WEBVTT - Albanese v Dutton: What's at stake on May 3 0:00:00.480 --> 0:00:01.080 Ready to go. 0:00:04.320 --> 0:00:04.880 You bet. 0:00:06.280 --> 0:00:11.960 Born ready, my fellow Australians. This morning I visited the 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:16.360 Governor General and her Excellency has accepted my advice. Did 0:00:16.360 --> 0:00:20.079 an election be held on Saturday third of May twenty 0:00:20.400 --> 0:00:21.280 and twenty five? 0:00:23.200 --> 0:00:26.760 Promence Sir Anthony Albanesi's re election pitch is stark and singular, 0:00:27.400 --> 0:00:29.720 warning of cuts and chaos under a government led by 0:00:29.760 --> 0:00:30.440 Peter Dutton. 0:00:31.160 --> 0:00:35.240 This election is a choice between Labour's plan to keep 0:00:35.280 --> 0:00:41.480 building or Peter Dutton's promise to cut. That is the choice. 0:00:42.000 --> 0:00:47.720 That is your choice, your job, your wages, your child's education, 0:00:48.440 --> 0:00:55.120 and importantly as well this scene here, your Medicare card. 0:00:57.200 --> 0:00:58.840 They're all in your hands. 0:01:00.080 --> 0:01:02.880 Peter Dutton. It's a question of whether Australians are better 0:01:02.960 --> 0:01:04.360 off now than they were before. 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:08.319 Australians have built their lives and our country on the 0:01:08.360 --> 0:01:11.080 belief that if you work hard, you can get ahead 0:01:11.520 --> 0:01:14.520 and build a better future for your children. However, right 0:01:14.560 --> 0:01:18.640 now Australia is going backwards. The Prime Minister's spent the 0:01:18.680 --> 0:01:19.720 first time two. 0:01:19.800 --> 0:01:22.120 The opposition leader has made a lot of promises about 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:25.600 the cost of living, housing and immigration, but with scant 0:01:25.720 --> 0:01:32.520 detail from sports media. I'm Daniel James. This is seven am. 0:01:32.880 --> 0:01:37.240 Today's special correspondent for the Saturday paper, Jason gottsukis on 0:01:37.319 --> 0:01:39.760 your choice at the next election and whether having a 0:01:39.760 --> 0:01:43.479 winning personality matters for either leader over the next five weeks. 0:01:46.000 --> 0:01:54.080 It's Saturday, March twenty nine. Jason, thanks so much for 0:01:54.160 --> 0:01:56.840 speaking with us. What did you make of the Prime 0:01:56.840 --> 0:01:59.200 minister's speech and what did it tell us about how 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:00.520 he wants to fight selection. 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:05.400 Well, the Prime Minister talked about how Australia is turning 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:08.680 the corner. He's talking about the economy there that inflation 0:02:08.800 --> 0:02:13.480 has come down from nearly seven percent to around two 0:02:13.520 --> 0:02:15.560 and a half percent over the last three. 0:02:15.440 --> 0:02:20.080 Years today because of all the hard work that Australians 0:02:20.120 --> 0:02:25.600 have done. Inflation is down, real wages are up, Unemployment 0:02:25.680 --> 0:02:29.880 is low, interest rates are falling, and we're cutting taxpayer. 0:02:29.400 --> 0:02:32.200 And I think the biggest moment of his press conference 0:02:32.360 --> 0:02:35.440 was when he pulled out his Medicare carden. Of course, 0:02:35.440 --> 0:02:39.080 he was also able to relate that to his mother 0:02:39.560 --> 0:02:42.200 and the sort of care that she'd been able to 0:02:42.240 --> 0:02:45.760 receive courtesy of Medicare, and he got quite emotional there. 0:02:46.360 --> 0:02:47.320 He teared up. 0:02:47.680 --> 0:02:50.919 As an invalid pensioner, she got taken up the road 0:02:52.000 --> 0:02:56.440 after having an aneurysm, and she never left RPA, but 0:02:56.600 --> 0:03:00.440 she got the same care that Kerry Packer got. They're 0:03:00.480 --> 0:03:02.600 the Australian values. That's what I'll fight for. 0:03:02.960 --> 0:03:06.040 He talked about the energy relief measure that the government 0:03:06.080 --> 0:03:09.079 has introduced to take one hundred and fifty dollars a 0:03:09.160 --> 0:03:13.320 year off people's power bills, and then he sort of 0:03:13.360 --> 0:03:18.440 compared all of that to the chaotic, dysfunctional Member Morrison government. 0:03:18.919 --> 0:03:23.720 Less than three years ago. The chaotic and dysfunctional Morrison 0:03:23.800 --> 0:03:28.840 government left bulk billing in free fall, age care in crisis, 0:03:29.080 --> 0:03:32.920 and the ndis at breaking point. A decade of the 0:03:33.000 --> 0:03:37.640 Liberals keeping wages low, sending jobs offshore, and fighting about 0:03:37.680 --> 0:03:41.560 climate change left our nation open to the worst global 0:03:41.600 --> 0:03:43.280 inflation since the ninety eight. 0:03:43.360 --> 0:03:45.000 But I thought it was the most effective line of 0:03:45.040 --> 0:03:49.400 the press conference. Was everything in Peter Dutton's record tells 0:03:49.480 --> 0:03:51.880 us that he will start by cutting medicare. 0:03:52.480 --> 0:03:56.240 That he will start by cutting medicare, and he won't 0:03:56.280 --> 0:04:00.960 stop there. He will cut everything except your taxes. 0:04:01.880 --> 0:04:03.880 I thought that was a very effective line. 0:04:05.320 --> 0:04:08.600 Jason. You spent the past few months speaking with labor 0:04:08.640 --> 0:04:12.040 strategists about their plan for this election. You've also looked 0:04:12.040 --> 0:04:15.360 at the advertising campaigns they've been rolling out, So what 0:04:15.400 --> 0:04:17.600 have you found out about how they want to use 0:04:17.720 --> 0:04:18.640 Dutton as a foil. 0:04:19.240 --> 0:04:22.640 Well, there's no question, I think, and Labor strategists have 0:04:22.720 --> 0:04:26.000 been saying this to me for months. There's no question 0:04:26.080 --> 0:04:29.719 that they think Peter Dutton is not very popular and 0:04:29.760 --> 0:04:32.040 they're going to be focusing on that very much during 0:04:32.520 --> 0:04:33.880 the course of this campaign. 0:04:36.040 --> 0:04:40.200 They don't think that Peter Dutton is ready to govern, and. 0:04:40.120 --> 0:04:42.599 If you look at the last News poll, it seems 0:04:42.640 --> 0:04:45.240 like a majority of voters don't think Peter Dutton is 0:04:45.240 --> 0:04:47.919 ready to govern either. So I think we're going to 0:04:47.920 --> 0:04:52.040 see the Labor Party have some positive advertising, but I 0:04:52.040 --> 0:04:53.919 think most of it is going to be on the 0:04:53.960 --> 0:04:58.680 negative side and really attacking Peter Dutton. The other thing 0:04:58.880 --> 0:05:01.719 the ALP is going to focus on is the what 0:05:01.800 --> 0:05:04.000 has been a real lucky charm for the Labor Party 0:05:04.600 --> 0:05:06.840 ever since Bob Hawk was Prime Minister, and that is 0:05:07.120 --> 0:05:11.839 Medicare and strengthening the health system. That's always been a 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:15.120 winner for the Labor Party. Their policy that the Prime 0:05:15.120 --> 0:05:18.320 Minister announced a few weeks ago now on Medicare, that 0:05:18.440 --> 0:05:21.120 eight point five billion that they're putting into bulk billing. 0:05:21.600 --> 0:05:24.280 I think the ALPA getting very good feedback on that 0:05:24.320 --> 0:05:27.080 from voters, and they're going to keep hammering that issue 0:05:27.120 --> 0:05:28.679 as much as they can as well. 0:05:31.600 --> 0:05:35.120 Coming up after the break, why Dunton suddenly doesn't want 0:05:35.120 --> 0:05:36.560 to talk about nuclear. 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:43.760 Hi Ruby Jones Here seven Am tells stories that need 0:05:43.800 --> 0:05:47.440 to be told. Our journalism is founded on trust and independence, 0:05:48.080 --> 0:05:51.840 and now we're increasing our coverage. Every Saturday until the election. 0:05:52.040 --> 0:05:54.440 Will bring you an extra episode to break down the 0:05:54.480 --> 0:05:57.920 biggest political moments of the week. If you enjoy seven Am, 0:05:58.000 --> 0:06:00.080 the best way you can support us is by making 0:06:00.120 --> 0:06:02.800 a contribution at seven am podcast dot com dot are 0:06:02.839 --> 0:06:06.680 you forward slash support? Thanks for listening and supporting our work. 0:06:09.480 --> 0:06:12.360 Jason on Thursday night, We've got a little insight into 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.800 Peter Dutton's plans for the country when he gave his 0:06:14.880 --> 0:06:18.240 budget in reply speech. He followed that up on Friday 0:06:18.279 --> 0:06:20.880 once the election was called, what do we learn? 0:06:21.520 --> 0:06:24.960 I think the biggest surprise of the week was when 0:06:25.040 --> 0:06:29.479 we learned that the Coalition wouldn't be supporting Labor's surprise 0:06:29.760 --> 0:06:33.560 tax cuts. Angus Taylor went on seven point thirty report 0:06:34.040 --> 0:06:38.320 straight after Treasurer Jim Chalmers had delivered the budget and 0:06:38.440 --> 0:06:41.240 called the tax cuts a cruel oaks and a bribe. 0:06:41.480 --> 0:06:44.960 There are better structural, fundamental solutions to the cost of 0:06:45.000 --> 0:06:48.000 living crisis. That's not what's being offered by labor and 0:06:48.040 --> 0:06:50.000 so we won't support what they're doing here. 0:06:50.120 --> 0:06:51.560 You do not support the tax cuts. 0:06:51.640 --> 0:06:56.080 No, Well, look, let's be clear. They are a cruel huax. 0:06:56.480 --> 0:06:58.680 I mean, they are not a genuine tax cut. 0:06:58.880 --> 0:07:01.320 And it also gave the government the opportunity to kind 0:07:01.320 --> 0:07:04.120 of wedge the Coalition on the tax cuts. They weren't 0:07:04.160 --> 0:07:07.800 expecting Peter Dutton to oppose them. It's been an enormous 0:07:07.800 --> 0:07:11.280 political gift for the government and they really pounced on 0:07:11.320 --> 0:07:15.360 that on Wednesday morning when they suddenly decided to introduce 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:19.080 legislation to really lock the opposition into that promise to 0:07:19.120 --> 0:07:23.320 oppose the tax cuts. But we also learned about the 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:28.080 coalition's promise to have petro exise for twelve months if 0:07:28.080 --> 0:07:31.160 they win the election, and I think that is popular 0:07:31.200 --> 0:07:33.920 with a lot of obviously people who are spending a 0:07:33.920 --> 0:07:36.320 lot of money a week each week on petrol. 0:07:36.640 --> 0:07:39.520 We're saying that we want to help now pensioners and 0:07:39.640 --> 0:07:43.040 families and small businesses right across the economy with a 0:07:43.120 --> 0:07:47.000 twenty five cent reduction in fuel excise. So when you 0:07:47.040 --> 0:07:48.840 go to the bowser and you fill up your car, 0:07:49.400 --> 0:07:51.320 fill up your you you're going to be paying about 0:07:51.320 --> 0:07:52.040 fourteen dollars. 0:07:52.360 --> 0:07:55.440 But we also learned a little bit about the coalition's 0:07:55.520 --> 0:07:59.400 plan to try to lower energy costs for households with 0:07:59.480 --> 0:08:04.840 this policy to force domestic gas producers to keep some 0:08:04.960 --> 0:08:07.400 of the gas that they take out of the ground 0:08:07.440 --> 0:08:09.480 and put it into the domestic market. 0:08:09.880 --> 0:08:13.760 Gas is used to create and generate electricity, and under 0:08:13.800 --> 0:08:18.560 our policy, we're putting gas back into the energy system 0:08:18.760 --> 0:08:20.000 and we're doing it for Australians. 0:08:20.000 --> 0:08:22.440 Because it's quite a complex policy and it's not clear 0:08:22.440 --> 0:08:26.200 to me that it's going to lower gas prices. Peter 0:08:26.280 --> 0:08:29.440 Dutton also talked about getting rid of the Housing Australia 0:08:29.520 --> 0:08:34.360 Future Fund and the rewiring the Nation Fund, and of 0:08:34.400 --> 0:08:38.760 course Peter Dutton's promise to implement large cuts to the 0:08:38.800 --> 0:08:41.760 public service in Gambra. I think that's also risky for 0:08:41.800 --> 0:08:45.200 the Coalition because it does remind voters very much of 0:08:45.480 --> 0:08:50.040 what Donald Trump is doing over in Washington. Donald Trump 0:08:50.320 --> 0:08:53.600 is something that the Labour Party are going to be 0:08:53.880 --> 0:08:56.800 trying to link Peter Dutton to very much during the 0:08:56.840 --> 0:08:59.600 course of this campaign. They think Trump is a big 0:08:59.640 --> 0:09:02.160 negative for Dutton and they're going to try to remind 0:09:02.240 --> 0:09:03.040 voters of that as. 0:09:03.000 --> 0:09:06.440 Much as they can. I think over the next five weeks. 0:09:07.920 --> 0:09:10.200 So the last couple of days, we've got a bit 0:09:10.200 --> 0:09:12.920 of an insight into some of Dutton's plans. But like 0:09:12.960 --> 0:09:15.880 you just said, he has talked a lot about cutting 0:09:16.000 --> 0:09:20.040 the public service. Do you think that's going to resonate 0:09:20.040 --> 0:09:22.200 on all with the broader electorate. 0:09:23.120 --> 0:09:26.959 I don't think so, because during the last three years 0:09:26.960 --> 0:09:29.480 of the Morrison government, yes, on the one hand, they 0:09:29.559 --> 0:09:33.280 reduced the size of the public service, but they massively 0:09:33.360 --> 0:09:37.080 increased the number of consultants that were needed. So I'm 0:09:37.120 --> 0:09:38.839 not sure that Peter Dutton's going to be able to 0:09:38.880 --> 0:09:41.640 square this circle of He's on the one hand saying well, 0:09:41.679 --> 0:09:44.320 we'll cut public servants and we'll save money, but then 0:09:44.360 --> 0:09:47.160 who's going to deliver all all the services that people 0:09:47.200 --> 0:09:51.200 expect government to deliver. And then what we probably see, 0:09:51.280 --> 0:09:55.320 if we're going on the coalition's recording government, is that 0:09:55.320 --> 0:09:58.960 they'll have to turn around and employ consultants and that's 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:01.360 probably going to cost Peter had done a lot more 0:10:01.400 --> 0:10:04.680 than he saves by sacking forty one thousand public servants. 0:10:05.960 --> 0:10:08.680 What was interesting to me was some of the stuff 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:12.560 Dutton isn't talking about. I mean, he's been Defense minister, 0:10:12.600 --> 0:10:15.839 he's been Minister for Home Affairs and immigration, and yet 0:10:15.880 --> 0:10:18.040 in his budget reply speech you want to get into 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:22.520 specifics from the coalition's position on defense spending or immigration numbers. 0:10:23.080 --> 0:10:23.880 What do you think that is? 0:10:23.960 --> 0:10:28.440 Jason, Well, it's a great question, Denial, and I think 0:10:28.760 --> 0:10:32.280 the answer is that Peter Dutton probably has not worked 0:10:32.280 --> 0:10:36.000 it out himself yet. They've been all over the place 0:10:36.280 --> 0:10:39.760 when it comes to what the migration target will be. 0:10:40.320 --> 0:10:43.160 They haven't been very clear whether they're talking about reducing 0:10:43.440 --> 0:10:46.560 the permanent intake of migration, which is around one hundred 0:10:46.600 --> 0:10:49.280 and ninety thousand a year, or whether they're talking about 0:10:49.320 --> 0:10:53.439 reducing net overseas migration, which is of course a completely 0:10:53.559 --> 0:10:57.960 different number. If he's going to cut permanent migration by 0:10:57.960 --> 0:11:00.680 as much as he said he will, they're talking about 0:11:00.679 --> 0:11:04.160 reducing I think taking it down from one ninety to 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:07.960 one sixty, then that's really going to harm the economy 0:11:08.080 --> 0:11:12.040 because the only reason the Australian economy me has been 0:11:12.080 --> 0:11:15.400 able to stay out of recession over the last five 0:11:15.440 --> 0:11:18.240 to ten years is because we've had this quite high 0:11:18.320 --> 0:11:23.320 migration number. And on defense, I wonder whether the reason 0:11:23.320 --> 0:11:26.559 he held back on that is because he knew alban 0:11:27.040 --> 0:11:29.640 Anthony Albanze was going to call the election and he 0:11:30.200 --> 0:11:34.120 probably thought, well, I'm going to not get as much 0:11:34.360 --> 0:11:37.120 coverage of my speech tonight as as I would normally. 0:11:37.600 --> 0:11:40.679 I have to save something for a quieter newsday. And 0:11:40.720 --> 0:11:43.440 so I wonder whether he held back for that reason. 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:46.319 And yet when it comes to the commitments around defense. 0:11:47.240 --> 0:11:49.880 There was also only one mention of nuclear in his 0:11:50.040 --> 0:11:53.120 budget reply speech and the first question he was asked 0:11:53.240 --> 0:11:57.320 by Generalist and Friday was why is that coalition. 0:11:57.160 --> 0:11:59.959 Has a three hundred billion dollar plan for nuclear energy 0:12:00.000 --> 0:12:02.000 but barely got to mention last night in your budget reply? 0:12:02.160 --> 0:12:04.880 Why was that walking back from yuclear because the elector 0:12:04.960 --> 0:12:05.480 doesn't like it? 0:12:05.640 --> 0:12:08.880 Well, we spoke extensive about, extensively about our energy plan 0:12:08.960 --> 0:12:09.480 last night. 0:12:09.640 --> 0:12:12.839 And does this scene to you like Peter Dutton doesn't 0:12:12.880 --> 0:12:17.520 want to speak about what was until recently his flagship policy. 0:12:18.400 --> 0:12:23.440 I think no question. Daniel Jason Claire, the Minister for Education, 0:12:23.840 --> 0:12:27.760 who is going to be the layback campaign spokesman I 0:12:27.760 --> 0:12:31.480 think for the next four or five weeks. He gave 0:12:31.520 --> 0:12:34.040 a press conference last night after the budget in reply 0:12:34.160 --> 0:12:37.440 speech and he said, well, he thinks Stutton's nuclear policy 0:12:37.559 --> 0:12:40.599 is about as popular as a fart in an elevator. 0:12:40.920 --> 0:12:45.360 The Coalition have basically stopped talking about their nuclear policy. Instead, 0:12:45.679 --> 0:12:49.199 Peter Dutton's talking about this new gas policy that they're 0:12:49.559 --> 0:12:52.599 going to try to implement. Peter Dutton knows that the 0:12:52.760 --> 0:12:55.760 nuclear is not polling well, people aren't buying it. I 0:12:55.760 --> 0:12:58.840 think we're probably going to start to see the layback 0:12:58.920 --> 0:13:02.120 campaign strategist trying to put more pressure on him about that. 0:13:02.760 --> 0:13:05.679 There's also this confusion about what it's going to cost. 0:13:06.240 --> 0:13:10.080 As we saw on Insiders last Sunday, not even Angus Taylor, 0:13:10.160 --> 0:13:13.600 the Shadow Treasurer, really seems to understand how much the 0:13:13.640 --> 0:13:15.680 coalition's nuclear policy. 0:13:15.360 --> 0:13:17.640 Is going to cost. And I think it's a real 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:19.000 weak point for them. 0:13:19.800 --> 0:13:22.040 So Jason, over the next five weeks, you're going to 0:13:22.080 --> 0:13:25.559 be out on the campaign trail. Last election, Albanese wasn't 0:13:25.559 --> 0:13:29.920 all that crash hot on the trail. Darton is largely untested, 0:13:30.320 --> 0:13:32.760 so what your read on how they'll connect with voters 0:13:32.760 --> 0:13:35.000 and do you expect they'll try and kiss as many 0:13:35.040 --> 0:13:36.000 babies as possible. 0:13:36.640 --> 0:13:42.760 Well, always politicians will try to kiss babies and whoever 0:13:42.800 --> 0:13:47.440 they can. I do think Anthony Albanezi he is very 0:13:47.480 --> 0:13:51.520 patchy when it comes to campaigning. He does tend to 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.080 drift off and he gets into this mode where he 0:13:54.160 --> 0:13:57.000 starts to list all the things he's done in government, 0:13:57.040 --> 0:14:01.320 and it I think has the effect of turning listeners off. 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:04.680 But I think in the last four or five weeks 0:14:04.760 --> 0:14:08.360 there are signs that Anthony Alberesi has learnt something. He's 0:14:08.400 --> 0:14:11.720 getting better. His legacy is really on the line now. 0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:15.400 If he loses this election, it will be the first 0:14:15.480 --> 0:14:18.880 time a government has lost an election after just one term, 0:14:19.200 --> 0:14:22.520 and I think that is a huge incentive for the 0:14:22.560 --> 0:14:27.440 Prime Minister to campaign as hard as possible. Peter Dutton 0:14:27.600 --> 0:14:31.000 is untested and we have seen the evidence of that 0:14:31.080 --> 0:14:33.680 in the last few weeks. He's started to make mistakes. 0:14:34.160 --> 0:14:34.320 You know. 0:14:34.360 --> 0:14:36.920 Albanesi of course has been through an election campaign, so 0:14:37.480 --> 0:14:40.200 that experience is going to matter, and I think Peter 0:14:40.320 --> 0:14:43.320 Dutton is going to struggle I think a bit more 0:14:43.400 --> 0:14:45.320 than perhaps the Prime Minister will. 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:48.680 Well Jason, thank you for joining us, Thank you for 0:14:48.720 --> 0:14:50.640 your insights and look after your Sava of the next 0:14:50.680 --> 0:14:51.360 five weeks. 0:14:51.840 --> 0:14:52.440 Thanks Daniel. 0:14:52.480 --> 0:14:54.880 I hope we talk again before election day. 0:14:55.160 --> 0:15:10.960 Every Chance seven Am is a daily show from Schwartz 0:15:11.000 --> 0:15:14.720 Media and The Saturday Paper. It's made by Atticus Basto, 0:15:15.080 --> 0:15:20.160 Shane Anderson, Chris Dangate, Daniel James, Eric Jensen, Ruby Jones, 0:15:20.600 --> 0:15:25.160 Sarah mcveee, Travis Evans and Zultan Vecchio. Our theme music 0:15:25.200 --> 0:15:28.119 is by Ned Beckley and Josh Hoogan of Envelope Budio. 0:15:28.880 --> 0:15:31.160 Thanks so much for listening to seven Am, and if 0:15:31.160 --> 0:15:33.720 you like the show, please tell your friends it helps 0:15:33.760 --> 0:15:36.880 a lot. We'll be back on Monday. See you then.