SUBJECTS: Great Barrier Reef protection; Saving Native Species program; koalas; strong partnerships with state governments; Labor’s Better Future; skills shortages; climate change; renewables; China; foreign policy; Morrison’s failures in the Pacific; wages; change the government, change the future.

ELIDA FAITH, LABOR CANDIDATE FOR LEICHHARDT: Good morning everyone, my name's Elida Faith and I'm the Labor candidate for Leichhardt.

We're on beautiful Fitzroy Island today, and I'm joined today by Labor Leader Anthony Albanese and Cairns born and bred Shadow Minister for Environment, Terri Butler. And we also have with us today Queensland Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon and our senators, Murray Watt and Katy Gallagher. Welcome back to Far North Queensland, folks. I know Anthony and Terri, you've been here quite a few times in the last 12 months.

And we know the Great Barrier Reef is so important to Far North Queensland, we have lots of jobs and businesses that rely on the health of the Great Barrier Reef. We've seen under Scott Morrison and his handpicked Special Envoy for the Great Barrier Reef Warren Entsch, neglect and undermine climate change and the effect that it does have on the Reef. 64,000 jobs rely on this beautiful Great Barrier Reef, and it brings in $6.2 billion into the economy every year. And making sure that our Reef is conserved is so important for our businesses for our jobs and Far North Queensland economy.

And to tell you more about today's fantastic announcement, I am going to hand over to Anthony, thank you very much.
 
ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Well thank you very much, Elida. And it is great to be back here in what I hope is your electorate of the future in beautiful Fitzroy Island, talking about one of the great challenges that Australia faces, but one of also the great opportunities.

By acting on climate change we can not only protect our environment, including the Great Barrier Reef, we can create jobs, we can create new industries, we can create economic growth and prosperity. That's why today's announcement is so important. After almost a decade in office, the truth is that this Government will never act on climate change. They have had 22 different policies on energy and haven't landed one of them. We have one policy we have announced, fully costed by RepuTex, we’ll implement it in government.

Today's announcement is about ensuring that future generations get to enjoy the Great Barrier Reef. The Great Barrier Reef, of course, we know is vulnerable - it's been neglected by this Government, and at the end of its third term, they've decided to provide some funding for it. Well, we’ll provide additional funding and today's announcement will do just that.

Today's announcement includes additional programs to protect the Reef. It also includes our Saving Native Species program of $220 million, aimed at eradicating the Yellow Crazy Ant, which is a threat to the Reef, and a threat to the communities around Townsville and Cairns, but also about koala conservation as well, that is so important. And in addition, we have 1000 fulltime-equivalent Landcare Rangers. We need to engage with First Nations people. They have knowledge that has been built up over 65,000 years of how to protect and care for the land and water in this great island continent of ours, Australia. And we need to take advantage of that knowledge. Landcare Rangers is about job creation. It's also about protecting the environment. I might leave it there but we're going to hear from our Shadow Environment Minister, but also the Queensland Environment Minister, before we take your questions.

TERRI BUTLER, SHADOW MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT: Thanks, Anthony. And thanks everyone, isn't it a beautiful day to be here on Fitzroy Island? With Anthony and Elida of course, with Katy and Murray, and with Meaghan Scanlon, who's the Queensland Environment Minister, who will speak to you shortly.

It's crucial that we protect and conserve the Great Barrier Reef for future generations. This is a World Heritage Listed property - one of two in this area in fact, the other one, of course, being the Wet Tropics - and we know how important it is that we preserve and protect the Reef for future generations, so that everyone gets the chance to enjoy it. It's important environmentally, it's important for recreation, and it's incredibly important for the Queensland economy - 64,000 jobs reliant on the Great Barrier Reef. Labor understands this, and we understand that the greatest threat to the Great Barrier Reef is climate change. That's why the most important thing that you can do to help preserve and protect the Great Barrier Reef is to elect an Albanese Labor Government so that you can get a government that will take real action on climate change.

But climate change is not the only threat to the Great Barrier Reef - things like crown-of-thorns starfish, things like water quality issues. And that's why it's so important to really invest in the Reef 2050 Plan and in conservation measures to protect and preserve the Great Barrier Reef. So Labor will work in partnership with local governments, with natural resource management groups, with Indigenous Rangers and Traditional Owners, and with others to work on those immediate shovel-ready projects that we can deliver together collaboratively, that will have conservation outcomes for the Great Barrier Reef and will also create economic benefits for this region.

We'll also be committing $15 million towards research at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, in Gladstone. Really important research to create more seagrass which will also foster more dugongs, making sure that those ecosystems are kept healthy.

We're committing to funding the Reef 2050 plan. This plan is crucial for keeping the Great Barrier Reef off the World Heritage endangered list with the World Heritage Committee. Under this Government's watch, under the near-decade of Liberal-National governments there have been too many close calls where the Reef has almost ended up on that endangered list. We think it's important to do everything possible to keep it off that list. And Labor will fund the ongoing continuation of the Reef 2050 Plan, and it's a disgrace that this Government had only funded it to 2023. What an absolute disgrace from this Government.

We’ll also be making sure that we work with Traditional Owners and Indigenous Rangers groups across the entire area for the Great Barrier Reef, because we understand and we know that traditional knowledge is so important for conservation for protection, and also for economies here in Far North Queensland and in North Queensland.

Anthony's also talked about our Saving Native Species Fund. Under the current Government, native species have really, really suffered recovery. Protection has suffered. So we're committing a $220 million fund towards saving native species. Some of that money, as Anthony has said, will go to the eradication of the Yellow Crazy Ant, one of the world's most invasive species - in the top 100 invasive species in the world. I heard someone this morning describe it to me - a local said to me ‘you know, it's worse than cane toads’. And they're absolutely right. We've absolutely got to eradicate the Yellow Crazy Ant and Labor will commit funding to supporting eradication efforts, both here in the Wet Tropics, around Cairns, and in the Dry Tropics around Townsville, because we know that this has to be done. It's so important to local areas. And it's so important even to making sure that communities here aren't suffering from this invasive pest.

We're also going to put serious effort into koala conservation. Under this Government's watch, the koala conservation strategy, the national strategy expired in 2014 and they never got around to replacing it. We're going to replace that national conservation strategy. They also were years - years and years late - in delivering a recovery plan for the koala. We're going to maintain and strengthen the recovery plan for the koala. We've also seen them completely failed to invest in protecting native species more generally, we're going to work on that we're going to deal with their backlog. We're going to start to fix things and try to turn around the decade of neglect that we've seen under this Government.

We're also announcing commitments for Landcare Rangers, as Anthony has said. These roles will create opportunities for people to get hands on experience and develop skills, important roles and I'm looking forward to dealing with them in the future should we have the privilege of forming government on the 21st of May under an Albanese Labor Government. I’ll now call on Meaghan Scanlon to make some comments.

MEAGHAN SCANLON, QUEENSLAND STATE MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT: Thanks Terri, and thanks Albo for coming to Queensland. And I'd also like to acknowledge Elida, I know she's been advocating really strongly for this investment in Far North Queensland to protect the beautiful Reef that we all love so much. Queensland absolutely welcomes this investment and a genuine partnership to protect the Reef. There are two big threats to the Reef - climate change and water pollution. But a close third is the Liberal National Party. We need a government that invests in renewable energy, doesn't veto wind farms. We need a government that takes water pollution seriously, doesn't undermine the science. We need a government that works with Queensland, not against it. So I very much appreciate today's investment, we look forward to working with a future Albanese Labor Government. I'd also like to acknowledge the important announcement around Yellow Crazy Ants I met with Chrissy Grant from the Wet Tropics Management Authority this morning, Queensland very much looks forward to working with a future Labor government to match this funding so we can continue the really important work that's happening with teams on the ground here in Far North Queensland. Thank you.

ALBANESE: Thanks very much, Meaghan, and thanks for the cooperation that we have with the Palaszczuk Government. I did speak to Annastacia this morning and I met with her yesterday. I'm aware that there is potential flooding, and flooding in reality in parts of south east Queensland at the moment. And our thoughts go out to those families who are impacted by that at the moment. Just here.

JOURNALIST: Australia has an extinction crisis. The funding that you've announced today fairly tops up what the Liberal Government has already committed to, is that enough?

ALBANESE: Well I’ll ask Terri to comment, but one of the things that we're dealing with here is that we will inherit a trillion dollars of debt. So what we have done is to make sure that all of our promises are responsible, that every single dollar that is invested produces value. And that compares with, let's think about what the alternative is here: the alternative is a bunch of people go into a meeting in Canberra, it lasted for about an hour - maybe under, didn't ask for anything from the Great Barrier Reef Foundation and walked out with $444 million of taxpayers funds. $444 million without having asked for anything, with a handful of staff and no track record of being able to invest. That's the alternative here. What Labor is putting forward is a considered, practical plan to make a difference. It's one, as well, that we'll work with landholders to make a difference. Because we understand that the natural environment is something that we have a great responsibility to hand over to future generations in as pristine a state as possible. Terri wants to comment.

BUTLER: Thanks, Anthony. And look, the fact is that Australia is a world leader in mammal extinctions. And that's just a fact. And if we are elected on the 21st of May we are going to inherit a near decade of neglect in relation to native species. The Auditor General recently published a report that said under this Government's watch, since the end of 2013 only 2 per cent of recovery plans have been made within statutory timeframes. Only 2 per cent of threatened species recovery plans are made on time under the Liberal National Government. That's the sort of government that we're dealing with, we're now going to have to try to undo a near-decade of neglect. That's the work that's ahead of us, should we form government.

[SHOUTING]

ALBANESE: Hang on, hang on. Just trying being careful about the native species!

JOURNALIST: Just on your Federal ICAC model.

ALBANESE: Yes.

JOURNALIST: Mark Dreyfus has said that it would be able to look back into things that occurred 15 years ago. And given you’ve said on multiple occasions that the current Coalition Government has an issue with the with corruption on its frontbench, aren’t you paving the way for your model to investigate current Coalition frontbenchers, and also including the Prime Minister himself.

ALBANESE: What I've said consistently, and I've said this on a number of occasions, is we want a strong national anti-corruption commission, and it should have the power to investigate as it sees fit. What it shouldn't be is something that's directed by Parliamentarians. And that's the weakness in the Government's model, is that Government Ministers will decide whether issues are subject of investigation. That's why it falls over. That's why no one serious in the legal profession supports their model. What's clear is that only Labor will deliver a national anti-corruption commission. James?

JOURNALIST: To follow up on Rachel’s question on climate, would the Albanese Government look to restore the Climate Commission, abolished by the Abbott Government and put scientists back at the heart of policy-making? And the second one, your Treasury spokesman Jim Chalmers has spoken about-

ALBANESE: You only get one, James, and then we’ll-

JOURNALIST: It's a related question, on the climate change compact, would you- would an Albanese Government look to form or strike a climate change compact?

ALBANESE: Well, what we will do is exactly what we have said we will do in our Powering Australia Plan. That's a plan that is based upon science. It's one in which we will recognise that we need to respond to the science of climate change. The tragedy of this Government is that all Australians, I think, recognise that we responded to the science when it came to the pandemic, but we’re ignoring it when it comes to climate change. We do need to respond to it. We do need to work with state and territory governments but also work with the business sector. If you want to talk about what a compact looks like to end the climate wars, it's a policy that's released, that gains the support of the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Industry Group, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the National Farmers Federation, and the ACTU. That's the policy that we have.

JOURNALIST: On the climate commission. Just on the climate commission.

ALBANESE: What we've said is we'll have a climate change authority. We will listen to the science. We will engage with scientists as part of the processes. And we won't have that sort of sidelining that we've seen. One of the vision statements that I gave in the lead up, when we were going through that process was on science. I went to the National Press Club and gave a speech about science and how we need to respond to it, in terms of environmental issues, but also commercialise the opportunities that are there from it.

JOURNALIST: Under the Coalition, the 160,000 annual skilled migration cap has barely- we’re nowhere near it, business is crying out for workers, will Labor do better filling that gap. And secondly, briefly, do you envisage your partner Jodie taking-

ALBANESE: You only get one, thank you. So, when it comes to skills what we will create is Jobs and Skills Australia. Jobs and Skills Australia will be a body that includes private sector representatives for how we train up Australians as our first priority for the jobs that are needed in the future. But additionally to that- additional to that, we are a country, except for First Nations people, of migrants and descendants of migrants. Skilled migration will continue to play a role, particularly in terms of filling the skill shortages that are there in the short-term. But what I've said in the discussions I have with the business community as well, is that there are a range of professions where we've had short-term responses, which are long-term issues, Australia has needed engineers, has needed chefs, across a range of sectors for a long period of time. We should be looking to attract the best and brightest to Australia. That will be consistent with the great migration story here in Australia.

JOURNALIST: The Reef Authority snapshot has been released. It says over summer 91 per cent of coral reefs they surveyed had evidence of bleaching. The scientists, who you say you’re listening to, say your 2030 targets aren’t high enough. What do you say to them about your interest in looking at that evidence before you decide on the 2030 target?

ALBANESE: I have seen that report. We haven't seen some of the other reports on state of the environment that the Government is sitting on and not releasing, I make that point - that the Government is failing to be transparent about these issues. This is another wake up call, along with all of the other facets of climate change that we can see - the increased flooding, even in areas it's unusual to have this much rain in south east Queensland in May, for example. And we need to respond.

I’ll tell you what, I'll make two further points. The first is that here, the local Member, Warren Entsch speaks about the Great Barrier Reef and the need to take action. The problem is that he's part of a government whereby Barnaby Joyce constrains any action taking place. Warren Entsch is hostage to Barnaby Joyce, and Barnaby Joyce is in charge of this Government's climate policy. We will do what we have said in Government. We believe it is a good policy. It's one that's been welcomed, it will end the climate wars. What it will do is enable good economic and employment outcomes whilst looking after the environment.

JOURNALIST: Mark Dreyfus gave a speech at an event to marking the end of Ramadan, where Han Chinese people were dressed up as members of the oppressed Uyghurs Muslim community. Do you think that was appropriate for him to attend? And does that undermine the tough stance you have said that you’ll take on Chinese human rights abuses?

ALBANESE: Sorry, I'm not aware of the issue. What I will say is we've been very consistent, very consistent - including Mark Dreyfus - has been consistent about the need to stand up for Australian values, and Australian values are about human rights. Australia values human rights. We have spoken out about the treatment of Uyghurs, about what's occurred in Hong Kong, about Taiwan, about other minorities including in Tibet, that are suffering from human rights abuses, we’ll continue to do so. If you turn up at events, you're not in control of who's at those events and what they're wearing. That's the truth of the matter.
Hang on, those who yell the loudest will not get the next call. OK, here.

JOURNALIST: Back on Anna’s question: the scientists at the moment are saying that Australia needs to have a commitment of a minimum of 50 per cent by- emissions reduction, by 2030. Your target is only 43 per cent. So how can you say that you're listening to scientists when they're when your target is not at that point?

ALBANESE: Because what we did, we didn't come up with the target and then decide how to get there. What we did was we put in place, what are the mechanisms that can drive change through the economy? What's the way we can increase the uptake of electric vehicles? What are ways in which we can have community batteries? What are ways in which we can support renewables? Renewables will be under our plan, 82 per cent of the national energy market by 2030. Our plan is a serious plan. It's one that fully costed, it's one that we will implement in government.

JOURNALIST: Mr Albanese, in 8 days’ time, you could be Prime Minister of Australia, the Government has long said that the rise of China is posing as a strategic threat in the region. Do you believe that Beijing is trying to export its ideology, and is China a military threat to Australia?

ALBANESE: China is forward leaning, it's more aggressive in the region, and it's trying to extend its influence in the region. Australia needs to respond to that. That's why us a failing to respond appropriately in advance to what we've seen happen in the Solomons is a foreign policy failure on this Government's watch. Australia needs to work-

[SHOUTING]

ALBANESE: People get one question. Australia needs to respond by upping our presence in the region. We've said, for example, in the Pacific that we will have an Australian Pacific Defence School. We've said we will have a doubling of maritime security assistance in the region. Protecting those fishing areas is so important for Pacific island nations. We've said we'll restart the parliamentary visits program that Malcolm Turnbull had that's been abolished by this Government. We’ll have different migration systems in terms of the Pacific labour market, but also more permanent migration. We’ll increase Australia's voice into the Pacific as well, something that's been ridiculed by this Government. And we’ll increase aid by more than half a billion dollars into the region. We will have a comprehensive plan of engagement in the region. We'll do that, because it's the right thing to do. But we'll do that also because we need to work with our allies to make sure Australia remains the security partner of choice in the Pacific.

JOURNALIST: Mr Albanese, the Prime Minister has today described himself as a ‘bulldozer’, is he the loose unit? And he also said, let me just read this, sorry, ‘I know things are going to have to change with the way I do things’. What's brought that on do you reckon?

ALBANESE: Well, Scott Morrison has today said he's a bulldozer. That is, a bulldozer wrecks things. A bulldozer knocks things over. I'm a builder, that's what I am. And if I'm elected Prime Minister, I'll build things in this country. I'll build better infrastructure, I'll build a response to climate change in partnership with our allies, including the Biden Administration. I'll build the skills capacity of this nation up. I'll build people's living standards up, as well. This Prime Minister has said as well - I find it quite extraordinary - that this Government have been there for almost a decade, this Prime Minister has four years in office. And what he's saying is ‘if you vote for Scott Morrison, I'll change’. That's what he's saying: ‘Vote for me, and I'll change’. Well, if you want change, change the government. Change the government.

Because we can't just have three more years of the same. And Scott Morrison, if this Government is re-elected, it will be more arrogant. More out of touch. It will abuse taxpayers’ money and treat it like Liberal Party money even more so than it has during this term. This is a Government under Abbott, Turnbull, and Morrison - nothing quite says the law of diminishing returns like Abbott, Turnbull, Morrison - they've got worse, they've got more arrogant, they've got more out of touch. And now the Prime Minister is putting his hand up and saying ‘I'll change’. Well, if you want change, change the government on May 21. Just here.

JOURNALIST: Thank you, the WA Government has revealed a $5.7 billion surplus. Mark McGowan says other Premiers are going to be so jealous some of them will look like they've swallowed a bumblebee. What do you make of this and how do you plan on, if you are elected, dealing with the inevitable argument we're going to see around GST carve up. There's also been some commentary that the fact a Labor WA government have posted a $5.7 billion surplus and are able to do things like give $400 power credit cards to voters might actually help your own election pitch. Do you agree?

ALBANESE: Labor can manage money. Mark McGowan has managed the WA economy very effectively. He's the Premier and he's the Treasurer. He's a friend of mine. And the difference is, between me and Scott Morrison, is that when you're faced with a choice between Mark McGowan and Clive Palmer, I choose Mark McGowan. Scott Morrison chooses Clive Palmer.

JOURNALIST: On today's announcement, it seems like most of the money here is going towards treating the symptom rather than the cause of climate change here. How do you marry up what you're putting out there as a pledge to protect the Great Barrier Reef when you are also committed to the coal and gas industries in this state of Queensland?

ALBANESE: You need to do both. You need to do both. You need to address climate change not just by domestic action, but by being a part of international action as well. And the difference is that a Labor government that I lead will work with the Biden Administration, will work with people who want to respond to climate change, will work with Boris Johnson's Government in the United Kingdom, will work with Jacinda Ardern. At the moment, Australia goes to international conferences, Scott Morrison gives an empty speech to an empty room. That's what happens at the moment.

That's what happens at the moment. We have a serious plan to deal with climate change. And we also have specific plans of working- when we drove from Cairns all the way to Maryborough earlier this year, we met with people who are banana growers, we met with people in the prawn industry. We met with people in the agricultural sector including sugar cane. We met with industry in each of those towns along from north to south, Queensland. And one of the things that that came through is that industry and farmers and business want to work in these areas. The tragedy about climate change and the debate in this country, is that the Government is trailing business, it's trailing farmers. We can end the climate wars, but to end the climate wars, we need to end the Government. Madura?

JOURNALIST: Environment Minister Sussan Ley lobbied delegates of UNESCO so the Reef would avoid an in-danger rating for a couple of years. Besides the funding initiative targeting the Reef, would a Labor Government also resort to lobbying delegates of UNESCO, or would you allow the body to go with the advice of its scientists uninterrupted? Also, Natasha Fyles is the new Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, thoughts and vibes?

ALBANESE: Thank you. Well, firstly, can I congratulate Natasha Fyles on her election as Chief Minister of the Northern Territory. I know Natasha, well, she's been a very good minister and she'll make an outstanding Chief Minister. And I pay tribute to my friend, ex-Chief Minister Gunner. When he informed me the reasons for him stepping back, not from the Parliament, but from being Chief Minister, I have the utmost respect for someone who makes a decision like that. And I wish him and his family, including his very young family, all the best. And the first, sorry?

JOURNALIST: And the first question, would a Labor government –

ALBANESE: Oh sorry, yep. Yeah, thanks for, look we will always lobby and engage with international bodies in Australia's national interests. It is in Australia's national interest for the Great Barrier Reef to not be listed as endangered. We supported the actions that the Federal Government took, but what it needs is a bit more than lobbying. Because the game is up. The world knows that this Government aren't serious about climate change. They know it, they're onto it. It's like the Prime Minister saying ‘you know, vote for me and I'll change’. He's saying that because the Australian people are onto this bloke, they don’t trust him. They know that he is trying to get through an election campaign without a single positive agenda for a fourth term.

We are now just eight days out from polling day. And all this bloke has is fear and smears, fear about the alternative government. No plan for the future. No plan for climate change. No plan for skills. No plan for nation building infrastructure. No plan to grow the economy. No plan for national reconstruction. No plan to increase the economic participation of women. No plan to deal with the cost of living crisis there is in this country. And he's now saying, Scott Morrison is saying wages will always be lower under the Liberal Party. That is what he is making very clear.

This is a guy who during the last election campaign said if we take action on climate change, the sky will fall in. If we support electric vehicles there'll be no weekends in Australia. And now he's saying if we give people who are on the minimum wage, just $20.33 an hour, we give them an extra dollar an hour, the sky will fall in. What they know about this bloke is that he is not on their side. He will not change, he will just get more arrogant, more out of touch, less trustworthy.

JOURNALIST: Are the comments from the Prime Minister today a sign of desperation, and if Scott Morrison is feeling desperate does that mean you're feeling pretty confident at this point?

ALBANESE: We have a mountain to climb. Labor has only formed government, only formed government three times from Opposition since the Second World War. Just on three occasions, under Whitlam, Hawke, and Rudd. It is hard for Labor to win from Opposition, that's the starting point here. But when it comes to desperation, you know, desperation is, if you look it up online, you'll see a photo of Scott Morrison. Because everything he does is desperate. Everything he does is just focused on the next 24-hour media cycle. It's based upon scaring people. It's based upon fear. I want a country where hope and optimism are the major emotions projected from our national government, into the Australian people. A government that has the foresight to actually plan for the future beyond the next media cycle. This guy has no plans for the future. He struggles with the present, and he never learns from past mistakes. That's why he keeps repeating them. And that's why if you want change, don't look for Scott Morrison to change because that's not going to happen. Just change the government. Thanks very much.

ENDS