SUBJECTS: Final Two Tribes segment; Scott Morrison’s religious views; Labor taxes; election prospects; Albanese’s future plans.

HOST: Grab your Kleenex, a tissue.

HOST: Don’t be afraid to cry and let it out. The final Two Tribes on FiveAA Breakfast – Chris Pyne and Anthony Albanese, good morning to you.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Good morning gentlemen.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Good morning. Is this the armistice?

HOST: This is it. This is All Quiet on the Western Front.

PYNE: This is it.

HOST: The Two Tribes to end all Two Tribes.

ALBANESE: No more war.

PYNE: I've carried you for too long.

ALBANESE: We have lifted your ratings.

HOST: You have. Well they've gone up and down. It’s like Newspoll. You just roll with the punches.

PYNE: Indeed.

HOST: The trick is not minding as G. Gordon Liddy said.

PYNE: It's a sad day actually for me and Anthony, because we used to have three, even four shows together at one point. We had 2GB, Western Australia – 6PR, and FiveAA, and of course the Today Show. I made him famous.

ALBANESE: Well at least – at least you kept us on. The Today Show dumped Christopher immediately when he announced he wasn’t running.

HOST: Did they really?

ALBANESE: They did.

PYNE: Rather unceremoniously.

HOST: Oh, that’s not right.

HOST: So you were treated as yesterday’s news.

ALBANESE: Now we’ve got Birmo. Birmo – who’s so boring compared with Christopher.

PYNE: Oh rubbish.

HOST: He’s a good man – Birmo.

PYNE: Now he’s towling you up – towling you up every Friday morning.

ALBANESE: I was just – I was just trying to talk you up there, Christopher.

HOST: We're not sure what we're going to do replacement-wise.

ALBANESE: You're in the market for a job mate, so I've got to talk you up.

PYNE: That’s true. I've got to feed my children.

HOST: Who knows – we might have to have Clive Palmer on every Wednesday after Saturday night.

ALBANESE: Yes, he'll be by himself.

HOST: Yes that's right.

HOST: The way he's going, he might own the station. So we might not have a choice. Hey – we’ll just start with a serious one though guys. First question to you on this Christopher.

PYNE: Yes?

HOST: Is Scott Morrison's religion – his Christian views relevant in this campaign? Was Bill Shorten right to raise it the way he did yesterday?

PYNE: No. Look, I think Bill Shorten showed a level of desperation – trying to distract people from the central issue of the election, which is the economy and Bill Shorten’s $387 billion tax grab. So Labor was trying to throw up a curveball which would make everybody run for that, as opposed to focusing on what is really Labor's Achilles heel, which is their massive tax grab, a hit on the economy, and Bill Shorten himself.

HOST: What did you think of it Albo? Was it – was it fair for Bill Shorten to sort of ask Scott Morrison to rule out having – having that view about gay people?

ALBANESE: I think it's very hard for anyone to argue with a straight face, that Bill Shorten hasn't been completely under scrutiny, and is the subject of significant media attacks, including once again today, a sort of rather bizarre front page story in The Daily Telegraph yet again in Sydney. I think it's reasonable that people be accountable for their statements. I think that people's religious views should be respected. I respect Scott Morrison's views. But what this election campaign is primarily about whether we'll have more chaos and cuts like we've had over the last six years. That's why Christopher’s bailing. They're all bailing. They’re all getting out. Any moderate worth their salt is getting out of the show: Julie Bishop, Christopher Pyne, Julia Banks has gone completely …

PYNE: This is completely off topic. This is utterly and completely off topic.

HOST: Well on the topic of the election Christopher …

ALBANESE: And your answer was on topic was it Christopher?

PYNE: It was. It was completely on topic. Absolutely on point.

ALBANESE: It wasn’t completely off topic – you’re right there.

PYNE: On point.

ALBANESE: A bit of honesty as you go out the door.

HOST: A couple of days out from the election Christopher Pyne – can the Liberals win? What's your intel telling you?

PYNE: Well we can win, and Scott Morrison has campaigned us back into this election campaign. It's been quite an extraordinary campaign, where Bill Shorten has had a very poor campaign. He's looked harassed and harried. He hasn't known the detail of any of the Labor Party's policies. And if you don't understand Labor's policies, don't vote for them, because if you did understand them you wouldn't, to borrow a line from Paul Keating in 1993. Bill Shorten can't tell us what the impact of his 45 per cent carbon emissions target will be on the economy. He's just refused point blank to say so. I think the answer is because he doesn't actually know. The impact on the cost of living, on wages, on economic growth of a $387 billion tax hit, and the 45 per cent carbon emissions reduction target is unknown to the Labor Party. So, you know, it's a big risk to change everything when the Australian economy is going well. It's a big risk to jump into the unknown.

HOST: Maybe I'll rephrase the question to fit the answer it will inevitably be for you Albo. If you do win the election, why will it be?

ALBANESE: Well, in part it will be because Nicolle Flint in Boothby got together with other members of the hard right of the Liberal Party and knocked off Malcolm Turnbull. When they did that, they knocked off the NEG that Christopher used to support. The National Energy Guarantee – they went out there and said it was terrific and it would save money. Now they say it'll cost money. And the fact is that this hard right people who've taken over the Liberal Party – we’re seeing in South Australia just today reported, that they now want to privatise the rail network. There are three rail lines in Boothby, there’s one tram. And the Liberals – if they had their way, just like they privatised buses last time they were in office there, they'll work with the Federal Liberal Government for more privatisation and more cuts. And that means less services to people who need them. And it's just what the Liberals do. They sell things off and they make cuts to public services.

HOST: Just on the future for both of you. We know that you're leaving politics obviously Chris. But if Bill Shorten falls short on Saturday night Albo, will you put your hand up for the leadership?

ALBANESE: I intend to be a Minister in a Shorten Labor Government, and I'm working every day to do that. That's my priority. I've had too long in Opposition. I don't want another day after Saturday in Opposition. And I've just landed in Melbourne. I'm off to Corangamite now this morning, and I'll be working hard up until Saturday night.

PYNE: So if you lose, you’ll retire and cause a by-election Anthony on the basis of what you’ve just said?

ALBANESE: Well, me and you Christopher might go into, I don't know, media perhaps. Perhaps we can take over.

HOST:  Oh yeah – we can bring it back as Yesterday’s Tribes. Breakfast with Chris and Albo – it’s got a nice ring to it.

ALBANESE: We could be on – I reckon we need to be on an FM station though.

HOST: Yeah – bit too trendy.

HOST: Play some tunes.

ALBANESE: Play some music, you know …

PYNE: Bit too trendy.

HOST: Do a bit of your deejaying. Hey guys, we just want to …

PYNE: Well you have heard it here this morning, first actually, that Anthony will resign if the Labor Party loses. It’s not a bad story.

ALBANESE: Exclusive.

HOST: You heard it here first. Hey guys …

ALBANESE: That’s it – I’ve had it. I’m out.

HOST: Can we just …

ALBANESE: Maybe I can do it live.

HOST: Can we just thank you for the candour, the humour, the occasional stinks that you’ve brought to this segment? It's been – it’s been a rollicking part of our program, and we've enjoyed your honesty, most of the time. And it's been good working with you both, and all the very best of luck for the future to you Chris, and to you Albo.

PYNE: Thank you very much. It's been a great pleasure. And thank you to all your listeners for putting up with Anthony all these years.

ALBANESE: Well I'm going – I’m going to rise above that cheap shot, and say that I sincerely wish Christopher and his family all the best over whatever it is that he ends up doing. Whatever it is, he can be certain he'll be better at it than he was at politics.

HOST: That’s why they call you the statesman Albo. Good on you fellas.

PYNE: Ever the statesman. Thank you Anthony.

HOST: Cheers guys.

PYNE: Thanks a lot.

ALBANESE: See you team.

HOST: Chris Pyne and Anthony Albanese with the final ever Two Tribes.

HOST: What do we do next Wednesday? We should throw it over to the listeners. Who should we get on folks? Send us a text.
ENDS