One month ago today, Anthony Albanese led the Labor Party to a resounding election victory, stamping his authority as a second term Prime Minister and leaving a depleted Liberal Party smoldering in his wake. Today, Mr Albanese has brought his Federal Cabinet to WA. He's picked up a new Senator along the way and he's with me in the ABC studio. Prime Minister, welcome back.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: G'day, Mark. I brought the rain.
GIBSON: You brought the rain. I was just going to say firstly, congratulations on your win because I haven't seen you since then.
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, thank you. It was very satisfying, I've got to say. It was a difficult 37 day campaign and it feels like we've just kept going. But it's been a year like that. But it's great to be back here. It's my second visit to WA since the election. I dropped in here on the way to Indonesia, that was the first country I visited to make the point that our future is very much in this region. And today I've got some important announcements and meetings, including with the Premier, Roger Cook. But my entire Cabinet are spread out right around WA over the last couple of days and into tomorrow as well. We were very grateful and humbled by the result nationally, but here in WA to pick up an extra two seats in Bullwinkel and Moore was an outstanding result.
GIBSON: Senator Dorinda Cox has defected from the Greens to Labor. I must admit I do find it a little bit odd that she is someone who opposes the extending of the North West Shelf gas project. Your Government's just approved that extension and she joins your party.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, Dorinda has sat down and has thought a lot about this and her values are more aligned with Labor than the Greens. We know that the Greens have lost their way. That's one of the reasons why they lost three of their four seats in the House of Representatives. And the domination of issues that certainly aren't environmental have been their concerns. I think having to sit in the Senate while the Greens blocked funding for public housing would grate against anyone who regards themselves as progressive.
GIBSON: What about on the extension of the project though until 2070, does that now contradict the idea of reaching net zero by 2050?
PRIME MINISTER: Not at all. The Greens Party, of course, voted for our Safeguard Mechanism and the North West Shelf, like other projects right around Australia, the top 200 emitters are all subject to that. That requires emissions to be brought down each and every year or to be offset as part of getting to net zero. We have not just a policy of net zero, we have a plan to get there. And it's a plan, which to the Greens credit and the crossbenchers, they all voted for. You can't change the way that the economy functions through just good goodwill or good thoughts, you've got to do it through serious policy development. Now here in WA, the last coal fired power station at Collie will close in 2027. It's moving to a renewables based future. I've been there twice now and seen the extraordinary large battery that's being built there. There's another one just over the hill as well connecting up with those transmission lines. But in order to move to the renewables future you do need some security as well. And gas has an important role to play in that.
GIBSON: This Woodside deal though, you would understand that the criticism is that you're then siding and prioritising big business and fossil fuels over the impact on the climate and traditional owners. There's a real distinction there.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, that's not right. We indeed have and will continue to engage as well with traditional owners. I've met with the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation there. They have a very different position. They don't get the same publicity that opponents get, but I've certainly sat down with them over the years. And when it comes to this plan, the Environment Minister had to make decisions, and it's an interim decision by the way, it's not a final one that people have the right to comment on. So, you know, we need to be consistent with those processes. But the EPBC Act we, of course, tried to change to have a federal EPA. We agreed that the EPBC Act is not fit for purpose. Unfortunately, the Coalition and the Greens both combined to ensure that that change couldn't occur in the last term of Parliament. The new Minister, Murray Watt, is working hard over coming months to make sure that we try to get a federal EPA that is fit for purpose, that provides greater certainty for business but also provides greater support for sustainability so that we get a quicker answer, either yes or no, through these processes. And he'll be doing that over coming months.
GIBSON: On 720 ABC Perth, you're listening to the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese. Gee, it flies. I've got about three minutes left and a few other topics I wanted to hit with you. From tomorrow, Donald Trump will double the tariffs on foreign steel and aluminium sold in the US to 50 per cent. Have you or will you push for an Australian exemption?
PRIME MINISTER: We certainly will. This is an act of economic self-harm, and it's not the act of a friend. And this just pushes up prices for American purchasers and consumers.
GIBSON: Will you meet with him? You'll see him at the G7. Is there an opportunity to have a little side meeting with President Trump there?
PRIME MINISTER: That's what we hope to do there. The G7, I've been invited by Prime Minister, Mark Carney in Canada. That will take place in just a couple of weeks now. So I look forward to engaging with all of the G7 leaders there, including, of course, President Trump.
GIBSON: How difficult is it dealing with an American president who, it just seems to change. He changes his mind. There are court decisions, there are appeals. Do you know where you stand with the US?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what you've got to do is to be consistent and clear and unambiguous - and that is what I've been. I've had three really constructive discussions with President Trump. But it's important that you don't jump around and take different positions from day to day. That's what my Government is ensuring that we do. We do have a clear, consistent position on wanting free and fair trade. We do have a position which is to support the US FTA. We continually remind our American friends that America enjoys the benefit of a trade surplus with Australia, which is why it makes no sense to undermine trade between Australia and the United States.
GIBSON: What about calls from the US for countries, including Australia, to ramp up defence spending to counter the rise of China? Your comments seem to be, kind of, 'get back in your own box'.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we're a sovereign nation. And the idea that we, you know, respond to every comment that's made as if it's new, what we do is serious policy. We had a Defence Strategic Review. We are implementing an increase in our defence expenditure - more than $10 billion over the forward estimates, more than $50 billion over the medium term. We want to provide Australia with the capability that we need. And WA, of course, has a critical role to play in that, particularly on the water with the wonderful facilities that are just to the south of here.
GIBSON: All right, I've got about 30 seconds left. The big question I've saved until last. Now that the election's out of the way, have you and Jodie set a wedding date?
PRIME MINISTER: No, we haven't, Mark. We have now had an opportunity to discuss and we have a few options between now and the end of the year, but we're waiting as well to look at the calendar. I deliberately did not get ahead of myself. So from May 3 beyond, there was a blank diary -
GIBSON: It was just an unknown.
PRIME MINISTER: There was a blank diary. We would have had, had the result gone a different way, we would have had a lot of time to plan and probably would have had a two month honeymoon. As it is, we're trying to find a couple of weeks. I reckon the Australian people will go fair enough.
GIBSON: Absolutely.
PRIME MINISTER: So that's what we're trying to do.
GIBSON: Good on you. Thanks for discussing that. Thanks for coming into the studio. All the best over the next couple of days here in the West.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks so much, Mark. Wonderful to be back here.
