SABRA LANE: Prime Minister, good morning.
PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Sabra.
LANE: The Coalition began the campaign with a bare minimum of 76 seats needed to form government. How confident are you about winning?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, this election is a choice and I’m confident in the judgement of the Australian people to understand the challenges that the country is facing economically and in national security. And that’s the choice Australians have to make. And it is a choice. It’s a choice between a government that has an economic plan that has taken Australia through the global pandemic and the economic recession that that caused and has seen 400,000 small businesses created over the last five years lower taxes and ensure that we get our electricity prices under control with a 10 per cent fall in electricity prices for small business alone over the last two years.
LANE: There’s been a lot of talk though about the teal independents challenging Liberals. There are other crossbenchers too, Bob Katter and Rebekha Sharkie. Could you deal with them if you needed their help to form Government?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I’ve certainly obviously dealt with Bob Katter and Rebekha Sharkie in current Parliament, but I mean the teal independents are putting forward policies that the Government doesn’t support. I mean we don’t support a 60 per cent reduction in emissions that would be catastrophic for our economy. And that’s why I’ve been very clear about no deals on those types of issues. And you know, what we’re seeing at this election is the chaos that would occur from independents in the Parliament at a time when we need certainty, when we need stability, a government that has to negotiate for its existence every day will find it very hard to show the strong leadership that is needed in the face of the economic and security challenges we face over the next three years. So a vote for independents is a vote for parliamentary chaos.
LANE: You’re walking, you’re now warning of a cavalcade of independents. Just how much of a threat do they pose to your re-election?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, it’s the threat they pose to Australia’s security and Australia’s economy. That’s the threat that I’m concerned about and that’s why I think it’s important that people think carefully about their choice, because that will impact on them. A government that has to negotiate for its existence every day will not be able to provide the stable economic management that will support their jobs, their businesses, their incomes, their retirement incomes. And all of this will impact on their daily lives. And so a vote for those independents, I think puts all of that at risk and Australia cannot afford that risk any more that they can risk the for the risk of Labor’s economic management credentials, which –
LANE: Voters say they’re very disillusioned. We’re hearing from many who are saying they don’t like Liberal, they don’t like Labor. They’re looking to minor parties and they are looking to the Independents. Perhaps they want a hung parliament to give you both a wake up call.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I can tell you that the outcome of that will only mean a lack of stability, a lack of certainty, and will put at risk the strong management that is needed to take Australia through a very difficult time. I mean, the last few years, Sabra, have been tough for everybody and so I can understand how people are feeling, the difficulties they’ve had to face in these recent years, it’s been very difficult. But that doesn’t change the fact, and we’ve only seen that this week with the pressures on interest rates, which are global, global pressures on those rates, we saw rates rise 50 points in the United States last night. I mean, they’re up 75 points in total as they are in Canada. They’re up five times the rate we saw in New Zealand and these pressures are real and the last thing Australia needs is a Labor Party that doesn’t know how to manage money and a cavalcade of independents which will just create instability and chaos in the Parliament.
LANE: Many economists, though, are suggesting that your budget spending partly led to the Reserve Bank lifting interest rates this week. So is your Government responsible for that?
PRIME MINISTER: No, and Treasury was asked that question directly in Senate Estimates and rejected that outright. Moody’s Analytics are one of the firms that, obviously Moody’s, as you know, one of the international ratings agencies, which has confirmed Australia’s AAA credit rating after the Budget, indicated that that was a nonsense –
LANE: So pumping –
PRIME MINISTER: … and that Labor was politicising that issue and that came from an international ratings agency analysis body.
LANE: So pumping the equivalent of 1 per cent of GDP into an economy with inflation already running at 5.1 per cent has no impact?
PRIME MINISTER: No, well, that’s that was what Treasury said when that exact question was put to them at Senate Estimates, Sabra. That wasn’t the politicians saying that, that was Treasury saying that. And the reason they were saying that is one, that the inflation figures we saw in March, I mean, the Budget hadn’t even been handed down by then, point one. And secondly, we cut petrol tax in half, which would have a quarter of a point deflationary impact, which is part of the shield we’ve put in place for Australians as we go through this economic challenge and those challenges continue. That’s why that shield, whether it’s freezing the deeming rates for pensioners and self-funded retirees, whether it’s ensuring that we’re continuing the tax support for small businesses, for the instant asset write off and and the carry forward of of losses and, or indeed providing support for them to get their electricity bills down in the face of what we’re seeing with energy price shocks around the world. Our economic policies providing a shield to Australians from those global impacts, which means that, you know, you take that shield away. I mean the RBA themselves –
LANE: Sorry, Prime –
PRIME MINISTER: … there are no domestic factors of any consequence in relation to their rate rise decision. So I can refer specifically to the words of the Reserve Bank Governor.
LANE: We’re going to move on. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has delivered a stinging broadside saying his nation’s being treated as kindergarten students walking around with Colt 45 in our hands and therefore we need to be supervised. He says it’s insulting. What’s your response?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I obviously don’t share that view. I mean, we have got AFP on the ground in the Solomon Islands at the direct request of Prime Minister Sogavare. They made the request when there was the, the instability that was occurring back then, late last year in December and we had people there within 12 hours and then we had further forces there from the ADF within 24 hours. We were there because –
LANE: He says the Solomon’s been threatened with invasion. Have you threatened that? Or perhaps that’s how is he interpreting your warning about a red line.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, of course not. Of course, we haven’t threatened that. And we have, I have people on the ground in Solomon Islands now. I mean, it was under the RAMSI Operation that we trained the Solomon Islands Police Force and have been doing that for many, many years. We are their primary security partner, which is exactly what Prime Minister Sogavare has said. We are there for this call when they face these sorts of challenges and we always respond.
LANE: Sorry, sorry, Prime Minister. It doesn’t sound like first call now, listening to his language. How on earth are you going to patch things up with him if you’re re-elected?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I can tell you we’re the first call, because that’s exactly what he has said and that’s exactly what he’s communicated to me. They are his words.
LANE: Your model for a Federal Integrity Commission didn’t get any traction with Labor or the Independents. Why not say you’ll just start over on it again and signal that you can adjust and negotiate and compromise?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we think we’ve got the right model. We’ve got 350 pages of legislation and a budget of $60 million. That’s our proposal. That’s what we’re taking to the election. That’s our proposal. Labor have different proposals. We don’t agree with that way, with that approach. We believe that there should be one, but it should be carefully designed and it should follow proper processes and ensure that it deals with criminal behaviour. And so we have a proper policy. Labor has a two page fluff document which doesn’t give us any details. It’s only the Government in terms of the major parties that actually have legislation and a funded policy to deal with the Commonwealth Integrity Commission, and that’s what we’re taking forward. Labor just doesn’t have one.
LANE: Prime Minister, thank you for your time on AM this morning.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks very much, Sabra. Good to speak to you.
