Opening Remarks | Prime Minister of Australia
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Premier, congratulations.
JACINTA ALLAN, PREMIER OF VICTORIA: Thank you. It’s great to welcome you here. I know you are a very important, that we’ve got a very important relationship in the past.
PRIME MINISTER: Indeed.
PREMIER ALLAN: And we look forward to having it with you again in the future.
PRIME MINISTER: It’s a long way from us sitting down at regional development conferences in Bendigo.
PREMIER ALLAN: I know. I did say, I made the comments yesterday, that I may not have shared a house with you as the former Premier did, but I reckon I’ve known you just about as long.
PRIME MINISTER: Indeed, absolutely.
PREMIER ALLAN: You go back to those days many, many moons ago. So no, I’m just thrilled to be working with you again and to have you here in Melbourne today. It’s great timing. Obviously, there’s a big shared agenda, particularly in the housing space. And we look forward to carrying forward the work of the committee on really the biggest issue that we’ve got at the moment around building more homes.
PRIME MINISTER: Fantastic agenda.
PREMIER ALLAN: And so, one of the things, I’m sure you saw last week, we released the housing statement.
PRIME MINISTER: I did.
PREMIER ALLAN: And consistently being, obviously, very consistent with the work you’ve been doing, leading at National Cabinet. So, I have that for you.
PRIME MINISTER: Fantastic.
PREMIER ALLAN: And obviously, its work, this will be a central part of our work, driving forward and working with the industry, working with the community, to build more homes. To me, it doesn’t matter whether it’s in the suburbs or in regional Victoria, as you would know too from travelling the country.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, both of us come to the positions we’re in with a background in infrastructure.
PREMIER ALLAN: Yes, we do.
PRIME MINISTER: And the need for economic investment and Victoria has been great. I’ve had a good relationship, of course, with Daniel. And I’m sure that will continue.
PREMIER ALLAN: Exactly.
PRIME MINISTER: But there’s something I’ve said to a couple of journos who, I was talking to someone this morning and he said, ‘I’m surprised, when did you first meet?’ And I said, 25 years ago. And there’s something you’ll, I’ve found, certainly, it is different in the jobs that we’re in, but that experience –
PREMIER ALLAN: Along the way.
PRIME MINISTER: Makes an enormous difference. I feel like I was so much better prepared, having been Deputy Prime Minister, having been a Minister, and you’ll find the same.
PREMIER ALLAN: No, thank you. And I also, as challenging as the time we had in Opposition as well, that also shapes an experience and brings you, I think, brings back to government, because you’ve seen life on the other side. But certainly for us, and for me, it’s been more motivating to get that, when you get the precious gift that is government, to work incredibly hard to drive important policy outcomes through to delivery. And yes, our shared, our shared love of infrastructure, no doubt, will feature as part of our conversation along the way.
PRIME MINISTER: That’s right.
PREMIER ALLAN: But we’ve got, got a busy agenda that we look forward to supporting National Cabinet, nationally, and look forward to working with you.
PRIME MINISTER: We do. And it functions well, you’ll find it’s very collegial, and we talk issues through. We’ve got housing issues, health issues, the National Firearms Register, that we’re seeking to finalise. But, a big agenda, and we need that cooperation across the three levels of government. And that is something that I’ve sought to bring.
PREMIER ALLAN: Absolutely. And can I say that having worked with you as a Minister in the past, that was a style you brought to those forums in the past, very much so.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, listening and then acting, that’s the objective.
PREMIER ALLAN: Absolutely.