Radio interview – KIIS 101.1 Melbourne – Jase and Lauren
LAUREN PHILLIPS, HOST: Albo, good morning.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning. I thought that answer might come back to haunt me.
PHILLIPS: It haunted me more than it haunted you, Prime Minister, let me tell you.
PRIME MINISTER: You heard radios click off. I don’t know why you played it again. No one’s listening to this interview now.
PHILLIPS: Hey, Albo, you were down in Melbourne last weekend and I heard that you were loving our beautiful climate down here.
JOURNALIST: Can we ask that you, sorry, can we?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, I’m just a bit cold here. But you look a bit cold too, I’ve got to say. So I’m not alone.
JOURNALIST: Yeah, I am, very cold.
DANIEL ANDREWS: You’re making me feel cold.
PRIME MINISTER: And your poor colleague here is shaking, so just a couple more.
PHILLIPS: Does that mean it’s your last of your visits down to Melbourne for the winter months?
PRIME MINISTER: Not at all. I’ll be there next week, back again next Thursday, I think. I’m in Melbourne and Horsham next Thursday.
PHILLIPS: You’re going to need your puffer jacket.
CLINT STANAWAY, HOST: You stood next to Dan Andrews there at that media conference. Very important about housing and housing funds. Dan, he’s made of stern stuff. I think he was just wearing a shirt. You were in your full jacket, your beanie, your scarf.
PRIME MINISTER: No, he had a jacket on, come on. He had a jacket on. But it was very cold. We were at Moonee Valley Racecourse, we were outside, and when we went out, it was okay during the day, except when I don’t know whether it was a draught up the straight there, but when we got out there, there was one poor young woman journalist, I don’t know where she was from. She was literally shaking. She had a beautiful coat on, but it wasn’t helping. It wasn’t helping.
PHILLIPS: Shame.
STANAWAY: Hey, PM, legislation to trigger a referendum later this year on the Voice sailed through the upper house just yesterday. I want to ask you about the situation as it stands, because if polls are to be believed right now, a Voice referendum would fail. Why do you think Australians are reluctant at the moment?
PRIME MINISTER: Well I think they want further information, and it’s always easier to get a no vote than it is to get a yes vote in a referendum. History tells us that that is the case. I think it’s something like eight successful out of 48. So, that’s not a great strike rate. But this is such a sensible reform. This is about recognising First Australians in our Constitution. We should be proud of the fact that we share this continent with the oldest continuous culture on Earth. And secondly, it’s about giving them a voice on matters that affect them. So, we know that if you’re a young Indigenous person, you are more likely to go to jail than to university. That’s not good enough.
PHILLIPS: Wow.
STANAWAY: It’s distressing, isn’t it?
PRIME MINISTER: There’s an eight-year life expectancy gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia. There are health gaps, there are infant mortality gaps, there are housing gaps. We need to do better.
STANAWAY: PM, have we got a date yet for the referendum?
PRIME MINISTER: Look, it’ll be sometime between October and December. The legislation was only passed yesterday, so we’ll sort out a date in coming time. It can’t be before two months and 33 days, there’s some technical things to do with the referendum.
STANAWAY: Get your diary out, get your little black book out.
PRIME MINISTER: So that takes you up to AFL finals.
STANAWAY: Oh, can’t mess with the footy.
PRIME MINISTER: So we’re not going to have it on the day of the AFL Grand Final. I assure you of that.
PHILLIPS: Yeah don’t do that. There’s enough sausage sizzles going on that day.
PRIME MINISTER: Indeed, exactly. And people are a bit distracted on that day. But we will announce it plenty of time in advance.
STANAWAY: Good stuff.
PRIME MINISTER: And every Australian now will get a say. And I sincerely hope that after 122 years, we get this done. This won’t impact most people’s lives, that’s the truth. But it just might make lives better for some of the most disadvantaged people.
PHILLIPS: Hey, Albo, I just want to change the pace for a second. Because as a woman watching from afar, it’s been quite distressing the last few weeks with allegations of sexual harassment, mudslinging across the chamber in Canberra. Are you concerned about the image that is being portrayed from Parliament at the moment?
PRIME MINISTER: I certainly am Lauren. And I think with some of the coverage as well that’s occurred, I’m very concerned that if you are a woman wanting to come forward because of a sexual violence issue, then you might be more reluctant if you look at the coverage that’s occurred. There’s been something like 13 per cent of sexual assaults in Australia are reported to police.
PHILLIPS: Wow.
PRIME MINISTER: And that is a terrible figure. A terrible figure.
PHILLIPS: Yeah, but you can almost understand why women don’t want to come forward.
PRIME MINISTER: I think some of the commentary and leaking of personal text messages and other stuff that’s gone on has been really regrettable in the last, as well as not being legal, some of it as well. I think that people need to be treated with respect. Every woman should feel safe at work, and it’s as simple as that. And our workplace hasn’t been good enough in the past, we know. Because of the accusation that was made in 2019 about an alleged sexual assault in a Minister’s office, but also the revelations that ended up coming out of last week, about allegations about the behaviour of one of the Victorian Senators. I’ve got to say, I wasn’t really aware, I don’t think, terribly, that he was ever in the Senate.
STANAWAY: So, you hadn’t heard of any bad behaviour or?
PRIME MINISTER: No, I’d never heard of him, really, to tell you the truth.
STANAWAY: Sheesh, should be name tags in Canberra.
PRIME MINISTER: And I’d be very comfortable if he never returned to the Senate.
PHILLIPS: There you go.
STANAWAY: PM, another change of pace if I can. Politicians alike and their partners will come together tomorrow night for the Midwinter Ball, if you don’t mind. You’ll be donning your penguin suit and your partner, your beautiful partner will be frocked up. What happens at the Midwinter Ball?
PRIME MINISTER: It’s a bit of a gathering and it’s raising funds for charity. There’s been millions of dollars raised over the years, and people can bid online for either a game of tennis or a game of pool with me at The Lodge.
PHILLIPS: Oh what are you better at, tennis or pool?
PRIME MINISTER: I’m probably better at pool, given my age. And too much time as a young person spending pubs playing pool.
PHILLIPS: I’d like to see you have a run around on the tennis court, though.
STANAWAY: Do you know, pot in hand, Albo, and the pool cue. There’s nothing more iconic. Australian and iconic.
PRIME MINISTER: Exactly, well, I still play comp tennis in Sydney for Marrickville, for my local team. I’m playing this Saturday, and I try to stay fit doing it. It’s a good game, tennis, because you can keep playing it. And you can play people at your level. So I play in the Sydney Badge comp, which is good fun. It’s quite unusual, of course, people don’t expect the PM to be on the other side of the court when they turn up against us.
PHILLIPS: Well, Prime Minister, maybe next time you’re in Melbourne, we’ll hit you up.
BYRON COOKE, HOST: Oh you want a game? Some mixed doubles.
PHILLIPS: Should we play him in pool, mixed doubles in pool or tennis?
STANAWAY: Oh mixed doubles, has to be.
PHILLIPS: Would you take us on?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, absolutely. Well, we could do both. We could play tennis and then have a game of pool and a pot.
COOKE: Oh games day. How about that?
PHILLIPS: A game of pool and a pot. I am in for that, Albo.
COOKE: End up at the Tote in Collingwood.
STANAWAY: Perfect, see you there.
COOKE: Have a couple of schooners. He loves a gig, Albo, loves a live gig.
PRIME MINISTER: I know where that is, I’ve been there.
COOKE: You would have. All right, look, we really appreciate your time. The Prime Minister of Australia, ladies and gentlemen. Thanks for joining us with Jase and Lauren.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Albo. See you for a game of pool soon.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks so much, great to chat. See you soon.