Today Show

LISA WILKINSON: Welcome back to the show. It has been a big week for the Prime Minister as he rebrands himself the champion of everything Australian. But, has it worked? Time now to have our weekly chat with Shadow Infrastructure and Transport Minister Anthony Albanese here in the studio and Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne joining us from Adelaide this morning. Gentleman, good morning.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Good morning.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Good morning Lisa.

LISA WILKINSON: We will get to your thoughts on our rebranded Prime Minister in a just moment but first Christopher, can I ask you for your response to the arrest in Lebanon of three dual national jihadists who have been accused of fighting for Islamic State if they’re found guilty Christopher will their Australian citizenship be revoked?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well Lisa, there is a process, of course, through which the Minister for Immigration and the government considers the citizenship of dual citizens who’ve been found guilty of crimes that we regard as serious enough to take away their citizenship. That's something we have done and, of course, we will do it again if we think it is warranted. Of course, it’s very serious for Australians to be fighting overseas in areas that are designated as no-go zones. So we will look very carefully at what those three have been doing and of course give them a very fair hearing but we will take action, if necessary, to protect Australians from potential terrorists.

LISA WILKINSON: All right, well let's move on. As I mentioned, a huge week for Malcolm Turnbull, first announcing a crackdown on foreign workers and tightening of citizenship rules. Then taking on the big power companies, ordering them to put Australian consumers ahead of foreign buyers. Anthony, I will start with you, you can't deny these are pretty popular policies that the Prime Minister is jumping on.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well what we need isn’t popular policies, what we need is policies of substance that last more than just a couple of hours. Yesterday morning Malcolm Turnbull said that gas prices would be halved, that didn't last until the afternoon. What we need is a long-term national interest test for gas so that Australians do get first use of that gas, where it’s appropriate. The second thing we need to deal with our energy security is a national emissions intensity scheme, that's what all the experts say. And it’s about time that Malcolm Turnbull got away from this 24-hour cycle and actually had policies in place that were of substance and that lasted.

LISA WILKINSON: Christopher, your response?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well, Anthony is just being churlish. He knows as well as we do what we announced yesterday, the Australian domestic gas security mechanism will ensure that gas companies can't send gas overseas in exports unless the supply is guaranteed here in Australia because it’s our gas and we expect to have domestic supplies at prices that we can afford and that businesses can afford and that, and the government is taking the necessary action to secure those supplies and those prices for businesses and for consumers. It is another good step in the right direction from the Turnbull government and Labor should welcome it rather than being churlish about it.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well, it’s a step that we called for. We went to the last election calling for a permanent…

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: So now it’s a good idea is it?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: No, we were calling for a permanent national interest test, but we also went calling for an emissions intensity scheme. Unless you have both mechanisms then you won't get the long-term solution that’s required.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Seconds ago it was a bad idea because it was our idea and now apparently it is your idea.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: No, what our idea was, it is for a permanent national interest test.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: What we have announced –

ANTHONY ALBANESE: That is not what you have done.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: What we have announced is firm action.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: And that is what you should do as well as having an emissions intensity scheme.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Labour just wants to push up the prices of electricity as usual as they did when they were in government last time…

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Seriously, you said you would fix it all when you got rid of the carbon price, the carbon price went and...

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: We did, prices dropped dramatically.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Prices have dropped dramatically, Are you saying prices have dropped dramatically?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: When we got rid of the carbon tax it was the biggest drop in electricity prices in recorded history.

LISA WILKINSON: Well they’ve certainly been jacked up since then Christopher

ANTHONY ALBANESE: They have gone up, they have gone through the roof under your watch.

LISA WILKINSON: We’re going to have to leave it there but there is a moment I cannot resist here and is very quick. I just want to show the fashion elegance of one Anthony Albanese.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Is it?

LISA WILKINSON: Please note the orange tie that he’s wearing high-vis in his heart, get a load of that, there you go.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: I’m not sure that that is fashionable.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: It has been very popular in the studio this morning. Karl is very jealous.

(inaudible)

LISA WILKINSON: Gentleman, thank you.