SUBJECTS: need for national quarantine facilities; Foster review; stage three tax cuts; Craig Kelly staffer; Australia's relationship with China. 

KIERAN GILBERT, HOST: Let's go live to Anthony Albanese, the Labor leader. Mr. Albanese, thanks for your time. After National Cabinet the criteria for Commonwealth partnership on quarantine facilities was set, things like being close to the international airports and hospitals in terms of that quarantine process. Are there any conditions that you disagree with?

ANTHONY ALBANESE, LEADER OF THE AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY: Well, they make it up as they go along. And the fact is that this Government should have put in place purpose built quarantine facilities run by the national Government as required by our constitution last year. That was the best time to do this. The next best time is right now. These so called criteria they've come up with contradicts the Government's position that it has nothing to do with them and that hotel quarantine is going fine. We know there have been 21 separate outbreaks from hotel quarantine. Hotels were built for tourists.They weren't built as medical facilities. 

GILBERT: How does it contradict their position that it's going fine? Because what the Prime Minister wants to do is have these facilities run parallel with the hotel system.

ALBANESE: This is a Government that always crab walks to a 90 degree turn before it goes 180. We know that the facilities at the moment in hotel quarantine, the outbreak in Victoria has come from Adelaide, we know that 21 separate outbreaks have occurred. And this Government had two jobs this year, Kieran, they had to get hotel quarantine right. And they had to roll out the vaccine. This is a Prime Minister who can roll out the red carpet for himself, but hasn't been able to roll out the vaccine. 

GILBERT: Is this is now a formal policy of yours? To have that national quarantine? Is that a formal Labor commitment?

ALBANESE: I announced that in my budget reply Kieran. And I've continued to argue for it consistently. We were saying last year that there needed to be appropriate hotel quarantine facilities and that the Government wasn't getting this right. We're expressing our concern. The idea that you put people in the middle of the CBDs of our capital cities is quite clearly a risk. And Jane Halton, what's more, last October presented a report to the Government that spoke about purpose built facilities, an expansion of Howard Springs, using places like Exmouth in WA. She spoke about fixing hotel ventiliation and that hasn't been fixed wither. 

GILBERT: Have you also done the numbers on exactly how much it's going to cost? Have you got the workforce to staff federal run facilities around the nation when you say you announced in budget reply is there the detail? Is this a formal detailed policy?

ALBANESE: Kieran we are in opposition. This needs to be fixed now. Not wait until after the next federal election which will occur perhaps as late as May of next year. We can't afford to continue to have these lockdowns and we've continued to say that the Government, the Federal Government is responsible for quarantine. Like it's responsible for immigration, like it's responsible for customs. And one of the things about this Prime Minister is that and I said this, I said this over the weekend. I've had the honour of serving as Deputy Prime Minister and acting as the Prime Minister. This bloke has been acting as the Prime Minister since 2018. He won't accept responsibility for anything, he is always prepared to pass the buck. 

GILBERT: Let's look at the Victoria lockdown, the Australian reported yesterday a confidential 47 page Andrews Government report showing alarming levels of mental health emergencies among youths in February and March this year. Do our health authorities need to factor in the mental health ramifications of these lockdowns more prominently?

ALBANESE: Of course they do. And so does all of our society, will recognise how tough it is. Well, it's not a blind spot Kieran, and people have been talking about the mental health consequences of the lockdowns for a long period of time. We've had a record number of calls -

GILBERT: Health authorities continue to use language like the viruses of beast and stuff like that. How does that play into a kid's mental health?

ALBANESE: Well, the lockdowns themselves, stopping Australians going about their way of life is really tough. It's one of the reasons why I moved a resolution you will recall in the Parliament last year, paying tribute to the sacrifice that Victorians were making. They're making a sacrifice right now as well. And it's really tough for them. It's why we should have got quarantine right, Kieran. It's why we've been calling for quarantine to be got right. And vaccine to be got right. For a year now. The Government has had a long time to prepare, and it's been complacent.

GILBERT: Let's look at a few other issues. The parliamentary culture report, Stephanie Foster, the Deputy Secretary of PM&C. 76 complaints. Any relating to Labor MPs, as far as you're aware?

ALBANESE: I don't know, Kieran, because we haven't been told and you know that. 

GILBERT: I wasn't aware of that - I was wondering whether you are aware, aware of whether there were any complaints.

ALBANESE: We haven't been told. As you know, Kieran, it was dropped out late on a Friday afternoon, we received a copy - it was dropped down in my office after Parliament rose on Thursday night. Now, you know, if that's the Government's idea of appropriate consultation with the Opposition, then I find it extraordinary. We haven't been briefed on the report before it was dropped out, no briefing has been offered. And I think that's unfortunate. What's very clear is that it needs to be a priority of the Parliament to look after our staff. It's clear that there haven't been adequate procedures put in place. There's uncertainty about how people go about making complaints, and about -

GILBERT: If any of them have been sustained against MPs? Should they be made public at that point?

ALBANESE: It would be completely inappropriate for me to comment on something that I haven't seen in terms of any of the detail. And you wouldn't expect me to surely -

GILBERT: Richard Marles told Sky News. We don't want to stand between anyone and a tax cut in relation to stage three tax cuts. When will Labor commit to keeping those if that's his view?

ALBANESE: Well, low and middle income earners will always be better off under Labor. Always. We are concerned about the fact we've had eight years of wages not going up. And we've had wages in terms of the next four years will actually go down in real terms. The interview you've done with Jane Hume this morning, just listening to the excerpts. It's quite clear, she's opposed to increase in superannuation up to 12 per cent. 

GILBERT: Are you opposed to stage three? Will you repeal it? 

ALBANESE: One of the things that we said about the stage three and their tax policy in 2019, we said it was a triumph of hope over experience to say that the Government knew what the economy look would look like in 2024. And haven't we been proven correct, Kieran. This was at a time when the Government said that there'd be a surplus that year and every year into the future surplus, we have a trillion dollars of debt. We have red ink as far as you can see. 

GILBERT: When will you commit to keeping those tax cuts? 

ALBANESE: Well, we'll make our announcements well before the election of all our tax announcements and all of our expenditure. Kieran, the same answer that I've given every time I've been asked once a fortnight, but it's been quite right. We've been absolutely right, to not make decisions in 2019 about what the economy would look like in 2024. We know that the projection from this Government is for reduced wages, low growth, low productivity, lower workforce participation, and that's before we build in the potential for shocks, such as what we're seeing at the moment with the Victorian lockdown. So we'll make all of our announcements known well before the election.

GILBERT: Two quick questions before you go. Just two quick ones. Frank Zumbo the staffer for Craig Kelly, should he sack him? And if not, if he doesn't, would you accept Kelly's vote in any on any matter in the parliament?

ALBANESE: Well, Craig Kelly votes with the Coalition and was protected by the Prime Minister before the last election. I think that the Prime Minister's judgement is drawn into question by the fact that there are two people he protected before the last election. Craig Kelly in the electorate of Hughes right next to him. Don't tell me that wasn't being spoken about in the Shire because it was being written about in the local paper, which is a paper that's shared by Scott Morrison. And of course, Andrew Laming, where he also intervened to protect his pre-selection that says a lot about this Prime Minister's judgement.

GILBERT: The last question just quickly some criticism from you on the Government's handling of China, what would be different under an Albanese government?

ALBANESE: I think that the Biden administration is showing the way forward in the relationship with China. It's defining it as competition without catastrophe as a return to diplomacy after the Trump years of somewhat uncertain and unstable dealing in international affairs. I'd worked closely with the US administration, our most important ally, when it comes to dealing with China. The circumstances have changed, but there's no reason whatsoever on why just as Howard government had a constructive economic relationship with China, whilst continuing to stand up for Australian values continuing to stand up for human rights why that can't be achieved. 

GILBERT: Mr. Albanese, I appreciate your time. Thanks.

ALBANESE: Thanks. Thanks very much care and have a great day. 

 
ENDS