The Prime Minister's interview with Chris Smith, 2GB
- Written by Chris Smith
CHRIS SMITH: Only 40 days to go of the Federal Election. I've got the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, on the line right now. Prime Minister, good morning.
PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Chris from beautiful Nowra. It's a beautiful morning down here on the South Coast of New South Wales. I'm down here with Andrew Constance today, in the seat of Gilmore and people now Andrew, very, very well. He's done a great job at State Government, and he's on the South Coast and looking forward to him forming part of my team, hopefully after this next election.
SMITH: Are you and him mates again? Because he was a little bit nasty during the bushfires.
PRIME MINISTER: No, look, absolutely. Andrew and I have known each other for 20 years plus, and I understand how, how deeply, deeply hurt he was by those terrible fires that affected him personally. And so we worked together after that. You know, we're able to pick up the phone to each other. We work through the issues that he was raising. We particularly worked together on putting in place a more responsive small business support package, which I thanked him for the time. We worked the problem. We got it sorted and we're working together and we're doing that now on the South Coast, and I think that speaks volumes. You know, a lot of people want to talk about what happened, you know, two and a half years ago, and Andrew Constance was one of those who was critical. But he's doing what we've done together. [Inaudible]
SMITH: One thing I noticed you said at yesterday's press conference when you launched the campaign. Well, not the official launch, but certainly kicked it off. You said, this is not about you. It's about your team. It's about what your team has done. But Labor has been making it about you. And I noticed that recent polling revealed that only 40 per cent of Australians consider you trustworthy, down from 59 per cent. In some ways it is about you, is it not?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what I was saying, it was about the people listening to this program. That's what it's about. The election is about the people listening to this program and right across the country. Elections aren't about politicians, about, what it's about what people want for their future. And what I'm saying is it the economic management and financial management that we've demonstrated, which is taken at these high and people through the worst crisis we've seen since the Second World War and the Great Depression that has seen unemployment fall to 4 per cent from over 5.7, 5.7 per cent that has seen save 700,000 jobs with JobKeeper. That has seen us maintain our AAA credit rating, which puts downward pressure on interest rates and downward pressure on inflation. And it's seen us have the biggest fiscal financial turnaround in the last 12 months, of over $100 billion in the most recent Budget. That's the biggest economic comeback in 70 years, which means we can deliver that cost of living support that we announced in the Budget on halving fuel taxes, of increasing the tax back, the tax going back to people on the 1st of July, and the additional support to pensioners and others on those payments. Economic management is what determines how much you can spend on health care, on education, and that's why we have record investments in all of those areas, because we know how to manage an economy. Under Labor, interest rates were higher, unemployment was higher, electricity prices were higher and that was the consequence of their poor economic management.
SMITH: You've got the numbers on your side. You've made that argument just then. You've made that argument yesterday in that press conference. You've got the runs on the board. We've got a really challenging time ahead in terms of the economy, in terms of national security in our region, in terms of the pandemic, that's not over. There's still more to be done there as well. People have got to get away from thinking that this is a presidential kind of vote. It's not a presidential vote between two leaders. People have to vote for individual candidates in their electorate and think about what's ahead.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's very true. And Andrew Constance is a very good example of that here down on the South Coast. Maria Kovacic out there in the electorate of Parramatta, where, you know, a local businesswoman having been running a mortgage business involved out there with Women at Eels with the Parramatta Rugby League Club. She's our local candidate out there. Labor parachuted in someone from the eastern suburbs - taking that electorate for granted. You've got Sarah Richards out in the seat of Hawkesbury, who's been working every single day, every single day in Macquarie, I should say, ensuring that she's working every single day to support people through these terrible floods. And she did a great job and then candidates as members of Parliament like Lucy Wicks up there in Robertson, who has had a great plan for the Central Coast. I mean, it is what's happening on the ground with strong Liberal local plans on the ground combined with our strong economic management, which makes it happen. I mean, you know, when you get into an election, Chris, I mean, these things start to sharpen up. I mean, people express opinions between elections, but opinions don't have consequences. And I know everything that I've done as a Prime Minister hasn't pleased everybody. But at the end of the day, when you look at the facts, and you look where we are as a country, and what we've come through, and what we've had to face and what we still have to face, you can't risk an Opposition, a Labor Opposition, supported by the Greens, that people don't even know. They don't even know who they are anymore. Anthony Albanese has pretended to be everybody from Kevin Rudd and most recently he was trying to [inaudible] Mark Latham, just yesterday. So, you know, I'm not pretending to be anyone else. I'm standing before the Australian people. They know my faults, but they also know my strengths, and they know my record, and they know that we’ve stood up to China. We stood up to the economic challenges that we faced. We kept people in work and we've got a strong economic plan to keep doing that into the future. And so choices have consequences in elections. And by voting Labor, they'll be risking Australia's economic recovery and a strong economy that is needed for a stronger future.
SMITH: In that answer, and in what you've said at the press conference yesterday, I've noticed a shift. This business about, I'm not perfect, yes, we've made mistakes. Some of the information we had was also not on the money. It is a good thing to be able to say to people, I am human. I make mistakes, because at the end of the day, so do we.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's look, that's true. And look, the one thing people say to me, when I get around the country and, you know, the media doesn't report on the nice things people say. But even here, just last night, where I've been down here in Nowra, people say, "gosh, the Government's had to deal with a lot over the last three years, three and a half years." And that's true. We have. But more importantly, Australians have. And every single one of my plans that has helped us get through this pandemic and setting us up for the future has been based on my passionate love and belief in the Australian people. Their resilience, their strength, their character. I don't think Government is the answer. I think they are the answer. And that's what my plans have always backed in. So by voting Liberal, you're voting for yourself. You're voting for someone who backs you in to achieve what you want to achieve, not what the Government says you should be doing.
SMITH: Alan Tudge is former Media Adviser and partner, Rachelle Miller, seems to be negotiating a $500,000 payout from the Federal Government from taxpayers. Our listeners here are not impressed. How did that come about?
PRIME MINISTER: Well look, I can't make any comment on that because I don't have any visibility on it. Those are private matters between the Department of Finance and Ms Miller, and they're appropriately at arm's length from me. So I mean, that's the rules. I'm not allowed to have visibility or any participation in that, because it's an employment matter. And no-one can confirm these issues. I'm unable to confirm them because it is a private matter. But we had an independent investigation into Alan Tudge and the issues raised. I took those seriously. I noticed my opponent, when he was faced with very serious allegations against senior members of his team, just recently, in relation to Senator Kitching's unfortunate passing, what did he do? He just looked the other way.
SMITH: That is still an outrage. You know, on my Board right now, I've got four text messages from people saying, ask Scott Morrison about the ‘Mean Girls’. This has gone straight over people's heads and Anthony Albanese has enabled that to happen. It's not good enough.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, look, I set the standard. I had an independent investigation into serious allegations in relation to Mr Tudge, and he came through those. And we finished that, and Alan has elected to still stand aside from the Cabinet. He's still formally a member of the Cabinet. We have an Acting Education Minister, but I look forward to Alan returning to the Cabinet, because Alan has been standing up for an issue, which I know Chris your listeners would be very interested in, and that's making sure our kids get taught the right things in schools.
SMITH: Yes.
PRIME MINISTER: Now, Alan has been a passionate warrior on that.
SMITH: Yep.
PRIME MINISTER: So I have no doubt why people would, some people would want to try and prevent Alan coming back into the Cabinet, because he's been a forceful advocate for that. He did a great job on the curriculum. Stuart Robert has continued that work, but I want Alan back in there making sure our kids are getting taught the right stuff, and not being taught to not like their country and not be proud of it. I'm incredibly proud of my country. We're not perfect as a country, and we've got to be honest about those things, but I want my kids, and they are growing up to be passionate and love their country, just like all of us, I'm sure do.
SMITH: Now, you were a little bit busy yesterday, I know. Something about a Federal Election, but did you see any of the Sharks win over the Tigers?
PRIME MINISTER: I caught pretty much the whole thing.
SMITH: Oh, don't admit that.
PRIME MINISTER: I did. I missed the first 15 and the last 15, but my staff know that that is the time that I'll be, I'll be in front of the box –
SMITH: (Laughter) Get out of here ...
PRIME MINISTER: ... for my beloved Sharks. And they, gee, they look strong. They, they looked, it could have been more. I mean I'm sure Fitzy sort of gave me a bit of a hard time about some of those, they were pushing it a bit early, but nah, it's good to see the boys doing well. My daughter was down there yesterday with some friends watching the game and she had a great time. So yeah it's, it's quite, I mean it's great that the footy back on I think. It was - if you love the AFL - and the women's AFL yesterday on the weekend was great too. I mean.
SMITH: And the NRL final.
PRIME MINISTER: With, yeah, yeah, it was terrific. I mean, it was the Roosters getting up, but commiserations for St. George. They've got a great women's program over there at St. George, and that's, I go back to Maria Kovacic. I mean, she's involved in women's rugby league out there in Parramatta. She's been on that Women at Eel's Board for some time. So, you know, she does a great job out there, our Liberal candidate for Parramatta. And I've got so many great candidates, and I've got so many great, I mean, most of the candidates in the very closely contested seats at this election. I've got great female candidates who are standing. We've got other great candidates like Andrew here, and Jerry Nockles over in Eden-Monaro, and Michael Feneley up there in Dobell. But we've also got terrific female candidates. Katherine Deves over there in Warringah, you know, she's standing up for something really important, and that is to ensure that, you know, when it comes to girls playing sport and women playing sport, that they're playing against people of the same sex. And that's that's I know it's a sensitive issue –
SMITH: For the Katherine Deves of the world and others who got a start from about April 2nd or 3rd, gee they've been left a, left a very, like a handicap really. They should have been elected in January and February, Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that, I would have hoped that that was achieved, but it wasn't. But you know, Fiona Martin at the last election was selected quite late in the piece, and she went on to win that election in Reid. But Katherine, Katherine is, you know, an outstanding individual. She's got a great legal background, and I think she's, you know, she's she's going, she could serve us very well in the seat of Warringah. And she's standing up for things that she believes in, and I share her views on those topics. And, and I think it's important that they're raised and it's got nothing to do with, you know, the broad agenda debates. This is just about, you know, common sense and what's right. And I think Katherine's right on the money there.
SMITH: All right. All the very best will no doubt catch up before the end. Have a terrific day to day in Nowra and all the very best.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks a lot, Chris. Good talk.
SMITH: Ok, no problem. Scott Morrison, the Prime Minister.
