Commonwealth, that includes the Commonwealth Disaster Payment and so on, has contributed $1 billion of that. And so we are here in a significant way, just as we are in Queensland. The way this flood response funding works is requests are made to the Commonwealth Government, and we have met every request that is being put to us. In particular up there in Lismore at the moment, there is a caravan convoy. There are 20 mobile homes already there as part of the initiatives that we're putting in place to support temporary accommodation for so many who have been affected. Just this week, the Premier announced a further around half a billion dollars in support up there in the Northern Rivers. That is 50-50 funded by the Commonwealth Government. I spoke to the Premier that morning. He announced it later that day, and that includes a $285 million housing package, which the Commonwealth is supporting 50-50.
Also last night, I met with the, with the Governor-General in Canberra, and we declared the state of emergency for New South Wales. The Premier, sorry, the Governor-General had himself been in Northern Rivers during the course of that day, and that gave us the opportunity to discuss firsthand and get his feedback on what was happening on the ground, and I'd obviously been there a day or so earlier. This followed consultation, of course, with the Premier here in New South Wales, and sitting down yesterday morning at Cabinet, the National Resilience and Recovery Agency, the Emergency Management Authority, and looking further, at the further data that has come through. We had considered also doing it for Queensland. I consulted with the Queensland Premier. Her view in our consultation was that the cooperation between the Federal and State Governments have been excellent, and I agree with her. It has. It's been very good in Queensland, and I saw the first, firsthand the rollout of the recovery and clean-up effort that's underway. The Premier didn't believe that was necessary in Queensland. And so I listened carefully to her and our agencies, and that's what consultation is. You listen and then you make decisions, and that's what we've done.
In New South Wales, the situation, particularly in the Northern Rivers, is absolutely devastating. They've had an inland tsunami there and it is as awful as the impact of the flood event here, once again in the space of just one year, here in Hawkesbury is. What I really want, I thank people upstairs, and I want to thank people in flood-affected areas all around the country. Even though as they're cleaning up their own homes and trying to re-establish their own businesses after being impacted by those flood events, it is amazing how they send their best wishes to those who are in northern New South Wales at the centre of what is like a blast and an epicentre, and at a scale of a one in 500 year flood. And I think that says a lot about Australians, that even when they're going through, as they are here in the Hawkesbury right now, Patrick and and your community here, they're also thinking of people in situations like in Lismore and Coraki and all of those areas in the Northern Rivers. So I want to thank Australians for their generous heart when it comes to that, and the practical ways they're seeking to support each other.
So with that, I'm happy to take some questions.
Journalist: Prime Minister, a lot of the people we've been speaking to say, especially along the river here, they're used to floods, they're very aware of them, it's a well-oiled machine in terms of recovery. One of the issues they've always had, though, is insurance companies. What would you say to the insurance companies who are trying to penny-pinch in the months to come?
Prime Minister: Pay out. That's what I'd say to them, and to honour their their contracts, and those who have been able to have that flood insurance expect to be supported. That's why you take it out. And if there are issues there, then I have no doubt that those matters will be raised. And I know Sarah would be happy to hear from them, and the Treasurer and I will be happy to take those matters up. This week, Bridget McKenzie, the Minister for Emergency Management, Disaster Resilience and Recovery, has been meeting with the insurance companies and the banks just to monitor their response to the flood events, not just in the Northern Rivers, but right across the country.
What is also important is, you know, in dealing with climate change, you have to get emissions down, and we've got them down by over 20 per cent. We've got our commitment and the plan to get to net zero by 2050. But I said this two years ago, before the floods that we've experienced here over the last couple of years, and I said, dealing with climate change is about resilience and adaptation as well. And so whether it's up in the Northern Rivers and the resilience works that frankly haven't been done for a long time, there's been a lot of resistance to some of those works. We've got to get that done, because if you do that, then the insurance companies will be in a better position to be able to insure. Now, that doesn't mean they can insure everywhere. But up in the northern part of the country, our Government established the the reinsurance pool of $10 billion. Now the reason we did that was because of the market failure that was occurring in the insurance market, which meant it was very difficult for people to get insurance and then live and run businesses in Northern Australia, and build strata units and things of that nature.
So it's not just a question of calling out insurance companies when they don't do the right thing, but we will. But we also have to work together - councils, state governments and the Federal Government to ensure the resilience and adaptation policies are in place that can make more places insurable. Now, Peter Cosgrove's made some points about that. I commend Anthony Roberts, the New South Wales Planning Minister, and the comments that he's made today. When I spoke to the Mayor of Ballina the other night she was able to tell me that in those parts of Ballina that were subject to the new development approvals guidelines, they were able to avoid much of the damage that occurred in Ballina, which shows that sort of resilience to floods, that sort of adaptation actually can save so much. And I know here in the Hawkesbury, it's a, it's a big challenge for the Council to get all those settings right. And so I I applaud what Anthony Roberts has said today. I think he's spot on.
Journalist: Prime Minister, you mentioned a convoy of about 20 motorhomes going to the ...
Prime Minister: It will be over 100, ultimately, 20 are there now.
Journalist: So over 100, ultimately. We are facing a pretty large scale housing crisis in that region. On top of these motorhomes, what are you doing to make sure people have somewhere to stay and they can stay in accommodation?
Prime Minister: Yeah, well, there's everything from rent assistance and other temporary income support to support those accommodation. It's a $285 million package, which the New South Wales Government has brought together and they're running, and we're funding half of it. So my answer is $142.5 million directly committed in the discussions the Premier and I had to support them address the accommodation crisis that is occurring in the Northern Rivers. So I commend the Premier on the package. And he had me at hello when it came to our support for it. We know it's essential. I've been there, I've seen it, I know it, and the Governor-General, and I want to thank His Excellency for being there and and giving me further feedback in some of the other outlying areas he was able to get to, whether it's business support that is needed. But it's it's going to be a long road back up there, and we're going to be there every day, just like we were there up in North Queensland, just like we have been there in all these floods. People know the payments. I mean, Patrick, Sarah, you know, after the last floods, the support that was provided. It got through. It got to people. It got to the primary producers, it got to the businesses that were directly impacted, and the individuals who need that support. So housing is a very serious issue.
The other big issue up in Northern Rivers is is the, is the water treatment plant, and it's something the Premier and I have been discussing, and I know the local Mayor up there in Lismore, he's, they're very troubled about this, and I'm very keen to see that that gets sorted out. That will, that will create health issues, if that's not sorted out as well. And I know the Premier has that high on his list, and I'm I'm sure they'll they'll get it sorted.
Journalist: On the emergency declaration, just to be clear, why did you change your mind about declaring a national emergency in parts of South East Queensland? Was it after those discussions with the Premier?
Prime Minister: Yeah, I mean, the way you do this is you consult. And it was our intention to do it in both states. But after consulting and listening, and particularly listening to, as we got further information in from our agencies, the National Recovery and Resilience Agency, who, where more damage assessments had been completed. We were just talking upstairs, I mean, damage assessments are still being done here in the Hawkesbury right now. And so as you get more data, that better informs your decision, and it also followed my discussion with the Queensland Premier. So when I say I'm going to consult someone, I mean it. I'm not, I'm not, I'm not so stubborn to, as to not listen. And when the Premier tells me she doesn't think it's necessary, well, of course, I'm going to listen to that.
Journalist: But a week ago she did think it was necessary. She just said it was too late.
Prime Minister: Well, if she thought it was necessary a week ago, she could have written to me and asked me to do it, but she didn't. That's that's the way it works. If the state wants it to be done, then they can request for it to be done, and no such request was made by the Queensland Government. The first person to talk about putting it in place was the Federal Government, and but the rule says, and I think it's a good rule, that you should consult. And I did, and I listened to what she had to say.
And I should stress, the state of emergency declaration has no connection to the deployment of Defence Forces or payments or any of that. All of that's flowing. And as as Premier Palaszczuk noted, that was working incredibly well in Queensland, and the cooperation was outstanding. What the state of emergency does, and this will be particularly helpful, particularly up in the Northern Rivers, where the situation remains drastic, it helps with things like having the waiver on our regulations for Commonwealth agencies so they don't require a signature on a bit of paper. I mean, people won't have documents, they won't have access to, they could have lost everything of of their their backup storage on their computers, and all of these things. And under our laws, there is a requirement to ensure that certain declarations are made, and and that's normal process. But when you're in the middle of a one in 500 year flood, it makes sense to have some flexibility about that.
So the state of emergency declaration at a Commonwealth level, at a federal level, is to deal with those things. So the money has flowed, the boots have been on the ground. And as I said in Queensland, back in 2011 when the big flood hit Brisbane, this time round we had three times as many ADF out, and a week earlier.
Journalist: Just on COVID, Prime Minister.
Prime Minister: Sure.
Journalist: Nat Cab yesterday.
Prime Minister: Yeah.
Journalist: Sounds like COVID's almost over.
Prime Minister: Well, we did have a good discussion about the National Plan yesterday with premiers and chief ministers. And you'll know, Phases A, B, C and D, and we believe we're pretty much in Phase D now. There are few exceptions to that. Phase D, remember, means living with the virus like the flu. And, you know, our airports are open again, international arrivals can come, there's the waivers now on quarantine and so on with people returning. So we're pretty much in Phase D. Western Australia's, you know, a month or so behind where the rest of the country is. And so they'll continue to be some different arrangements there for for the next while. But I know the Premier there is as keen for, to get to that next phase as the rest of the country, but he's obviously got to do that at their pace, because they've been in a different cycle on COVID. Similarly, up in the the Northern Territory, there are discrete communities up there, Indigenous communities, where they will continue to have to exercise some real caution. So there are some exceptions to where we're at at Phase D, but pretty much, especially here in New South Wales and and Victoria and I'd argue Queensland as well. We're pretty much there in South Australia. I mean, South Australia, all the, the Premier has taken off all of those remaining restrictions, I think, last night.
The other big change we talked about yesterday is getting rid of the close contact rule, which makes a lot of sense, and that's that would be done only with further advice from the medical expert panel. And so we gave them some some tasking yesterday and said, look, it's, for for a whole range of reasons, it's important that we remove this close contact rule because it's it's it's starving businesses of staff, of hospitals of staff, and all of these things - although for the health sector, there have been some exemptions. And for people who are running hospitality businesses and things like that, the close contact rule, particularly with the kids back at school. I mean, we all know what it's like with kids and flus and and other things that, you know, they bring it home, and then then the whole family has to stay home and can't go to work. So that rule is is becoming, we believe, as leaders, redundant. But so we've tasked the medical expert panel to say, want your urgent advice on this as soon as possible, because we'd like to say goodbye to that rule as quickly as we can.
Journalist: And how worried should we be that this could be the first winter that we're going to get COVID and the flu potentially hitting at the same time?
Prime Minister: Well, this is the challenge going into winter. I mean, we've had obviously COVID the last few years, and but the fact that we've had so many of the social restrictions means that we haven't had bad flu seasons the last couple of years. In fact, we've had very few fatalities from flu. They they dropped dramatically during that period. Now that we're living with the virus, it means we're living with everything again. And that means there'll be a flu season. And, so, vulnerable people should be getting their flu shots, and even more broadly than that, we said that, again, that the flu shot should be mandatory in those aged care and disability care and places like that, which is something that has to be renewed by the states. The joint testing process that deals with both flu and with COVID, with PCR tests. So we went through our preparedness plan for winter yesterday. I thought it was a very constructive discussion and the states are well-prepared. I mean, we've come through the Omicron wave, the hospital system has stood up to it in every part of the country.
Journalist: Do you see a world in which we could regress in restrictions? Regress back to the old, old COVID ways of restrictions here, there and everywhere?
Prime Minister: No.
Journalist: Do you see a world in which that happens at all?
Prime Minister: Well, I certainly hope not. Oh no, I can't, I can't see that. I think, well, I mean, you can never know what the next variant may be. And I know there's, we discussed the mutations of the existing variant with Omicron yesterday, but we're largely talking about the same virus. The difference with Omicron and Delta is like a completely different virus. That's when you get a variant of of really significant concern. What we've seen with these latest permutations of this variant is it doesn't need to change our settings. We can keep doing what we're doing. We may see some more cases, but as we've known now, and I've been trying to be, trying to say for a long time, cases is not the point. How your hospital system is going is the point, and our hospital systems have held up extremely well.
Journalist: Prime Minister, have you considered what you'd do if there's an outbreak with media staff or your staff while on the campaign trail?
Prime Minister: Well, I'll just follow the rules. Same as what would happen in your staff or or anywhere else. I've had it and I isolated for a week, and I'm back and on my feet. It wasn't that pleasant. But what I'd say is this, is make sure you get your booster. One of the key things we we were briefed on yesterday, if you've had your booster, even after you've had COVID, the evidence is starting to say that that reduces the risks of long COVID effects on your health. So just if you've had COVID, you don't have superpowers. You still need to get your boosters, and you still need to look after those things. And so I'm pleased I had my booster.
We we have discussed and are already acting on where we need to get a fourth shot into those who are more vulnerable, immune deficient, things like that, aged care and so on. And that is progressing. But my advice to everybody is get that booster because you still might get it. But I can tell you, I know what I had, and I wouldn't have wanted to have something a lot worse than that. It's no fun. It's not pleasant.
Journalist: Prime Minister, the ABC's been receiving reports this morning that nine refugees have been released from the Park Hotel in Melbourne. Are you able to confirm whether they've been given bridging visas?
Prime Minister: I'll leave that to the Home Affairs Minister to to confirm those arrangements.
Journalist: There were emotional scenes in Darwin yesterday when the police officer Zachary Rolfe was acquitted of murder.
Prime Minister: Yes.
Journalist: What was your reaction to that and what is your view on calls to ban guns in Indigenous communities in Darwin?
Prime Minister: Well, look, I'm not going to provide a a response without getting further information on this. I can understand just how high the emotions are running in the Northern Territory about this case right across the community. And it is a very difficult time for that community. But we have a justice system in this country. A justice system that looks at the evidence and makes decisions through our courts. And that's what I respect and that's what I trust, is that that justice system to do its job. And I think the traumatic circumstances here that the court would have had to work through, the court officers, the families, the communities impacted. This has been a really difficult time, and I think what we have to do is give the community some space, give them some time to comprehend all of this, deal with this, and and seek to heal and move forward together. This has been a terribly traumatic event, and so that's where our focus will be, supporting the communities ... One of our ADF assets out doing it's job, which is great ... But our our task is to support the Northern Territory Government to support communities to help them work through what is a very, very difficult time for them. These are not simple issues. They are, they are not straight forward. And and so our response will reflect that complexity. Ok, thanks very much, everyone.
Press Conference - Gympie, QLD
10 March 2022
Mr Llew O'Brien MP, Federal Member for Wide Bay: It's great to be here today at Nolan Meat, which is an iconic local business here in Gympie. I wish I was here under better circumstances, but we're here in the recovery phase of one of the most significant floods, well one of the most significant floods, we've had in this century. It's a real big thank you to Terry, Tony and Michael, the brothers, the Nolan boys, who have got the show running here. It's been an incredible effort by their staff to get this up and running and become partially operational in the time that they, that they've had. So a huge, huge thank you to them.
Of course, it's great to have the Prime Minister here today to have a look around, survey the effects of this major weather event and have a talk to important people. It's the biggest local employer in town. It's really important that the Prime Minister comes and looks and listens. I do want to say a big thank you to my hairdresser, and there's a reason why I say that, and it's not just to make this make this rough head look good before the Prime Minister comes to town. I want to say thanks to Tash and Sharon at Talking Heads because they had to move all of their equipment out of their salon for this flood. And last night, when I went in and I said, I better have a bit of a trim before my boss gets here, it was all laid out there, they were working, they were back into it. So I'd just say to everyone, everyone, if you've got a chance to support a local business who's been affected by these weather events, please do it. Please do it. Don't get on the internet and order your stuff from overseas or somewhere else. Buy locally, help the people who have, who have been through this major weather event. So look, it is really, really good to have both Bridget and the Prime Minister here, I'll throw over to him now. Thanks very much for coming along, PM.
Prime Minister: Thanks Llew. Thank you very, very much and you're looking sharp. Look, I want to thank you first Llew, Llew O'Brien is a fantastic local member here, working with his community. We were in touch last week and he was just going 'no, we're all good. We're just focused on doing what we need to do. If I need something I'll sing out.' And we were in contact, I know he was talking to Bridget as well. I want to thank all the local members, all the local councillors and for the tremendous work they've been doing to get the community, getting them back on their feet.
But Terry and the Nolan brothers and everyone here at Nolan Meats, Bridget and I have been through some pretty, pretty devastated places over the course of these floods. But I'll tell you what, coming here today, I just got a sense of great hope about the spirit of Australians and what can be done and to Terry and all of your team to think we are standing here right now. We'd be up to about here, I think. And having walked through all the elements of this plant and to see it all just going full-bore and there's a bit more to come yet. There's still some machinery that needs to be fixed and that's getting fixed and they're doing it. They're doing that out of their own pocket. They're getting on with it. And the other thing that has really impressed me while I've been here is the attention to the little things. I mean, to lift the spirits, the fact that all of these areas have been washed down, that the lawns have been mowed. These details are about lifting the spirits of a of a very strong workforce here at Nolan Meats. And what I see in Terry and the Nolan brothers, the whole team is just how much they care for their workforce and how important this plant is to the local community here in Gympie. This is a resurrection story we're seeing right here, and it happened in absolute record time. And there are so many of those stories that we have to make a reality all around the country. And particularly where Bridget and I were there yesterday down in the Northern Rivers, which was so heavily and devastatingly impacted. But that impact here has been so very big and Gympie, there's only been one flood bigger and you've got to go back to the 1800s to find that. So this is a massive flood. But people are getting back on their feet, and I do really want to congratulate the Nolan family for their commitment to this community. But most importantly, their commitment to their workers. As I walked around with them, they knew every name, they knew when they came here as an apprentice, they knew only trades they got, they knew what the last order was that they've been able to clinch, and, you know, that's an amazing family business. And I said to Bridget, this is what as a government we're trying to see realised and we're backing in food and beverage manufacturing.
And I know I came here to talk about floods and the response. But what I'm seeing happening shows what can be done in manufacturing and food beverage manufacturing in a regional part of this country. And that's why we've put $1.5 billion into supporting manufacturing businesses to ensure that they can realise the scale and achievement of what we're doing right here in Gympie and particularly to do that and still be doing it after this devastating flood is incredible.
A few other matters. I can confirm that I spoke to the Premier of Queensland, this afternoon, as I said I would today. We went through a whole range of issues from the Olympics and infrastructure and of course, to issues around the flood response, and we both agree that there has been a tremendously cooperative spirit between the Queensland Government, local governments across Queensland that have been affected and the Federal Government. I've seen that on display on the ground here today, and we're both very thankful for the partnership we've had with local government, local communities. We're very thankful to the SES and the Defence Forces and the tremendous job that they're done and the tremendous job they're doing as the flood event moves into the recovery phase. We obviously talked about the state of emergency declaration. I consulted her on that today and I'll be having a meeting with the Governor-General when I return to Canberra tonight. I'll see him tomorrow and we'll be, we'll be advancing those issues having undertaken the necessary consultations with the Premiers of Queensland and New South Wales.
Also today, the New South Wales Premier announced a joint funding package that was particularly focused on that on housing support, which we're in with them 50/50 on and supporting up to 25,000 households in those most devastated affected areas within New South Wales and those Northern Rivers areas. That's on top of the more than $450 million we've already committed as part of a joint initiative there. Up here in Queensland that's been around $550 million that we've both committed to as a QLD Government and as a Federal Government and that's helping people get back on their feet. There's a lot more to do though. There's a lot more to do.
And tomorrow my Cabinet, our Cabinet, will be meeting back in Canberra and we'll be looking at the response and the reactions we've had to that response and how we have to fine tune it further. We are still advancing important issues with the New South Wales Government, especially on issues around infrastructure, there's major challenges in those Northern River sections on things like wastewater treatment plants and so on, which I know the State Government is working closely with the local government on, and there are other issues there that we need to address together. And so there's a lot more to go. And I want to say to all of those communities that continue to be affected by these terrible floods, whether they be flood events that people have seen before, or they are the absolute catastrophic events. The only way I can describe what I saw in Northern Rivers yesterday, and I'm sure people in Gympie felt a bit like this as well over a week ago, it's like an inland tsunami, an inland tsunami, just destroying everything in its wake and just leaving devastation in its wake. And so we will have to stand and will gladly with those communities as they go through the rebuilding process. We'll be adding more and more to that economic infrastructure rebuilding effort as we learn more and more The councils that been supported through the state programmes have been extended, and what Premier in New South Wales said today and we've also supported those initiatives. So with that Bridge, there was a couple things you wanted to mention, or you're good? You're good. Okay.
Journalist: The Queensland Premier said it's too late for the disaster declaration in Queensland, should have been done a week ago.
Prime Minister: Well, the Queensland Premier was, had every opportunity to write to me and ask me to do that a week ago. And she didn't choose to do that. I think there's been a bit of a misunderstanding about what the state of emergency declaration entails. It does not impact on the flow of funding and support, or Defence Force assistance or any of those things. That is all flowing, that is already flowing. It doesn't require that. What it does is it assists the Commonwealth Government in managing the regulatory issues in a more streamlined way, which particularly becomes more relevant as you move through the recovery phase. So a state of emergency doesn't mean there's extra funds coming from the Commonwealth Government. Those funds are already flowing. Half a billion in payments have already been made directly to people both in New South Wales and Queensland. The ADF is already on the ground in their thousands, and so it was a good opportunity for me to talk through what this involves. And as a result, we've done those consultations and it will assist. But I agree with the Queensland Premier that the cooperation we have had has been outstanding. It's been tremendous and will continue to be so, and this will further assist the Commonwealth Government in streamlining those issues.
Journalist: Will Gympie and Maryborough get the catastrophe assistance that's been in place now in New South Wales, parts of New South Wales?
Prime Minister: Well, these things are being assessed. As I said yesterday, we moved firstly on those three areas in New South Wales, where we're talking about a flood event that was two metres higher, actually more than two metres higher than any flood that had ever occurred, ever in recorded history. That is not what has occurred in many other parts of the country and even as we walk through today, I mean, if we were talking about that slide same flood event here, it would have been several metres higher than what occurred here. So while that's why that's why we put the billion dollars of funds, a billion dollars of funding support, including over half a billion here in Queensland, that's the money that is supporting.
In addition, there is the funds through the Commonwealth disaster plan. So the normal flood response has been provided and has been done to the to the T, in terms of the request made to the Commonwealth by the Queensland Government, as has happened in New South Wales. What we're talking about yesterday was a very specific area that has suffered a flood like none have seen in Australia's history. This was a one in 500 year event officially declared, for that part of Australia. So we just want to be very clear. We're dealing with some incredibly exceptional circumstances in those areas and the level of devastation there is like nothing I've seen. Okay. Thanks very much, everyone, and congratulations to the team here at Nolan Meats. You guys are an inspiration to all of us. Thank you very much.
Press Conference - Enoggera, QLD
10 March 2022
Julian Simmonds MP, Federal Member for Ryan: Alright, good morning. Thank you, everybody for being here. I'm Julian Simmons, I am the Federal Member for Ryan. It's within my community here that the Gallipoli Barracks are situated. It's great to be here with the Minister for Defence and of course, the Prime Minister. I just want to start by, first of all, welcoming you all here to the Gallipoli Barracks and to thank the Prime Minister for his commitment to my community.
My community was the first one he came to when the border reopened with Queensland late last year. I know he was up here in the Disaster Coordination Centre with the Brisbane City Council last week during the floods, and now he's come back during our recovery and rebuild phase here in the community. So thank you, Prime Minister, for your commitment to our community.
As we're sitting in the Gallipoli Barracks. I really want to acknowledge the 500 serving men and women who have come out of the Barracks to help my community when they were in need. When we went through the flood last week, they were some or if not the first on the ground. They were there before the mud army. They were there before a lot of the other government agencies, particularly in areas like St Lucia. They were there helping out clean out flooded basements and clean out flooded properties. When I was, I was there when they arrived in St Lucia and we had an elderly lady who was volunteering, who had her house flooded fall over in the flood waters and the medic was right on her. So thank you to those ADF men, women who have been helping with the flood. It meant so much to our community. They were in tears when they saw those serving men and women arrive. And then finally, I just want to say thank you as well as I'm sure the PM and the Minister for Defence will, to the families of the servicemen and women who have been helping out. I was cleaning out a flooded community group on Tuesday. I was with a partner of a Defence Force member. She lost her house during the Townsville floods when they were out there. Now they're stationed down here and her partner is currently on a humanitarian deployment and she's going through this flood. Having gone through the Townsville one by herself, and that is the kind of sacrifices that our families of our Defence Service men and women make, they do it with a smile because they know how important it is to our country, so thank you to those families as well. Thank you to the Prime Minister for coming and seeing the rebuilding effort and for deploying the ADF in the way that you have. It has been a tremendous help to our community, and I'll hand over to you.
Prime Minister: Thank you very much. Well to Julian, he was one of the first calls I made when I came through this last Sunday, a week ago and he was out delivering water bottles door to door in his community. And so I want to thank all the local members of Parliament here from right across the aisle, state and federal who've done a great job, I think, in supporting their communities here in south east Queensland. Over the course of this very difficult past two weeks as the weather bomb, as it was described by the Premier, fell on the city and fell on the surrounding areas up to Gympie, Maryborough and other places. And of course, the devastation that I've only just witnessed yesterday down there in the Northern Rivers, which is a terribly, terribly difficult scene as it's been very difficult here in Queensland. So thank you, Peter, for your great leadership in your role as Minister of Defence and to all of the senior commanders who've been involved in leading the defence effort here in responding to these not just this natural disaster, but over the last three and a half years, time after time, whether it's been flood, whether it's been drought, whether it's been cyclones, the pandemic, supporting people in aged care facilities, responding to any number of difficult natural disasters and other situations. We've called on our defence forces time and time and time again, and they have never failed us and they never will. And I will salute them for the tremendous service that they have offered, not just as they've gone about their first job, which is always to defend our country. They are out there in Tonga at the moment. They've been in many places around the world doing a very dangerous job, but they have at all times been available to support the civilian effort here in Australia when it's come to defending our own homeland against the national natural disaster threat that we're faced on too many occasions here in this country. So thank you, Peter, and thank you to all of those who are here today.
I was only here just over a week ago as they were ready to deploy and support that effort here in Brisbane with the cleanup efforts, and I am pleased that I'll be speaking with the Premier after this press conference and we'll be speaking about a number of issues. Of course, the flood issues being very significant in those and moving to the state of emergency declaration, which I spoke to the New South Wales Premier about yesterday. I'll speak to the Queensland Premier about that today and hopefully that will enable us to press forward with that tomorrow when I see the Governor-General in Canberra, I want to thank the Brisbane City Council and Mayor Schrinner for the great job that he's done together with Premier Palaszczuk, I got to say that the coordination, the integration, the cooperation which we've seen here in Queensland has been tremendous. Queensland are very used to dealing with natural disasters, whether it's up in the flood crisis some years ago around Townsville in northern north western Queensland, most recently here with these weather bomb events that we've seen in south east Queensland, I want to thank everybody for the integration and cooperation that has occurred here in Queensland.
It's been a tremendous effort and to give you an idea of the scale of change, and this is not meant as a criticism I want to stress. In the 2011 floods, Prime Minister Gillard rightly went out and deployed the ADF to support the Brisbane flood effort, using every capacity that they had at that time to do that. The difference between 2011 and today is we've been able to deploy here four times the number of ADF and do it a week quicker. Now that's because of the build up of our defence capability that we've been able to put in place over many years now. And it's a testimony to the skill and the experience and the lessons learned from many natural disasters by the people who joining us behind the cameras here today in our defence forces. What they do, I just met a young woman whose job it is to get skip bins. I mean, it's pretty hard to get skip bins sometimes at the best of times. But you can imagine how hard it is to get skip bins in south east Queensland at the moment and in other parts of the country. These are the practical everyday things that defence forces are doing through the course of this incredibly difficult flood event.
An update on a couple of those points, then on what's occurring with the flood response. Some 400,000 claims through Services Australia have now been processed, and that's $480 million that has gone out into the pockets of Australians who need that emergency financial support right now. And that's occurred since the last time I stood before you here in Brisbane. So that's not a long period of time and Services Australia has surged to 5,000 people to ensure, and we pulled Services Australia volunteers from other departments right across the public service to ensure that we can get what has almost been half a billion dollars out the door. And as I announced yesterday, down in the northern rivers, where the flooding is not just a flood event, this is a natural disaster catastrophe beyond anything they have ever seen at any time in any flood in history in that part of the world. And those three local government areas in particular, and we're looking at other impacted areas in those districts to see how we might extend some of that support. I spoke to the Mayor of Ballina yesterday, last night about those issues. And just like in any natural disaster like we've seen here in Queensland, you define a couple of LGAs early on the most impacted. And as the damage assessments come in, you will add others to that list when you go through the proper process and that's what's still occurring. And even now, we are continuing to provide support here in south east Queensland as well. Here in Queensland, specifically, $170 million has been put in the pockets of Queenslanders to support them as they go through this very difficult flood event here. And in New South Wales, $309 million has been already provided in those areas.
Right now in across the defence forces, there are some 5,000, this will be achieved by the end of today, 5,748 defence Force personnel deployed across Navy, Army and RAAF. That's 1,289 here in Queensland and 4,459 in New South Wales, which includes 2,918 specifically in northern New South Wales. And so that is an extraordinary deployment of force as they've been able to be staged and moving into those positions and doing an incredible job. And in all of those places, particularly if you indulge me for the sake of those who are listening in from New South Wales, particularly in the northern rivers, we are providing continuing aviation support, relief task plant task recon for future engineering works, heavy plant operations in Lismore. Food loading at the food distribution points where that's been tasked, aerial route reconnaissance is underway, continuing to assist with helicopter operations out of Southern Cross University. That's for food distribution, particularly now and ensuring supply chains. There's an ADF presence in Casino now. There's ICR surveillance on flood damage regions that's being conducted and a 500 personnel camp construction is commencing in the vicinity of Lismore, as we speak. There are many other points we can go to, if that is the questions people would like raised.
The other very important reason I'm joined here today by the Minister for Defence is to make a significant announcement, which means the biggest increase in the size of our defence forces in peacetime in Australian history. This is a significant vote of confidence in our defence forces, but it's a significant recognition by our government, which has always been clear eyed about the threats and the environment that we face as a country, as a liberal democracy in the Indo-Pacific. Today, I'm announcing that we will boost our defence forces by some 18 and a half thousand, which will take our defence forces to 80,000 in number. This will cost some $38 billion out to 2040, and this is a significant investment in our future force. We have an outstanding defence force and that is recognised, I believe, not just by Australians here, but it's I know it is recognised by our allies and partners around the world. The reason we have been able to secure incredible agreements with the United States and the United Kingdom in particular in AUKUS, is because they know what our defence forces can do and they know what our government is investing to ensure they more and more capable. We don't leave our tasks of defence to others. We don't leave it to them. We take it up ourselves. And that means we're a contributor. And with this investment, we're going to make sure that the Australian Defence Forces are a big contributor for generations to come, as more and more people take up those careers in our defence forces.
To give you some perspective, when we came to government defence force spending as a share of our economy was 1.57 per cent. It was the lowest level since the Second World War. If we had kept defence force spending at the same rate as what the Labor Party left us, there would be $55 billion less spent in our defence forces today. Just ponder that for a minute. And this year alone, there would be $10 billion less being spent on our defence forces this year. Now, when you think about it with a Defence Force annual budget of just over $40 billion, it would be a quarter less than it is today if we stuck with what Labor thought was the commitment to defence that was necessary in peacetime. That's not a false gap. That's a real gap. That's a yawning gap. That's a chasm when it comes to the difference between what our government believes in when it comes to the support of our defence forces. $55 billion would not have been spent on our defence forces and our capability if we'd kept the settings as we inherited them. That's the last time we heard from a Labor Government about what they thought about investing in our defence forces. And it's an indictment. There is a big difference when it comes to these issues.
Now across the services, these additional 18 and a half thousand will be supporting future submarines, the Arafura class fleet, the Hunter class maritime targeting, long range fires, information warfare, warcraft. The Minister for Defence will go into more detail on these issues. Airlift, air base capabilities, missile defence space and in particular, cyber. We're building and continue to build a future defence force because their first job, let's not forget, is to defend Australia. That is their first job, and that's what we're equipping them to do. We greatly appreciate the extraordinary work they've done to support us in civilian tasks. But their first job is to defend this country. And the decision that we've made as a government after much planning to lift our defence force to a whole new level is designed to achieve that purpose to keep Australians safe. Peter.
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Thank you very much, PM. Thank you to Julian as well. I know that from having spoken to some friends and family in his electorate and with Trevor Evans and so many others. Kevin Hogan and and on both sides of the aisle, I know local communities are really pleased and proud of the efforts and the leadership provided by MPs like Julian Simmons. So thank you very much, Julian, for the work that you've done and also for your continued support of our people on base here at Gallipoli Barracks. I'm really conscious of the fact that we've got men and women in uniform here today, and I'm incredibly proud. In fact, I couldn't be prouder of the work of the Australian Defence Force that's been undertaken here on the base. The leadership provided, the response locally. The impact on their own families and the way in which they've been able to deal with that reality, whilst at the same time helping out other households when they know that they can't go home clean out their own. And that is an enormous sacrifices made by volunteers, it's made by those within the reserves. And it's made of course by those who's in the regular three services of the Australian defence Force.
We've been positioning, as you know, in the lead up to the floods, and we've done that in Queensland and New South Wales, and we've done it in a faster fashion, as the Prime Minister points out, than even was the case in 2011 and the work, the effort, the expertise, the skill and frankly, the confidence that the Australian Defence Force brings to local communities to help lift those spirits. Because we will get through this as the Prime Minister, I think rightly pointed out yesterday the devastation that we experienced in North Queensland, north-western Queensland, cattle being washed down rivers, the horrific scenes. Those communities have recovered because of the support of our nation, because of the support of the Australian Defence Force and with the support of the Australian Defence Force and those volunteers and those communities and those groups that are working on the ground now, we will rebuild better and we will make sure that we invest into those communities and that's what's happening. We can't do that without a very significant investment into the Australian Defence Force. When you look around the Gallipoli Barracks here, it's similar to other sites around the country, including across the north, where we're spending $8 billion. But the new accommodation to new facilities here would have been possible if we hadn't been taking out that $55 billion over the course of recent years.
Let's be very frank about it. We wouldn't have the professionalism, we wouldn't have the vehicles behind us, the upgrade in Land 400, the investment that we're making in the submarines and across the three services if we had continued to flatline and to take money from Defence, in fact, we wouldn't have as many people standing in the audience today if we didn't make the decision early on and make the decisions within the budget and manage the budget as it's been managed over recent years during the course of COVID, we wouldn't have the numbers within the Australian Defence Force today, and we certainly wouldn't be in a position to make the announcement that we're making today to augment those numbers and to build them because the capability that we will achieve over the course of the next decade is significant, internationally recognised. And it's absolutely necessary when you look at what's happening in Europe at the moment.
People who believe that President Putin's only ambition is for the Ukraine don't understand the history that our military leaders understand. If people think that the ambitions within the Indo-Pacific are restricted just to Taiwan and that there won't be knock on impacts if we don't provide a deterrence effect and work closely with our colleagues and with our allies, than they don't understand the lessons of history. And so it is going to be necessary to supplement, particularly in space, in cyber, in our naval assets, our underwater capability, our autonomous vehicles, both on the land and under the sea because that provides a deterrence. And it makes us a more credible partner with the United Kingdom, with the United States and with NATO, with Japan, with India and many other partners in the southwest Pacific. And if we are to rely on them, they need to rely on us and we have the best trained men and women in the world filling the ranks of the Australian Defence Force and today the supplement of 18 and a half thousand extra will talk to the capacity that we need in the future, and it will build on the incredible skill set that we have at the moment.
So I'm really proud to be part of a Government, Prime Minister, I have to say that has turned around the fortunes of the Australian Defence Force. The reality is to be very, very frank about it, the Labor Party lost control of our borders. And if you can't protect your borders and if you can't stare down people smugglers, how on earth can you pretend that you're the same as this government that not only can you deal with making sure that we continue to stop the people smugglers, but that you can stop adversaries and those that would seek to do harm to our country in the coming decades. So we have made conscious decisions, not just today, but since we were elected to put more money into our men and women more money into the investment in the Australian Defence Force. And this is our latest downpayment, our latest investment back into the ADF to recognise the incredible effort that they provide and they are providing now right across Queensland and New South Wales in the flood affected areas. And I want to say thank you very much to the work that they do.
Prime Minister: Happy to take some questions.
Journalist: Prime Minister, a lot of people are saying that the threat from China is now. The 80,000 troop buildup won't happen until 2040. Is that too little, too late?
Prime Minister: Well, you must have missed the point I was making before. We've increased investment in our defence forces by $55 billion …
Journalist: I understand that, but I'm asking about …
Prime Minister: I'm answering your question. $55 billion of increased investment in our defence forces means we are already more reinforced now than we previously would have been. I mean, defence spending as a share of our economy is 2.1 per cent today. That's up from 1.5 per cent. When I became Prime Minister, it was 1.9. It's now 2.1 and specifically the additional capabilities that is enabling us to achieve to be defending Australia right now and into the future. The purchase of the Tomahawk cruise missiles and the Hobart class destroyers, the purchase of joint air to surface standoff missiles, extending our range for our hornets and our Joint Strike Fighters. The purchase of long range missiles for our Hornets. The doubling down on our investment in hypersonics. And accelerating our guided weapons enterprise by years to ensure we can making missiles here in Australia. This is all the additional capacity this government has delivered. We would never have been this ready if we'd stuck where the Labor Party had it in, not in just neutral, but actually gearing down when they left office.
And so Australia is more prepared, more capable, more able to not just do what we need to do as a defence force in our own country and for our own interests, but to join the capability that is delivered by allies and United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and India, as Peter has said, but also many others right now with the Singaporeans, they've got two helicopters in the air supporting our flood operations. And I want to thank Prime Minister Lee earnestly. This wasn't something we even had to ask for. They were just seamlessly joined in. We have built a web of alignment among like minded countries in our region to defend this country. We're putting the boots on the ground. We're putting the planes in the air and we're putting the ships out to sea and the submarines also below the surface. But in addition to that, we have formed the alliances. We have formed the webs of alignment, which is keeping Australians safe. So we're better prepared today. We are more ready today than I think many could have imagined would have been possible given the legacy that we inherited from the Labor Party.
Journalist: Speaking, speaking of the submarines, the Queensland Premier has declined so far to engage in any conversations about the submarine base, saying more detail is needed. Can you give us more detailed timelines, perhaps of when studies or conversations will happen?
Prime Minister: That process has already begun. And there are three locations we're looking at for the east coast base for the submarines. They are here in Brisbane, port of Brisbane I should say, as opposed to the Story Bridge. That's obviously not being contemplated. And in addition to that in the Hunter and in the Illawarra. Now I have noticed, to be fair, that there have been a number of Labor voices that haven't been very supportive of this initiative. The same has been true down in the Illawarra, in the Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, Senator Keneally has not been supportive of this, so I'm not quite sure whether this view comes about that there's some sort of equivalence between the government and the Labor Party when it comes to the defence. Their record doesn't demonstrate it. And even on our most recent announcement, they um and they uh and they equivocate and they wrestle with themselves. Our position is instinctive. We need an east coast base for the submarines to translate to our nuclear-propelled submarine capability. You need to operate as Prime Minister Hawke understood on both coasts. So we get that and we move into it instinctively and deliberately and decisively. Because, you know, commitment to defence isn't just about the dollars you invest and the support you provide. It's the instincts you have.
Plenty of people can support what we've done in AUKUS, but only this government would have initiated. Only this government would have taken the steps to achieve it, and it was an enormous undertaking undertaking no other country has been provided with the technology, the nuclear propelled submarines by the Americans other than the British, and that occurred in the late 50s. And Australia has achieved that under this government by taking the initiative. Defence is about taking the initiative and when it comes to that issue, there is has not been, sadly, the bipartisanship that you would expect. People can catch up later. But that what that tells you is they weren't there in the first place.
Journalist: Why is the Port of Brisbane being considered given it's privately owned and has the Government had conversations [inaudible].
Prime Minister: Peter, do you want to talk about that as well, because this has been quite an extensive process. I mean, we went through in and out of the 17 locations before settling on those three and and there's quite a process now to finalise where the most appropriate location is. And, you know, Brisbane is in the mix for that, but Peter may want to speak to that.
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Thanks, PM. Look, I think the first point to make is if you say that you are supportive of the AUKUS agreement and you say that you're supportive and that you're in lockstep with the Morrison Government when it comes to the acquisition of the at least eight nuclear powered submarines, then it's passing strange that you don't support having a port to dock these submarines, I mean, they don't just lurk out in the bay and not coming to shore at some point. So when you've got Kevin Rudd, you've got Kristina Keneally and others out there, that are trying to undermine what we're trying to do on the submarine program. I think it needs to be called out. And I mean, the Premier here in Queensland has a very strange position compared to, say, the Premier of New South Wales. The Premier of New South Wales, on the same available information is committing to what he sees as an opportunity for New South Wales, thousands of jobs. So the industry that's behind the submarines, it's the sustainment, it's the money the visiting platform spend in a local economy when they come to visit. And when you've got an enclosed reactor, it's not being refueled. It's not a technology of the 1980s. This is a cutting edge technology. This technology allows the submarine to work for months at the bottom of the ocean and give our adversaries doubt about whether or not we could strike them. Now ...
Journalist: But has the Government had the conversation?
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Now the government has obviously, with the work that's been done by Navy and by their consultants has shortlisted three sites, in some cases they will have had some discussions, but in some cases they haven't, because this is a report that at the time was top secret for the government until the decision had been made to shortlist three. And those negotiations and discussions will be ongoing now. I don't have any doubt that the Port of Brisbane, given we've been dealing with them for a long period of time and in Newcastle and the Hunter would see the opportunity not only for their own precinct, but for their state as well. I don't understand, and the Premier is running from the cameras as to whether or not she supports something that could create thousands of jobs for Queenslanders and something that is an integral part of the delivery of our AUKUS commitment and the commitment to the nuclear submarines. So I mean, Labor, you know, talks a big game when they're in opposition, which is what Mr Albanese is doing. But it's clearly the case that behind the ranks in Labor, they have a real problem with our decision to acquire the nuclear powered submarines.
Journalist: Civil defence struggles to meet current recruitment and retention targets. How do you think these ambitious numbers can be achieved?
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Well, Defence is very conscious and I've had a number of conversations before with the CDF and VCDF about how we can retain. I think we lose people at way too young an age after we've invested an enormous amount in them. I am very conscious of people being posted for two years and their children being dragged from school to school. I'm conscious of the impact on predominantly mothers, wives in that arrangement, where a generation ago it might have been okay to up the family and to move them to a new location every two or three years. But in the modern age, we've got to be conscious of the career of both peoples in that relationship. And so I want and I've asked Defence to look at ways in which we can stabilise that workforce so that people can pursue their respective careers so that their children can have greater stability so that they can have a greater connection. I don't want to see the rate of separation that we have within ADF families. I don't want to see the pressure that that puts on people when their estranged from their children. I don't want to see the financial pressures that are brought to bear when families separate. So I think there's a lot more that we can do in relation to retention. And we'll listen to the men and women, as I do as we move around the country about ways in which we can improve it to improve retention. Because I think that is a fair point to make.
In terms of recruitment. I think as we've seen over COVID, we have significant interest in people coming into the ADF. When we get a mining boom, we lose people from the ADF and other spikes in the economy. All of that will be dealt with and we will look at ways in which we can improve both those coming, the numbers coming in and the retention piece, which I think is incredibly important.
Journalist: Can we just go back to the submarines quickly. They are, I guess deep water is needed. An east coast base in Brisbane would involve the submarine traveling on the surface. Also, a Defence report in 2011 noted that one of Brisbane's strengths was the existence of the Barracks, which has since been sold. So so what has changed to make Brisbane in the top three locations for the base?
Prime Minister: One of the most important things of establishing a future for nuclear submarine capability is the people you need to be on those boats and the people who are supporting those boats. And that means you need to be able to base these operations close to a very major population centre, whether that be in Brisbane or indeed in the Newcastle-Sydney-Illawarra-Wollongong precinct of New South Wales. That means you're drawing on academic capabilities, scientific capabilities, universities, defence industry. All of this is critical for the successful operation of a nuclear propelled submarine base and not just for our submarines, as I'm sure Peter would agree because we would be looking in the much near term to be able to have visiting and even basing nuclear powered submarines from our allies and partners within AUKUS as well. And beyond our AUKUS partnerships. And so this capability is necessary, and to draw from that workforce will be essential to the support.
Now, there's no doubt that in Brisbane, there are some logistical and technical issues and they have been identified through this process as there are issues with the other two other sites, and they would have to be worked through in coming to an ultimate decision. But having considered 17 locations, these were the three that were shortlisted by the Defence as to the ones that can be best progressed. Now which of those ultimately be's the site? You could be right. It could be that the limitations of the Brisbane option means that it doesn't become the preferred option. But I can tell you another thing that's going to be important in the government's decision on this, well at least a decision my government would take. And that is the support that there is coming from state and local government to support the basing of such an operation. Now I've been, I've got to say, in terribly, terribly encouraged by the conversation that I had with Premier Perrottet about this. I've also been excited, I’ve got to say, by the more local response we've had from the Hunter in New South Wales, who seem very keen on going ahead with this, there's been from Labor councillors and Greens and others down in the Illawarra, a lot of noise that have come back in response to these things. And these are not irrelevant issues. You want to be able to working in a location where people and governments want to work with you to establish this capability.
So if local governments and state governments don't want to be involved, well, they'll be doing themselves out of a potentially very significant investment and capability and jobs in their own communities. If that's their choice, that's that's their choice.
Journalist: Is that the vibe you're getting from Queensland, then?
Prime Minister: Well at the moment, it's pretty quiet, but I'm looking forward, and I have no doubt that will come up in discussions I have with the Premier today, and I look forward to those being practical discussions. I must say the discussions I had with Premier Palaszczuk are always of that nature. We'll talk about the Olympics today and we've been looking to have that conversation for a couple of weeks. But obviously, the impact of floods and other events in Ukraine and so on has prevented that. So I'm looking forward to those discussions. That's following this press conference. It'll be over the phone. We don't have the opportunity to meet in person today because of other scheduling. But we'll have that conversation today and I'm interested to hear what her view is about these issues. I was in contact with her before we made the announcement to give them a heads up that Brisbane had been shortlisted and so they're now engaged. So we're in that process. But the very technical issues you raised are the very things that have to be worked through. We don't we don't discount that. We don't think they're not issues. They they are issues. There are issues with other sites as well. But you need to be able to work with people who are prepared to resolve them to put it in place.
Journalist: On the announcement today, it seems to be mostly targeted towards uniformed personnel. What about the civilian workforce that's going to be needed to [inaudible] $270 billion?
Prime Minister: Yeah, there's several thousand in that commitment as well. On top of it ...
Journalist: [inaudible] continue to rely on heavily paid consultants.
Prime Minister: No, there is a [inaudible] about 3,000,
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: So it goes back to Tim's point earlier as well about the ramping up the workforce, which in many cases is tied to the acquisition and delivery timetable. So there are people in uniform and people out of uniform who form part of those programs and the management of them. So you'll see in some of the numbers that was the dramatic increase, as you say, is in the number of people in uniform. There is an increase in the ASL of the Australian Public Service, so that, we'll give you those numbers afterwards. But that increases. But as I say, not at the same rate because we want to increase the numbers in uniform, but it increases the accord with the acquisition of those those programs.
Prime Minister: It's about two and a half thousand.
Journalist: But the number of consultants the Government [inaudible], will that number decrease?
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Well, I think if they were involved in essential work with Defence, no, it won't. And you'll see many people with expertise that leave Defence and go and work for different companies that we engage because they've got a skill we want in a particular program. And so where it's unnecessary, of course we won't continue, but we engage those people because they add value to the program and hopefully end up saving a lot of money and time.
Journalist: Prime Minister, the Queensland Government has highlighted the flood mitigation program. Out of 20 they applied for only three were given the funding. Can you tell Queenslanders why more of those projects weren't funded?
Prime Minister: The flood mitigation works in Australia are a primarily a state responsibility, so you may well ask the same question. Why isn't the Queensland Government funded those? We have been seeking to get a whole range of dams built in Queensland for the last eight years, and we've had an enormous amount of frustration to get dams built in this state. We have offered billions and billions for dams here in Queensland, and we would love to get on and build those dams. I know the Deputy Prime Minister is even more keen to go and build those dams. Our focus as I said yesterday, there has been frustration in the necessary mitigation, and other works, in the northern rivers of New South Wales. Those decisions at a local level have been frustrated for a generation, and I gave our commitment yesterday that we would be committing heavily to putting those works in place because we now have a Mayor in Lismore who is prepared to get on and do that, and I think that's fantastic. I gave him that support yesterday and the New South Wales Premier, I know will be doing the same. So, you know, we work with all governments around the country, but the primary responsibility for these issues rests with the Queensland Government. I mean, all through the pandemic, I was reminded every single day by premiers and by the media about what the responsibilities of state governments had and and the restrictions they could put in place and how they could tell people to live their lives and they were their responsibilities.
Journalist: This is federal funding that could have been made available.
Prime Minister: The federal funding was allocated across a large number of projects here in Queensland and other states and territories. It wasn't an unlimited fund and priorities were set and decisions were made. But when it comes to particularly urban water management and things of that nature, these are responsibilities of local authorities and the state government. So I think the question I could equally put to you, why haven't they funded them? Why, why do state governments constantly come to the federal government to pay for things that are responsibilities of state government?
Journalist: Do you understand the frustration of people out there who might be listening to this press conference, and they've all they've heard and going to the pandemic as well, is governments blaming each other about whose responsibility is what?
Prime Minister: No, I think that's a I think that's a dialogue that has been focused on by others. But the truth is, you've raised the pandemic. We've worked very closely together in the pandemic. We have the strongest economy in the advanced world. We have had higher jobs growth and higher economic growth than any of the G7 countries over the last two years. We've got one of the highest rates of vaccination anywhere in the world, and we've got one of the lowest death rates from COVID in the country, in the world. So I would say that that's a trifecta of achievement for all governments across this country. And so while some might want to focus on the odd disagreements, the actual results, as they say, if you look at the scoreboard, the scoreboard says we'd saved 40,000 lives together. The scoreboard says that we've got 250,000 more jobs than we did before the pandemic. The scoreboard says that we have one of the highest vaccination rates. It's around 95 per cent double dose vaccination of the population aged over 60. That says that the cooperation actually does take place. And if there was more focus on the cooperation that's occurring just like the cooperation we've seen here in Queensland right now in dealing with these flood responses. I mean, particularly with Premier Palaszczuk and and specifically more recently with the event in Brisbane with Mayor Schrinner. We have worked closely together and the flood response here in south east Queensland, I want to thank everybody for as I started this media conference today, we have worked closely together and that's what Australians do want to see and that's what's happening despite the odd report of a disagreement here or there. I can tell you that is not the overwhelming experience of governments working together. We're focused on the cooperation, not the differences. Thank you very much.
Press Conference - Goonellabah, NSW
9 March 2022
The Hon. Kevin Hogan MP, Member for Page: Well, look, thank you everybody, and I am here to welcome, obviously, the Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison here. We also have the Minister for Emergency Services Bridget McKenzie, and we’ve got two Mayors here, Steve Krieg from Lismore City Council and Robert Mustow from Richmond Valley Council - two of three very affected councils for this event.
Obviously you’ve all been here for some time, some of you live here. What we have had happen in this region is quite a traumatic event. Everyone in this region is going through great trauma. We’ve had some great visits today with farmers in our region, with householders in South Lismore, and we went to a number of small businesses in the region, as well. This, as you know, has been an unprecedented natural disaster. We are not saying this is a flood. This has gone beyond a flood. We know how to deal with floods in Lismore and the Richmond Valley and elsewhere, but this was a natural disaster of unprecedented destruction.
Beyond Lismore, I do want to note that I was in the lower Richmond yesterday, as Woodburn and Broadwater and Coraki become, where the floodwaters had receded and the devastation down in the lower Richmond is as severe as it is in parts of Rich, in parts of Lismore.
Announcements today, I just want to make some [inaudible]. The Prime Minister and the Minister will go through today's announcement and what's in it. But I do want to make the very important point that today is not the end. These announcements today are not the end, it's just a part of [inaudible]. The Prime Minister’s here today, day one out of COVID, to come here and survey the scene. Everyone knows, everyone tells me that you cannot know what has happened here until you see it physically. This is why the Prime Minister’s here and today is just part of that. Three focuses of mine with the Minister and the Prime Minister is ongoing income support, help to get families back into their houses, and also business support so they will reinvest in this community.
This is going to be not a week or a month. This is going to be a multi-year journey for this community and we are aware of it. We have issues like homelessness, rebuilds and flood mitigation that we need to deal with. We are hurting and we are hurting bad. And this today is about getting everyone on the same page, aligning it, we identify what we need to do and to make sure that we do this, so our communities have faith in that they will, they will reinvest and they will stay to live and thrive in this community. And on that, Prime Minister, welcome. And I thank you for being here.
Prime Minister: Thank you. Well, thank you, Kevin, in particular for the great work you've been done here in your local community. Can I acknowledge also the many other local members, I know you’ve been working closely with Janelle, who we were able to be with earlier today, and the others who are working right across the Northern Rivers area. Major General Thomae who's here with us of as well, who is the Major General heading up the Joint Taskforce, not just here in the Northern Rivers, but right across the country - in New South Wales, in Queensland, and coordinating the ADF effort, and he’ll make a few comments in a few moments, and is obviously available to take questions. To Minister McKenzie, who I’ve, this is not her first visit during the course of these floods, it’s her second and certainly won't be her last, and I don't suspect it will be mine either.
It was just over a week ago when I was in Brisbane and I was there at the start of that major, what was described by the the Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk as a ‘weather bomb’, that had fallen on Brisbane at that time, but it was moving fast towards the Northern Rivers. And while I was still there in Brisbane, that event was already unfolding here as the rain was pouring down, particularly on that Sunday night, which was the most devastating night here in the Northern Rivers that has ever been seen when it comes to a flood event. There is no flood event that has occurred in this part of Australia like this in anyone's living or recorded memory, and that is a profound statement. You don't make those things lightly. I'm advised it's a one in 500 year flood. And so we're talking about not just a flood event, because here in the Northern Rivers people prepare for flood events, and in the Northern Rivers here people prepared for a flood event on this occasion, whether it was where they moved their dairy herd to, whether it was how they shift their stock and their supplies up to a higher shelves, or move things from downstairs up to upstairs, expecting what the flood heights might be. That's not what happened. It overwhelmed everything, and it did it in an alarming and disturbing pace. And so that is the catastrophe, that national catastrophe that we're now dealing with here.
And I also want to thank Steve Krieg and Robert Mustow, the Mayors of Lismore and Richmond Valley. Sadly, last time I met with Robert was on the occasion of bushfires at Rappville. And here we are again. There was another occasion when it was about the completion of the Pacific Highway, but that was a more pleasant day. And to you, Steve, talk about a baptism as a, as a new Mayor. And I want to thank you for your leadership here on the ground, and particularly as I've just learnt from speaking to those directly involved in the response effort here. So many, whether they're working for the Council or State Emergency Services, even those in the Defence Forces called up as reservists - they're not just dealing with the flood and the catastrophe here, they're dealing with it themselves personally. They've lost their own homes, they've got their own family members who have been affected, and they're tired. And it's an emotional time. But they continue to press on and their endurance is nothing more than inspirational.
Already, through the course of this terrible flood event right across New South Wales and Queensland, the Commonwealth Government, together with the Queensland and state governments, have committed a billion dollars, and that is for the normal flood event response at a very severe end, called Cat C and Cat D funding, and that involves providing grant support, delivered through the state governments, of small businesses of up to $50,000, up to $75,000 for primary producers. This is the high end of the normal Cat C and D response that we provide in response to natural disasters such as this. That will not be enough here in the Northern Rivers, as we assessed this as a National Security Committee over the past week, and in particular as we came together as a Budget Committee, what’s known as the Expenditure Review Committee of Cabinet, yesterday.
We know very clearly that what we're seeing here, particularly in Clarence Valley, Richmond Valley and Lismore, is on a whole another scale to the floods being experienced in other parts of the country. As bad as they are, whether that be in Brisbane - I'll be up in in Queensland tomorrow - or down further south in Sydney and out in the Hawkesbury and Nepean, where they’re also used to floods. What has been seen here as I toured around the town centre today and many other areas, was nothing more than heartbreaking. And Kevin is absolutely right. You have to see it. You have to smell it. You have to feel it. And most importantly, you have to feel the incredible emotion.
I stood in a dairy farm today that they have worked on and bought together for about 30 years, wasn't it? This is a dairy farm where they raised their kids and would have run around that milking shed. And today that milking shed is a disaster zone. They no longer have a farm. They showed me where they buried 60 head of their dairy cattle. And as people who know dairy farmers know, they know them, they call them out by name, and to talk to the dairy farmer, who said he had to sit there and watch as his, as his herd suffered, it broke me up. And when I speak to businesses, when I speak to neighbours who knew there were elderly people trapped in roofs - this is a tough town and they've responded in an incredible way in compassion towards one another.
So the Commonwealth has responded - a billion dollars in what we’d call, I would call what is the expected normal response to a natural disaster. But we must go further. The Commonwealth Disaster Payments that we've paid around the country now total some $385 million. That's money already paid by the Commonwealth, 100 per cent, directly into people's bank accounts, and that’s some 330,000 claims that has been done in one week, and that will continue as those claims continue to come forward.
But in the, in the first instance, in the council areas of Richmond Valley, Lismore and Clarence Valley, we will be extending those Commonwealth Disaster Payments for a further two payments. So those who have already received that $1,000 payment or $400 for their children, for each and every child, automatically from the 15th and and the 22nd of this month, they will receive exactly the same payment again into their bank accounts. Now, on average, those who have received payments on each claim are pulling in $2,300 to $2,400 in those Commonwealth Disaster Payments. So that will be a further two on average payments of that order for those families. For those with more children, obviously the payments are higher. For those as an individual, it would be $1,000.
Now that will be an extra $33 million that will be put directly, we estimate, into cash flow, income support for those most affected through the inundation and impact of these floods. That's on top of what is already the $16.5 million that has already been paid. So that's $50 million directly going into the pockets of those most affected in just three council areas. The National Recovery and Resilience Agency will be assessing whether that would be extended to any other council areas in this, what we call this high impact zone, this high catastrophe impact zone, and they will make further assessments, and the Minister will make announcements subsequently as to how we might do that.
In addition, I'm announcing today that we will be providing, together with the New South Wales Government - and I've spoken to the Treasurer, to the Premier about this - support for Norco in northern New South Wales on a bespoke business support package. We are identifying and will be working with the local councils to identify what I'd call other anchor businesses that are so critical to the future of the Northern Rivers economy to help them get back on their feet and ensure we're providing tailored economic business support.
We've done this before in other parts of the country, most notably when I think of the North Queensland floods back in 2019 and late 2018. That was an area that was devastated by floods. They lost almost their entire cattle herd, and they were looking at the future. Not unlike I know people in the Northern Rivers are looking at their future today and wondering whether there will be one. What I want to tell them, there is a future for you, just as there was a future for those in North Queensland. They are now back on their feet. They are farming again. They are exporting again. Their towns are alive again, and they've pushed through with the support of the Commonwealth Government, the local government and the State Government in Queensland. That is what will happen here in the Northern Rivers.
In addition, there'll be $10 million of support for mental health of school aged children in the Northern Rivers. There's some $5.5 million dollars to boost existing legal assistance services, which will be matched by the state governments, for operating within affected communities. There's a lot of legal support you need to go through when you're dealing with a disaster such as this, and we'll be providing that support.
There's $25 million additional to the emergency relief and food relief and financial counselling services. These are supports going over the entire New South Wales and Queensland flood affected areas. There's $31.2 million to deliver immediate and longer term mental health support services in for individuals, families and communities. There are other measures that just set out in the statement, which I won't go into detail about.
The point is, economic support, mental health support, helping businesses get back up on their feet, providing that immediate cash flow assistance right now over the next few weeks. Why are we doing that? We're doing that to give the breathing space so people can have the confidence that tomorrow morning they'll be able to put food on the table in those most affected areas. They'll be able to put petrol in the car, if they indeed have a car, or they'll be able to make some other arrangement, and they won't be completely devoid of economic resources to do those things over the next couple of weeks.
Over the next couple of weeks, that will enable the Federal Government and the State Government to put in more sustainable arrangements for income support, for business support, to see those grants processes flowing. The National Recovery Allowance, the Disaster Recovery Allowance, which is a 13-week payment for those who actually can't work because work's not there or they can't get to work because they're cut off, that payment is already in place now, and we'll be looking at its adequacy over a longer term period.
The next steps, as we've discussed with the, with the Mayors today, and I've discussed with the Premier - he and I have been in constant contact and he's still here in the region and has been for many days now - is that we need to get the economy back on its feet and that is through the payments that I've referred to, the income support. We also need to get all of the rubbish off the median strips and get that taken away. I think that's going to be a major lift for the community once we can do that. The estimates I have, speaking to the Council today, is that we're still looking, that'll probably take around about a month, we expect to achieve that, and we're going to need even more trucks. The ADF has rolled all of those in, but the ADF on its own will not be able to complete that task. In fact, it will need far more than what even the ADF can bring to this task to achieve that. And so getting those trucks in to remove all that rubbish, but I've got to tell you, to all of those, what they've done in these last few days to clear out those homes in such an incredible rate of speed has been extraordinary, and I commend everybody for that work that they've been doing, which has, of course, involved the ADF, SES and many others, and just neighbours helping each other, people travelling up from other parts of the state to help family members and friends, and I thank them for doing that.
We've also got to give people hope about the future of the Northern Rivers. Now these issues have been debated in in and around Lismore for a very long time. I’ve spoken to it with the Mayor and the Minister and the Premier. We need to get this sorted. We need to ensure that once we can finalise the works that need to be done as part of managing the flood mitigation impacts here in the Northern Rivers, get done. Enough of the talk. People have known what needs to be done for a long time. That needs to be driven by the local decisions here, by the Council. If further hydrology work is required, then we will support that with additional funding to get that completed. But this isn't about if, this is about what and when, and that's where we need to get to and we need to get there.
The Emergency Response Fund of the Commonwealth will be used to support doing those works, and I'm not talking tens of millions. I'm talking more than that. And those costings will be settled between the Commonwealth and the State Government and the local governments, to the extent that they're able to contribute to those works, because we have to get this done, because this is how this works. I've seen this in North Queensland, as well in other parts of northern Australia. If you can't insure, then people can't build houses there. If you can't insure, people can't run businesses there, people can't rebuild and restock their dairy farms if they can't insure. And for the insurance companies to be able to insure, then we have to be able to increase the certainty that they have about how these types of devastating floods can impact this region. That's the future I want for Northern Rivers. That's the hope I want to give, and I can give you an absolute commitment on behalf of my Government that we will fund those works, together with the State Government and the local government, to ensure that people can have confidence about rebuilding here in the Northern Rivers. Sorry to take so long, I'll take some questions in a few moments. Bridget, did you want to say a few words?
Senator the Hon. Bridget McKenzie, Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience: Just briefly, PM, thank you. It's great to be back in Lismore. One of the things Steve, the Mayor, said to me when I was here on Sunday, when we were discussing about next steps, what are, what is the Commonwealth's role? What is the local government's role? What is the State Government's role? And there was debate around, you know, are we going to rebuild in this fabulous community? And the Mayor said to me, Lismore loves Lismore. And so I've taken that back to Canberra and to the meetings that I've been in since Sunday about how do we ensure that Lismore that loves Lismore, and wants to stay and rebuild a sustainable future here in Lismore, is able to do that. And I think the Prime Minister has outlined some ways, some first steps that we're taking as a Federal Government to provide that certainty to individuals, to households, to businesses that you have a bright, sustainable future in this region, not just Lismore. But I do want to give a shout out to Coraki, to Broadwater, to Woodburn, to Wardell, those smaller outpost communities who are also devastated by this event in the Richmond Valley.
We've decided that three LGAs are going to be able to access specific and special support, and the Prime Minister has outlined some of those. Didn't matter whether I was in Gympie and Maryborough on Saturday, or Lismore here last Sunday, wherever I go in this particular event, mental health is raised time and time again. What we have to remember in many of these communities is the compounding impact of disasters - of drought, of bushfire, of COVID, and now in this community, a catastrophic natural disaster - and the impact that that has not just on communities’ confidence, but long-term mental health impacts. I'm particularly excited that we're investing in a resilient kids program. This is a program that we know works on the ground with school aged children. It's for children who are experiencing anxiety, who have autism, to really get that specialist targeted care they need, not just in the immediate aftermath of the event, but in the years that follow it. We know that most of the people impacted at the moment are running on adrenaline, and the till will get open, and the shopfront will be furled, and then it'll be bang, the impact will be felt on their mental health. So we are committing for the long-term here.
I've been tasked, obviously this is the first step in what's going to be a long, long road to recovery. And I'm excited to be part of a Government that's going to partner up with the New South Wales Government around that flood mitigation strategy going forward with the Lismore Council to make sure that primary producers, businesses and householders can invest in confidence. We're going to give you that confidence. I'm going to be working on more of those packages, as outlined by the Prime Minister, with the New South Wales Government, and I'm confident that we'll be having more to say about that shortly. But PM, that's it for me for now.
Major General David Thomae, Australian Defence Force: Thank you, Prime Minister. I'd just like to start by acknowledging the efforts of all of the emergency response forces, the Australian Defence Force, the SES, and the local community here in Lismore, who responded to that catastrophic event. From an Australian Defence Force perspective, we were here actually before the event occurred, and our local reservists from the 41st Battalion of the Royal New South Wales Regiment have been on the task from that first day. Additionally, we had aviation assets conducting search and rescue operations in those days, saving 113 people off the roofs in south east Queensland and northern New South Wales. Those reservists often did it at considerable personal cost. The Commanding Officer of the 41st Battalion is a helicopter rescue pilot, and she has stood aside from that responsibility to support her community and come from that community to support.
The Australian Defence Force has ramped up its presence in the Northern Rivers. As of today, we will be 1,800 people, building up to 4,000 in the coming days. That will be a combination of engineers, general duties, people to support each of the communities, and I have nine aircraft helicopters to get around and push people into those most needy communities as we move forward. Our engineers have been on the streets of Lismore and conducting assessments and, across into those remote communities to find out where the need is. We've been conducting airdrops of food and water, and supporting the Indigenous communities south of Lismore, and we will continue to do so. Thank you, Prime Minister.
Prime Minister: Now the other thing I should have mentioned, it's already been flagged earlier today, that the national state of emergency declaration, which was established after the Black Summer bushfires and the Royal Commission that was held, I announced my intention to recommend to the Governor-General a national emergency declaration, covering the severe weather and flooding events across both New South Wales and Queensland, to ensure all our emergency powers are available and that we cut through any red tape that might be faced. That's the principal purpose of that declaration, and that declaration requires me to consult both with the New South Wales Premier and the Queensland Premier. I've spoken to the New South Wales Premier today. The way this occurs is they both write to me requesting that that be put in place, and I've had that a positive discussion with the New South Wales Premier today. I’m meeting with the Queensland Premier tomorrow when I'm in Brisbane, and all of that being in train, I intend to meet with the Governor-General on Friday in Canberra to be able to complete those formalities. So that would be the first time a national emergency declaration has been put in place for a natural disaster since those powers were established after the Black Summer bushfires.
Journalist: Why was the media banned from the tour this morning?
Prime Minister: Sorry?
Journalist: Your tour of the farm this morning - why was the media banned? No cameras were allowed there.
Prime Minister: Out of respect for the privacy of those I was speaking with. I came to speak with them and, you know, in disasters like this, not everybody wants a camera shoved in their face while they're trying to share their heart with you. So I came up here to listen to them and what they're going through and understand what was needed for their primary production business or their local paint business, or those of householders themselves, about what was needed to ensure that we can get this town back on its feet. And that has assisted me in the other meetings I've had today, particularly with the Mayors, in talking through very practical issues like getting rid of the rubbish, as well as working through practical issues involving the re-establishment of businesses. Now you'll be joining me for a visit this afternoon, I understand, but my primary purpose is to be, come here to ensure that I understand fully what we need to do, and the alignment of what our plans are and our announcements are, with the needs that are here in community.
Journalist: Is it not a flawed plan that the premiers have to write to you in writing to be able to get this to be declared a disaster? Everyone could see last week that it was going to be a disaster here.
Prime Minister: Well, that's the requirement of the legislation.
Journalist: Does it need to be overhauled?
Prime Minister: Well, I'd make two comments. First of all, we have moved from a major flood event to a natural disaster. That is what has occurred over the course of the last few days. And at this stage, state of emergencies have not been declared at a state level in either New South Wales, or to the best of my knowledge, in Queensland. And so it will actually be the Commonwealth that’ll be the first to move on that. All this does is effectively remove some red tape when it comes to how Commonwealth agencies are able to perform their duties in relation to this disaster. It doesn't impact on the ADF resources. They're already fully available. It doesn't trigger any payments. Those payments have already been made. It doesn't trigger Cat C, Cat D or Cat A or Cat B assistance. The arrangements under that model have already been implemented. So, you know, it’s another part of the process, but, frankly, it’s not the most urgent. The most urgent has been making $385 million in payments in one week. The most urgent was ensuring that the ADF was in place, as they were here on the Friday before the terrible event that occurred on the Sunday night, and the rotary wing [inaudible], the helicopters were here on that Monday, rescuing people. I met with one of the team who were part of those rescues today and thanked them.
I particularly want to thank all the ADF. Now I know there's been some criticism, both levelled at Federal Government, State Government, but don't blame the ADF, ok. We won't cop that. The ADF are doing an amazing job.
Journalist: Who should people blame when if the vast majority of rescues carried out on that Monday were carried out by private citizens in private vessels, some of them were even on kayaks. And if they had not been there, hundreds of people would have died. So who who do those people blame?
Prime Minister: What I'm going to do is thank those. This is about thanking those who, in the midst of that disaster, were able to be first on the scene. I think we have to be realistic that in any natural disaster we don't have those resources which has ADF just waiting around the corner. I mean, we were assembling those resources. We were pre-positioning those people. In fact, there were ADF saving people with helicopters, winching them off roofs on Monday, and that was occurring. But in any natural disaster, everyone has a role to play. And the suggestion that it is only the governments that are involved in an emergency response - I don't think the community agrees with that, by the way, and they certainly showed that by what they did bravely. I met a young man today who, after fishing his father out of his dairy flood, got on his, on his jet ski, and went into town and was rescuing people over the course of that day. That's what Australians do, and I think always there will be a community response in disasters such as this because the community is already there, and the resources move and they come in, as you’re seeing now, but they're not available on a moment's notice. And I think it's unrealistic to have that set as an expectation. What has occurred has been a flood event, which even on the Sunday, before this occurred on the Sunday evening, was still not being forecast to tip above what was the highest level flood ever in the Northern Rivers. It has taken everybody, including the community, by surprise. No one expected it to get to those levels. And so what we're dealing with here is an extraordinary event. Australia is becoming a harder country to live in because of these natural disasters. And that's why we've established agencies like the Recovery and Resilience Agency. That's why we held the Royal Commission into the bushfires. That's why Resilience New South Wales has been established, and that's why the lessons from all of these disasters have been applied. And so it will always be a joint response from community, from governments and other agencies to ensure Australians get through.
Journalist: Australian’s couldn’t get through on triple zero. Australian’s couldn’t get through on triple zero, mate.
Prime Minister: Let’s just do this civilly, and let’s, I'm happy to take questions one at a time.
Journalist: Prime Minister, last year you said that you understood climate change. Climate change is real and climate change is happening now. And you said you've met with the National Security Committee about this. We've seen all sorts of issues raised about Defence, deployment of Defence resources. Do you now consider climate disasters a national security issue?
Prime Minister: Well, I think that, I've said as much in the past. I mean, we are dealing with a different climate to the one we were dealing with before. I think that's just an obvious fact. And Australia is getting hard to live in because of these disasters. This is why we have put in a $10 billion reinsurance pool to ensure that we can insure livelihoods and businesses and homes in the north of Australia. I mean, we are already taking action on all of these. The practical consequences of what you're talking about are the policies that the Government has been enacting. And so we do recognise that. We have committed to net zero by 2050. But the things that will actually help save people here in flood events like this are the sort of mitigation and other works that frankly haven't been done here for some time and have been frustrated over a long period of time. So that's why I'm saying it's time to get over that and to get it done to ensure that people can have a future here on the Northern Rivers.
Journalist: So whose fault is it that those things haven't been done?
Prime Minister: Well, I can only say that those who have resisted them being done.
Journalist: The Government?
Prime Minister: Well, these are not things, the Mayor might want to have a chat about this because he's just run an election campaign on this very issue. And that's a local issue, which I don't intend to get into. Other than to say the Council are keen to go ahead with this, and I can tell you, the Commonwealth Government’s keen to get ahead with it.
Journalist: So is it the State Government’s that holding out?
Prime Minister: No, the State Government yet will be there too. We'll all be there.
Journalist: Prime Minister, is it not unreasonable the community, is it not unreasonable the community, who have been so hard-hit, have borne such a burden in the rescue and coordination in this response? Aside from physical rescues, as the ABC mentioned just here, people couldn't get through on on triple zero. There was a local Lismore woman who set up a database of people urgently waiting to be rescued from their homes. Is that not unreasonable? They had to do so much.
Prime Minister: Well, I think Australians will always step up, regardless of how tough the circumstances.
Journalist: But should that burden be on them?
Prime Minister: Well, I think, I think state governments in those situations and the premier has, I think, already addressed that, when he's, when he's spoken to you over the course of the week. Of course, those responses are managed by the State Government. I'm not making criticisms there. That's just the assignment of those responsibilities. The Commonwealth Government does not run the triple 0 service, but all of the services with an event like this, which has put unprecedented strain on local and state resources in particular and federal resources when it comes to responding to an event of this scale - unprecedented, unforeseen - is obviously going to have an impact. And it doesn’t matter whether you're the most advanced economy in the world or a developing country. Natural disasters of this scale have a brutal and terrible impact, and what you do is you get in and you work together and you seek to restore the situation as quickly and as compassionately as you possibly can. You work with the local community to achieve that, and that's exactly what we're doing. We've spoken today about every arm of government - federal, state, local, all the agencies - doing their job, doing the job they're responsible for, focusing on getting that job done. And that's exactly what's happening.
Journalist: [Inaudible] there is actually the reason why people on the ground feel like they've been abandoned. That's what they've said. They feel like they've been abandoned by government - State Government, Federal Government. Do you understand why they feel that way?
Prime Minister: Yes, I do. And it is, it is very common in natural disasters that the frustration and the anger and the sense of abandonment, this happens in almost every natural disaster, because of the scale.
Journalist: Do you take responsibility because of why they feel abandoned?
Prime Minister: I feel deeply and empathise absolutely with how people feel when they find themselves in these situations. As the rain comes pouring down and places are cut off and the inability of get help, to be able to get help, whether they be Defence Force assets or trucks and vehicles and others. This is a very complex and very challenging environment in which to operate. But I am in awe of the collective response that has been put in place, so I absolutely understand the frustration. I understand the anger. I understand the disappointment. I understand the sense of abandonment. So what do we do about that? We restore. We support. We fund. And as I said, making sure that we can get that emergency financial assistance into people's pockets, which was done in a matter of instantaneously, within a week. And we'll continue to do that.
Journalist: Prime Minister, when the flood waters did recede and people were able to get back into their homes and started cleaning them out.
Prime Minister: Yes.
Journalist: People were saying that they did not have enough support from government agencies, particularly, you know, the Federal Government support that they wanted. Are you saying that people were lying when they were saying that they weren’t supported?
Prime Minister: No, I'm not saying anything like that, and I haven't suggested that remotely, and I, and I don't agree with the way you've phrased the question. I don't think in situations like this there can ever be enough support. There can never be enough support in a natural disaster such as this. I mean, no amount of support is going to measure up to what people need in a desperate situation like this. I'm just being honest with you. I mean, every resource can be applied, but I can guarantee you, whatever is supplied will still not measure up because of the sheer desperation of the situation people found themselves in. But what I am amazed at, as we've seen this in disaster after disaster around this country, is the combination of both the community response together with the response provided by local, state and federal governments, means right here, right now, we are in the process of rebuilding, and we will, we will rebuild.
Journalist: The Premier has apologised for the response and for the issues raised here by my colleagues. Do you, and he’s also said there will be an enquiry into the response. Do you share, I guess, does the Federal Government share any of that, you know, do you also apologise for the way the response has been carried out? And do you also want to see an enquiry into the way this response has been handled?
Prime Minister: On the enquiry, we would fully cooperate with any enquiry undertaken by the New South Wales State Government. I think they’d be the appropriate jurisdiction to do that. I think the floods that we've seen here, the catastrophic event that we've seen here in the Northern Rivers, is on a scale beyond what we've seen more broadly in the flood events across New South Wales and in Queensland. You’ll recall after the Black Summer bushfires, we called the Royal Commission into that. Royal Commissions were not called by state governments in New South Wales, Queensland or Victoria, but there was cooperation with the Federal Royal Commission. In this case, a state-led commission of enquiry, Royal Commission or whatever the Premier thinks is appropriate, well, that is something, of course, the Commonwealth would wholly cooperate with.
Journalist: And the apology - do you believe that the Federal Government owes the people of Lismore an apology for the response?
Prime Minister: As I said, I don't think any amount of support was ever going to be enough. And so every Federal Government would always be apologetic and would always apologise that you're never going to be able to provide enough support in these situations. And so I do understand that, and I do respect that. And that's why I do apologise that the amount of support that has been provided and continues to be provided, I still don't believe will always meet the expectations that are just at, you know, very high levels, and understandably so. But I can tell you what, we're going to pull out every stop and every resource to ensure that we meet it as we can, and it won't be the first time we've achieved that … Hang on, I haven’t finished. I've stood in rooms just like this with the same questions, whether it be in North Queensland and other places, and on every one of those occasions I've said the same thing - that we will stick in and we will get this done. And that is what has occurred. And so for those sitting at home who may be listening to that, who are in the flood-impacted zones, I know that right now you're going, how’s this all going to work? How am I going to get out of this? What does this mean for my job, my family, my business, my farm? Am I ever going to see a time again where I'm living here in the Northern Rivers or up in Gympie or places in Hawkesbury and Nepean where it's going to be like it was? Well, I'm going to tell you that has been achieved before in other places, provided we address the things that need to be addressed, whether it's the the longer term resilience to flooding here in the Northern Rivers, and we act on that, it's the rebuilding of the businesses which we commit to today with the New South Wales State Government, or indeed the immediate financial support, which is being provided to ensure that people can get through tomorrow. And the Defence support, which will continue to roll in and ensure that we continue to clean-up and we move into the recovery phase.
Journalist: [Inaudible] declare a national emergency. Why did it take so long?
Prime Minister: Well, I don't think it has taken long and I don't think it, I mean, we're following the process that is required for such a declaration. And so, you know, as yet, we still haven't received a formal recommendation from either of those states. And that's why I've taken the initiative to request such a direction or a recommendation. And I look forward to that to be completed over the course of the week.
Journalist: But why wasn’t it done seven or eight days ago?
Prime Minister: Because the nature of the disaster over a week ago was different to what has emerged over the last week.
Journalist: Where are people going to live? So we’ve got thousands of people, most of whom do not have flood insurance. They’re saying $1,000 barely gets them a bed back.
Prime Minister: Yeah, the, I want to be very clear. The Commonwealth Disaster Payments are not intended to solve every single economic need that people have. That is not their purpose. The purpose of those $1,000 payments, which for a family is on average about $2,300, and so within a matter of three weeks there, for those three local government areas, there'll be payments of an average of around $7,500 provided to each of those families. It's designed to deal with the most immediate of needs, even if that involves, you know, a night's accommodation here or travel to an area where they can get where they can find accommodation. The accommodation requirements here are going to be significant. And so I'm looking forward to seeing the package of supports and measures that will come from the State Government who will, who will manage that response in dealing with the accommodation issues, as we have done in other places with other state governments. And we will be financially supporting those initiatives that are put in place by the State Government. But the point, the point I'm making today is, right now people will need some more cash in their pocket to get us through the next week or so.
And that's what we're doing today, and that will give us further time and space to put more economic measures in place so people can see the next step ahead. In these disasters, it's very important to remain focused on the next step ahead. What's the next step ahead? Getting the rubbish off the street into trucks and getting it removed. What's the next step? Getting some more money into people's pockets so they can get through the next few days as they deal with the trauma of what's occurred to them over the course of what has just been a week. What is the next step? The next step is ensuring that the packages of support to deal with businesses, with accommodation, with primary producers, are finalised, and the business liaison teams and advisers and others can come and sit down with people and make sure they're getting the support they need to ensure they can get back on their feet again. And it's about ensuring that the Commonwealth, state and local governments are working together to deal with the longer term resilience issues for floods in this area and to get that work finalised, detailed, funded and done.
Journalist: As more Australians are impacted by extreme weather events, are you concerned that more and more people are going to become very angry because they don't think your Government is doing enough to wean Australia off coal and other fossil fuels?
Prime Minister: Well, I'd make two points. Obviously, climate change is having an impact here in Australia, as it is in every country around the world. And that's why, as a Government, we committed, we are the first government to commit to net zero by 2050 in Australia. That's what our Government did. That's what we've done. Our Government has now seen emissions fall by over 20 per cent. You know, they can't say that in New Zealand. They can't say that in Canada. They can't say that in Japan. They can't say that in the United States. You can say it here in Australia, because that's what we've achieved through the climate policies that have seen emissions fall. And we've got $21 billion invested over the next 10 years to ensure that we continue to reduce those emissions. But this is one of the big differences between our climate policies and perhaps some others. I'll tell you what's not going to fix climate change. What's not going to fix it is just doing something in Australia, and then in other developing countries, their emissions continue to rise. That won't change the climate here in the Northern Rivers. What changes the climate in the Northern Rivers is if the global climate is affected, and that's why the technology work that we're doing, which we're doing with Indonesia, which we're doing with Vietnam, which we're doing with India, with countries that have rising emissions profiles, we need to be able to give them the commercial technology that enables their countries to get on a lower emissions net zero emissions profile over the next generation. Now, if you don't achieve that, you know, you can get a warm, fuzzy feeling here in Australia. And I think it's great that we have reduced emissions by 20 per cent, and I think it's great we've got a commitment to get to net zero by 2050. But the real challenge of addressing climate change is ensuring that we're working together with other countries in our region, and particularly developing countries, to ensure we have the technology that changes how they're able to grow their economies. And that's what Australia is seeking to do. And as a leader in the world is seeking to do. Thanks, everyone.
Virtual Address, AFR Business Summit
8 March 2022
PRIME MINISTER: Well, good morning everyone, and thank you for the introduction Michael. I can tell you quite openly that I am living with COVID, like Australia is, and I’m sorry I can’t be there in person with you this morning, as a result of the isolation, but I’m looking forward to coming out of isolation tomorrow.
Can I also begin today by congratulating the AFR on on 70 years. Joining you at this Summit this morning, as Michael has just said, is another milestone in the AFR’s illustrious career in Australia.
I also want to begin by acknowledging the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, and pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging.
And recognising any veterans, as I always do, and servicemen and women, and thank them for their service. And particularly today on International Women’s Day, can I particularly thank all of those women who are serving in our Defence Forces all around the country, and particularly right now as Australia faces these further terrible floods and natural disasters, especially up there in northern NSW. I’ll have a bit more to say about the economic participation of women, which is at record levels in Australia at this moment.
We gather at an important moment in world history and at an uncertain time for our global economy.
The overlay of an uneven global recovery from the pandemic, unprovoked military aggression in Europe, in Ukraine, an energy and commodity price shock, and continued geostrategic risks in our own region, this all creates a highly complex and risky external environment. It’s no place for amateurs.
It brings to the fore how we think about the nexus between security and economic policy and national resilience - a topic that has been building in importance over recent years. And I can extend back to my time as Treasurer when I highlighted national resilience, particularly national economic resilience, as so essential for a country to be successful.
Because the countries that can best manage this delicate balance, of economic and national security, these are the ones that will succeed in the decade ahead. The ones that can get this balance right, get this calibration right - they are the countries that will succeed. And in that context, Australia is at the leading edge.
This morning I want to make a few remarks about today’s heightened global economic uncertainty, before addressing Australia’s economic position and the steps that our Government is taking to support business-led growth. Let me underline that, you’ll hear me say it a bit - business-led growth - and national economic resilience.
As we entered the final quarter of 2021, the prospects for strengthening global economic growth into this year, in 2022, were very positive.
The global rollout of vaccines and falling infections of the Delta strain were supporting growing confidence, as Michael said, that a durable global recovery from the pandemic would take hold this year.
Australia was especially well-placed. And the National Accounts have confirmed that.
According to the December quarter National Accounts, GDP was up 3.4 per cent above our pre-COVID level. And Australia’s employment in December was also well above pre-COVID levels.
Australia’s economic and job generation performance has outpaced every single G7 economy during the two years of the global pandemic. And particularly on job creation, even more strongly so.
Now this is a stubborn fact for those who try to advance a different narrative about the Government's economic performance during this pandemic.
As 2021 drew to a close, Omicron, though, generated a new wave of health and economic challenges for the whole world, not just Australia, and it hit us hard too.
Globally, case numbers spiked to unprecedented levels, though deaths remained moderate compared to previous waves, thankfully.
Omicron was not just a new variant, it was like dealing with a completely different virus. All the rules changed, overturning so many of the virus management norms we’d become accustomed to and accepted, and even relied upon right across the country at a federal and state level as we were managing COVID. It changed everything.
Furloughing rules designed for Delta caused significant disruption to our labour force, and supply chains in particular. Testing protocols collapsed supply chains for Rapid Antigen Tests that had previously had only been assigned an ancillary purpose by official medical advice, only weeks before.
There were plenty who were wise after the event, there always are, but we all worked together solidly over the summer, and as outbreaks largely peaked and stabilised by late January, and high vaccination and rising booster rates meant we weathered the health impacts comparatively well, this meant Australia was able to move forward. Hospitalisation rates in Australia over Omicron peaked at less than half the OECD average.
Now these outcomes enabled children to go back to school as planned, albeit with a few little changes, for people to go back to work, and for the national reopening plan that we set in train back in June/July of last year, to start moving forward once again. And we’re living that now.
Despite the challenges over summer, our economic resilience held. Our unemployment rate held steady at a 13-year low of 4.2 per cent, 4.2 per cent, in December and January.
But we did face acute pressures in some key areas.
Fortunately, while Omicron is continuing to circulate in the community, the worst of the workforce and broader economic impacts from the latest strain would seem to be behind us, and we welcome that.
And this has given state governments the confidence to end many of the health restrictions that had been in place, including state border closures, and I’m so pleased that the country is whole again with the opening of the Western Australian state border.
Likewise, it has given the Commonwealth Government the confidence to re-open our international borders.
But there always remains the risk, of course, of a new strain of the virus reaching our shores, and therefore the uncertainties of COVID, well, regrettably, they will continue to remain with us. But we can’t let them overwhelm us or intimidate us.
And to that end, this Friday I will join the premiers and chief ministers, as we’ve done on more than 60 occasions over the course of this pandemic in the last two years, to review Australia’s winter preparedness plan that we set in train some weeks ago.
There are also other risks that the Australian economy is facing.
The catastrophic flooding in Queensland and New South Wales, following on floods in South Australia, are an unfortunate reminder that natural disasters are increasing in their frequency and intensity, with devastating impacts on communities.
The initial phase of economic support is being provided to support communities to clean-up and remove damage and debris. We’re particularly seeing that up in in Queensland, which has really now moved into the recovery phase.
More than $1 billion has been directed to NSW and Queensland in 50-50, joint-funded support for small business, primary producers and local governments. Now this is on top of the individuals and families payments. Emergency payments are now more than $200 million, which have already gone out the door in just a week.
The destruction and devastation in the Northern Rivers is well beyond anything previously experienced. I mean, it’s two metres higher, the flood level that was experienced there, than the highest ever recorded flood in that part of Australia. It is just mind-boggling, the scale of this flood in in and around Lismore. And I’ve been speaking, in constant contact with the Premier about this. He’s up there right now and has been for several days, and he’s been giving me regular reports, as have my Ministers that have been through. And I’m, I’ll be there this week, as soon as I can come out of isolation, to see this first hand, and talk to the community, not just about the short-term clean-up and the challenges that we face in the immediate response, which have been significant because of the scale of this flood, but also the long-term reconstruction efforts that are going to be needed.
Just like we did for the North Queensland floods some years ago, not just in Townsville but particularly out in Western Queensland, where we almost lost our entire cattle herd, our livestock industry in North Queensland. They were devastated. There was an inland sea. And so we got about the task of rebuilding. And in the same way that we stood with the people of North Queensland at that time, our Government, the Australian Government, will stand with those communities in the Northern Rivers to support them as they clean-up and rebuild, now and in the months and years ahead.
Right now, the Government is is finalising its first wave of over and above measures, particularly for the Northern Rivers area. The New South Wales Government is doing the same. And we’re looking to integrate those plans as much as possible to ensure that we can rebuild Northern New South Wales, particularly in the most acutely affected area in and around Lismore. And I will have more to say to that in coming days. And the Expenditure Review Committee of of Cabinet is meeting again this afternoon, the National Security Committee met yesterday again. We’ve been meeting very frequently during this particular crisis of floods. This is not just a flood event, I should say, in North New South Wales. This is a catastrophe on a very national scale.
Looking abroad, the global economy faces new headwinds.
Rising prices of energy and broader wage cost pressures in the US have brought forward expectations for when the Federal Reserve will start to unwind the unprecedented level of monetary stimulus that it has in place.
Higher US interest rates and less global liquidity could weigh on capital flows to middle and low-income countries, with implications for their growth.
Those developing countries that have accumulated significant debt during the crisis face particular risks.
And of course, recently we’ve seen Russia’s threats towards Ukraine escalate into a brutal, unprovoked and unconscionable attack - ripping up the norms and rules which have kept Europe and the world largely at peace since the end of World War II.
Now I dealt with Australia’s response to these events at some length in my remarks to the Lowy Institute yesterday. And I I won’t rehearse them again here.
Europe will of course suffer the biggest economic impacts from Russia’s aggression.
The uncertainty caused by the conflict - and how bad it might get, and is likely to get - is already having negative confidence effects that are weighing on both financial markets and Europe’s real economy.
More directly, Europe is particularly dependent on Russian energy - and in the short-term will struggle to diversify away. Russia, after all, supplies 40 per cent of Europe’s energy.
Now one of the key issues that I’ve discussed with European leaders, particularly Chancellor Scholz and the Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki, both of these leaders have been highlighting these issues, and the role that Australia can play to assist them, particularly in Germany we are doubling down on our energy partnership, particularly in relation to hydrogen. These issues have highlighted the role that Australia can and should be playing in the energy futures of Europe.
Gas prices in Europe have more than doubled over the last few months and higher energy costs will depress economic activity.
But the economic implications are wider than just Europe.
Global oil prices have traded over $US130, the highest since 2008. And this reflects expectations of supply interruptions for many months to come.
Food and grain prices are also rising, which will pose challenges to lower income economies, including many in our own region.
At least in relative terms, Australia remains very well-placed to manage this shock.
Merchandise trade with Russia and Ukraine is 0.2 per cent of our total two-way trade with the rest of the world, limiting the direct impact.
Commodity price rises will be the most obvious transmission channel to Australia.
Petrol prices in Australia have risen, like they are elsewhere. At the bowser it’s now around 185 cents, a bit higher in my part of Sydney down in the Sutherland Shire, a litre, and on average in metro areas.
But in contrast to most other advanced economies, much of what Russia and Ukraine export, we do also.
And still, we are not immune from the negative impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on global growth as well.
And there are some supply chains for important imports that run through Russia and Ukraine that may be disrupted, and have our close attention.
For example, Urea Ammonium Nitrate supplies to our agricultural sector – we are closely monitoring supply and working with industry to ensure we have alternatives, if needed.
These are just the first order impacts of Russia’s actions. The longer term geo-strategic and economic implications, though, are much more profound.
Russia’s actions undermine global stability and the global order that has delivered so much to our world.
This is a moment of truth for all countries who say they value global rules and norms based on respect for international law and the sovereignty of all nations.
In the post-Cold war era, the world prospered enormously from rapid globalisation and the heightened inter-dependence that came with it via trade and financial linkages.
Living standards in Australia and around the world rose enormously as a result, with billions of people lifted out of poverty.
Opening up to international trade and competition, liberalising capital markets and policies that promote a market-based, private sector driven economy, business-led growth, are proven factors critical to economic success.
However, recent events have highlighted some important truths.
Firstly, global economics is downstream from global politics.
A relatively open and free trade and financial order is not a naturally occurring phenomenon. It never has been.
The nature of the great power at the centre of our global systems matters decisively - together with their animating ideas and ideals.
And secondly, as Martin Wolf observed the other day, the tectonic plates of geopolitics have shifted such that Western liberal democracies now need to manage strategic security an overriding imperative for their economic policy.
Now this is what my Government always has done. This is not news to us. We have always been very clear-eyed about the link between national security and economic security.
We face these incredibly unique times. We have moved into a new era.
The world has become a more uncertain, less stable and more dangerous place. The economic agendas are just not re-heats from the 1990s. We need to address the challenge that exists in this day, in this age.
And it’s important to stress that strong national security and genuine economic security, they go hand-in-hand. They are two sides of the same coin. And this drives our outlook.
Our security as a nation underpins our prosperity and peace of mind - our national resilience and our national sovereignty.
This means businesses have confidence to invest for the long-term. Families can plan for their future with confidence. Communities can flourish.
Conversely, without a strong economy we cannot achieve the sort of security, sovereignty and freedoms Australians have aspired to.
A strong economy allows us to make the necessary investments to protect our nation in the face of rapidly changing security threats, and to maintain sovereignty over decision making, including in times of crisis.
A strong economy means a stronger future. If you can’t manage a strong economy, then you can’t manage Australia’s national security. And the Government has demonstrated its credentials on both of these fronts consistently over our entire time in Government.
Now Australia’s record of resilience and our strong economic fundamentals provide the foundations of successful sovereignty in this new, more dangerous era.
But let me remind you of one simple fact.
Prior to the pandemic, Australia had sustained a world record in, by some accounts, of over 28 years of uninterrupted economic growth.
Now this was unmatched by other advanced economies, both in terms of duration and the rate of growth.
And that’s why, frankly, I’ve never really been in the, and caught up in the hoopla, of the ‘Build Back Better’ camp, that opportunistically sees the post-COVID recovery as some opportunity to replace our market-based, business-led growth economic system, with a Government-centred reimagination of global capitalism.
Our model of economic management and business-led economic growth has been world class.
Capitalism didn’t break. There was a pandemic. The world got hit by a global pandemic.
And that is why we have championed in every international forum, especially the G20, for business-led growth strategies.
Now I said at this event last year, you cannot run the economy on taxpayers money forever. It’s not sustainable. There has been a time and a place for this intervention, and our Government has done it more successfully than any others in drawing our economy through this pandemic, with JobKeeper, the cash flow boost, and the many other measures - the COVID Disaster Payments in the second phase, in 2021 - which has ensured that our economy has come through intact and has been well set up to come back on the other side, as we have seen on numerous occasions.
And we are now normalising our fiscal settings and have handed the reins of our economy back to the private sector, back to for business-led growth, to drive us forward.
Now my concern is that the alternative to our Government, a Labor Government, with the Greens, if elected, would seek to snatch the reins back, following the lead of their political fellow travellers in countries overseas, liberal democracies.
And through the pandemic, Australia continues to stand out internationally on all key health and economic metrics.
Let’s look at Canada, for example, to bear this example out. We have both had roughly the same number of confirmed COVID cases and the same level of vaccination coverage of our population. We have both done well on those issues. Yet Canada has suffered 37,027 COVID deaths compared to Australia’s 5,453, on the latest information we have.
Equally, Canada’s employment growth of 0.5 per cent and December quarter GDP growth of 0.1 per cent from pre-pandemic levels compares to the Australian case of 2.2 per cent growth in employment and 3.4 per cent economic growth for that December quarter.
This is why I can say that more than 40,000 Australian lives have been saved during the pandemic, compared with the average death rate of all OECD advanced economies - 40,000 more Australians would be dead today were it not for Australia’s response to the global pandemic.
We have one of the lowest death rates in the OECD - a performance nine times better than the OECD average.
We have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. Almost 95 per cent of Australians aged 16 and over are fully vaccinated.
No country, of course, has got everything right - I’ve been very candid about that - when it comes to COVID. Nor could they claim to.
But I think most of you will have noticed, in the audience, and would regard Bill Gates as a fairly objective and well-informed observer on these matters.
And a couple of weeks ago, at the annual Munich Security Conference, he cited Australia’s COVID-19 response as the gold standard.
In the context of future planning, Bill noted that: “If every country does what Australia did, then you wouldn't be calling [the next outbreak] a pandemic.”
“They [Australia, he was referring to] orchestrated diagnostics, they executed quarantine policies, and they have a death rate in a different league than other rich countries.”
And while other countries “had the capability to do that”, as Bill pointed out, Australia, we actually did it.
And we have outperformed the major advanced economies during the pandemic.
As I said, our economy is now 3.4 per cent larger than when the pandemic struck, and around 260,000 more Australians are in work compared with where we were before COVID.
And the jobs recovery is widespread.
There are more Australians in working age jobs today - that’s at 76.3 per cent - than at any other time in Australia’s recorded economic history. I know that our economic plans are working because Australians are working, and at record levels.
And particularly on International Women’s Day, I’m pleased to note that the female employment to population ratio is at record highs, and the female unemployment rate is at record lows.
In November 2020, we saw the gender pay gap fall to the lowest level on record, on record, and, in another first, women now hold a record more than 50 per cent of Australian Government board positions. And that adds to the fact there are more women in my Cabinet than any other Cabinet in Australia’s federation history.
More than one million women have come into work under our Government. That’s a million voices reinforcing the strength of the economic management that has been delivering for women in this country over the course of our Government.
There is much more to strive for though, and much more to achieve, and that's on all of us - from the Government to every individual. And, today, my Government and I are committed to doing just that.
The youth unemployment rate has fallen to the lowest rate since October of 2008.
As I said before, I believe we can now achieve an unemployment rate this year with a three in front of it - something we haven’t seen in 50 years, and that’s supported by Reserve Bank forecasts.
This would be the lowest unemployment rate recorded in Australia since monthly labour force records began in 1978 - I consider this a once in a lifetime opportunity. And you can’t take it for granted. It’s not some natural course of events that will unfold. It is the product of the economic management that we have been faithfully stewarding in this country.
That’s reflected in the fact that our AAA credit rating remains intact - one of only nine countries to achieve this. Last time I referred to that in this Forum, there were 10 countries. There are now nine. We’ve been able to maintain that through one of the single largest, the single largest economic intervention by a Government in an economy in Australia’s history.
The events unfolding in Europe, though, are a reminder of the close relationship between energy security, economic security and national security.
And through our natural endowments, Australia is in the fortunate position of being one of the world’s major energy exporters. We’re not going to shy away from that. We’re not going to cut our own lunch on that.
We have the endowments, the know-how and the technology investment plans to ensure Australia remains an energy superpower based on affordable, reliable energy under a wide range of scenarios.
Notwithstanding higher costs for energy and food driven by international events, Australia has weathered interruptions in global supply chains better than most. That’s particularly been the case in gas, where our supply mechanism has ensured we’ve been able to keep the pressure down on gas prices.
We cannot be complacent though, however, and I will return to that shortly.
The key driver of Australia’s growth going forward will be the private sector. It will be households and businesses.
And the Budget later this month will build on the policies that the Government has already put in place under our economic plan to support future growth and resilience that is working.
Let’s remind ourselves of that plan again. One, five core elements:
Keep taxes low and cut red tape.
Invest in the skills and infrastructure that Australia needs to grow.
Deliver reliable and affordable energy to support our economy to grow while reducing emissions.
Establish Australia as a top ten data and digital economy by 2030, and
Ensure we can always make things here in Australia - by securing our sovereign manufacturing capability, to unlock a new generation of high-wage, high-skill, high-tech jobs.
Now I’ve spoken about the elements of this plan at previous Summits.
Our Personal Income Tax Plan is putting money back in the pockets of more than 11 million taxpayers. We are flattening the tax scales and we have delivered small and medium-term sized businesses with the lowest tax rate in over 50 years.
Our Deregulation Agenda is making it easier for Australians to grow and run their businesses. All told, our regulatory reforms, when fully implemented, are expected to generate benefits in excess of $21 billion over 10 years. But there were opponents to these changes, particularly when it comes to the EPPC Act. There were opponents that do not want to see investment able to flow more easily in this country due to less cumbersome regulation.
We continue to deliver on our $110 billion pipeline of investment in transport infrastructure. That’s creating tens of thousands of jobs right across Australia. And that included the bring-forward of transport projects during the pandemic.
With labour increasingly scarce in our economy, we are working to ensure all Australians have the capacity to get a decent, well-paid job.
We’ve invested $13 billion in skills development during the pandemic - I spoke a lot about this this time last year at this Summit - through apprentice incentives, JobTrainer and other measures. Now what this has seen is Australia has more trade apprentices in training than at any other time since economic records were kept since 1963. Trade apprenticeships, 220,000 of them - the highest we have seen since records have been kept.
We have preserved our trade training base in this country through the pandemic because of the steps we took. The very first step we took was to ensure we kept those apprentices in jobs. And as I’ve moved around this country, I have met countless numbers of apprentices in their second year, in their first year, or completing their fourth year, none of whom would have been able to stay in those jobs were it not for the support that we gave. It is one of our Government’s, I think, most significant achievements during this pandemic, that we kept our trade base, our trade skills base, intact through the pandemic, and now with record numbers of trade apprentices in training.
Electricity prices in the national market are the lowest they have been in eight years. We’ve had an eight per cent fall in electricity prices in the last two years. And we will continue to take action on climate change. We have committed to net zero by 2050, and have a clear plan to achieve it through technology, not taxes. We will not sacrifice our nation’s energy security, trading off affordability and reliability in our domestic energy markets. We’ve got the balance right when it comes to managing emissions reduction and growing our economy and supporting our traditional industries. Our opponents do not have the same balanced policy that we have at this election, and put that at risk.
We are investing more than $20 billion in clean energy technologies, unlocking more than $80 billion of private sector investment to achieve lower emissions, while retaining our energy independence.
More than $2 billion has already been invested in our data and digital economy strategy, from boosting our cyber workforce to investing in our data security and infrastructure. This has led Google alone to invest $1 billion in Australia to establish one of only five Google research hubs right here in Sydney, helping to create the data and digital ecosystem that will help us to achieve our broader goals.
And we are securing our sovereign manufacturing capability through our Modern Manufacturing and Supply Chain Resilience strategies.
We’ve got $1.5 billion in the Modern Manufacturing Strategy, very much at the heart of our plan for economic security and national resilience.
It has a dual focus - to build sovereign manufacturing capability in key areas, and support supply chain resilience that is under pressure and is under threat.
Today I want to stress that our starting point as a strategy is one that supports the growth of the entire manufacturing sector - through a more competitive business environment, with lower taxes and energy costs, support for research and development, a stronger skills and higher education system, and in seeking new trade opportunities.
While Australia cannot and should not produce everything domestically, we have enormous potential in today’s economy to grow our manufacturing sector and play to our strengths.
Our focus is on building scale in six areas of advanced, high-value manufacturing. This is a program we worked up with Andrew Liveris, and the COVID Coordination Mechanism that we put in place:
Space
Medical Products
Food and Beverage
Recycling and Clean Energy
Defence, and
Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Processing.
These are the sectors we’re focusing on. These are the priorities that we want to build on, while creating pathways to new capabilities and new markets.
Instead of spreading taxpayer dollars thinly across the economy, we are focusing our investments and grant programs on areas of genuine competitive strength and strategic priority to build scale and have a real impact.
Under the Modern Manufacturing Strategy, we have so far committed over $437 million in funding to boost manufacturing capability and supply chain resilience, leveraging $980 million in private sector investment.
Our supply chain resilience, on that issue, COVID has demonstrated the importance of domestic manufacturing to national health, security and resilience. It has brought into sharp focus the need to be constantly alert to supply chain vulnerabilities.
It should be emphasised that, for the most part, Australian businesses have successfully managed supply chain risk these past couple of years, and our economic performance demonstrates that - specifically COVID, and trade coercion from China, and now the terrible crisis in Ukraine.
A strong private sector continues to be our first line of defence. Businesses know their businesses best, they don’t need to be told by governments what to do, and they are primarily responsible for supplying the vast majority of goods that Australia wants and needs. However, there have been examples where Government action has been necessary to find a solution.
And a good example was the looming shortage last Christmas of AdBlue. While the country was focused and we were focused, of course, on Omicron, we were also focused on this looming shortage - an essential additive for modern diesel vehicles that not many of us knew about before late last year.
China’s decision to suspend urea exports, from which we make AdBlue, had the potential to shut down our trucking network, with significant implications for our domestic supply chains and our economy.
We took immediate action to intervene, reaching an agreement with Incitec Pivot to convert Gibson Island in Brisbane from the manufacture of agriculture grade urea to produce AdBlue and higher grade refined urea.
This was a $29.4 million investment to secure a ten-fold increase in domestically produced refined urea and AdBlue. Within two weeks we had supply restored and an emergency distribution system operating along east coast transport networks.
And I particularly want to commend my colleague Angus Taylor, the Minister, for his critical role in working this issue and finding a solution.
What we are talking about here is not some abstract, binary debate about Government intervention versus the market.
Rather, it highlights the vital enabling role Government can play, and should play in these circumstances, in maintaining economic security and identifying industry solutions to specific problems. We’re not overreaching our mandate. We’re not engaging in the big back, ‘Building Back Better’ rhetoric. We’re just doing what needs to be done in a very targeted and sensible way.
The Government’s $107 million Supply Chain Resilience Initiative is providing targeted grants to establish or scale domestic manufacturing capabilities and identifying other options to address supply chain vulnerabilities.
In addition, the Government has established the institutional capability for early warning and analysis of current and future supply chain vulnerabilities through the Office of Supply Chain Resilience, that I established.
This involves, firstly, effective ‘foresighting’ and analysis of supply chain vulnerabilities, and secondly, whole-of-government coordination of both domestic and international response options. And thirdly, we are doing detailed consultation with industry on supply chain vulnerabilities.
Now we’ve identified seven initial categories for attention, which were considered important to our national interest. And they are as follows:
Semiconductors
Agricultural chemicals
Water treatment chemicals
Telecommunications equipment
Plastics
Pharmaceuticals, and
Personal protective equipment, PPE.
Now we’ve already made significant progress. We’ve secured an agreement with Moderna to establish mRNA manufacturing in Australia in Victoria, with the Victorian Government - the first facility outside of Europe and North America to be able to do this. This sovereign on-shore capability will increase preparedness for possible future pandemics.
In round one of our Supply Chain Resilience Initiative, we have already invested more than $33 million in 27 projects in agricultural chemicals and medicines. This includes backing Australia's only local manufacturing site for critical intravenous medical fluids, Baxter Healthcare.
We have invested in local manufacturing of medical technologies since the start of the pandemic, including for mask manufacturing at Med-Con and ventilators by ResMed.
Supply chain resilience is an increasingly prominent issue across international forums, and Australia is driving outcomes, including in the G20, APEC, the G7+, and especially the Quad, where there is a keen interest in what Australia is doing and the leadership we’re providing here.
In the Quad, we are mapping the supply chain of critical technologies and materials, including semiconductors. In addition, Australia is leading the development of the Quad Clean Energy Supply Chain 10-year plan.
And at a bilateral level, Australia is collaborating with the United Kingdom on a joint project to improve public sector approaches to managing supply chain risk. Australia is seen as a leader, if not the leader, in this area of managing critical supply chain issues.
In this new era, we can’t just be thinking about ‘just in time’ supply. We need to be thinking about a ‘just in case’ model, which supports greater diversification and larger inventories of key goods.
Trusted partners, of course, critical. That is the world we are living in now - and we all know that supply chain disruptions are lower when we plan and we prepare for them.
We also know that supply chain problems are best solved together. We need trusted supply chains, not just efficient ones.
But building and strengthening markets is a long game, and I would encourage businesses to continue to work with the Government to ensure early identification and timely responses to supply chain challenges, and to deal with trusted partners.
Finally, you’ll be pleased to know, in conclusion, and I appreciate your patience, ladies and gentlemen, if I had to identify the essential qualities that have stood Australia in good stead through the most tumultuous events in our lifetime, it has been our ability to adapt, to be resilient and be pragmatic in the face of radical uncertainty.
We have all stared into the abyss together, and here we are all today.
Whether that be a global pandemic, a global recession, the natural disasters which continue to buffet us, economic coercion in our region, or now concerted efforts to overturn the international order through military and violent aggression.
I wish I could say this era of radical uncertainty is coming to an end.
But it’s not, as events of recent weeks attest.
What I can say with confidence is that our Government is the best-placed to continue to navigate Australia’s way through these incredibly difficult and uncertain times.
We have demonstrated this time and again, as we have brought the Australian economy through some of the most difficult challenges in generations. The record is there.
Now is not the time to turn back. It is a time to stick with the economic plan and leadership that has been working for Australia and getting Australians into work.
Our Government has an unwavering focus on building a stronger economy, because we know this is the only way we can keep Australians safe and guarantee the essentials that Australians rely on.
A strong economy means a stronger future.
That is what the Liberals and Nationals are able to offer Australians as they make their choice at the election to be held this year.
Thank you very much for your patience and attention.
Virtual Address, Lowy Institute
7 March 2022
Prime Minister: Thank you Michael for that introduction. I appreciate the opportunity to again speak at the Lowy Institute.
Let me firstly acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we meet – the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation – and pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging.
I also want to pay tribute to any serving members of the Australian Defence Force or veterans who may have joined us and simply say, thank you for your service.
As we meet today, and with heartbreaking familiarity, images of catastrophic loss due to flooding have again gripped our nation in Queensland and NSW.
Sadly 16 people have so far been lost, and our deepest condolences go out to their families and loved ones.
I thank all those engaged in the painstaking work of rescue and recovery - from our brave emergency services workers and SES volunteers through to the men and women of our ADF.
2,000 Defence Force personnel are currently deployed across the flood affected areas under Operation Flood Assist 2022 led by Brigadier Mick Garroway, and directly tasked by state governments in NSW and Queensland to support their flood response. This number will increase to 5,000 personnel over the next few days as we move into the clean-up and rebuilding phase.
ADF assistance includes airdrops of food and supplies into isolated communities, and helping clear roads to restore essential services like power and internet. More than 100 people have been rescued by ADF since the disaster began, and these rescues continue in the many areas still cut off, working with the SES and other local authorities.
In addition, $193 million has been paid in disaster payments by the Federal Government through Services Australia, in just five days, to 163,000 individuals impacted by these floods.
Primary producers can also register for recovery grants of up to $75,000 and small businesses up to $50,000, with the NSW and Queensland State Governments, as part of a $1 billion program jointly funded by the Federal Government, which has also included $1 million in direct payments to local governments in affected areas.
But we know more support will be required, especially in Lismore and surrounding districts, where flood levels are reported to have peaked above all known records.
In Lismore, this is not just a flood event, it is a catastrophic event.
We are currently bringing together a further package of support and I look forward to being able to visit the impacted areas later this week after my current COVID isolation is completed, to assess the situation first hand.
But most of all today, to the thousands of Australians who just reached out and helped their neighbour, thank you. Your quiet acts of care, compassion and bravery have once again humbled our nation. Again I say thank you.
Beyond our shores, we face many other threats. The world has entered a period of profound strategic challenge and disruption.
Once again, the horror of war has befallen Europe – an unprovoked, unjust and illegal war.
After months of planning, bullying, coercion and intimidation, Russia has invaded Ukraine.
Australia strongly supports Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
We condemn Russia’s abhorrent actions in the strongest possible terms, as a gross violation of international law and an assault on freedom.
This is the latest example of an authoritarian regime seeking to challenge the status quo through threats and violence.
Our rules-based international order, built upon the principles and values that guide our own nation, has for decades supported peace and stability, and allowed sovereign nations to pursue their interests free from coercion. This is now under assault.
A new arc of autocracy is instinctively aligning to challenge and reset the world order in their own image.
We face the spectre of a transactional world, devoid of principle, accountability and transparency, where state sovereignty, territorial integrity and liberty are surrendered for respite from coercion and intimidation, or economic entrapment dressed up as economic reward.
This is not a world we want - for us, our neighbours or our region. It’s certainly not a world we want for our children.
The well-motivated altruistic ambition of our international institutions has opened the door to this threat. Just as our open markets and liberal democracies have enabled hostile influence and interference to penetrate into our own societies and economies.
We are right to aspire, however, the hope that such inclusion and accommodation would lead to some reform or moderation of these regimes or assist us in tackling the big global economic and environmental challenges has been disappointed.
As Prime Minister, I have been warning about this for years.
Our Liberal-Nationals Government has been clear eyed. We have taken strong, brave and world-leading action in response.
We have taken the initiative to bolster our own resilience, to call out the threat and to rally like-mindeds to address what is taking place right in front of us.
We have been criticised for our stand, including in our own country. And we have been targeted.
But I am pleased we have been prepared to stand our ground. If not us, then who? Would we be expecting others to do it on Australia’s behalf to protect our interests? I do not believe Australians want such timidity and resignation from their leaders.
None of us want conflict. We want peace and stability. But nor do we want the very world order that underpins our freedoms to be eroded for fear of giving offence, in the vain hope that concessions will ameliorate the determination of those who seek to intimidate and coerce.
Events are now lifting the veil. Perhaps the scales are beginning to fall from the world’s eyes also. At least I hope so.
And so Australia faces it’s most difficult and dangerous security environment in 80 years.
This is where I would like to address my remarks today.
Firstly, the crisis in Europe and the contribution Australia is making, and then broader challenge to world order and Australia’s national security response, focusing on our own region - the Indo-Pacific.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a gross violation of international law and the UN Charter. Russia’s actions should be condemned by all members of the international community.
We expect Russia to continue its brutal attacks, including bombarding residential areas, even nuclear facilities, with scant regard for civilian casualties or the broader catastrophic impact.
This is what autocrats do. It is not the product of a sudden madness or a failure of earlier diplomacy to resolve just grievances.
These are the bloody and violent acts of an autocrat determined to impose his will on others, in the contrived self-justification of realising nationalistic destiny. We have seen this before.
Everything points to a bloody and protracted conflict.
More than 1.5 million people have already fled Ukraine. We fear this is only the beginning of an unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.
As I remarked to President Zelenskyy on Saturday evening, Australia will continue to stand with the brave people of Ukraine.
We are working with our allies and partners to supplement Ukraine’s military defences.
Last Tuesday I announced around $70 million in defensive military assistance, non-lethal military equipment and medical supplies to support the defence of Ukraine. Our missiles are on the ground now. If there is further effective support we can provide to assist their efforts, we will.
Every day Ukraine resists is a further day of humiliation for President Putin, and imposes a heavy price on his illegal, reckless and callous acts of aggression.
We have offered our prayers, but we have also sent our ammunition.
In addition, Australia is helping those rendered homeless or vulnerable by Putin’s war machine, with $35 million in humanitarian assistance for urgent needs, especially for those displaced in a neighbouring country.
This was a special focus of my discussions last week at the Quad, as well as with German Chancellor Scholz and Polish Prime Minister Morawiecki.
Australia’s assistance will deliver life-saving services and supplies, including shelter, water, food and medical care.
Since the crisis began less than two weeks ago, we have fast-tracked the approval of 1,700 visas and have begun preparations to address likely demands on our humanitarian and broader migration program. This may include a rerun of the successful temporary safe haven program we ran for the Kosovars.
In my discussions with European leaders, it is the prevailing expectation that, rather than long-term resettlement, those who have been displaced will want to return home.
Australia is working with other countries to ensure that Putin’s Russia pays the maximum possible economic price for this brutal war of aggression.
This is important because we know that there are powerful actors in our region who are watching closely, looking for signs of weakness and division within the West.
Unprecedented economic and financial sanctions are now biting hard on the world’s 11th biggest economy.
A significant portion of Russia’s foreign exchange reserves has been frozen, and the Russian economy is increasingly cut off from Western financial markets. Major multinational companies such as BP and Shell are selling their Russian assets.
Australia has imposed targeted financial sanctions on 21 entities, including 11 Russian financial institutions - that includes the Central Bank of Russia.
We have also imposed financial sanctions and travel bans on 392 persons.
That includes President Putin, Foreign Minister Lavrov and all permanent members of Russia’s Security Council. This is in addition to our sanctions on eight oligarchs, 339 members of the Russian Parliament, and key figures in the Belarusian Government and military.
I want to particularly recognise actions taken against Russia by countries such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore - a welcome testimony to international solidarity in our own region.
It would be folly to venture predictions on the wider fallout from Mr Putin’s war at this point. Certain early conclusions can be drawn, however.
Firstly, Europe has had a major wake-up call - strategically and economically.
Australia welcomes signs of a more concerted, tough-minded European approach to autocrat adventurism.
Germany supplying Ukraine with anti-tank weapons and stinger missiles and moving immediately to increase defence spending to two per cent of GDP.
Sweden and Finland, long committed to military non-alignment, now contemplating joining NATO - and also taking part in all NATO consultations about the crisis and sending weapons to Ukraine.
The EU funding weapons for Ukraine, and even Switzerland moving from its traditional position of neutrality.
Secondly, the global system of interdependent commerce and finance, built largely under American leadership over the past 70 years, remains an enormously powerful force not to be underestimated.
This should give us renewed confidence to assert that those who wish to overturn the global order through violence need to think again.
Thirdly, political will matters.
It’s been humbling to witness the courage and moral clarity of President Zelenskyy’s inspiring leadership of his country.
There is a wider lesson here for Western liberal democracies as we come face to face with brutal, autocratic aggression and coercion. We must stand together.
We cannot afford the pettiness of small differences to infect our relations and our long-term cooperation. Our adversaries will ruthlessly look to exploit this.
What unites us as Western liberal democracies is greater and more enduring than what divides us.
We must stand together, resolute, against aggression and coercion – wherever it occurs.
The strategic, political, economic and social implications of this crisis will be deeply felt in Europe, but will inevitably stretch to the Indo-Pacific.
This war of choice by Mr Putin is a reminder that, although Australia’s focus is the Indo-Pacific, events anywhere can affect our security.
The Indo-Pacific remains at the centre of global geo-strategic competition.
Australia is an Indo-Pacific nation.
The future of the Indo-Pacific is our future.
Threats in our region are proliferating from both state and non-state actors.
Militarisation is expanding and evolving rapidly.
The spectre from terrorism and all forms of violent extremism endures.
The challenge from more surreptitious malign activities – espionage, disinformation, cyber-attacks, foreign interference, and economic coercion – is mounting daily.
We’re seeing increasing resort in our region to ‘grey area’ tactics – where the boundary between legitimate and hostile activity is deliberately blurred.
And the rise of so-called ‘hybrid warfare’, that has stripped away the old boundaries that once separated the realms of defence, foreign policy, trade and investment, communications and other areas reaching deep into our domestic society.
Australia seeks to work with all countries to ensure a peaceful, stable and prosperous region.
However, we cannot be naïve.
The challenges we face continue to mount. They require us to increase our resilience, expand our capabilities and harden our defences.
The Liberal-Nationals Government that I lead is taking decisive action to ensure that Australia is secure.
Firstly, by building our military capability for the new challenges of the 21st century.
Secondly, by widening and reinforcing our webs of alignment, especially in the Indo-Pacific.
And thirdly, by strengthening our national resilience at home with policies that reinforce both economic and national security goals into the future.
The cornerstone of national security under our Government has been extensive reinvestment in defence capability.
When we came to Government, the Defence budget, as a share of our economy, had fallen to 1.56 per cent in 2012-13 - the lowest level since before the Second World War.
In 2020-21, Defence spending as a percentage of GDP rose above two per cent. This year, it will be at almost 2.1 per cent.
The Government is investing $578 billion in the nation’s Defence Force over the next decade, including over $280 billion in enhanced defence capability.
This investment is geared to delivering regionally-superior capabilities. And there is more to do.
Our first initiative under the AUKUS partnership is acquiring nuclear-powered submarine technology, leveraging decades of experience from the US and UK.
On 8 February, the Exchange of Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information Agreement came into force.
This landmark agreement is the first time since 1958 that the US has allowed access to this information. It gives Australia the training and the information sharing that we need to build a nuclear-powered submarine capability here.
It is a huge milestone and a reflection of the strategic trust that we’ve built with our partners.
We will also enhance our long-range strike capabilities to boost the ADF’s ability to deliver strike effects across our air, land and maritime domains.
Australia will be one of few countries to field Tomahawk missiles, the extended-range version of the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, and other sophisticated strike capabilities.
Through the $1 billion Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordinance Enterprise, we will be able to make our own weapons on our own soil.
This is essential to keep Australians safe, while also building sovereign capability right across Australia.
We are developing niche technologies to enhance our capability and partner interoperability in space and advanced cyber domains.
But it will not end there.
Alongside new capabilities, we must ensure they are deployed to maximum strategic effect.
In 1987, the Hawke Government announced a ‘Two-Oceans Basing Plan’ for the Royal Australian Navy. The intention was a Navy capable of deploying major fleet units for sustained operations off both the east and west coasts.
Significant infrastructure and force structure investment led ultimately to the main fleet bases on each coast becoming known as Fleet Base West, at HMAS Stirling, which became home of the Navy’s new Collins-class submarines, and Fleet Base East, centred on HMAS Kuttabul.
Since that time, while around half of our major warships have been home ported on each coast, the Collins-class submarine fleet has been home ported in the west.
There has been good reason for this, particularly to avoid duplication of facilities and infrastructure and to ensure we had an industrial base capable of supporting submarines.
However, tomorrow’s capability calls for new thinking today.
Today, I can announce that the Government has decided to establish a Future Submarine Base on the east coast of Australia to support basing and disposition of the future nuclear-powered submarines.
This is about additional national capacity, not relocating any existing or planned future capacity for Fleet Base West.
Fleet Base West will remain home to our current and future submarines, given its strategic importance on the Indian Ocean.
The decision to establish an east coast submarine base has been many years in the making as part of our transition from Collins. However, the Government has now determined that, to support our decision to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, establishing a second submarine base on our east coast will enhance our strategic deterrent capability, with significant advantages in operational, training, personnel and industrial terms.
An optimal east coast base would provide homeported submarines with specialised wharfs, maintenance facilities, administrative and logistics support, personnel amenities, and suitable accommodation for submarine crews and support staff. It would also enable the regular visiting of US and UK nuclear-powered submarines.
Following significant work by Defence reviewing 19 potential sites, three preferred locations on the east coast have been identified.
They are Brisbane, Newcastle, and Port Kembla.
All three locations meet many of the criteria that the Government agreed would need to be met to support our strategic objectives. These criteria include:
Being close to sufficient industrial infrastructure that will be able to support the complex demands of maintaining and repairing high technology submarines, in an efficient and affordable manner.
Being close to large population centres to optimise our ability to attract, recruit and retain the substantially larger uniformed submarine workforce we are building to crew and support the future submarines.
Being reasonably proximate to our primary maritime training and operational areas; to deep water; and to weapons storage and loading facilities.
Ensuring that the location of the base provides strategic depth as far as possible from potential threats, and supports the mounting and sustaining of operations.
Our Government has authorised Defence to immediately begin engaging with the New South Wales and Queensland Governments, and relevant local governments and authorities, to further validate their work to date and to begin negotiations on what will be an enormous undertaking.
This initial work is expected to be completed by the end of 2023 and will ultimately form part of and be informed by the work underway now by the Nuclear Submarine Taskforce.
Defence has not constructed a major new base since Robertson Barracks in the 1990s. Construction of a new east coast submarine base would be a larger undertaking and the largest infrastructure investment in the Integrated Investment Program.
Based on early estimates, we have provisioned nationally more than $10 billion to meet the facilities and infrastructure requirements for the transition from Collins to the future nuclear-powered submarines, including the east coast submarine base.
We’ll also be spending and investing in the West too, as part of the required upgrades to infrastructure in other locations.
The establishment of a new submarine base on the east coast will bring significant positive long-term economic impacts.
These include the obvious investment associated with building a new greenfields submarine base, as well as the economic benefits flowing from a larger ADF population and their families in and around the new base.
There will also be significant benefits for local and national industry in supporting the new base and the more complex and larger nuclear-powered submarine fleet.
Again, none of this detracts from what we will be doing at Fleet Base West.
Australia rarely acts alone. We are most successful when we work with others.
And we carry our weight. That is why we have been so successful in forming so many new like-minded partnerships essential to protecting our national interests and keeping Australians safe.
Since 2018, my Government has done the hard work of diplomacy to build these relationships and shape our strategic environment - building webs of alignment.
We’re taking a multi-layered approach, deepening our bilateral, regional and multilateral engagement.
Through the G20, to promote a resilient recovery from the pandemic.
Through our participation at the G7+ we’ve made a strong contribution to build our collective resilience as open democratic societies and economies.
Our new AUKUS trilateral security partnership leverages 70 years of working together with the United States and the United Kingdom to protect our shared values and promote security and prosperity. It is the most significant defence partnership since ANZUS.
We’ve reinvigorated the Quad partnership with India, Japan and the United States, with a new Leaders’ Dialogue that met again this past week to discuss the implications of the war in Europe specifically for a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Our cooperation is delivering vaccines, setting standards for critical and emerging technologies, enhancing clean-energy innovation and boosting supply chain resilience.
Australia recently became the first country to agree a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN, demonstrating the primacy of our engagement with Southeast Asia. These elevated ties build on nearly 50 years of cooperation as ASEAN’s first Dialogue Partner.
ASEAN sits at the heart of the region’s architecture. Its stability, security and growth is fundamental to our own.
To our north and east, the Pacific Island nations are Australia’s family – our futures are inextricably linked. And whenever a family member needs help, we have helped, and will continue to be there.
In the Indo-Pacific, we are working with European partners to help bolster the principles that have underpinned stability for decades. We will look at practical ways to support Europe’s Indo-Pacific strategy.
And in the last four years we’ve worked to elevate bilateral partnerships with Timor-Leste, Vietnam, South Korea, Indonesia, Fiji, India, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, Malaysia, Austria and Germany.
China’s growing power and influence are a geostrategic fact. What we care about is how Beijing uses its strength. There’s no doubt that China has become more assertive, and is using its power in ways that are causing concern to nations across the region and beyond.
We are concerned at the militarisation of disputed features in the South China Sea, where international law should apply - as it does everywhere else. And we are concerned about growing tensions in the Taiwan Strait.
Australia has long supported the status quo that has underpinned regional security and prosperity. That status quo is disturbed by China’s military actions.
A few weeks ago, we saw a Chinese naval ship in the Arafura Sea, irresponsibly pointing a military-grade laser at an Australian Defence Force aircraft. This is needlessly provocative – and very dangerous.
The crisis that now grips Europe heralds a moment of choice for China. Under Mr Putin, Russia has chosen the path of violence and seeking to overturn the global order.
The world has heard China’s words about its commitment to global peace and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity for a long time now. It is up to China, at this hinge point of history, to demonstrate these are more than just words.
The early signs are not good as, following the Xi-Putin meeting in Beijing at the Olympics, the Chinese Government has acted to throw Putin’s Russia an economic lifeline, relaxing trade restrictions on Russian wheat. China’s language has also pretended to an equivalence of interests, and even a ‘legitimate’ cause for Russia to invade Ukraine.
No country would have a greater impact on Russia than China joining the rest of the world in denouncing Russia’s aggression and applying the same sanctions. So far they have not.
Alongside building our military capability and our network of relationships, there is another pillar on which our national security rests.
We must continue to build our economic strength and resilience at home - to continue to give Australia the ability to make our own decisions, and for us to pursue our own path.
Let me touch on three areas where the Government has worked to build such national resilience - cyber security, critical infrastructure protection and sovereign manufacturing capability.
Firstly, our 2020 Cyber Security Strategy set out a comprehensive $1.67 billion ten-year plan to achieve our vision of a more secure online world for Australians, their businesses and the essential services upon which we all depend.
We’ve invested in the capabilities of the Australian Cyber Security Centre, with a particular focus on enhancing our capabilities to protect our critical networks and infrastructure.
We’ve enhanced the powers and capabilities of our security agencies to combat cyber criminals.
One example is the work of our world-class Australian Signals Directorate, which has actively undertaken offensive cyber action during the COVID-19 pandemic to hack back and disrupt offshore cyber criminals scamming Australians.
We’ve also been investing in growing the human capital so crucial to creating a secure digital economy - our cyber security workforce.
Secondly, our Government has been at the leading edge of protecting Australia’s critical infrastructure to secure the essential services all Australians rely on – everything from electricity and water, to health care and groceries.
In 2017, as Treasurer, I announced the establishment of a Critical Infrastructure Centre, to coordinate the management of the complex and evolving national security risks to our critical infrastructure.
Since that time, we’ve passed laws that enhanced the scrutiny of the management and operation of critical infrastructure assets; that introduced mandatory incident reporting for critical infrastructure entities that experience serious cyber security incidents; and that allowed the Government to use its unique capabilities to assist industry to respond to immediate and serious cyber-attacks on Australian systems.
We intend to pass an additional round of critical infrastructure protection legislation later this month when Parliament returns.
Thirdly, the COVID pandemic has underscored why it’s important to maintain a sovereign manufacturing capability.
The Coalition’s $1.5 billion Modern Manufacturing Strategy is securing Australia’s sovereign manufacturing capability and supporting supply chain resilience.
Our focus is on six priority areas: Space; Medical Products; Food and Beverage; Recycling and Clean Energy; Resources Technology and Critical Minerals Processing; and, of course, Defence.
Building our sovereign defence capability not only means acquiring new capabilities and growing and skilling the people we need to operate them. It also means growing and building the industry capability and capacity needed to maintain them.
Resilient supply chains underpin Australia’s prosperity and security. And while the private sector is primarily responsible for managing supply chain risks, there is a strategic role for the Government to help deliver solutions to supply chain vulnerability in areas critical to our national interest.
Recent experience provides examples of how supply chains of critical goods are vulnerable to a wide range of impacts, including COVID effects, economic shocks, coercive action, workforce stoppages, freight delays, natural disasters, demand surges and disruption at global production centres.
Not all manufacturing and supply chain issues can or should be addressed domestically. That’s why the Government is also working with our Quad partners and other friends to develop cooperative approaches to strengthen supply chain security based on mutual manufacturing and resource base strengths.
More broadly, international collaboration to maintain free and open markets in a global, rules-based order will continue to be central to help manage supply chain risks.
Ladies and gentlemen, if there is a simple message from my remarks today it is that national security affects all Australians.
It extends far beyond the prospect of fighting wars.
It is about safeguarding our way of life, our access to the amenities, liberties and essentials Australians rely on and enjoy.
It is about seeking to shape the changing world we live in to promote peace, provide stability for people to live their lives and favour freedom.
We face a world that is more fragile, more contested and arguably even more fragmented than at any time since the Second World War.
My Government has remained steadfast in protecting Australia’s interests. We have led, not followed.
Australians know the courage we have shown and will continue to show. We are the proven choice when it comes to protecting Australia’s national security interests.
Our decisions are underpinned by our values as a liberal, democratic country.
We believe in a liberal, rules-based global order. One that favours freedom over autocracy and tyranny. Universal human rights, opportunities for all, and the sovereignty of all nations.
By investing in our national security, we are better placed to protect ourselves and to work with others.
To ensure our region remains one in which each country’s sovereignty is respected.
Where might does not make right, and where the same rules apply to all countries – whether they are giants or small island states.
Our shared prosperity and security depend on it.
That’s how you keep Australians safe.
Press Conference - Canberra, ACT
1 March 2022
Prime Minister: Good afternoon, everyone. I’m joined by the Minister for Defence. We have just completed a rather lengthy meeting of the National Security Committee of Cabinet. I’m sure those watching at home have also been watching the extraordinary bravery and courage of the Australian Defence Forces as they have been enacting rescues, particularly across the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. This is one of many acts of heroism and courage that we’ve seen, not just from our Defence Forces, but from our police, from our emergency services personnel and, of course, by civilians themselves, as we have been encountering what has been an extraordinary weather event, a weather bomb, as it’s been referred to, in Queensland, as it’s making its way down down the Australian east coast.
There has been a series of extreme weather and flooding events, which are continuing and will still continue for many days to come. Further storms, we have been advised by the BOM - Bureau of Meteorology, as well as other agencies this morning, and further flooding activity is expected throughout the week, and the peaks that we’ve seen, whether it’s in Brisbane or other places, are expected to continue now for several days.
Despite the terrible impacts that these flooding events have demonstrated, what we have seen, as I’ve just said, is extraordinary courage and response right across all agencies. That flooding event in Lismore has been without precedent, almost. I mean, that is a part of New South Wales that is well used to floods, I know it well. And they have always been used to floods, but nothing like this in their lifetime. Breaching that levee bank and going and reaching into places that even long-time locals never expected to occur or to see in their lifetime. We’re now seeing those flooding events follow the way down through Richmond and impacting on other settled areas. But this rather significant weather system we will continue to see moving down the east coast of Australia. We will see it come into the Central Coast in Sydney, and we’re already experiencing elements of that right now, and particularly over the next 24 hours. We will then see that extend further into the south coast of New South Wales and we need to be continuing to be preparing ourselves for the impacts in those regions. The advice also from the Bureau of Meteorology has been that we should also be aware of potential impacts even further south in East Gippsland and even in the north of Tasmania.
The true courage and compassion that has been on display is, of course, heartening. And we thank everybody for their extraordinary efforts over these last few days. I particularly want to thank the ADF for their response. It has been swift and it has been comprehensive to meet all the requests that have been made by the states, and indeed in anticipation of those requests. Very early yesterday morning I rang the Premier of New South Wales because of the situation in northern New South Wales and made those further offers, and I was very pleased to see them taken up, and we spoke further during the course of the day, including into last night as well.
I’ve been pleased with the way that state, local and Commonwealth agencies, Australian Government agencies, have been working closely together, whether it’s in Queensland, New South Wales, the
agencies are very experienced in dealing with these issues, but the scale of these flood events and these weather events have come at a level which we haven't seen for some time. And as a result, they have adapted well to overcome the challenges that they’re currently faced with.
The ADF has some 600 personnel stood up or involved, their rotary wing assets have been proving, as you can see on your own screens, incredibly important. The weather situation, particularly in and around Lismore, as we were discussing this yesterday morning, was very difficult. It was not an easy thing to get those aerial assets in place to be effecting those rescues, so many of those rescues having to be undertaken by the flood boats. But those few rotary assets that were able to get into those areas have done an incredible job. Not just the ADF assets, but of course the CareFlight and others who, and private assets that have been involved in the flood response effort.
That will continue and we are prepositioning further ADF support all along the eastern coast of Australia. That will range from Albatross down at Nowra, all the way up through with assets coming down from Amberley to support all through the north coast and even down into the Central Coast. We also have the assets out at Holsworthy, where the Blackhawks are, and able to assist should they be called upon to do so.
Thirty-five local government areas have been activated for disaster support. There have been already some 80,000 claims that have been made and over $3 million already have gone out in payments directly through Services Australia to those affected, and that will be flowing at an even increasing rate over the course of the next 24 hours.
In the case of the Disaster Recovery Payment, which is an $1,000 payment for for adults and $400 for each child, together with the Disaster Recovery Allowance which is an ongoing payment for up to 13-weeks for those whose income is interrupted, they are, they are done 100 per cent by the Australian Government and they were initiated even before, in some cases, the request was made by states and territories. We wanted to ensure that that support was in place, and the Services Australia teams are positioning themselves already and increasingly in evacuation centres to provide that support. And it is, you are able to access the Services Australia support either on 180 22 66, or you can do it over the website, or in many cases in these evacuation centres there will be Services Australia support who can do that directly, and the mobile response teams from Services Australia are also being swung into action.
Today, after a lot of response meetings that have been held over the last few days, the Emergency Management Australia and the the National Disaster Recovery and Resilience Agency led by Shane Stone are holding a National Coordinating Mechanism meeting this afternoon with all states and territories, and are coordinating closely with the Australian Defence Forces. What does that mean? That is the group that looks at supply chains, that looks at impact on power, impacts on communications, impacts on key roads, all of these types of issues, and the planning is already underway for the recovery and the clean-up operations.
When I was in Brisbane yesterday, had extensive discussions with the Lord Mayor, and together with the Minister for Defence, out at Enoggera. Their teams are ready to go and they’re ready to move once those flood waters start to drop. So I want to assure people, whether you’re in Brisbane, whether you’re up there in Maryborough or out in Gympie, or across northern New South Wales, or indeed those parts of the rest of the country who are yet to be hit by these floods, at the same time as we're preparing the response to be there, we’tr already preparing, together with the state and local governments, the recovery and the clean-up operation, and assets are being prepositioned and planning is underway for that purpose.
I also note that the Treasurer and the Assistant Treasurer will be working closely with the banks and insurance companies. I’ve asked them to contact all the banks today and the insurance companies and be very clear to the insurance companies what our expectations are about their response. And I look forward to that being a positive response, and that means getting the assessors in. We have already started putting advance assessors in from the Recovery and Resilience Agency to ensure that they can be assessing the impact on the ground, which enables further assessment of category, what’s called Category D funding support for larger tasks that may be required to be addressed after flood events such
as this. We are turning around the requests from the states immediately, and so when requests are made, I understand the New South Wales Premier was making some comments about category D assistance, when we get some clear proposals about what is required, then they can expect us to turn those around. That’s a part of the discussion I’ve been having with Premier Perrottet that we are dealing directly with each other and ensuring that those messages are being sent down through our various organisations to ensure a swift response.
The other impact, which the Deputy PM in particularly was raising today, and I share this view, as all the members of the NSC, and that is the impact on primary production. We often see this in floods, just like we saw up in North Queensland, the terrible impact of floods on primary production, and particularly those dairy industries up in northern New South Wales. There will be the grisly task of carcass disposal and removal, which is challenging and that is all part of the recovery and clean-up operation. But then the task will be to rebuild, to rebuild those dairy farms, to rebuild those dairy industries, just as we’ve been doing up in and around Taree after the floods there last year. And so we have an very accomplished set of agencies that can move into all of these tasks.
Now I'm going to turn now to the issue of Ukraine, which was the other matter dealt with at today's National Security Committee meeting. And then I'll ask the Minister for Defence to cover both of those issues again, if you're happy to proceed on that basis.
In the Ukraine, in Ukraine we have seen a multi axis attack over the course of the last week or so, the last few days. We believe there is no change in Russia's unlawful, violent and aggressive intent in Ukraine. Their attacks are behind schedule, but we should not assume any change in their intent or their purposes in Ukraine. The economic, diplomatic and defence response has been far stronger than anticipated, and particularly, I believe, by the Russian Government. And it is having a very serious impact on their progress. I want to commend all of those countries around the world that have joined those responses. I particularly welcome the rather strong responses we've seen from countries like Singapore and Switzerland. I mean, this, I think, goes to the extent of the international response to these outrageous and aggressive attacks undertaken, invasion undertaken by the Russian Government. And every day that that resistance continues, every day that we impose a cost on the Russian Government and all those who support them in their unlawful acts, makes it even harder for Russia to continue to pursue their objectives in Ukraine.
But this is also likely to lead, I suspect, to an even more violent response from Russia. Anyone who thinks the Russian Government is just going to sit there, I think, doesn't understand the intent and and the outrageous objectives of President Putin. Our goal is to impose the most significant costs on Russia that we possibly can, on the Russian Government and all those who support them, as a clear warning to anyone else who would seek to engage in such unlawful acts of aggression and violence through an invasion of that nature.
So, today, to further increase the support we're providing to Ukraine and to our NATO, to the NATO and all the members of NATO, we will be answering the call from President Zelensky. President Zelensky said, don't give me a ride, give me ammunition. And that's exactly what the Australian Government has agreed to do. We will be committing $50 million US dollars to support both lethal and non-lethal defensive support for Ukraine. The overwhelming majority of that, that’s some $70 million Australian dollars, will be in the lethal category. We're talking missiles, we're talking ammunition, we're talking supporting them in their defence of their own homeland in Ukraine, and we'll be doing that in partnership with NATO. I'm not going to go into the specifics of that because I don't plan to give the Russian Government a heads up about what's coming their way, but I can assure them it's coming your way.
In addition to that, we will be acting to provide humanitarian support, an initial contribution of some $25 million US dollars, we’ll be providing in humanitarian support, that’s some $35 million dollars Australian, to international organisations to support their efforts with shelter, food, medical care, water and education support. This will be our opening contribution. We expect that over time there will be further requests and we'll be addressing those as time goes on and the needs that are there are better understood.
There are some 500,000 Ukrainians that have fled their homeland. There's 160,000 on our most recent reports that I have available of internally displaced people. We have already processed all of the outstanding applications for visas to Australia, and they've all been given visas of one shape, one form or another. In addition, we’re receiving around 100 applications a day, which are being processed as the top priority. They’re visa applications across the entire migration program. So they're for temporary visas on skills, they’re for education visas, they're for family reunion visas, and they're getting the stamp, and they'll be able to come to Australia. And for some of those who are on temporary visas, their intention it will be different. They will want to come to Australia for a period of time, and I have no doubt they will want to return to their home country.
We are also preparing options to support the broader humanitarian effort to have programs like we had for the Kosovars some years ago. We should not make the mistake thinking that every person who is seeking to leave Ukraine does not want to return to their home country. I have no doubt hundreds of thousands, if not more, will want to return to their home country. That's where their family is, that's where their lives are, and we want to ensure that those things are not taken from them. And so where we are able to provide that temporary refuge, then we will be seeking to do just that with many other countries around the world. But for those for whom that won't be an option, then we will continue to provide support through our migration program, through the mainstream program, and in addition, in the humanitarian area, which at this stage, the demand for that is not very clear. But we will address that in partnership with other agencies when we get to that point. And if that requires supplementing our existing program, just like with the Afghanistan program we're currently working on, then we will. We will meet that demand with our other partners, and Australia has a strong track record of doing all of those things.
So with that, I appreciate that was a very lengthy set of issues I had to run you through, but it was a very lengthy meeting, and Australia will stand with Ukraine. Tonight I'll be standing with the New South Wales Premier as we light up the Opera House in Ukraine's colours. That is intended to send a very strong message of solidarity from one of the world's most iconic buildings that Australia stands with Ukraine. Just as we've lit our own Parliament up here as part of the Vivid events here in Canberra. All of these events send a very clear message, which I know is encouraging the people of Ukraine. They are showing a resilience which is absolutely extraordinary, and having met with so many in the Ukrainian community over the last few days, and I'll meet with more of them this afternoon and this evening in Sydney, we want to say, we are with you. We are with you. Peter.
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Thanks, PM. Firstly, I want to start just by acknowledging the amazing work of those army personnel in Woodburn. Today, we've seen in Woodburn on display the best of the Australian Defence Force. The Army personnel within the helicopter rescuing three people off that rooftop sends a very clear message about the preparedness of the Australian Defence Force to provide support to the Australian people at a time of need. We've seen a number of those events over the course of the last couple of days, not just in Brisbane, but now in northern New South Wales. The latest figures that the Australian Defence Force has been involved in the rescue of 74 people. Quite a remarkable number on a number of missions, including in Gatton, in Jimboomba Regency Downs right across Rifle Range. And now today in Lismore, Ballina and the surrounding areas.
The pilots and the crew really need commending this incredible bravery that we've seen on display today, and they've literally saved lives, those three lives, but many, many more. And that work will continue, particularly in the clean up as well. The Prime Minister and I visited Gallipoli Barracks yesterday in Brisbane and went through with the 7th Brigade their response. So in Maryborough, in Gympie, in Brisbane, as the floodwaters start to recede, those mud armies will come together and help in the cleanup, and that will progressively go down the East Coast, as the Prime Minister has pointed out. I want to send a very strong and clear message to Australians, particularly those in New South Wales, who are watching these scenes unfold, you need to take additional precautions to evacuate earlier than what you otherwise would have been. This rain cell is as we're seeing, and as BOM demonstrated, it has a propensity to stay in place and the saturation that’s already on the ground means that we just don't have the run off on the water and we'll see further rescues and we want to make sure that they are reduced because it does put at risk the lives of those who are in the helicopters, that are on the ground, coordinating, etc. So please listen even more closely this season than you have in previous years to the warnings that you're getting from local councils, from state emergency services, from the state and federal authorities. Heed those warnings and get out early and make sure that you keep you and your family and your livestock and your assets otherwise safe. That's an incredibly important message. As the Prime Minister pointed out, we've got about 70 ADF personnel from the fifth brigade who are from Holsworthy. They're positioned and some have been pre-positioned. We've taken in relation to this flood a much more forward leaning approach. And that is we've had defence assets pre-positioned. We've called people out earlier than they otherwise would have been called out. And the PM and I've been very deliberate in that approach so that we can get the ADF personnel on the ground both during the operation, but also post when it's necessary to help those businesses in those households rebuild. So that work is phenomenal, and it makes me incredibly proud of the work that the men and women of the Australian Defence Force are doing. So PM, I'll leave it there.
Journalist: [inaudible] mechanics of the missiles and ammunition and so forth. Is it the case that we stipulate what is bought with our money or we've been informed by NATO countries this is what we want to send and can you pay for it?
Prime Minister: It is a combination of both Phil and we are working closely with our NATO partners about what can be most effective. And again, without being too specific for the reasons I've outlined, those anti-armoured missiles are proving to be extraordinarily effective. And so that is obviously a huge priority about where we will be directing, particularly a lot of that initial investment and that is ready to go.
Journalist: [inaudible] by moving to lethal support for Ukraine that you make Australia, Vladimir Putin's warnings, an enemy now of Russia and perhaps a target of reprisals, whether that be cyber attacks or something else. And can I ask on the floods? You said that assets were being brought from Amberley to assist. We're told by reporters on the ground there that fixed wing aircraft can't get in and out of Amberley at the moment. Is there a Plan B or what contingencies are in place for that?
Prime Minister: Okay. Well, I'll allow Peter to address the second matter. Australia will always stand up to bullies. We stand up to bullies here in our own region and in standing up to bullies in our own region, we've been targeted. Australia's economic interests have been targeted, so my government will never be backward when it comes to standing up for Australia's national interests and standing up for liberal democracy in today's world, which is which is demarcating between autocrats and authoritarian regimes, invading and seeking to coerce liberal democratic regimes. We can't be absent when it comes to standing up for those important principles. That is directly in Australia's national interests.
Now I am, I can report that to date, we have not seen the state sponsored cyber activity to Australia, but we should remain on the ready. We have been acting in concert with countries all around the world when it comes to the support that we've been providing, particularly on diplomatic sanctions, and there are still issues that are being worked through there. But the decision that we have taken that we will continue to move in lockstep, particularly with the United States and the United Kingdom and the EU, in relation to where we're targeting sanctions and what future sanctions might be put in place, including further diplomatic sanctions. But we will do that together and we will act together. And that, I think, is, I think, the appropriate way for us to address this.
When it comes to our ADF support, and Peter will comment on this. But the primary support we've been providing is in the rotary wing, which you've seen on display and that is coming from Amberley. It's coming, it will be coming from Holsworthy and will be coming from Albatross down in Nowra. But you're right, it has been a very difficult environment to operate in. One of the other things which I didn't mention was the work that the P-8 has been doing in mapping flood levels. That's incredibly important when it comes to working through all the recovery operations as well. So Defence is involved in many different ways, tasked out of the command centres, whether they be at Homebush in New South Wales or up in Brisbane. Peter.
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Just a couple of points. I mean, firstly, I think the situation with Russia and the Ukraine at the moment really is sending out a very strong message to every, every free, loving country across the world. I mean, this is an incredibly important point in history, and this is not a time for weakness, but for strength. And those countries like Australia, like the NATO countries, like European countries need to stand together and to stare down this act of aggression. It's the situation that Ukraine today, there are legitimate concerns within Europe that they don't know what is next, and there's great uncertainty here in the Indo-Pacific as well. And that is why it is incredibly important for countries to stand up for the rule of law, for our democracy, for human rights. And that's exactly what we're doing. We're in good company. So for all of those reasons, Australia has long been a target of cyber attacks of state sponsored cyber attacks out of Iran, out of North Korea, out of China, out of Russia, elsewhere, those countries all working with crime groups and syndicates, sophisticated hackers. That's the reality of it. So we have long been a target for that reason.
Just Mark, on the second point, there was flooding, as you're aware at Amberley, and the decision was taken to take some of the fixed wing aircraft out of Amberley and relocate them, including to Oakey. And so the MRH 90s that you've seen this morning in Ballina have come from Oakey. They left there this morning and they'll be pre-positioned down the East Coast as required as this cell moves further south and they'll be in proximity. Final point is in relation to the MHR 90, they have got a long range and they've got the ability to fan out in different directions, as we've seen today.
Journalist: After the Crimea invasion, Russia was kicked out of the G8. Would you like to see Russia removed now from the G20? And do you think any of the sanctions, even a diplomatic move like that, would fundamentally change his calculation?
Prime Minister: Well, we are seeking to impose maximum cost together with our allies and partners on Russia. They have self-selected themselves as a pariah state and that's how they should be known all around the world, and no one should have anything to do with them, frankly, right around the world, but the issues you raise around the G20 are very real. They're issues that we're working through with Indonesia, who have the G20 chair this year. We want to support them in how they're managing this sensitive issue. I mean, the G20 has a lot of members and that's a lot of interests to manage and we want to support Indonesia in successfully chairing the G20 this year. But I think there has been a very clear view expressed, particularly by countries like Australia, G7 countries about, you know, this will need to be managed.
Journalist: Prime Minister, Labor today has called for or says it would support parts of Ukraine being designated, Labor says it would support parts of Ukraine being declared as declared areas that would stop people from Australia fighting with Russian forces. Specifically, I know we have legislation stopping, people joining non-government groups, but Labor says it would support that parts of Ukraine becoming declared areas. Is there anything of that nature going on? Are you concerned about Australians going over and joining such forces? What are your thoughts?
Prime Minister: I’ll say exactly what I said yesterday and we would not advise people to go to Ukraine now. Our travel advice is do not travel to Ukraine and the legal position of those who may seek to do that, I think, is very unclear, particularly as the formation of what would be informal militias and the extent to which they are actually part of any sort of sovereignly defined force in Ukraine. That is very unclear. But what I would also argue is this is anyone seeking to do that will find themselves on the wrong end of some very, very violent attacks. Those sort of disorganised civilian militias would effectively be putting people in the most extreme of situations. And so we are certainly not encouraging anybody go there and we would advise against it because largely you'd be joining something the status of which is completely unclear and how it would be supported and how would sit in any command structure with Ukraine's forces, I think, is totally unknown. So, you know, others have described those sorts of things as suicide missions and and that's not an unreasonable assessment. But, Peter, did you want to add anything on that?
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: No, the only thing I'd say, PM, is that I mean, people, you can understand the the patriotic passion that people have got and people from around the world are horrified by the slaughter of men, women and children in the Ukraine by Russian soldiers now, and that will increase. And as the Russian forces move closer to the capital, they will become more intense. And this is not an easy situation to state the obvious, but it is going to become more and more difficult. And the reality is, as the Prime Minister points out, many, many people are going to die unless President Putin changes the action, the course that he's on at the moment.
Journalist: Russia may be a pariah, but as you've noted several times now, they still have a friend in China. Are you concerned that longer term for Australia, a closer relationship between China and Russia poses a more significant threat to some of the more localised issues in the Pacific region, if Putin is willing to return the favour and offer support to China?
Prime Minister: Well, of course I am concerned about this. I've been calling this out now for many, many years. When you get the close cooperation of autocratic or authoritarian states of that scale, and with that capability, of course, that presents real risks to global stability in particular in the Indo-Pacific region. This is why I've been so forward leaning in insisting that countries in our own region, particularly China, would not be offering a lifeline to Russia but to be shutting that off. I mean, combined with the stance taken by the United States, whose sanctions, together with other Western countries, has been enormously impactful. I mean, the rouble has fallen by 45 per cent. I mean, their interest rates have been put up to 20 per cent. There is real economic pain being felt as a result of these sanctions. But the impact of the world's response to impose a price on President Putin needs to be reinforced by countries like China because if they extend a lifeline to them, as they have in taking their wheat exports by easing trade restrictions on Russian wheat into China that only serves to undermine, I think, the principled stance that has been taken by so many other countries around the world. So I would encourage them to take that view. I would encourage them to join the global efforts and send a very clear message to President Putin that this sort of behaviour is unacceptable.
Journalist: [inaudible] lethal weapons and humanitarian support Australian. No one's questioning the need for this money. But what are the mechanics of exactly where this money is coming from? Will it be rolled out all in one lot? Will it be rolled out over a number of payments? And are any other programmes going to suffer as a result of this $105 million?
Prime Minister: No. So the answer is no, and we'll be, all of these matters will be made very clear in the budget, which is only a month away. Less than a month away now. And those matters will be covered off in the budget in terms of the fiscal arrangements. But any support here will be provided to ensure we maintain all of our other activities, and it is important support that we're providing and it will be done swiftly. As I've said, particularly on the humanitarian support, I anticipate this will be our first of a number of contributions that will be made as the humanitarian need becomes clearer and the demand becomes clearer, and we can respond to that in partnership with other countries. But you can expect us moving very quickly, extremely quickly on deploying that support.
Journalist: Can I please clarify for all the people out there watching this who are wanting to go to Ukraine and take up arms. Is there any legal situation if they were to join the foreign legion, which Ukraine's top diplomat to Australia says does exist, where they would be legally within the bounds of doing that to support their country if they're dual nationals and in case we don't get there, has anyone been stopped at the Australian border trying to leave?
Prime Minister: At the Australian border, trying to leave Australia? Well, they wouldn't be leaving with that intended purpose. I mean, people are allowed to leave Australia, people flying, if they were going there, I doubt they'd be on a direct flight to Ukraine. They may be going to any number of places. And so without that clear intent and without any intelligence, then I think it would be an overestimation as to how Border Force could actually intercept on those occasions. But what I would say is two things. One don't do it, don't do it. Secondly, the legal position at best is unclear. At best is unclear. And as a result, we would not be encouraging people to join in those efforts.
Journalist: From a legal perspective, I guess this is a slightly different thing. I know you're saying ...
Prime Minister: No, legally they could not count that that was a legal act. They could not assume that. That's my very clear message. Don't assume it is on the evidence that we have it is unlikely.
Journalist: Sorry, Minister Dutton, we heard the US come out ahead of the invasion, saying, outlining what Russia was going to do and that proved to be correct. What's the intelligence telling us at the moment? What is Putin's plan? What is the next step? And if you've heard anything, as well Prime Minister, and what else are we looking at in terms of response? Is it just more funds? Are we going to ramp up our cyber security efforts? What else can we do to assist?
Prime Minister: We're doing all of these things. Our cyber security response has been ramping up now for some weeks, and in terms of what other support may be necessary, well, as the demands become clear and the requests become come through, then we'll we'll be dealing with each of those on their merits. But we have leant forward here in a way, particularly for a country the size of Australia, puts Australia at the leading edge of the support we're providing for Ukraine in both our humanitarian support, as well as our lethal and non-lethal defence support. So Australia and our sanctions have been the fastest moving. It was Australia that was calling for sporting bodies, in particular for the F1 to be cancelled in Russia. Our own athletes, I commend for walking out of tournaments. Good on them. They're standing up for Australian values and we salute them for doing that. And I’d be calling on all international sporting bodies to have nothing to do with any events in Russia or having Russia's participation in such international events. This is all part of imposing the highest price on Russia's actions in Ukraine. Peter?
The Hon. Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Defence: Well, the point I'd make is that, I mean, you can see where the incursions are taking place and the intent of the Russian forces. Clearly, they are frustrated by the resistance on the ground, and they've underestimated the strength of that resistance. But as supply chains or lines are secured as more munitions come in as the Russians ramp up their activities, we know from history that Russian troops can be particularly brutal, and I think people should brace themselves for what we're going to see out of the Ukraine in the coming days and weeks. It's a human tragedy that's unfolding already and it's only going to compound. And so that's a concern too. And I think we should again ramp up the pressure on President Putin, as the Prime Minister says there's a price to pay here. This is a catastrophic mistake by President Putin and those that support him, including China.
Prime Minister: OK, Chris. We have time for one more and then the weather is going to intervene.
Journalist: Just wondering how quickly that money can be spent on weapons and deployed. How do you get into Ukraine? Because if it goes by road, it will be using the same roads that the refugees are using? Is some part of the airspace going to be carved out for allies to send weaponry in?
Prime Minister: Our support for Ukraine is going to get there fast. And I won't be giving Vladimir Putin any heads up on how it's getting there. But it's coming, I can assure you. Thank you.