Today Show

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
Interview – TODAY Show
Friday 27 November 2015

SUBJECTS: Labor’s new Carbon Tax, Tony Abbott, Night Cricket, South Australian Bushfires

KARL STEVANOVIC: We’re joined by Christpher Pyne and Anthony Albanese, gentleman good morning to you.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Good morning Karl and good morning Anthony.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Good morning.

KARL STEVANOVIC:The next election will be a green battle ground, Bill Shorten will take doubling emissions cuts to the next election, did you know about this Anthony?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Yes, we’ve had discussions and what we’ll do is have a discussions with industry, with the sector and it’s based upon the climate change authority’s recommendations of what cut will be required but we want to consult between now and March and obviously what happens at Paris will have an impact as well but they’ve recommended a target of a minimum of 45% by 2030, so we’ll be out there using that as a baseline for discussion and moving forward.

KARL STEVANOVIC:You’re not getting a great response from business though are you?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well, actually businesses has recognised that it is in their interest to move sooner rather than later to a carbon constrained economy, that the sooner you move that the cheaper the transition is.

KARL STEVANOVIC:What’s it going to cost though, that’s going to be their big problem?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well it needs to be managed -

KARL STEVANOVIC:At a time when the economy is sort of, treading water a little bit.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Oh, look, absolutely the economy, of course, is centre stage here but what we need to do is makes sure that that we move sooner rather than later. All the economic analysis shows that the sooner you transition the economy the cheaper it is and this is about good economic policy as well and this is why we’ll be consulting between today and next march before we finalise our targets.

KARL STEVANOVIC:Chris, Bill Shorten says your policy is pathetic that you take to Paris.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well, Karl, Bill Shorten’s policy, his thought bubble, 45% reduction would require them to introduce a carbon tax at double the rate of the carbon tax before. He wants to smash household budgets and smash the economy, so, for the next election he wants people to think that he’s Mr Green but actually he’d have to introduce a carbon tax at twice the last rate and smashing household budget costs and costing jobs and growth, so it’s a mad policy.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: No there won’t be, there won’t be -

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: There’s no other way of achieving it.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: We believe in a market based policy, this is the recommendation of the climate change authority -

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: There’s no other way of achieving it other than doubling the carbon tax.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Based upon science, that sort of scare campaign -

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: It’s not a possibility though.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: See, this is a government that promised new politics -

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well, how are you going to do it Anthony?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: But what we’re getting is old rhetoric.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: How are you doing to do it?

KARL STEVANOVIC: Alright, Christopher with this link to Adelaide, we’re on delay, but I’ll get that question cause it is important, how are you going to do it, what mechanism are you going to use?

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Well we’ve said very clearly that at the very centre of our strategy on climate change is using a market based mechanism, working with businesses, so business works out that the cheapest way, well an emissions trading scheme, that’s what we’ve said, very clearly that’s the sort of scheme were Malcolm Turnbull not only supported and voted for, he actually crossed the floor to vote for an emissions trading scheme after he lost the Leader of the Opposition position last time so, very clearly, something that Malcolm Turnbull understands, which is why he’s doing this code, Malcolm Turnbull, he’s kept all of Tony’ Abbott’s policies but he’s saying they’ll all be reassessed from 2017.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: A Market based mechanism is another word, another phrase for carbon tax.

KARL STEVANOVIC:Okay -

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Greg Hunt this week has said this week that your policies is a market mechanism as well.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Double Carbon Tax.

KARL STEVANOVIC:Alright, let’s move on. Christopher, what’s going on with Tony Abbott, is he white anting the PM? He’s dangerous isn’t he?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: No, of course he’s not, and what’s really important is that one of the most important responsibilities of any government is to protect its citizens and to do that you need to have clear eyes and a cool head and that is what Malcolm Turnbull and the government is providing. We’re the second larger contribution to the international coalition in the Middle East. We have boots on the ground there, of course. The Iraqi army, and the Peshmergas who are the Kurds, as well as of course the Syrian forces that are trying to defeat ISIS and we are supporting them. We also have of course got 6 FA18s, about three hundred trainers and ninety Special Forces protecting them and working with them, as well as the air force personnel who are servicing those.

KARL STEVANOVIC:There’s no concerns about that inside of the Parliament, are you concerned that Tony Abbott is gathering numbers, gathering a storm against Malcolm Turnbull?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well, that’s simply is not happening

ANTHONY ALBANESE: He’s doing it in the office next to Chris’s, I mean every Tuesday they have a little gathering in the office next to Chris’s, a monkey pod room it’s called named after the type of timber that’s in the table. It’s attached to Chris’s office. Chris is outside with glasses and a false moustache on.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: I’ve got my Groucho Marx disguise on.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: He’s taking notes, he’s taking names of who’s going in there, Kevin Andrews, Eric Abetz, Tony Abbot, they’re all there, and they were so happy yesterday that Mal Brough is in such trouble and -

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Here’s old politics, the old story going.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: Mal Brough thanks to the hanks to the sixty minutes interview is in big trouble and no one is more happy about that than Tony Abbott.

KARL STEVANOVIC: All right, so you’re not concerned about Tony Abbott in any way shape or form?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Absolutely not, I’m a good friend of Tony Abbott’s, I’m a believer -

ANTHONY ALBANESE: He’s doesn’t speak highly of you Christopher.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Can you stop interrupting Anthony, you haven’t stopped talking since you got on television, you must’ve had too much coffee this morning on your way to work I think.

KARL STEVANOVIC: Well how good a friend are you of Tony Abbott, how often do you speak?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: I’ve been a very good friend of Tony Abbott’s for over two decades, I regard him as a good friend and I’m not in the least bit concerned about any role that he’s playing.

KARL STEVANOVIC: How often do you speak?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well, not as much as we used to, that’s for suer.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: When they speak there are exclamation marks at the end of every sentence.

KARL STEVANOVIC: Why don’t you speak to him anymore?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: It’s not that I don’t speak to him; I think he’s still going through a process following the change of leadership.

KARL STEVANOVIC:Cause you white anted him.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: No, I certainly didn’t Karl and you know that’s not true.

KARL STEVANOVIC:Righto let’s move on to other stuff, there’s a very important thing happening, obviously the bushfires have been significant; it also would be great to think that, hopefully, for everyone to come together at the Adelaide Oval for the test match. Christopher, on a much lighter note, what do you think of the pink ball today?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well I’m not sure that the pink balls will necessarily take off, there’s a bit of concern about the change of teams in the evening and whether the team that’s coming in is as fairly treated as the team that started with the pink balls, but we’ll see. It’s a great historic event for Adelaide, it’s the first day night test in the history of the game, but before that on a more sober note I’m heading out to Angaston with the Premier and the Leader of the Opposition he in South Australia to view the fire devastation which is terribly sad for the residents in that part of the world and also for the whole of the state so, that’s the first responsibility and the cricket, if I get the chance, I might get to the cricket later on.

KARL STEVANOVIC: All right, well it’s a very important day for you to do that and it also to get to the cricket to take a close up look at the pink ball I think it’s very interesting stuff to see how that will shape the game.

ANTHONY ALBANESE: I like to play old school, the pitch should be done during the day and it should be with a red ball.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: You don’t know anything about cricket.

KARL STEVANOVIC: Oh, Wow!

(Inaudible)

LISA WILKINSON: If Christopher had bother to turn up this morning I’d tell them to take it outside.

KARL STEVANOVIC: You guys keep going there.

[ends]