SUBJECTS: Labor’s Buy Australian Plan; the Federal Government’s poor performance on climate change; the Prime Minister may not go to Glasgow summit; IBAC inquiry; branch stacking; Michelle Ananda-Rajah’s comments on social media; National Anti-Corruption Commission.

ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Welcome to Marrickville. And I want to thank very much Pallion for having us here today. This is the largest employer in Marrickville, some 250 people at more than 20 sites. And what we see behind us here is the Melbourne Cup and the Norman Brookes trophy for the Australian Open, that are produced right here in Marrickville. What people might not know is that the fifth largest export in Australia is gold. We are the largest gold producer in the world. And what we do here is see that raw product, that raw material, value added with highly skilled artisans and important processes for smart manufacturing. What this does here is show that Australia can compete and beat the rest of the world if we're smart. If we do it smarter, do it faster, do it better. And that's what they do right here, the best product in the world. And some over 90 per cent of jewellery made in Australia will come or have some connection with here. So here, a great employer, a great producer of value add for the Australian economy. And what I did on Saturday with our made in Australia campaign was launch a 10 point plan as a part of our Future Made in Australia. What I want to see is Australia continue to export our resources. But, wherever possible, to value add before we export those resources. To value add creating jobs and value right here in Australia. And this business shows exactly what is possible, shows the benefit for the national economy. Now, Australian governments, state and territory along with our national government, purchased about $200 billion in goods and services last year. As we come out of the pandemic, we have to recognise that Australia showed how strong our society was over the last couple of years. People making sacrifices, people looking after their neighbours, people getting vaccinated. Here in this company, they had a financial incentive for their employees to get vaccinated. And 98 per cent are already fully vaccinated with double doses, the employees here. It shows that it can work. But it also showed some of the weaknesses in our economy. The fact that we're not resilient enough, we don't make enough things here in Australia. Here this high-value manufacturing centre is making an enormous difference to our local economy, but it's making a difference for the nation as well. And it's been my great honour and privilege to be here today. And to go through just some of what they produce right here. Happy to take questions.

JOURNALIST: On another matter, it sounds like the PM may go to Glasgow and it sounds like the Government is likely to commit to zero. If these things do happen, will you be satisfied with the Government's performance on climate change?

ALBANESE: Not at all. Before the last time there was a change in government in 2007, at the very last minute, John Howard said that he would ratify the Kyoto Protocol and said that we would have an emissions trading scheme. They were bipartisan positions that went to the election in 2007. And guess what happened? Straight afterwards, we saw a further descent in the destructive behaviour we have seen since 2013. This Government have had eight years to take action on climate change. We now know the embarrassing situation of Australia being a pariah, the last time we were at a national conference, in terms of a global conference, in Europe last year. We know also that when Boris Johnson convened a conference, he didn't bother to invite Australia because Australia had nothing to say. We also know that the last time when the Biden administration convened a conference, months ago, Australia ranked about 26th when it came to speakers. Some way after Brunei. We are a significant national economy, we are a G20 nation, we are one of the highest per capita emitters in the world and we have a Government that involved itself in, quite frankly, absurd and ridiculous rhetoric, cheered on by some in the media. When you have a statement like the use of electric vehicles would 'end the weekend', which the Prime Minister and Minister Cash said during the last campaign, then this isn't a Government that respects technology. 

Today, in a couple of hours, I'll meet with Andrew Forrest about his initiatives that he is doing with hydrogen. He announced a hydrogen plant to assist manufacturing in Port Kembla. The Minister, Minister Taylor, came out to say it was a gas-fired plant. It's not. It's about green hydrogen. This Government can't even, in the dealings they have with the business community, that are so far ahead of the Government. What we have is a Business Council of Australia being ahead, the National Farmers' Federation being ahead, people in civil society all being ahead of this Government and a Government that isn't leading, is always following. The absurdity of the Government, just weeks before the Glasgow climate conference, having internal negotiations as if this was about dealing over committee positions on some committee in the Parliament. This is about the future of our economy, the future of our planet, and the Prime Minister can't even say whether he will turn up. He has been absent from the debate, seriously, on climate change up to this point. It would be absurd if he was absent from presence at Glasgow.

JOURNALIST: Did you know before yesterday that Anthony Byrne was involved in branch stacking and paying for memberships?

ALBANESE: No. 

JOURNALIST: He said these practices have been endemic in the Party since the 1990s. What do you say? Is that true? 

ALBANESE: I'm not a member of the Victorian branch. Nor do I have a detailed knowledge of the Holt electorate and you'd be surprised if I did. Since I have been the Leader of the Labor Party, let's be very clear about the actions that I've taken. One of the first actions I took within three weeks was to expel John Setka from the Labor Party. Once the revelations were given on Channel Nine and 60 minutes, myself and Daniel Andrews supported intervention into the Victorian branch, which essentially took over the Victorian branch, and we appointed Steve Bracks and Jenny Macklin as the administrators of the branch. I did that within 48 hours. 

JOURNALIST: Are you going to ask for him to step down? 

ALBANESE: It's not appropriate for me to comment on the specifics while IBAC procedures are taking place. They are legal processes and it's important that they be allowed to take their course. What I did was intervene strongly, immediately, decisively, intervened into the Victorian branch, so that any branch stacking or any manipulation of the rules couldn't achieve any advantage of anyone. I note that the National Executive was taken to court as a result of that National Executive intervention. But we took over the pre-selections, federal and state, we took over the administration of the branch. That was decisive action. That was leadership that I showed and Daniel Andrews showed.

JOURNALIST: You said you didn't know about these until yesterday. But what's your reaction after you have heard these revelations?

ALBANESE: I didn't follow, I must say, every word that was done there. But clearly if there are any improper practices, they are improper. And that's why I intervened and dismissed the branch. That was the most significant intervention into the Victorian branch of the Labor Party since 1971. Since I've been Leader of the Labor Party, we have had significant interventions to restructure the New South Wales branch of the Labor Party and the Victorian branch of the Labor Party.

JOURNALIST: You now have someone who has admitted to branch stacking. Do you think it's appropriate that he stays in his role?

ALBANESE: We will allow the IBAC processes to take their course. It's not appropriate to preempt their findings and those processes. That's a very clear thing, when you have a legal matters taking place. We have intervened to make sure that no-one can gain any advantage from any improper practices.That's why we did that.

JOURNALIST: Will you ask for his resignation? 

ALBANESE: I've already answered that. 

JOURNALIST: Jason Clare says it's unrealistic to think this doesn't happen at a federal level as well. How widespread is this? 

ALBANESE: There is a bit of branch stacking goes on in the Liberal Party. There is a bit of branch stacking that goes on, there's all sorts of funding issues and I compare the response of myself and Daniel Andrews to intervene into the branch with the sort of responses we have seen from the Liberal Party. The Liberal Party have made branch stacking in the Wentworth electorate quite famously just a few years ago, with a significant influx of new members. The Liberal Party have preselections at the moment next door here in Reid, where the sitting member is being challenged as a result of an internal conflict and battle, some matters of which are before the Independent Commission Against Corruption at the moment, with the former minister John Sidoti at the centre of the that. But the local federal member being under challenge. Stuart Robert has an interesting career in terms of all sorts of involvement in Queensland and we've seen all sorts of involvement from time to time in political parties. It should be stamped out. What's important is whether you have a preparedness to take action. I took action. It was swift, decisive. 

JOURNALIST: Labor's candidate for Higgins, Michelle Ananda-Rajah, indirectly blamed the PM for a suicide she didn't know the full details of. Do you support her remaining a candidate for the party?

ALBANESE: We have had, in terms of these issues, I do point out that there was a Royal Commission into issues relating to home insulation whereby a number of members of the Coalition made extraordinary statements about Kevin Rudd. Michelle Ananda-Rajah has apologised for the tweet she made and it's appropriate that she make that apology. And she did so. She has apologised. That's more than Coalition members, who say all extraordinary things about members of Labor Party and never apologise. Michelle has apologised and that is appropriate. 

JOURNALIST: She has your support? 

ALBANESE: Yes, she is a candidate in the election. She apologised. It was wrong what she did and she was right to apologise. 

JOURNALIST: Can you guarantee that no part of federal Labor MPs have engaged in branch stacking activities?

ALBANESE: I can guarantee that the Liberal Party has a range of members who have been involved in branch stacking and in terms of preselections. What I can guarantee is that in the Victorian branch, we have had an assurance by intervening that no-one can gain any advantage from any branch stacking activity in Victoria. That's why we intervened.

JOURNALIST: What about Federal Labor? 

ALBANESE: What is Federal Labor? 

JOURNALIST: The question was, can you guarantee that there is no - 

ALBANESE: Where? What is the allegation? If there is an allegation, if there is an allegation, it should be made. But if you're asking, there is no Federal Labor in terms of, there are state branches of the Labor Party, as a structure they run the preselections with the exception of Victoria where we intervened to make sure that the national executive took control of those preselections. That was taken to court and we've been successful.

JOURNALIST: Given your intervention, though, after the 60 Minutes revelation, (inaudible) you acted within 48 hours to make a change (inaudible) news yesterday from Anthony Byrne at IBAC. There's no contest about whether that's true. Why don't you make that same intervention here.

ALBANESE: We have intervened. We have intervened into the Victorian branch and the revelations made in the media are very different before revelations before a quasi-judicial body. In this case, a judicial body in Victoria. It's a legal process. It has taken place. This is evidence before the legal processes and, just like the Premier of New South Wales will appear before the Independent Commission Against Corruption. Let me just say this, I will stamp out corruption whenever I see it. I am the leader of the political party who wants a serious National Anti-Corruption Commission. There are only two leaders, two alternatives. There's the Prime Minister and an alternative Prime Minister in this country. Only one of us want a serious National Anti-Corruption Commission. Only one of us has been prepared to intervene into branches of their own political party in order to stamp out corruption. I am that leader. That's why I want a serious National Anti-Corruption Commission which will be able to hold public hearings and which will be able to make its own inquiries. Scott Morrison opposes these very processes that had lodged the revelation that took place yesterday, like he has been critical of the ICAC for its hearings. Last one.

JOURNALIST: Some Liberal MPs have called out and said that needs to be an overhaul or a review of the current ICAC model we have in New South Wales. What do you think? 

ALBANESE: That's says it all. About the fact that while hearings are going on, you have a Liberal Party response to undermine the judicial organisations that are there to stamp out corruption. If you had an equivalence, what you have is people in the Labor Party being critical of the IBAC processes. I'm not critical of the IBAC processes. I support them. I support them and I support stamping out corruption wherever it is found and I stand by my record in taking swift, decisive action wherever it is found. Thanks very much.

ENDS