Radio interview – HIT 100.9 Hobart Breakfast
DAN TAYLOR, HOST: The Prime Minister of Australia has joined us right now. Anthony Albanese, thanks for joining us.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, great to be here.
TAYLOR: What a surprise.
CHRISTIE HAYES, HOST: Good morning.
TAYLOR: It’s so good that you are down here.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Well, it was a gorgeous day in Hobart yesterday afternoon, I’ve got to say. I was farewelling, or giving a shout out to the Yes volunteers for the referendum with Julie Collins and Carol Brown and Andrew Wilkie. And it was such a gorgeous day, we were down at Glenorchy. And this morning, got up, went out of the hotel early and it was raining and cold. It’s all changed, what’s going on!
HAYES: Welcome to Tasmania.
TAYLOR: This is Tasmania, wait five minutes, it’ll change.
HAYES: And you’ll get sunburnt.
TAYLOR: Well, let’s talk about the 14th of October because this is what you’re down here for. And you’re for the Yes vote, aren’t you?
PRIME MINISTER: I certainly am. Because this is an opportunity to recognise the first Australians in our nation’s founding document, something that every other former colony in the world has done. We’re playing catch up here. But it’s a matter of showing respect and acknowledging our history didn’t begin in 1788 when Captain Phillip arrived that Sydney Cove there, it goes back 65,000 years. So, it’s about that.
HAYES: That is exactly right?
PRIME MINISTER: And secondly, it’s just about the request of what form of recognition Indigenous Australians have asked, because it’s come from them, it hasn’t come from politicians. And they’re asking, saying, we want recognition with a bit of substance. So, can we just have a non-binding advisory committee, so that we can have a say about matters that affect our lives? And it’s a gracious and generous and modest request. And I sincerely hope that Australians vote Yes. And they can vote today, anytime between today and October 14.
HAYES: Prime Minister, you mentioned Glenorchy, and that’s where my family all derive from, the Scotney family. I’m Indigenous myself, I’m from a very strong, very proud Aboriginal family and also personally very, very much in favour of the Yes vote. And you know what? I know that there are people out there that don’t even necessarily know, with specificity, what it actually means. And so, then they’re leaning toward that, and I’m going say it on air, that campaign, that stupid thing, if you don’t know vote No, I don’t like that. Because I believe that it’s playing into the confusion for some people. You mentioned the over 65,000 years of history, which is so true, and there is so much to be learned and gained from us moving forward with this. For the people out there, right now, that don’t even know what it means, but want to do the right thing or learn, what could you say to those people this morning, Prime Minister, to help everyone understand the impact that this really will have on our country?
PRIME MINISTER: That when you listen to people, you get better results. And that just, people will know that from their own lives. The schools that are successful are ones that have P&Cs that talk to students, teachers, parents, and the local community. A radio station here, if you’re not listening to what your listeners are telling you, then you won’t be successful. So, all that this is, is taking that experience. We know that when Indigenous Australians are listened to on issues like Indigenous Rangers, community health programs, getting kids back to school, the successful programs have been ones that have had agency, or some form of ownership from Indigenous Australians. Buy in, if you like. It’s as simple as that. And so, this is a really gracious request. I encourage people to have a look at what the question is. The question is really clear. That’s available online, if people just Google it up, have a look at the booklet that was sent out. The first thing is, in recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the first peoples of Australia, pretty clear, just a fact. And then, there shall be a body to be called the Voice, it may make representations, that’s all it is, representations to the government about matters affecting Indigenous Australians. And the third is, the Parliament will make laws for the way that the Voice operates. So, it doesn’t interfere with Parliament, it doesn’t have right of veto, it won’t be a funding body. But I sincerely hope that Australians do vote Yes. And I think the slogan that you referred to from the No campaign is, to me, them putting their hand up and saying, well, we don’t really have a case against this, just don’t find out anything and therefore, vote No.
HAYES: Just confuse people.
PRIME MINISTER: That that really is, I think, an indictment of it. Which is why you have this big fear campaign. And if listeners think back to the marriage equality campaign, you know it was going to, marriage for same sex couples was going to interfere with other people’s marriages, and we’re going have people marrying harbour bridges, and all this nonsense.
TAYLOR: The sky was going to fall –
HAYES: All these problems that wouldn’t happen.
TAYLOR: People got married, that’s what happened.
HAYES: And life moved on.
PRIME MINISTER: And guess what? It gave something to a group of people, without taking anything from anyone else. And that’s what this is. This will just give respect to Indigenous Australians, without taking anything from non-Indigenous Australians. But I think, more than that, I think what it will do is give something to us non-Indigenous Australians as well, because we will feel better about ourselves, like we did when the Apology happened. We just felt better. An act of generosity. When you do something for someone else, then you feel better about yourself. And, you know, this is, I’ve likened it to when we met just outside the studio there, we shook hands. And this is the way that Australians greet each other. And this is a hand out, it’s just asking for that hand to be joined, not dismissed, not ignored. And I sincerely hope that Australians join hands in the spirit of reconciliation and we will be a stronger, more positive nation if we do that.
TAYLOR: Well said.
HAYES: My grandmother was a part of the Stolen Generation, Prime Minister, and she’s not here anymore. And I wish she was, I wish she could see this. Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, from me personally, thank you.
PRIME MINISTER: Your grandmother would be very proud of you.
HAYES: Thank you.
TAYLOR: Always was, always is. Thank you so much, Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, and have a good rest of the day in Tasmania. Appreciate you coming in.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you.