Speaker 1: Line sharing.
Speaker 2: Tonight, we have new details on how four protesters managed
Speaker 2: to evade AFP detection and climb up the roof of
Speaker 2: Parliament House, and how they did it will shock you.
Speaker 2: But first, what occurred today was an assault on our democracy,
Speaker 2: an act of extremism on the nation's capital. Parliament House
Speaker 2: in Canberra has been compromised. Pro Hamas sympathizers have invaded
Speaker 2: the building in more ways than one, and our social
Speaker 2: cohesion is truly in tatters because of a war happening
Speaker 2: on the other side of the world. It all culminated
Speaker 2: in a major security breach this morning. These protesters climbed
Speaker 2: the roof, shouting anti Semitic insults and unfurling banners with
Speaker 2: pro Palestine slogans.
Speaker 3: The alban Easy Labour government's persistence of blots for this
Speaker 3: genocidal chetla colonial state comes as no Austrailia resignation founded
Speaker 3: among genocide. We will not begin, have we well continued
Speaker 3: to retin for.
Speaker 2: More than two hours. These racist banners were on full
Speaker 2: display for the world to see at Australia's home of democracy.
Speaker 2: And these weren't just ordinary slogans. They had sinister meanings.
Speaker 4: But that upside down red triangle is Hamas symbology that
Speaker 4: is supposed to indicate IDF targets and Israeli targets in
Speaker 4: the context of the war in Israel and Gaza, and
Speaker 4: for that to be appropriated on our parliament, hung from
Speaker 4: the front of our parliament is a disturbing And what we.
Speaker 5: Saw up there was support for Hamas. Hamas killed more
Speaker 5: than one thousand Jews, the biggest single loss of Israeli
Speaker 5: life since the Holocaust on October seventh last year. That
Speaker 5: is a fact. And so to see this here, it's
Speaker 5: really discussing.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they were pro Hamas slogans and this is meant
Speaker 2: to be a safe space, yet it's taling Jews. They're
Speaker 2: not welcome. What an appalling act and an even more
Speaker 2: frightening breach of security. It's now been revealed exactly how
Speaker 2: they did it. Australian Federal Police has confirmed the group
Speaker 2: used diversionary tactics like calling in false protests at other
Speaker 2: locations to throw off police so they could invade the building.
Speaker 1: There are some some actual deliberate actions that these particular
Speaker 1: this particular group has taken I premeditated to use diversionary
Speaker 1: tactics and move very very quickly. But we did also
Speaker 1: have some false phone calls of other protests happening at
Speaker 1: nearby areas that did not occur. So there was not
Speaker 1: only was there diversionary efforts at Parliament House, but there
Speaker 1: was on diverting AFP resources to other areas. This is
Speaker 1: quite what I would call a criminal act, hence the
Speaker 1: four arrests and the charges.
Speaker 2: It was that easy. It is unacceptable that this group
Speaker 2: determined to intimidate Jews and inflict fear on Australians could
Speaker 2: get past security, let alone using diversionary tactics to throw
Speaker 2: off police and it worked. It is a complete and
Speaker 2: utter security failure. What would have happened if these people
Speaker 2: were armed or carrying explosives? What sort of a message
Speaker 2: does this center our enemies that our Parliament House is
Speaker 2: so easily accessible. There's some very.
Speaker 1: Bad people watching this and go now that's interesting.
Speaker 4: They're there, They got through.
Speaker 2: And while security will become or has become a major
Speaker 2: focal point of the investigation, I can't help but wonder
Speaker 2: what on earth is going on in Canberra because the
Speaker 2: political left actually agree with the anti submitted statements on
Speaker 2: display by protesters look no further than the Greens, the
Speaker 2: most UnAustralian party in our history.
Speaker 6: I do support and have participated in the change from
Speaker 6: the River to this sea. This is something that I
Speaker 6: think supporters of Palestine are very clear about.
Speaker 2: Even thinking solo the Greens, as we know support of
Speaker 2: the pro Palestine vandalism of our nation's war memorial. And
Speaker 2: then there's Labors rat in the ranks, Fatima Payman, who
Speaker 2: today finally quit the party to sit on the cross bench.
Speaker 7: The ongoing genocide in Gaza is a tragedy of unimaginable proportions.
Speaker 7: We have all seen the bloodied images of young children
Speaker 7: losing limbs, being amputated with our anesthetics and starving. As
Speaker 7: Israel continues, It's onslaught live streamed across the world.
Speaker 2: No mention of the hostages or the slaughter of Jews
Speaker 2: on October set. It makes no sense how someone who
Speaker 2: fled the Taliban in Afghanistan is now criticizing Israel for
Speaker 2: defending itself against Hummas. And when asked about the phrase
Speaker 2: from the River to the Sea.
Speaker 8: Front of Parliament today there was a sign saying from
Speaker 8: the River to the sea, Palestine will be free.
Speaker 9: What does that phrase mean to you?
Speaker 10: So for me, that phrase is a call to freedom
Speaker 10: from injustice, freedom from occupation, freedom from inequality, and it's
Speaker 10: a call to be able to live harmoniously.
Speaker 2: It's a call for self.
Speaker 10: Determination, for liberation of the Palestinians.
Speaker 2: There's nothing harmonious about it. It calls for the destruction
Speaker 2: of Israel. And here was the alleged outfit on display
Speaker 2: by Greens turned independent Lydia Thorpe at last night's Midwinter Ball.
Speaker 2: I'll let the pictures speak for themselves now. The Prime
Speaker 2: Minister condemned today's protests, but he failed to identify the
Speaker 2: common theme.
Speaker 11: Peaceful protest has an important place in our society. But
Speaker 11: this was not a peaceful protest. These actions have done
Speaker 11: absolutely nothing to advance any cause. Indeed, they have hurt
Speaker 11: the cause that those engaged in this reckless activity believe
Speaker 11: they are advancing.
Speaker 2: Peter Dutton showed him how to do it.
Speaker 12: Rivets of the Sea is a statement about wiping out,
Speaker 12: eliminating a race of people. Let's be very clear about it.
Speaker 12: There's been a lot of debate in this place about
Speaker 12: how that might work and whether those words have a
Speaker 12: different form of meaning or perhaps they can be justified
Speaker 12: in some way or other. They can't be, and they
Speaker 12: never will be.
Speaker 2: The religious fractures that have been bubbling away in Australia
Speaker 2: since October seven have tipped over into Parliament House inside
Speaker 2: the walls and now on the outside. Not even our
Speaker 2: nation's capital is safe anymore, and it's dividing society more
Speaker 2: than ever. One thing's for sure. Hamas would be looking
Speaker 2: at Canberra right now and smiling. These protesters are emboldened
Speaker 2: by the Labor government. We have seen this with anti
Speaker 2: Semitism in the country being allowed to flourish. Once the
Speaker 2: horse has bolted, there's no going back because it has
Speaker 2: been allowed to go on for so long it's now
Speaker 2: impossible to crack down. And what sort of a message
Speaker 2: does it send pro Hamas protesters when the Albenzi government
Speaker 2: hauls in Israel's ambassador for a dressing down over his
Speaker 2: country's war in the Middle East and they send in
Speaker 2: a junior Burger minister to do it. More on that
Speaker 2: in a moment. Israeli ambassador Amir Mahmon was formally summoned
Speaker 2: to a meeting in Canberra ten days ago and warned
Speaker 2: that the Jewish state could not expect Australia's support if
Speaker 2: it goes to war against Hesbala in southern Lebanon. What
Speaker 2: an appalling move, as Israel desperately for its own survival
Speaker 2: and as it faces a conflict now on all fronts.
Speaker 2: There are fears of a tip for tat response by HESBLA,
Speaker 2: which Australia lists as a terror organization, and since the
Speaker 2: conflict began, sixty thousand Israelis have been forced to flee
Speaker 2: northern Israel due to attacks from the Iran Bat terror group.
Speaker 2: Yet in the event of Israel having to protect its
Speaker 2: citizens from yet another terror group, Australia has told the ambassador, well,
Speaker 2: don't expect our support. They want Israel to just down
Speaker 2: tools and just simply walk away. And let's not forget
Speaker 2: it was Harmas who started this war, not Israel. Now
Speaker 2: formally summoning an ambassador is considered considered a serious step
Speaker 2: in the diplomatic world. Given the gravity of such an
Speaker 2: important message that Labor chose to convey, well, you'd think
Speaker 2: they would send in the Foreign Minister Pennywong to deliver
Speaker 2: it personally, but in fact it was not delivered by
Speaker 2: Foreign Minister Pennywong was left to Miswong's underling, Assistant Minister
Speaker 2: Tim Watts, how appalling Israel's ambassador wasn't even given the
Speaker 2: courtesy of a visit by Penny Wong in person. It
Speaker 2: is a slap in the face to Jewish Australians and Israel,
Speaker 2: who has been an important ally from the Anzac kissin
Speaker 2: Besheba in nineteen seventeen which ultimately helped create the state
Speaker 2: of Israel to the present day. I mean Israel has
Speaker 2: supported Australia, not to mention the important contribution of Jewish
Speaker 2: Australians in this country, but that's all been ripped to
Speaker 2: shreds over the course of the last nine months by Labor.
Speaker 2: It's betrayed Israel and emboldened the anti Semitism like what
Speaker 2: we saw today at Parliament House.
Speaker 4: The Foreign Minister Pennywong needs to step up today and
Speaker 4: explain exactly what it was that her assistant Minister Tim
Speaker 4: Watts meant when he hauled in the Israeli ambassador and
Speaker 4: told him that if our friend and ally Israel found
Speaker 4: itself in a war with his Belah, a listed terroist organization,
Speaker 4: that they could not count on our support. That is
Speaker 4: a deeply disturbing revelation. Hezblah has been attacking northern Israel
Speaker 4: since the seventh of October every day. This is the
Speaker 4: world's best armed terrorist organization.
Speaker 2: The relationship between Australia and Israel, once cherished, is under
Speaker 2: more pressure than ever. It's so bad, sources have told
Speaker 2: The Daily Telegraph. Mister Mamm's relationship with Senator Wong has
Speaker 2: been in the freezer for several months. It started with
Speaker 2: a limp response to the burning of the Israeli flag
Speaker 2: on the steps of the Sydney Opera House. Labor rewarded
Speaker 2: Hermas by backing Palestinian statehood at the United Nations vote.
Speaker 2: It appointed a special advisor to monitor Israel's response to
Speaker 2: its air strikes which killed Australian Zomi frankem And now
Speaker 2: the summoning of the ambassador is a new low. The
Speaker 2: dressing down marks a bad flash point in the relationship.
Speaker 2: The horse is well and truly bolted, and I fear
Speaker 2: there is no going back. And I'll speak to Shadow
Speaker 2: Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham, who says this is all
Speaker 2: a mess entirely of the Prime Minister's own making. Also tonight,
Speaker 2: Democrats in denial standing by President Biden despite serious questions
Speaker 2: over his fitness for the top job. But how long
Speaker 2: can they keep up this facade? And as BRIT's head
Speaker 2: to the polls, Kirstarmer stands on the cusp of one
Speaker 2: of the biggest UK election wins in history. We'll cross
Speaker 2: live to London for the latest. For now, though, let's
Speaker 2: bring in my panel, The Australian's National Affairs Editor Joe
Speaker 2: Kelly and One Nation Chief of Staff James Ashby. Hi
Speaker 2: to both of you, Thank you so much for joining us. James.
Speaker 2: The AFP has confirmed the protesters used diversionary tactics today
Speaker 2: to throw off police. How big of a security fail
Speaker 2: is this, Well, it's.
Speaker 13: Pretty clear that Parliament haven't learnt since Bill Heffernan tested
Speaker 13: the security of Parliament House all those years ago when
Speaker 13: he brought in a fake pipe bomb. And this is
Speaker 13: a real concern, not just for the safety of politicians
Speaker 13: who make decisions on our behalf every single day, but
Speaker 13: on any given day the public are in their drives
Speaker 13: and I see the first line of attack here affecting
Speaker 13: more so the public and so many school kids that
Speaker 13: thankfully do visit the Parliament. This should send shivers through
Speaker 13: the presiding offices. So Milton Dick here has a big
Speaker 13: task ahead of him as well as the President. Sue
Speaker 13: lyons this would be one of the greatest concerns. I
Speaker 13: was once in the Speaker's office, so I do know
Speaker 13: precisely how much security means to these presiding officers, and
Speaker 13: the money that has been spent on this parliament one
Speaker 13: hundred and twenty six million has just been wasted and
Speaker 13: proven to have been wasted in such a short period
Speaker 13: of time. If there's one thing I'll note, Damaki, You've
Speaker 13: been in that Parliament enough. I have seen the change
Speaker 13: in the quality of security guards in that Parliament House.
Speaker 13: Upon a time we had strapping men that were securing
Speaker 13: the front doors, securing the entrances also to the Senate
Speaker 13: and to the House of Reps. I see all too
Speaker 13: often now more very lean women and men with painted
Speaker 13: fingernails and more lead and bolts through their faces than
Speaker 13: ever before. I don't think these people are up to
Speaker 13: the task of being able to defend our parliament House.
Speaker 13: And as for the lack of funding that has been
Speaker 13: provided to the AFP, they are the lowest paid police
Speaker 13: in our country, and it is a crying shame that
Speaker 13: our federal politicians and the act government have not done
Speaker 13: something to make sure that our federal police officers are
Speaker 13: paid appropriately in this country. They put their line, their
Speaker 13: bodies on the line for the sake of all politicians
Speaker 13: and the public.
Speaker 2: Well, this is a prime example, isn't it, of why
Speaker 2: there needs to be more funding to prevent something like
Speaker 2: this from ever happening again. Joe, Europe Parliament House at
Speaker 2: the moment you saw it all unfold today, were you
Speaker 2: surprised that this actually was able to happen?
Speaker 14: The sad reality is I was not surprised at all.
Speaker 14: And for people who aren't familiar with Parliament House who
Speaker 14: might not work here, I've worked here for nearly fifteen
Speaker 14: years and certainly there's a very casual feeling about most
Speaker 14: things that happen in Parliament House. So James referred to
Speaker 14: Bill Hefln's pipe bomb experiment. Well, I remember when I
Speaker 14: was covering the Gillard government, a press conference being conducted
Speaker 14: in Parliament House by the then Prime Minister as effectively
Speaker 14: gate crashed by someone who was able to just simply
Speaker 14: walk into the building and walk into the room where
Speaker 14: the press conference was being conducted. So I think today
Speaker 14: was a serious incident. It should be taken extremely seriously.
Speaker 14: These people just jumped over the fence, the security fence
Speaker 14: around Parliament and then marched up to the top of
Speaker 14: the building where they could display their banners and their signs.
Speaker 14: And as many people have said over the course of
Speaker 14: the day, we're simply fortunate that there were not even
Speaker 14: darker intentions at play. So I think its cause for
Speaker 14: thought to get more serious about how we treat things
Speaker 14: here at Parliament House.
Speaker 2: Most certainly absolutely a wake up call, I would say
Speaker 2: for many today. Now look, Fatima Payman has officially confirmed
Speaker 2: her departure from the Labor Party following her suspension over
Speaker 2: repeated defiance of her Palestinian vow. Now the embattled senator
Speaker 2: front at the press today saying this.
Speaker 7: Our actions must align with our principles. When history looks back,
Speaker 7: it must see that we stood on the right side
Speaker 7: of humanity.
Speaker 2: James. She made this announcement that she was quitting during
Speaker 2: question time, knowing that all eyes would be on her
Speaker 2: instead of on Parliament. I think she's gone about this
Speaker 2: very badly, and there are also reports that this has
Speaker 2: been months in the making. Why do you think it
Speaker 2: took her this long, though, to actually pull the pin.
Speaker 13: This has been so well orchestrated, and for the last
Speaker 13: two weeks she's acted as a distraction to the government
Speaker 13: who really have been blindsided by this woman. It's been
Speaker 13: too well orchestrated for my liking to think that this
Speaker 13: has just been a spur of the moment decision. She
Speaker 13: had a right to sort things out with a political party,
Speaker 13: and if she felt so strongly about leaving Labor, she
Speaker 13: should have left Parliament altogether. I really despise these people
Speaker 13: who take Senate positions that belong to the party and
Speaker 13: go and think they're beyond or they're bigger than the
Speaker 13: party itself. Something's got to change here. You can't legislate this.
Speaker 13: This would require a change to the constant. The problem
Speaker 13: with that is if you force somebody to stay within
Speaker 13: a party, they can become a bigger wrecker at the
Speaker 13: end of the day. So look, she's probably better outside
Speaker 13: of the Labor Party, but it has made things difficult,
Speaker 13: especially when trying to get your legislation through, particularly in
Speaker 13: the Senate, as we've seen this last two weeks.
Speaker 2: Joe, do you think that this could damage Labor.
Speaker 14: Oh well, it's already inflicted an enormous damage on the
Speaker 14: Albanese government and served as a distraction. But I think
Speaker 14: there was in some sense very little they could do.
Speaker 14: The real culprit in this saga has been Senat Fatimer
Speaker 14: Payment herself, and I think what she has done, as
Speaker 14: James said, is completely lacking integrity. She was elected to
Speaker 14: the Senate to represent the people of Western Australia on
Speaker 14: behalf of the Labor Party. That was the basis on
Speaker 14: which she was elected, not to represent them as an independent.
Speaker 14: And we have seen frankly this happen far too often,
Speaker 14: where people elected to the Senate with long six year
Speaker 14: parliamentary terms and then defect, sometimes quite early on into
Speaker 14: their term. Senator Payment's done it, but we've seen it
Speaker 14: recently with Senator Lydia Thorpe a phrase Running did it
Speaker 14: with One Nation, Jackie Lamby did it with the Palm
Speaker 14: of United Party. Corey Bernardi did it with the Liberal Party.
Speaker 14: And if they were setting the example for all, the
Speaker 14: Upper House simply wouldn't be workable. It wouldn't be workable,
Speaker 14: and it makes a mockery of our democratic system.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I completely agree with you, and it certainly is
Speaker 2: at that stage at the moment.
Speaker 15: Now.
Speaker 2: Look, housing industry experts are warning that the Albanese government's
Speaker 2: dream of building one point two million new homes within
Speaker 2: five years is beyond reach, James. The building industry has
Speaker 2: long been warning about this. Experts have been saying that
Speaker 2: we'll even be lucky to get one hundred thousand new
Speaker 2: builds this year alone, So that's way short of the
Speaker 2: annual target. Immigration is up, houses aren't being built, no
Speaker 2: wonder we have a housing crisis in this country.
Speaker 13: You bet. And they say we've got to build a
Speaker 13: house every two minutes to meet the target set by
Speaker 13: this Labor government. How disgraceful and how unachievable to even
Speaker 13: set that target in the first place. Was just you know,
Speaker 13: pulling the curtains over people's eyes here. This is just
Speaker 13: rubbish that Labor said about. All it will take is
Speaker 13: another national disaster of some sort. Queensland here is vulnerable
Speaker 13: every year every time you know, summer comes around and
Speaker 13: we get a cyclone warning. All it will take is
Speaker 13: a natural disaster to come through any of our states,
Speaker 13: wipe out a couple of thousand homes and all of
Speaker 13: a sudden, the building trade is then forced to go
Speaker 13: and work on repairs and rebuilding of that area as well.
Speaker 13: This is a disgrace, So I spoke to the real
Speaker 13: estate agents. Today, property prices just continue to go through
Speaker 13: the roof. I couldn't afford to buy my house again,
Speaker 13: is the honest truth. If I had to go and
Speaker 13: buy it today, there is no way I'd get the
Speaker 13: money for it. The appreciation I've had on my property,
Speaker 13: and every other person I know that's in the property
Speaker 13: market and probably thankful that they've got that property and
Speaker 13: the increase. But for those trying to get into the market,
Speaker 13: it's getting tougher and tougher, and you're having to move
Speaker 13: to smaller houses or more regional areas to be able
Speaker 13: to buy.
Speaker 2: In Joe, it's really tough out there, and as James said,
Speaker 2: people are having to move far away from the cities
Speaker 2: just to be able to get into a property. But
Speaker 2: how do you think that we ended up here?
Speaker 14: Well, I think one of the ways we ended up
Speaker 14: here is because we have a debasement in our politics
Speaker 14: where we have aspirational targets and we don't have the
Speaker 14: policies to achieve them, so we see this in climate
Speaker 14: we have a net zero target by twenty fifty. We've
Speaker 14: got a forty three percent target by twenty thirty. Most
Speaker 14: people will tell you that we won't get there. And
Speaker 14: we now have a labor government that initially had a
Speaker 14: million homes target over a five year period, then they
Speaker 14: oup that to one point two million. Now there's no
Speaker 14: building group in this country that says the one point
Speaker 14: two million homes is achievable. So I think one of
Speaker 14: the problems with our politics is that we have aspirational targets.
Speaker 14: It's too much about the target setting and not enough
Speaker 14: about the policies to get there. And there's too many
Speaker 14: contradictions in labors. In Labour's policy, the reregulation of the
Speaker 14: labor market means that they're simply working against themselves in
Speaker 14: trying to achieve some of their economic objectives.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Absolutely, the policy has been out from the very beginning.
Speaker 2: James Ashby Joe Kelly, we have to leave it there.
Speaker 2: Thank you so much to both of you for your
Speaker 2: time this evening. Coming up after the break, Shadow Foreign
Speaker 2: Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham is up next. He'll have more
Speaker 2: to say about the diversionary tactics used by pro Palestinian
Speaker 2: activists at Parliament House today to throw off the AFP,
Speaker 2: and as the Democrats stand by Joe Biden, the world
Speaker 2: continues to question his incompetence. That's next, returning now to
Speaker 2: our top story tonight on the pro Palestinian protesters that
Speaker 2: managed to climb up to the roof of Parliament House
Speaker 2: shouting anti Semitic insults and unfurling banners with pro Palestinian slogans. Now,
Speaker 2: as I mentioned at the start of the show, these
Speaker 2: protesters used diversionary tactics like calling in false protests at
Speaker 2: other locations to throw off police so they could invade
Speaker 2: the building.
Speaker 1: But we did also have some false phone calls of
Speaker 1: other protests happening at nearby areas that did not occur.
Speaker 1: So there was not only was there diversionary efforts at
Speaker 1: Parliament House, but there was on diverting AFP resources to
Speaker 1: other areas.
Speaker 2: The group have now been charged with Commonwealth trespass, but
Speaker 2: it's a criminal offense in itself to give false information
Speaker 2: to the AFP in the diversionary way that they did,
Speaker 2: so will they be messed with the full force of
Speaker 2: the law let's bring in Shadow Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham.
Speaker 2: Thank you so much for joining us this evening. What
Speaker 2: do you expect the favorite of these protesters will be,
Speaker 2: Will they indeed be met with the full force of
Speaker 2: the law.
Speaker 8: They should absolutely be met with the full force of
Speaker 8: the law. Whilst we have of course independence in our
Speaker 8: police force and in those who make decisions around prosecutions
Speaker 8: as in our courts, I would be urging those authorities
Speaker 8: to make sure that wherever offenses have been committed or
Speaker 8: appear to have been committed, they should be fully investigated
Speaker 8: and fully pursued to the full force of the law.
Speaker 8: What we saw today was appalling, was appalling on numerous levels.
Speaker 8: The security breach itself was appalling and needs thorough investigation,
Speaker 8: including investigation as to whether any assistance was provided from
Speaker 8: inside this building or elsewhere to individuals as to how
Speaker 8: to go about or the undertaking of their protest actions.
Speaker 8: It was appalling in that it put others in danger
Speaker 8: in the way in which they positioned themselves at very
Speaker 8: elevated parts of Parliament House, and of course then requiring
Speaker 8: security and other officials to remove them. And it was
Speaker 8: most appalling in terms of the sentiments, the anti Semitic
Speaker 8: statements and slogans that were hung from the front of
Speaker 8: our nation's parliament, creating a stain on our nation's parliament.
Speaker 8: Of course, there's a right to freedom of speech in
Speaker 8: this country, and indeed the very existence of this parliament
Speaker 8: is a testament to the right to freedom of speech.
Speaker 8: But how you go about exercising those freedoms matters, and
Speaker 8: what we saw today was reprehensible in the conduct and
Speaker 8: the content of the actions.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's just astounding that this happened in what should
Speaker 2: have been Australia's most secure building. It is an absolute
Speaker 2: assault on democracy. It's terrible. Now, look let's move on now,
Speaker 2: Simon Birmingham, because I was shocked to read this morning
Speaker 2: that the Israeli ambassador has been formally summoned by Canberra
Speaker 2: to be told not to go to war with Hesbela,
Speaker 2: a list of terror organization whose attacks have seen tens
Speaker 2: of thousands of Jews flee Northern Israel. Who does this
Speaker 2: federal government think it is telling Israel to basically down tools.
Speaker 8: We weren't the only person who was shocked to reading
Speaker 8: those stories. And indeed, there are really two issues at
Speaker 8: play here. One is what was said and the other
Speaker 8: is how it was said. Now in what was said,
Speaker 8: the idea that Australia would not be standing by a
Speaker 8: democratic partner and friend in Israel with its right to
Speaker 8: self defense against a terrorist organization seems to be an
Speaker 8: extraordinary concept and if that is truly the message that
Speaker 8: the Albanezy government delivered, then it is one that they
Speaker 8: clearly need to correct. The record on Israel has faced
Speaker 8: a constant barrage of rocket attacks from southern Lebanon, launched
Speaker 8: by Hesbelah, intended to kill and hurt Israelis, and that
Speaker 8: have caused the displacement of thousands of Israelis from their
Speaker 8: homes in northern Israel, fleeing to safety from those rocket
Speaker 8: attacks and the risk of other attacks from Hesblah. So
Speaker 8: the consequences of this are real and invite all viewers
Speaker 8: think about this. If it were Australia and Australia were
Speaker 8: faced with a terrorist organization attacking our people, our homes, what.
Speaker 4: Would we expect.
Speaker 8: We would expect our government to respond, our government to
Speaker 8: defeat that organization, and our friends around the world to
Speaker 8: stand with us when we did that. In Israel, is
Speaker 8: right to expect no less in terms of the way
Speaker 8: that Australia should respond in supporting Israe as it deals
Speaker 8: with this terrorist threat from Hezbolla, as it continues to
Speaker 8: face the threats from other Iranian sponsored proxies like Hamas
Speaker 8: and elsewhere. But it was also how this was delivered
Speaker 8: which was pretty damn remarkable too, because it appears that
Speaker 8: the Israeli ambassador was summoned to a meeting to have
Speaker 8: this extraordinary statement given to him. But did the Prime
Speaker 8: Minister do it No, did the Foreign Minister do it No,
Speaker 8: it was delegated to the Assistant Foreign Minister, which is
Speaker 8: seemingly a fairly deliberate insult on the part.
Speaker 4: Of the government.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's completely offensive. I mean, you would be stunned
Speaker 2: if you were Israel in the first place to be
Speaker 2: told no, down your tools, but then to have been
Speaker 2: given this message by an assistant minister as just appalling.
Speaker 2: Now we're almost out of time, but I just want
Speaker 2: to get your thoughts on Fatima payment. Finally resigning from
Speaker 2: Labour today to sit on the cross bench. This is
Speaker 2: what she said.
Speaker 7: My family did not flee from a war torn country
Speaker 7: to come here, as refugees. For me to remain silent
Speaker 7: when I the atrocities inflicted on innocent people, witnessing our
Speaker 7: government's indifference to the greatest injustice of our times makes
Speaker 7: me question the direction the party is taking.
Speaker 2: Yes, Simon, I'm not sure how folleing the Taliban in
Speaker 2: Afghanistan and then criticizing Israel for defending itself against Hamas
Speaker 2: makes any sense. But what do you make of her
Speaker 2: finally pulling the pin today.
Speaker 8: Well, I'm not sure it makes much sense either. But
Speaker 8: I also would note that the attempts at appeasement by
Speaker 8: the Albanese government in shifting Australia's position, as they have
Speaker 8: done on so many occasions since October seven, to vote
Speaker 8: in favor of ceasefire emotions, even those that don't call
Speaker 8: for the release of hostages, to vote for the recognition
Speaker 8: of the state of Palestine without what had been the
Speaker 8: bipartisan position around the need to ed all borders, rights
Speaker 8: of return, security guarantees and other factors. All of these
Speaker 8: shifts haven't worked. From Anthony Alberansi, they haven't appeased people
Speaker 8: who just want to keep dragging the Labor Party to
Speaker 8: new and new and further More, extreme positions in relation
Speaker 8: to this, and Fatima Payment is the ultimate example of
Speaker 8: that in terms of his approach not working. It hasn't
Speaker 8: worked on the policy substance. It also hasn't worked on
Speaker 8: the internal politics of this, where he's flipped and flopped
Speaker 8: for the last two weeks. And ultimately it wasn't Anthony
Speaker 8: Albanesi who made the decision to enforce Labor Party rules
Speaker 8: and have her expelled from the Labor Party. It was
Speaker 8: Fatima Payment who decided to walk away, which just shows
Speaker 8: the indecisiveness and weakness from the Prime Minister on these matters.
Speaker 2: Well, it's been a huge day in camera, Simon Birmingham.
Speaker 2: Really appreciate you joining us tonight. Thank you very much
Speaker 2: for your time.
Speaker 4: Thanks my pleasure.
Speaker 2: Well, the White House has today denied reports that Joe
Speaker 2: Biden is consulting allies about whether to continue in the
Speaker 2: US election race. It was a rumor backed in by
Speaker 2: Biden's favorite Republican rival.
Speaker 5: He just quit.
Speaker 14: You know, he's quitting the US.
Speaker 16: Is that right? Yeah?
Speaker 2: I got And that means we have Kamala.
Speaker 16: I think she's going to be better.
Speaker 3: She's now.
Speaker 2: It comes after that horrific performance from the President where
Speaker 2: he resembled a space cadets. You remember this one with
Speaker 2: the COVID.
Speaker 17: I could be with dealing with everything we have to
Speaker 17: do with. Look if we finally beat medicare.
Speaker 2: But the Democrats were out today still trying to pull
Speaker 2: the wall over our eyes.
Speaker 14: I'm here to tell you today President Joe Biden is
Speaker 14: in it to win it, and all of us sudden
Speaker 14: we pledged our support to him because the States could
Speaker 14: not be higher.
Speaker 2: Let's talk to former US studies, to Senior Stephen loosing
Speaker 2: out for more on this. Thank you so much for
Speaker 2: your times, Stephen. Look, the excuses the Democrats are coming
Speaker 2: up with for the President are just getting ridiculous. Yesterday
Speaker 2: the White House put his debate performance down to a
Speaker 2: bad day. Today was he had a bad day in
Speaker 2: a cold How much longer can they keep protecting him?
Speaker 16: Well, what tends to happen in a situation like this,
Speaker 16: but in the United States or Australia or other democracies,
Speaker 16: is you have a shift in terms of the broader party.
Speaker 16: Your donors stop contributing. Your candidates, particularly your incumbents in
Speaker 16: marginal seats, start getting a very edgy. Finally, the powerbrokers
Speaker 16: in the party understand there's a need to act, and
Speaker 16: the Democrats are moving through those stages at the moment now.
Speaker 16: Joe Biden has an extraordinarily loyal base, particularly around him
Speaker 16: in the White House, beginning with family and stretching out
Speaker 16: to senior staff. But the pressure will become overwhelming and
Speaker 16: the Democrats will need to look at another candidate well
Speaker 16: prior to the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in August.
Speaker 2: Well, that's not too far away then, And there have
Speaker 2: been suggestions that Karmala Harris would be the next in line,
Speaker 2: that she would step in. Do you think that she would?
Speaker 2: And is that really a smart move?
Speaker 16: The vice president is guaranteed the presidency if the president,
Speaker 16: of course dies or is incapacitated with the twenty fifth
Speaker 16: Amendment to the US Constitution, So clearly the vice president
Speaker 16: is under scrutiny here, and very senior figures in the
Speaker 16: party I'm thinking of Congress and James Blovern of South
Speaker 16: Carolina have made it clear I expect if there's a
Speaker 16: change of candidate, and the vice president would be foremost
Speaker 16: in consideration. Her poles are not particularly strong. She has
Speaker 16: her critics well beyond the Democratic Party, and there are
Speaker 16: probably stronger candidates amongst governors, for example, upon whom the
Speaker 16: Democrats can draw. But it is a blessedly difficult situation
Speaker 16: in which the Democrats find themselves now, and it would
Speaker 16: be an extraordinarily difficult step to pass over a woman
Speaker 16: of color who's occupying the vice presidency and look elsewhere.
Speaker 16: The only comparable circumstance in our lifetime, so certainly in
Speaker 16: my lifetime, has been Linda Johnson's withdrawal, completely unexpected except
Speaker 16: for his immediate family, particularly his wife, Ladybird, from the
Speaker 16: Democratic presidential contest in March of nineteen sixty eight, were
Speaker 16: announced at the end of a long statement on Vietnam.
Speaker 16: I'm paraphrasing here, but I think I've got the sense
Speaker 16: he said, I will not seek nor will I accept
Speaker 16: the nomination of my party for a further term as
Speaker 16: your president. And that cleared the way to an extent
Speaker 16: for the Democrats to move. They moved to Hubert Humphrey,
Speaker 16: who ran a vigorous campaign, always behind, but ran Richard
Speaker 16: Nixon a reasonably tough race. So that was what happened
Speaker 16: when there was time. There's very little time now. But
Speaker 16: if Joe Biden is the candidate for the Democrats in November.
Speaker 16: I think you can see the White House returned to
Speaker 16: Donald Trump the first time since Grover Cleveland, and the
Speaker 16: Democrats may well lose both houses of the Conference. So
Speaker 16: bose stakes.
Speaker 2: He made a good point there about time, because the
Speaker 2: polling is not in the President's favor either. A USA
Speaker 2: Today poll shows Biden is trailing Trump, but according to
Speaker 2: a CNN poll, fifty six percent of Democratic voters say
Speaker 2: their party has a better shot at winning with a
Speaker 2: candidate other than Joe Biden. So, Stephen, you know, if
Speaker 2: these polls are indeed correct, no matter which way you
Speaker 2: look at it, Joe Biden is cooked. He's gone.
Speaker 16: Yes, So I think the President's future is determined and
Speaker 16: he should not be the candidate for the Democratic Party
Speaker 16: in November. What happened in the debate Anica above everything else,
Speaker 16: was it a great Many Americans saw just how aged
Speaker 16: and how frail the president had become, and a lot
Speaker 16: of people were expecting another performance along the lines of
Speaker 16: the State of the Union address earlier this year, where
Speaker 16: he was fiery and feisty and answered his critics very directly.
Speaker 16: He performed extremely well, But I'm afraid that the years
Speaker 16: have not been kind overall, and it's time for President
Speaker 16: Biden to depart and hand them on to you. Is
Speaker 16: Jack kenn expression on to someone else.
Speaker 2: As simple as that? Absolutely, Stephen Loosely, good to speak
Speaker 2: with you. Thank you so much for joining us this evening.
Speaker 2: We're coming up Canberra's Night of Nights hijacked by senseless
Speaker 2: political activism. My panel will way in next welcome back. Well.
Speaker 2: Australia's political heavyweights and hype profile names have all gathered
Speaker 2: at the Midwinter Ball in Canberra. And what's a ball
Speaker 2: at Parliament House without a controversial political stance on display. Well,
Speaker 2: Independent Santa Lydia Thorpe rocked up dressed in a white
Speaker 2: gown with the anti Semitic phrase from the River to
Speaker 2: the Sea plasted all over it, amid many other social
Speaker 2: commentations last night at the event. Let's bring in my
Speaker 2: panel commentator Jason Morrison, a News Corp columnist Age Lama Mollard.
Speaker 2: Hearted both of you, thank you so much for joining us.
Speaker 2: You know, Jason, we saw the same words plasted at
Speaker 2: the front of Parliament House today, the same ones plasted
Speaker 2: on her dress. I just think it's so inappropriate to
Speaker 2: rock up to a ball like that.
Speaker 16: What do you think You're so wrong?
Speaker 15: She's just so on message.
Speaker 2: I mean, she's on brand.
Speaker 15: You know, there's this phrase and I wish I could
Speaker 15: remember who said it, but they said that, you know,
Speaker 15: politics showed biz.
Speaker 2: For ugly people.
Speaker 15: And there was a reminder of that last night with
Speaker 15: Senator look at me. You know, they're making sure everyone
Speaker 15: looked at her and got photographed. They're such shallow people.
Speaker 16: And you know, in the real world, in the real.
Speaker 15: World, outside of that big house with all those people
Speaker 15: who kind of treat these people like their rock stars.
Speaker 2: You look at some undressed like that, you'd say, you're
Speaker 2: just a dickhead.
Speaker 15: And I look at her and I think that, And
Speaker 15: I'd say most people think that, other than the very
Speaker 15: small percentage of people who think you go, girl, I
Speaker 15: look at that and I just think, what a pathetic
Speaker 15: attention seeker.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I completely it is. Is it attention seeking thing
Speaker 2: to do? You know, Angela, why aren't these people just
Speaker 2: go to an event, go to a ball without making
Speaker 2: these grand political statements.
Speaker 18: She wanted to make a statement. Obviously to me, it
Speaker 18: looked like a year nine textiles.
Speaker 2: Project as bad.
Speaker 18: I mean, I haven't seen you know, tweens do better
Speaker 18: job in fashion than that, although I do know it
Speaker 18: is subjective. But presumably this is an invitation from the
Speaker 18: Prime Minister. I don't know how the whole thing most
Speaker 18: but presumably it is. He hosts the evening, so he's
Speaker 18: the host. So you know that he has condemned that phrase.
Speaker 18: He has openly condemned it. He has said, you know,
Speaker 18: it is a hate speech phrase. Well he hasn't said
Speaker 18: it's hat speech. He said it's violent speech. It could
Speaker 18: be interpreted it's hate speech. So you are just as
Speaker 18: well as ignorant.
Speaker 2: You're rude, and you know what being in.
Speaker 18: That position, as Jason said, you know, it is not
Speaker 18: a red carpet Hollywood event. It is politics. It is
Speaker 18: we vote for you people, So you know, just show
Speaker 18: some respects, show some respect to the people there that
Speaker 18: that message might hurt.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it is just so disrespectful and I feel like
Speaker 2: it treats Australians with contempt at the same time to
Speaker 2: do that now, look, Quantas shareholders are urging the board
Speaker 2: to take a hard step after executives at former chair
Speaker 2: Alan Joyce I yet to receive their lump of bonuses
Speaker 2: The comments came as the boarder waited their advice from
Speaker 2: a consulting group who has been asked by Quantas to
Speaker 2: advise if mister Joyce is worthy of a sixteen million
Speaker 2: dollar in long term and short term bonuses. Jason, you know,
Speaker 2: Alan Joyce spent a lot of time grants standing over
Speaker 2: the last few years before he left the company. In
Speaker 2: those dived it's done so bad and now he could
Speaker 2: be lining up for sixteen million dollars. Does he deserve it?
Speaker 15: And how amazing that you've got a shareholder's lobby the
Speaker 15: board to do the best thing for shareholders. And this
Speaker 15: a little insight into a few things the weakness of
Speaker 15: corporate Australia, the board. When you look at the Contus board,
Speaker 15: there's some of the biggest names in business and Australia
Speaker 15: who should be able to look and say what's in
Speaker 15: the best interest of shareholders and this company.
Speaker 2: It's not rewarding the guy.
Speaker 15: Who's history and has almost driven the joint into history.
Speaker 15: And to kind of think that you've got people now
Speaker 15: who are frustrated that there's a chance they may actually
Speaker 15: pay him this dosh. They're having to sort of put
Speaker 15: on a song and a dance to get the board
Speaker 15: to realize not everyone agrees with this.
Speaker 5: It's a bad state.
Speaker 15: And you know, we kind of get the companies we
Speaker 15: deserve in this country because the very small pool we
Speaker 15: draw executives out to sit on boards. And if the
Speaker 15: quotest board thinks this is a legitimate way to spend
Speaker 15: the shareholders' money, then you know it's time for some resignations.
Speaker 2: I completely agree with you and Angela. You can see
Speaker 2: why these shareholders are up in arms.
Speaker 18: Absolutely, And he's already got a reportedly fourteen million, so
Speaker 18: there's only.
Speaker 2: A little bit more to go.
Speaker 18: Look, presumably he did meet those performance indicators, otherwise he
Speaker 18: wouldn't be getting the money. But also want to ask
Speaker 18: the question, you know, on paper, I know in actuality autely.
Speaker 15: I'm laughing because he pulled off the most amazing corporate achievement.
Speaker 15: He sold flights services that didn't exist.
Speaker 2: I mean, that is miracle stuff, mystery flights.
Speaker 18: Now, how much are they spending on consultants looking at
Speaker 18: whether or not they should try and hold us back
Speaker 18: from him, which then can potentially lead to a legal
Speaker 18: battle with him, which could cost anymore. So draw a
Speaker 18: line on it and I don't think short term bonuses
Speaker 18: are the thing. I think long stretched out bonuses that
Speaker 18: you might get three years after, after you've looked at
Speaker 18: what's happened, you know, behind the scenes, when someone's leaves.
Speaker 2: Absolutely, don't make a haste decision, and you know, give
Speaker 2: the man sixteen million dollars. It's not a bad day
Speaker 2: out now. Look, there's a fresh push for a sugar
Speaker 2: tax to tackle obesity. It would be slapped on Australian's
Speaker 2: favorite fizzy drinks in a federal government bid to tackle
Speaker 2: diabetes as well. Look, I think we don't need governments
Speaker 2: to constantly decide what we can and what we can't do.
Speaker 2: Give us a tax, but we'll disguise it as we
Speaker 2: know what's best for you. But Jason, do you think
Speaker 2: we need this?
Speaker 15: I'm an expert on sugar. We already have a tax
Speaker 15: on sugar products. It's called the GST. Yeah, because fresh
Speaker 15: food doesn't have GST, processed food does, so we have
Speaker 15: a tax. It's not designed like that, that's turned out
Speaker 15: like that. Why do we need to pay more for this?
Speaker 15: But by the way, you know, they say, oh well,
Speaker 15: look it works with cigarettes. It works with cigarettes because
Speaker 15: the pack is sixty bucks. Right, by increasing your Pepsi
Speaker 15: max or your coat fifty cents is not going to
Speaker 15: change behavior. It's just going to take money off people.
Speaker 15: And where does the mystery tax end up? Who gets what?
Speaker 2: I wonder? I wonder who gets that money? I wont
Speaker 2: it who it is.
Speaker 18: I'm completely in opposition with you on this one. I
Speaker 18: believe that it's actually the beverage industry which will change,
Speaker 18: so that what's happened in the UK is that what
Speaker 18: happened was in twenty fifteen, fifty two percent of products
Speaker 18: were above the tax threshold of five grams per one
Speaker 18: hundred mils. Four years later only fifteen percent. So actually
Speaker 18: the beverage manufacturers having been hit, you know, they lose
Speaker 18: sales because they charged more. So if you actually pull
Speaker 18: down the sugar quantity the manufacturers do, then you sell
Speaker 18: few of those products.
Speaker 2: It's healthier all round. Yes, you're right.
Speaker 18: It only goes up about fifteen cents on a two
Speaker 18: hundred and fifty MILI bottle, but you are encouraging better, better,
Speaker 18: you know, better health behaviors in people.
Speaker 2: Because if you've got a big.
Speaker 18: Bottle of coke there and you're sitting there on the
Speaker 18: soupermarket shelf and it's super super cheap.
Speaker 2: Then that just totally normally you absolutely no I can understand.
Speaker 2: So I think if you.
Speaker 18: Can teach the industry to think more carefully. Of course
Speaker 18: they're interested in profits, but you know your only ways
Speaker 18: to legislate it. One hundred countries are doing it, so
Speaker 18: you know it's.
Speaker 15: Not the largest in profits, but in market share. And
Speaker 15: the market share will go to the person who has
Speaker 15: the tastiest product. And I have a body to prove
Speaker 15: it the sweetest, the sweetest product.
Speaker 2: People, we've got to go. But you know what, we
Speaker 2: all love our sugar. Let's be honest. It's not just you, Jason,
Speaker 2: we all do. Come on, Jason Morris and Angela. I'd
Speaker 2: good to have you both on. Thank you so much
Speaker 2: for joining me. The break will cross live to the UK,
Speaker 2: where the poles are officially open ahead of the nation's
Speaker 2: first general election since two thousand nineteen. To the UK now,
Speaker 2: where the nation has officially begun making their way to
Speaker 2: the polls, with the opposition Labour Party the heavy favorite
Speaker 2: to gain power and end fourteen years of Conservative rule.
Speaker 2: It's the first time since twenty nineteen that the nation
Speaker 2: will have their say. Since then the nation faced a pandemic,
Speaker 2: and of course now the war in Ukraine, but also
Speaker 2: the death of Queen Elizabeth and the political landscape could
Speaker 2: not be more drastically different. For more, let's bring in
Speaker 2: an editor for Spiked Online, Tom Slater, live from London. Tom,
Speaker 2: great to have you on. Thank you so much for
Speaker 2: joining me. As I said, fourteen years of the Tories
Speaker 2: looking likely to be coming to an end, is there
Speaker 2: any chance of turning this around at the eleventh hour?
Speaker 9: Not if the polls are even slightly accurate. I mean,
Speaker 9: we political journalists are sometimes given to being a bit
Speaker 9: over dramatic, but currently the most optimistic scenario for them
Speaker 9: is that they're going to get oou one hundred.
Speaker 16: And fifty seats. That would be their worst.
Speaker 9: Ever result in the modern era. Some of these polls
Speaker 9: are suggesting they could go low as sixty seventy seats,
Speaker 9: which would mean they would be in a fight for
Speaker 9: third place with the Liberal Democrats. It's not an exaggeration,
Speaker 9: I think if with that caveat, if the polls are correct,
Speaker 9: that the Tory Party could be being shut out of
Speaker 9: power for a generation and they only really have themselves
Speaker 9: to blame if you look at not just how this
Speaker 9: campaign has gone, about how the past forteen years have
Speaker 9: gone as well, there's.
Speaker 2: Well when did it all go wrong? Particularly now for Rishi.
Speaker 2: Sunaki called this snap election, presumably thinking that he had
Speaker 2: a chance now facing electoral wipeout. What happened? Do you think.
Speaker 9: He had a bad hand going into it? There were
Speaker 9: twenty points behind in the polls. That hasn't really budged.
Speaker 9: I think he also had a bad inheritance. As far
Speaker 9: as the Tories had this great opportunity post Brexit to
Speaker 9: carve out this new coalition. They've got a lot of
Speaker 9: labor voters. Last time around, they were really picking up
Speaker 9: seats across the country, and I think they'd wondered that
Speaker 9: the combination of COVID and Ukraine not the stuffing out
Speaker 9: of them, but also they forgot the voters that they
Speaker 9: were there properly to be serving. And then Richie seen
Speaker 9: that inland of himself. I mean, he's supposedly very good
Speaker 9: of a spreadsheet, is a good technocrat, but he's got
Speaker 9: all the charisma of a breeze block to be perfectly frank,
Speaker 9: and he's taken a campaign that was always going to
Speaker 9: be difficult and made it a laughing stock. He started
Speaker 9: off calling the election out in the rain for some reason.
Speaker 9: There was the D Day snub where he left those
Speaker 9: World War Two commemorations early. It's been one thing after another,
Speaker 9: and it's really it's not an exaggeration so that it's
Speaker 9: been one of the worst run campaigns for a sitting
Speaker 9: government that certainly I can.
Speaker 2: Remember, well looks like Kis Starmer's in the box sage.
Speaker 2: What would a Labor government mean now for Britain.
Speaker 9: I think that's such an important question, not least because
Speaker 9: Kiirs Starmer is an incredibly slippery character. He's tried not
Speaker 9: say very much during this campaign. Historically he's often said
Speaker 9: one thing and inn staid another, depending on what he's
Speaker 9: who he's talking to. But it's very clear to me
Speaker 9: that if you're talking about reopening the question of Brexit,
Speaker 9: if you're talking about more hate speech codes, if you're
Speaker 9: talking about more Net zero's elotry, that's in the DNA
Speaker 9: of this Labor Party. It is now very much the
Speaker 9: kind of parliamentary wing of the metropolitan elite. And I
Speaker 9: think anyone expecting Keir Starmer to be as cautious in
Speaker 9: government as he has been over this campaign may get
Speaker 9: a bit of a rude awakening in the days ahead.
Speaker 2: Nigel Faraja's Reform Party had climbed their way up in
Speaker 2: the polls, particularly over the last month, but they've had
Speaker 2: a bit of a setback. How do you think that
Speaker 2: they will fare in the polls?
Speaker 9: That is one of the big questions going into this.
Speaker 9: Some of the pulses at the last minute are starting
Speaker 9: to suggest that maybe the Reform vote has been slightly underestimated.
Speaker 9: They're seeing a lot of undecided beginning to break for
Speaker 9: the Reform Party. So I think the question of how
Speaker 9: high their votes shore overall it will be an interesting one.
Speaker 9: They're very unlikely to get more than one or a
Speaker 9: few seats because of just our electoral system and the
Speaker 9: fact that their vote is quite spread across the country.
Speaker 9: It's not concentrated in constituencies necessarily. But I think they're
Speaker 9: looking at, regardless, a significant incursion into British electoral politics,
Speaker 9: and even if that doesn't materialize into many seats in Westminster,
Speaker 9: it means they will have that more populars voice in Parliament,
Speaker 9: at least in the form of Nigel Ferragencys like.
Speaker 2: We're almost out of time. But when will the first
Speaker 2: seats be announced in the UK? Do you think it
Speaker 2: will start happening quite quickly.
Speaker 9: Yeah, essentially from ten o'clock onwards. We've got the exit
Speaker 9: poll and then there'll be some seats in the Northeast
Speaker 9: which are always kind of rushing to the player first
Speaker 9: so they can get their moment in the spotlight. That
Speaker 9: would be very much the kind of bell weather for
Speaker 9: where things are going. But yes, they'll be rolling in
Speaker 9: pretty soon after that and throughout the night.
Speaker 5: All right.
Speaker 2: Well, we've actually got some live pictures on our screen
Speaker 2: of some of the polling booths there as they are
Speaker 2: getting ready for what I'm sure will be a very
Speaker 2: busy day ahead. That's live in London at the moment. Tom,
Speaker 2: thank you so much for joining us this evening. Really
Speaker 2: appreciate it. And that's all we've got time for today.
Speaker 2: Thank you for your company, but stay tuned up. Next
Speaker 2: is Paul Murray.