Today Show

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
Interview – Today Show with Sylvia Jeffreys & Anthony Albanese
Friday 8 January 2016

SUBJECTS: Jamie Briggs‘ resignation; National Party leadership.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: The Government’s dramas certainly did not take a break, one minister has been suspended pending a police investigation, another has resigned following a drunken night in Hong Kong, and the immigration minister has come under siege for a controversial text message he sent to a female journalist. And that is where we say good morning and welcome back to 2016, Christopher Pyne and Anthony Albanese good morning to you both

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Good to be back

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Good morning Sylvia and happy new year to you and Anthony.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Not exactly a happy start to the new year for you Christopher, you’re the fixer, how are you going to fix this mess?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well we’re focusing on jobs and growth Sylvia that’s what we’re doing…

ANTHONY ALBANESE: He’s got his talking points…

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: …and I’m focusing on executing the National Innovation and Science Agenda, and that’s what the public are interested in, all the other matters that you talked about in the intro have all been well and truly canvassed and the public have moved on from them and I have certainly moved on from them.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Well you and your colleagues are trying to move on from them, the public clearly have not moved on. If you look in the newspaper this morning there’s a new poll out this morning that shows that more than a third of Liberal voters in Jamie Briggs’ supposed safe seat in South Australia are now not likely to vote for him what does that say to you Christopher?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well that same poll indicates that Jamie Briggs would win Mayo with a 59-41% vote against the Labor party

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: But he is losing support.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well a win by one vote is a win, a win by 2 votes is a landslide and 3 votes some would say is wasted effort. So I think Jamie Briggs in Mayo ,sure he’s had a rough couple of weeks brought about by his own actions obviously I’m not excusing that, but I think the Australian public see the bigger picture and that is that they want a Malcolm Turnbull led government, a Liberal government, they know that Labor doesn’t have the policies for jobs and growth that we have and I think that is where they would place their vote, I certainly hope they will.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Would you expect Mr Turnbull to call perhaps an early election to secure things before more damage is done?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Look I don’t think so, the Labor party probably need more time to try to bring their own policies together, we have a three year term that expires in September this year, that’s about when I think the election will be, we have a budget to bring down in May, the defence industry policy statement, the defence white paper, the tax white paper, as I said we need to execute the National Innovation and Science Agenda that I announced in December so we have a lot on. It’s about jobs, it’s about growth, it’s about making our country secure. That’s the job of the Government and I’m looking forward to the year.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Very good

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well Sylvia I like Malcom Turnbull more than I like Tony Abbott but that’s not the issue here, the issue is Malcolm Turnbull’s judgement, Malcolm Turnbull’s judgement firstly in appointing Jamie- j-, in appointing Mal Brough as Minister even though the cloud was over him, Malcolm Turnbull’s judgement in hanging on to Mal Brough even though he clearly misled Parlaiment and contradicted what he said right here on the Nine network on 60 Minutes. His judgement when it comes to Jamie Briggs and Mal Brough announcing their resignation and standing aside in the quick Christmas to New Year period, in the so called quiet period, to try and bury it. This is a Prime Minister who has a trash can of Ministers and within these first 100 days has seen his government fall apart.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: There are problems in your own house though Anthony, we start the election year with Bill Shorten surrounded by the stench of the union corruption hearing, he’s been very quiet though, surely the findings from this corruption hearing warrant a formal response from Bill Shorten?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well people are entitled to have some leave over this period,

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: But this is a big announcement,

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Bill Shorten has made it very clear from day one that we have absolutely no tolerance for any corruption in the union movement or from employers anyone who has committed any illegal acts should face the full force of the law with regard to any legislation well we haven’t seen it yet Sylvia so it’s a bit hard to comment on it.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Alright election aside there is definitely a cabinet reshuffle coming up and one name that is expected to feature quite prominently in that reshuffle is Barnaby Joyce, who created his own headlines in 2015, let’s have a quick look at this:

[Excerpt from Last Week Tonight with John Oliver]

JOHN OLIVER: He’s not wrong to be angry; the problem is he quickly started to lose the moral high ground.

BARNABY JOYCE: Now, Mr Depp has to either take his dogs back to California or we’re going to have to euthanise them. He’s now got about 50 hours left to remove the dogs.

JOHN OLIVER: He gave them a death countdown!

[End excerpt]

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Christopher, is Barnaby Joyce a suitable successor to Warren Truss as a nationals leaders and being deputy PM?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well of course that’s a matter for the National Party. Number one Warren Truss hasn’t stood down from the leadership of the National Party, and he’s a very valued cabinet colleague doing a very good job I must say in transport and infrastructure, delivering all the promises that were made by Labor and never delivered. Warren Truss is getting on with the job of it, but if he does stand down, the National Party if they choose Barnaby Joyce, which I seem to think that they will given the publicity recently, he would be an excellent Deputy Prime Minister, he speaks for rural and regional Australia in a very clear eyed way he stands up for small business, as I hope I do and the rest of the government does, and he has a very focused view on creating jobs particularly in rural and regional Australia and in terms of his handling of the Agricultural portfolio it is booming, agriculture is booming in our economy and thank god for that!

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Okay

ANTHONY ALBANESE: You know the scary thing about this prospect isn’t Deputy Prime Minister Joyce, its acting Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, just say that slowly and think about it and think what that would mean, I’m sure Australia would get a lot more attention internationally given his propensity for gaffes

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Entertaining..

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well it’s entertaining no doubt about that but threatening to kill puppies I’m not sure is the, was the smartest way to go

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: … To keep the rules

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Well he is looking like the front runner at the moment anyway..

ANTHONY ALBANESE: well I did notice that Christopher Pyne conceded that Warren Truss’s transport portfolio consisted of implementing our agenda which is right..

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: No, the trouble is you made promises and Warren Truss is delivering.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Alright, alright you two it’s nice to see you…

ANTHONY ALBANESE: …Cutting the ribbons on the projects that we began

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: You promised them, you never did them

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: I need to let you go, quickly a New Year’s resolution from you Anthony?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Stop interrupting Sylvia, Anthony

ANTHONY ALBANESE: I got distracted by arguing with Christopher there, See more Souths games, and see more live music and live plays.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Alright and you’re just going to fix a few more things, jobs and growth Christopher?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: I’ve got two! I’ve got jobs and growth and I’ve got to lose 6 kilos

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: Alright well I’ll hold you to it.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Stick to those talking points.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: No sugar, low carbs.

SYLVIA JEFFREYS: It’s good to stay accountable you two, thank you for joining us this morning and happy new year to you both thank you.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Pleasure, thank you.

[ends]