SUBJECTS: Climate change; Federal election; Labor’s Powering Australia Plan; Labor’s policy agenda; protecting the Reef and Far North Queensland jobs; Labor’s National Reconstruction Fund; manufacturing; job creation; the need for a National Anti-Corruption Commission; Scott Morrison always wanting to blame someone else and never taking responsibility; Scott Morrison is a Prime Minister that goes missing when Australia needs him; Liberal candidate for Warringah; skilled labour shortages in Far North Queensland; Defence spending; HMAS Cairns; Defence Force Posture Review; national security; Port of Darwin; Labor’s Better Future plan; unemployment rate; portable entitlements; LGBTQI+ community; NSW ICAC.
 
ELIDA FAITH, LABOR CANDIDATE FOR LEICHHARDT: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to beautiful Far North Queensland. I made sure we turned on the weather for you. I hope you have all got your sunblock on and your hats. My name is Elida Faith. And I'm the Labor candidate for Leichhardt. And I'm joined today by Labor's Leader, Anthony Albanese, our Shadow Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and Cairns' very own Senator, Nita Green. It is heart-warming to see so many holidaymakers make their way up to our beautiful patch of paradise for the Easter long weekend. It's a long time coming. And it's absolutely wonderful. COVID has been tough for Far North Queensland families and businesses. And Jim and Anthony are certainly no strangers to Far North Queensland. When we were doing it tough, Anthony was up here talking to our small businesses, talking to people out in the community, and more importantly, listening. And Anthony, thank you so much. Anthony doesn't just turn up when things are going well. He turns up when things are tough. And Far North Queenslanders are telling me every day when I'm out there, that they are sick of being neglected, they're sick of being left behind by the Morrison Government. And again, Anthony and Jim, welcome back to beautiful Far North Queensland this Easter weekend. And I'm going to hand over now to Anthony. Thank you.
 
ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Thanks very much, Elida. And it's great to be back here in Far North Queensland with yourself and Senator Nita Green. And congratulations on your recent arrival, Nita. And it's good to be here with Jim. Jim will make some comments after I do. And then we'll take some questions. Look, every time you come to this part of the world, you hear about the Great Barrier Reef, you hear about the importance of the tourism sector. And indeed, the Great Barrier Reef is important, not just for jobs, but obviously it's important as a pristine, natural wonder, one of the great wonders of the world. We need to make sure that we protect it. And to do that, we have to act on climate change. Now, this Government have had 22 separate policies on energy and climate, and they haven't landed a single one of them. Labor has our plan of Powering the Nation. Our plan that will create 604,000 new jobs, five out of every six of them in regional Australia. Our plan that will result in $52 billion of private sector investment. Our plan that will reduce emissions by 43 per cent by 2030. It's a proper plan that understand that action on climate change is not only good for protecting the environment and protecting the Reef and protecting the jobs that come here in Far North Queensland, but indeed, with a multiplier throughout the entire national economy from the Great Barrier Reef, it comes with opportunity to expand. One of the recent times I was here with Elida, we went to a solar manufacturing facility here in Cairns, producing solar panels. There are too few of them produced here. We see that action on climate change, which will result in cheaper power, which will advance manufacturing, including manufacturing for renewables, but also in a range of other areas as well, will be good for job creation as well. So, I think at this election, one of the stark contrasts between us and our opponents is a Labor Party that understands the need to act on climate change, is a Labor party that's united around our policy position. And our opponents who are all over the shop. Our opponents who say they'll actually cut more than 26 to 28 per cent by 2030, but they won't commit to it because Barnaby Joyce won't let them. We know that there are still sceptics in the Coalition who don't even believe that climate change is real, even though we know the natural disasters, floods, fires, cyclones are all not just anticipated to be more often and more extreme. That is what has been happening in the last few years. If you want action on climate change and you want to end the climate wars, then people need to vote for the Party that has a policy that's been supported not just by the Business Council of Australia, not just by Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, not just by the National Farmers' Federation, the Australian Industry Group, the ACTU, it's one that has overwhelming support, I believe, from the Australian community who understand that these events are making an impact on everyone's lives, and that we need to act on it.
 
The second issue I want to raise is the issue of a National Anti-Corruption Commission. Now, Scott Morrison, when he became Prime Minister after the coup that removed the elected Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, in 2018, committed to a National Anti-Corruption Commission. Now, we know the reason why Scott Morrison doesn't have a National Anti-Corruption Commission is sitting on his frontbench. The fact that there have been so many integrity issues raised against Minister after Minister, the sport rorts affair, the commuter car parks affair, the abuse of so much of taxpayer funds that's been used as if it's Liberal Party funds. And then we have issues like the correspondence that was dropped out from Angus Taylor's office about Clover Moore, that simply wasn't true and was made up. Then there was the purchase of land worth $3 million, where the Government paid $30 million for it. We have other abuses of taxpayer funds, like the $444 million that was given to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, an organisation that, at the time, had 10 employees and was given to them after a half an hour meeting. No tender process, no application. They didn't even ask for it. They didn't go into the meeting. They themselves say no one was more surprised than them, that they went into a meeting and walked out with $444 million of taxpayers' money. Now, if we want a National Anti-Corruption Commission, it's very clear that not only has Scott Morrison failed to legislate for one, not only has he failed to introduce legislation, he's now saying somehow, once again, in perhaps the greatest underlining element of Scott Morrison's characteristic of always looking to blame someone else, somehow, it's the Labor Party's fault that he hasn't introduced legislation for a National Anti-Corruption Commission. It fails the laugh test. But it also fails the integrity test. And Scott Morrison's Government fails the integrity test. If we want action on climate change, people need to elect a Labor Government. If we want to end the climate wars, people need to elect a Labor Government. If we want a National Integrity Commission, people need to elect a Labor Government.
 
JIM CHALMERS, SHADOW TREASURER: Thanks very much, Anthony. We know that the road to a better future for Australia goes through Queensland. And that is as it should be. And that is why we are here today with all of you. Queensland is like a second home for Anthony. He has a natural affinity with Queenslanders. And he has treated this place like a second home. And it is really terrific to see him here once again. We know that we have to work twice as hard for every vote in Queensland. We are up for that challenge. The Prime Minister has consistently and repeatedly turned his back on Queenslanders when we need him the most, whether it is during floods, the pandemic, this is a Prime Minister who goes missing when Queenslanders need him. He had the gall today to say that his Government has been tested. This Prime Minister has failed every test at every turn. This is a Prime Minister when he was tested by bushfires, went to Hawaii. This was a Prime Minister tested by the pandemic, didn't order enough rapid tests, didn't order enough vaccines. This is a Prime Minister tested by floods who went missing and treated flood relief as just another partisan, divisive thing for him to try to take advantage of, so if the Prime Minister wants to talk about test, this Prime Minister has failed every test at every single turn. He wants to talk about the management of money. This Morrison Government has borrowed more, taxed more and spent more than Labor did, but delivered less. The reason they have delivered so little, the reason why they don't have enough to show for a trillion dollars in debt is because the Budget is absolutely chock-full of waste and rorts and corrupted by Scott Morrison's incompetence. So, if you want to talk about mismanagement of money, let's talk about more than $20 billion of JobKeeper for businesses that didn't need it, which prevented the businesses here in the Tropical North from getting the assistance that they needed and deserved when times were tough. Let's talk about $5.5 billion wasted on submarines that will never be built. Let's talk about land rorts and sports rorts, and car park rorts, and all the rest of it. Let's have a debate about the Government being the most wasteful Government in the history of our Federation. The only reason they talk about Labor is because they want to distract from the fact that they have got a trillion dollars in debt with almost nothing to show for it. They have taxed more, borrowed more and spent more, but delivered less than Labor. And that is because the Budget is corrupted by Scott Morrison's incompetence.
 
JOURNALIST: The New South Wales Liberal Treasurer, Matt Kean, has called for Katherine Deves to be disendorsed over comments about transgender people. Should she be disendorsed?
 
ALBANESE: It is the Liberal Party themselves saying this. The New South Wales branch is tearing itself apart. This has been a civil war that has been going on for over a year now. And what is extraordinary is that Katherine Deves has been handpicked by the Prime Minister. She is the Prime Minister's own choice. The Prime Minister earlier this week said that he shared Katherine Deves’ values in endorsing her yet again. And the last pack, who was the last Prime Minister's captain's pick? Craig Kelly. He has a great record, doesn't he? He is prepared to intervene, to knock over local branch members in order to select candidates. Their own people in the Liberal Party are calling upon the Prime Minister to show leadership. This is the Treasurer of New South Wales, Matt Kean. He is a serious player in the Liberal Party. Another local activist, someone who has been very prominent in the organisational wing, is also warning about what has occurred. There is a revolt amongst Liberal Party members in electorates like Hughes. There is a range of candidates who have been imposed from outside. And Scott Morrison's judgement, I saw the press conference that he just held, where he refuses to accept responsibility once again. He is always looking to blame someone else. It is very clear that this selection of this candidate is not just dividing the country, it is dividing the Liberal Party.
 
JOURNALIST: On Thursday, you said that your candidate, Dan Repacholi, shouldn't be held to account for comments he has made on social media. Does the same standard not apply to Labor candidates?
 
ALBANESE: In his 20s. These are comments that were made a very, very long time ago by Mr Repacholi. A very long time ago. This candidate in Warringah, this has been her main political approach has been on these issues, as opposed to Mr Repacholi, who, quite frankly, his main approach in his 20s was winning medals and representing Australia.
 
JOURNALIST: You still haven't really answered Lucy's question. Should Katherine Deves be disendorsed? What is your opinion on that?
 
ALBANESE: It is a matter for the Liberal Party. But if I wasn't Scott Morrison, I wouldn't have selected her in the first place.
 
JOURNALIST: Industry groups are sounding the alarm about portable entitlement. Who will they capture? Which industries and how much will it cost employees? Industries are saying it is going to cost billions of dollars. So, why haven't you outlined a plan for the election?
 
ALBANESE: We have. Our policy that I announced in Brisbane more than a year ago was that we would consult. That is the plan. This isn't something that we seek to impose on anybody. This is consistent with our plan to consult with business, to consult with unions so we get win-win. That is our policy that was announced. I made it very clear at the time. I gave a major speech in Brisbane. Just one of the many announcements that we have made. And on portable entitlements, of course, you can't have something imposed from above on everyone. But what it is about is we know there is more and more insecure work out there. We know that half a million Australians are working three jobs. That figure has doubled under this Government's watch. And we need to work out ways in which, where it is possible, that is in the interest of employers as well as employees.
 
JOURNALIST: What you make of the fact that so many think that you are a risk to business?
 
ALBANESE: I talk the Business Council of Australia. And I spoke to what was one of the largest gatherings, they tell me, that they have had of CEOs at a semi-private event just weeks ago, where 50 CEOs, including from very major companies, blue-collar companies, white-collar companies, gathered to engage with me. I have a really good relationship with the Business Council of Australia, with the Australian Industry Group, with a range of business bodies. And I will continue to develop that constructive relationship. It is something I have always done and will continue to do.
 
JOURNALIST: Would it undermine the effectiveness of the integrity body if you legislate without bipartisan support, if you don't have cross-chamber support? And secondly, can you make your reflections on the first week of the campaign? Has it been harder than you thought and what do you say to people that are feeling a bit nervous?
 
ALBANESE: The Integrity Commission issue is one in which we will take, we will legislate this year, a National Anti-Corruption Commission. It will be a National Anti-Corruption Commission with teeth, one that has independent, investigative powers. It is one that will be real, as opposed to their model that has been rejected by everyone. In terms of our plan going forward, we have enormous support across the board, not just, might I say, from within the Labor Party, but you have seen some of the response here today in terms of our plan for a Better Future for Australia. Our plan with four subthemes of strengthening Medicare, making sure that we have more secure work, of addressing cost of living issues, including providing cheaper child care, cheaper energy prices, addressing issues like access to Medicare and, of course, a Future Made in Australia that is also really important.
 
JOURNALIST: We have a real shortage here of GPs and also skilled workers. What is Labor's plan for helping us get through that barrier? Because at the moment there are people waiting weeks to see basic healthcare and it is a huge problem not just in the urban area like Cairns, but up in the Cape.
 
ALBANESE: It is a major issue. And that is why our plan is to prioritise strengthening Medicare and to make sure that, particularly in regional communities, we are fully aware that people are really struggling to get access to a GP. And when they do, they are paying more. We have some of our plans out there. We will have more to say.
 
JOURNALIST: How are you going to get GPs to come to Far North Queensland?
 
ALBANESE: We will have more to say about that in coming days. But we are absolutely committed to prioritising strengthening Medicare across-the-board. And we understand, I'm met with Advance Cairns this morning, and it was one of the issues that was raised with them, the access to services here in Far North Queensland.
 
JOURNALIST: On the Integrity Commission, if a Labor MP is accused or fronting the Integrity Commission and if it is a Minister, what action would you take? Would you stand them down from your frontbench?
 
ALBANESE: Well, what you would do is to make assessments at the time. If they are just there as a witness or assisting, obviously not. What an Anti-Corruption Commission does around the country is it provides investigations, and then there are charges laid. If there are any charges laid against anyone, then, of course, they should stand aside.
 
JOURNALIST: Could I ask on religious freedom, Labor has said it does support religious freedoms legislation, however, obviously, you had concern about consequences to LGBT students. If you win government, what is your plan on religious freedoms? Will you introduce your own bill to Parliament?
 
ALBANESE: Yes, we will.
 
JOURNALIST: Would you commit it to hold public hearings and will the scope be retrospective and how far back would it look?
 
ALBANESE: Yes, there would be scope for public hearings, if the Anti-Corruption Commission itself felt that was necessary. We would give them the capacity to do that so that decision wasn't politicised. The second part of the question?
 
JOURNALIST: Would it be retrospective?
 
ALBANESE: Retrospective, that would be a matter for them. But I should imagine that because of a range of issues, I should imagine that they would want to look. But it would be a matter for them. That's the difference between the models. Their model that they have got up is a so-called integrity commission which would be controlled effectively by the Government. It would determine what it looks at. We want an independent commission that acts independently.
 
JOURNALIST: Far North Queensland is of strategic defence importance for Australia. Labor is committed to keeping defence spending over two per cent of GDP. Can you name an actual target? What would this cost? And what is the current budget of the Defence Force? What would Labor do differently?
 
ALBANESE: The current budget is $48 billion or 2.1 per cent, roughly, rounded down of GDP. I have said, and I said in my Lowy Institute speech, that defence spending will need to rise. We live in a more insecure world.
 
JOURNALIST: What would be your target?
 
ALBANESE: It will be above two per cent. It will be as necessary. What you shouldn't do is just, that is a floor, if you like, so it needs to be above that. Because what you need to do was to spend whatever is necessary to keep Australians safe. And the difference between us and them too is that it isn't just about the level of spending. What it is about is what you spend on and whether it produces an asset at the end. So, this Government has spent $5.5 billion that hasn't produced anything in terms of subs. That is not a good use of spending. That is not something they deserve credit for. That is something that has cost every Australian taxpayer an enormous amount. Going forward, we have said as well there will be a Defence Force Posture Review. There hasn't been one for a decade since Labor was last in office. And the one before then was when Kim Beazley did one when he was Defence Minister. So, what that will look at, and this is particularly relevant for the North here, that is so important. There are 900 personnel here at HMAS Cairns, either civil or defence personnel. And they play an important role here. We will look at, through the Defence Force Posture Review, whether other things can be done in the North as well. Quite clearly, given the nature of the strategic challenges Australia faces, defence of the North has got to be critical. That is the other reason why as well we wouldn't have sold the Port of Darwin to a company that is linked to the Chinese Communist Party regime in Beijing.
 
JOURNALIST: You said the Government had failed every test at every turn. But one of the tests they haven't failed is one you set them, which was that jobs would be the deciding factor on whether Australia got through the pandemic or not. With unemployment due to have a three in front of it very shortly, do you concede the Government passed that test?
 
CHALMERS: I'm pleased you asked that question. I said that in September 2020. And subsequent to that, hundreds of thousands of jobs were lost in our economy, which Josh Frydenberg wants you all to forget. There were hundreds of thousands of jobs lost in two months alone in 2021 because of the Government's failures on vaccines and purpose-built quarantine. Hundreds of thousands of jobs were shared unnecessarily by this Government. I know their spin and marketing since then wants to pretend away all of the human carnage that came with that joblessness, including in communities like this one in Tropical North Queensland. We want the unemployment rate to be as low as possible. And we have said, even with an unemployment rate coming down in welcome ways, we haven't seen real wages growth sufficiently with the skyrocketing cost of living and we have skill shortages which are being left unattended. The story of the labour market is broader than the unemployment rate. And in our labour market, we've got the unemployment rate falling in welcome ways, but we've got a situation where everything is going up except people's pay. We've got a situation where there are skills and labour shortages, particularly in pockets of Australia. Now, the Government wants everybody to think that everything is fine in the economy. If you walk down the main streets of this country, as we have been, then we understand people are falling further and further behind because of skyrocketing cost of living and falling real wages in the Government's own Budget. And this comes to the choice at this election. Now, the Prime Minister wants to talk about the choice. This election is an opportunity to lock in a better future under Labor. And it's an opportunity to rule a line under the rorts and waste and chaos and corruption and incompetence that we've seen for the best part of a decade. One final point on the unemployment rate. Now, we will always seek to drive the unemployment rate as low as possible. The difference between us and the Government is we actually have a plan to do that. And our plan is about training people for opportunities, creating a bigger workforce with cheaper, more accessible child care, investing in advanced manufacturing in the care economy and the digital economy. This is how you get the unemployment low in sustainable ways, but also get real wages growing so working families keep up.
 
JOURNALIST: There are anonymous quotes from your colleagues splashed all over the front pages of the paper today. Was there a call for unity from Mr Albanese this morning? Do you think the Party is match-fit to go through the next five weeks given that after one week there are numerous people that have come out and condemned how the first week of campaign has gone?
 
CHALMERS: Of course, we are match-fit. We are up for the challenge of getting this country a better future under Labor and providing the kind of alternative that people are proud to vote for. We have been putting in the work for years now on alternative,
whether it is a National Anti-Corruption Commission, getting real wages growing.
 
JOURNALIST: Someone called it a shitshow.
 
CHALMERS: I read the papers like you do. And it is not my experience of this campaign. My experience is that all around Australia, there is an appetite for something better than this current Government. People are hurting because their wages are not keeping up the cost of living. That is what people are focused on. And that is what the Labor Party is focused on. The choice is clear. They can have a better future under Labor, or they can have another three years of chaos, corruption, and incompetence that we have seen over the last ten years. That is the choice. That is what people are focused on, no matter what the commentaries from day to day. That is what we are maintaining the focus on.
 
JOURNALIST: Heading back to the economy. The economy currently has the lowest unemployment rate in decades. The economy is currently larger than before the pandemic.
 
CHALMERS: As it should be.
 
JOURNALIST: You supported the Government spending $343 billion in health and economic measures, but you wanted to go further. You wanted to spend more on JobKeeper, $45 billion which many people now say would be wasted money. You also wanted to spend $6 billion on vaccinating people. How would the nation’s debt not have been higher under your Government?
 
CHALMERS: There are a few parts to that. So, let me unpack it. Obviously, we want the economy to be bigger. And we want unemployment to be lower that it was before the pandemic. And clearly, when you're coming out of a recession in 2020, another deep downturn in 2021 that we did not have to have, clearly, there are going to be more jobs after the recession than during the recession. That is self-evident. What we have tried to do, for the last almost three years, is to agree where we can with the Government 's policy, and disagree where we must. Where there was substantial disagreement with the Government was not necessarily on the level of support being provided in the economy, but the quality of that support. Josh Frydenberg was warned repeatedly about wastage in the JobKeeper program. And this is an issue close to my heart, as I know it is to Nita’s, Elida’s and Anthony’s. The wastage of the JobKeeper program saw at least $20 billion go to companies which were already profitable and did not need support, at the same time as the Government was denying support to tourism operators and small businesses in this wonderful town we are in now. And so, our issue was with the incompetence of the Government, the quality of the spending. We have understood all along, and I've heard Anthony say this many times, of course you needed to lean in and provide support when there is a recession and there is another downturn. But the quality of the spend matters as much as the quantity. If you look to the Government 's Budget, at the facts in the Budget, leave all of the partisan differences aside. On the facts alone, the Government has borrowed more, spent more, taxed more than last Labor Government and delivered less.
 
JOURNALIST: But you have backed most of that.
 
CHALMERS: We have supported responsible support in the economy. We have not supported almost a decade now of rorts and waste and mismanagement which has been corrupted by Scott Morrison's incompetence.
 
JOURNALIST: You say you have got a good relationship with business groups, but there are ones you listed earlier that are worried that portable entitlements will cost employers billions. So, can you answer, please, which industries the portable entitlement scheme will capture?
 
ALBANESE: I refer you to our policy, which is very clear. There is no definition of capture. Because our policy is simply this, that we need to consult. It is an issue out there. We will consult. We don’t a definitive position. The best way to advance the interests of workers and business together is a cooperative away. This is one of the things that, for example, could be discussed at the Full Employment Summit. We are not seeking to impose it. I answered questions on this at the time. Nothing has changed in our policy. We do not seek to impose this at all. It is just that in today's world, where a young person who is thinking about what their career prospects might be, whereas years ago, they might have thought they would do a job for a number of decades and rise up, the chances are they will have a number of careers with a number of different employers. So, in terms of entitlements and portability, that is something that should be a part of discussion.
 
JOURNALIST: On integrity, when the Prime Minister was defending his model of an Integrity Commission, he said he did not want something like the New South Wales ICAC, which he described as a kangaroo court which has destroyed lives. Do you back the New South Wales ICAC work?
 
ALBANESE: I think it is good that the ICAC has held corrupt politicians to account, regardless of where they have come from.
 
JOURNALIST: In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, you were described as being not woke. Some advocates within the LGBTQI+ community described this as being transphobic. Does the Labor Party support trans Australians? And if a Labor candidate made any transphobic comments on social media, would have the Labor Party disendorse them?
 
ALBANESE: We support every human being, and we respect every human being. And as part of that interview, if you look at that interview, I said I respect every human being for who they are. Thank you very much.
 
ENDS