Radio Interview – KIIS FM with Kyle and Jackie O
KYLE SANDILANDS, HOST: Good morning, Prime Minister. How are you, sir?
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning from the Lodge in Canberra.
JACQUELINE LAST, HOST: Canberra, hey. What’s on the agenda today?
PRIME MINISTER: We’ve got a big defence announcement today, the Defence Strategic Review. That’s basically, what are the assets we need to defend Australia and where do we need to place them? So, that’s the announcement today.
SANDILANDS: You commissioned a big review there. I saw you take possession of the Review, so you’ve thumbed through that. Were you happy with the report?
PRIME MINISTER: Absolutely. We had Sir Angus Houston, who of course is a former head of our Defence Force and Stephen Smith who is a former Defence Minister. They did the Review, they’ve handed it to the Government, we’re releasing a declassified version. You don’t put all of your defence issues out there in the public, obviously. But we’re releasing that this morning and it will be, I think, a big day. And then of course, tomorrow, we have a really important day, ANZAC Day. And I’ll be at the War Memorial there in Canberra. I think it’s five o’clock it starts tomorrow morning for the Dawn Service. And that’s a time where we get to give thanks to Australians who have defended us in past generations as well as those who do today. I’ll tell you what, I did a thing on Saturday, where I saw a fellow called Frank McGovern, I went to see him. He’s in hospital at the moment but he’s doing okay. He’s 103 years old and he survived, he’s the only living survivor of HMAS Perth that was torpedoed by the Japanese. This bloke, he gets torpedoed by the Japanese, his brother died in that clash and so many hundreds of Australians died. He got picked up and was made a prisoner of war of the Japanese on the Burma-Siam railway. He then got put on a POW transport ship to Japan for slave labour. He got torpedoed by the Americans who didn’t know that there were POWs on board, survived that as well. So, survived two sinkings, this guy. And he was the most positive, warm, wonderful human being. And he’s got grandkids, and great grandkids. It was just a great privilege.
SANDILANDS: How amazing to do that, wow.
LAST: Not only did he survive all that, he lived beyond 100.
PRIME MINISTER: It’s just incredible.
LAST: This guy was watched over big time.
PRIME MINISTER: He lives well, he still lives by himself as well, there in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. Lives by himself, looks after himself, he’s an amazing Australian. I think that generation, tomorrow is an opportunity for us to say, ‘Well, bloody, thank you. Thank you for what you’ve done’.
SANDILANDS: Absolutely. A lot of people think, ‘Oh, it’s just a public holiday’. But it’s only a public holiday because we’ve got to thank all of those that stood up for our defence and our honour and our sovereignty. And you can’t ever forget these types, these people that laid down their lives for us. You can never forget that.
PRIME MINISTER: Absolutely. Frank was so positive. He wanted to have a beer, I don’t normally have a beer at that time in the morning but whatever Frank wanted. And his grandkids and great grandkids are so proud of him, quite rightly. And he was so full of beans, he insisted on getting all dressed and having the coat on with his medals and the full bit. He said he used to march every ANZAC Day and his mates and comrades, of course, aren’t around anymore so he doesn’t do that. But he does pay tribute and watches it on the on the telly. And I just think I’ll be thinking about Frank tomorrow morning, very early. And I do think that it’s really important that we recognise what ANZAC Day is about. We honour the sacrifice of people like Frank who has no bitterness or anything at all – he survived. When he was in Japan, working in a steel mill as slave labour and of course there was bombings occurring, he survived all of that as well. Like this guy is just a legend.
SANDILANDS: He’s seen it all really. And don’t forget it’s wedding week this week for me, Albo.
PRIME MINISTER: It’s there, it’s in the diary. I’ll be seeing you there.
SANDILANDS: Oh, really? Oh wow, we better…
LAST: Imagine having the Prime Minister come to your wedding.
PRIME MINISTER: I’m looking forward to it.
SANDILANDS: If you do come and there’s no emergency or anything like that, I’ve got you’re sitting next to my mother who I haven’t even told her who she’s sitting next to.
PRIME MINISTER: Awesome. I’m sure she’s a good mum, and I’ll be nice.
SANDILANDS: She’s a fan of yours, so she’s going to lose her mind. By the way, I wanted to know, let’s not muck around with the cloak and dagger. What’s the go with aliens?
LAST: He’s obsessed.
PRIME MINISTER: I was listening to your preamble, and I’ve got to say of all the questions I thought I would be on radio, ‘What’s the go with aliens?’ wasn’t right at the top of the agenda.
SANDILANDS: You must have wondered. Are they real?
LAST: Have you ever?
PRIME MINISTER: I like the X Files as much as anyone else, we all liked watching Gillian Anderson all those years ago.
SANDILANDS: Didn’t we.
PRIME MINISTER: I know as much as you do. I can assure you of this, there are not secret briefings given to the Prime Minister of Australia about aliens being in our midst
SANDILANDS: Right, well that’s good to know.
LAST: That’s what you really wanted to know.
PRIME MINISTER: You wanted to know to see if I could get one to bring them along on Saturday.
SANDILANDS: I would love, imagine if you showed up with an alien
LAST: Here’s my gift to you, Kyle.
SANDILANDS: And we revealed to the world our only alien. Well listen, you can only do what you can do. And another thing I wanted to notice, because Chris Minns, fantastic new Premier for New South Wales, thrilled that he won. I’m sorry that intern Pete was trying to crash the whole festival, and the whole celebration of Chris Minns down there by trying to get him to do a shoey, it was embarrassing.
PRIME MINISTER: I did a bit of a hush hush to him on the night.
SANDILANDS: I noticed, I was watching live and I knew as soon as you went ‘No, no. Not now, not now’. I thought, ‘I bet you that’s intern Pete’, and it was. It was embarrassing.
PRIME MINISTER: I kicked him out. I don’t know, you should, we’ll lock him up with the aliens when there’s an event.
SANDILANDS: And I noticed up in Queensland they’ve decriminalised prostitution, which I think is great because, you know, like the why fight the losing battle? And I think that she’s also thinking of decriminalising most recreational drugs. Are you across all that?
PRIME MINISTER: The state’s look after all of that, but clearly criminalising prostitution doesn’t really work and drives it underground and leads to worse behaviour and worse treatment of people who are involved in what can be, of course, a dangerous industry.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, I agree.
LAST: And you’re off to the King’s Coronation as well, that’s coming up.
PRIME MINISTER: What a week, Kyle’s wedding and the King’s Coronation.
LAST: Which one are you more excited about?
SANDILANDS: That’s unfair…
PRIME MINISTER: I’m excited about both. I’ve got to say that the King’s Coronation, one of the things that the Brits do very well, they do pomp and ceremony very well.
SANDILANDS: Where will you be during the ceremony?
LAST: What do you get to go to? Like are there lots of little events with the Royal Family?
PRIME MINISTER: There are events at Buckingham Palace on Friday, the Coronation is on Saturday. At Buckingham Palace there’s a specific event for the leaders of the realm countries – that is the country’s that have the King as our Head of State. So, that will be a pretty intimate gathering, including the Prime Ministers of Canada and New Zealand.
SANDILANDS: You know what I’ve just pictured, Prime Minister? I’ve pictured your gift to me and Tegan for the wedding is we’re jumping on board with you and Jodie and going to the Coronation. Oh my God, have I ruined the surprise?
PRIME MINISTER: Off to the Coronation as your honeymoon.
SANDILANDS: On the taxpayers dime, even better.
PRIME MINISTER: I think you can afford a decent honeymoon, Kyle.
SANDILANDS: I’m already going, we’re going to the south of France.
LAST: Yeah, I’m going with him.
SANDILANDS: When will you propose to Jodie, Prime Minister? Is that on the on the agenda?
PRIME MINISTER: I don’t think that’s a matter for KIIS FM to determine, strangely.
SANDILANDS: But we will want we know, is she your twin flame?
PRIME MINISTER: She is certainly a very dear partner. And we have a great relationship, I regard myself as being Incredibly lucky I’ve got to say to have found Jodie, and we have a great relationship.
SANDILANDS: Has she brought up, ‘Hey, how about putting a ring on it?’ Like come on, never?
PRIME MINISTER: Nah.
SANDILANDS: If you need I’ll go down to Michael Hill with you, we’ll peruse the rings.
LAST: Stop putting it on him, that’s just awkward.
PRIME MINISTER: You’re the consultant. I reckon some things in life I’m fit to handle myself and my relationship is not something that has a little asterisk next to it of, ‘Kyle Sandilands, relationship adviser to the Prime Minister’.
SANDILANDS: You’re right, you’re right. You know what, looking back at my history I haven’t been the greatest chooser.
PRIME MINISTER: I got to say, you’re not first on the list to call for advice.
SANDILANDS: Fantastic. Prime Minister you’ve got a huge week..
PRIME MINISTER: Am I going to see Otto on Saturday?
SANDILANDS: The wedding starts at three, if you’re there for the ceremony, I don’t know what you’ve got, You’ve got the country to run, you’ve got all things to do. He will be at the ceremony all dressed up. I put him in his little outfit yesterday, he’s got his little diamond cufflinks, oh, he looks lovely. So, if you’re there he can sit on your lap.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I’m coming from interstate, but I will be there.
SANDILANDS: Well don’t show up with all the flags and everything while the brides walking down, just try and time it properly.
LAST: Chopper in.
PRIME MINISTER: Chopper in.
SANDILANDS: Prime Minister, thank you sir. Have a great week. We’ll see you at the wedding.
PRIME MINISTER: You too, guys. Looking forward to it.