TRANSCRIPT: SOUNDS OF THE MOUNTAINS RADIO INTERVIEW, 3 July 2020
E&OE
Subjects: Eden-Monaro by-election, Climate Solutions Fund, Coronavirus, Regional Australia Institute Reports;
DAVID EISENHAUER
Catching up with the Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack, who joins us on the line live this morning. Good morning, Mr McCormack.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Good morning, David.
DAVID EISENHAUER
On a very nice morning, apart from the forecast which tells us we're in for some very wintery weather down through the south and the north‑east, not a bad day.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, we do live in this region and it is the middle of winter so you expect those crisp mornings, but there was a nice feature story on you David in The Daily Advertiser, Wagga Wagga's newspaper, today about how you and your broadcasting helped saved lives during the bushfire. So, well done on that. Of course, I raised that in Parliament, that very point about what you did and what your wonderful radio station did filtering right through the airwaves, right throughout the Snowy Mountains there and into north‑east Victoria of course and well done it's a good feature story – a nice picture of you, too.
DAVID EISENHAUER
Thank you. That photo – I'd rather papers didn't have pictures, but anyway. It's going back a few years now. Times have changed a bit. The reflection's different but anyway. Thank you, Michael, I appreciate that. It's a busy time of the year as far as the Eden‑Monaro electorate's concerned. We've had a lot of interviews. We've talked to a lot of the candidates in the region over the time and particularly just in the last couple of days we spoke with Trevor, from the National Party and he's a down to earth bloke.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Yes look, he's a good fellow. He has lived in the area most of his life, almost all of his life, in fact. He's been a farmer, a civil engineer, played a bit of footy. He's on the Queanbeyan‑Palerang Council, was the Deputy Mayor. He's still on the council contributing there to local government. He gets out in the community, always has done and that's the sort of bloke he is and I recommend those people check out his bio, check out what he has to offer. He's pretty down to earth. Talks a straight game and what he says, he means and what he means, he says.
DAVID EISENHAUER
We spoke to him about this and then yesterday in detail with Minister Taylor with of course, the energy portfolio there and of course, forestry in our region is such a big part. I'm not telling you anything you don't know there, it's a massive part from a regional economy point of view and of course, we're talking carbon credits and it was a really interesting chat we had with Mr Taylor.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Yes, well I know Angus got down into the details, but what it essentially means is that the businesses can now earn carbon credits for establishing new forestry plantations. We all know through Tumut, Batlow, Tumbarumba, the plantations were just devastated by the bushfires and what this will do and provide is an added revenue stream to help incentivise projects and ensure there are more jobs in the region and ensure that in future years that we have that timber, that logging and making sure that at the same time it's ticked all the right environmental boxes and indeed it does. Look, it's a great thing. It's going to make sure that red tape is reduced. That's what we said we'd do. Forestry products and projects accessing the Emissions Reduction Fund. As we said we would and it's a timely announcement, the Tumut, Batlow, Tumbarumba area, through the south‑west slopes as they call it, is going to be one of five pilot regional forestry hubs and we had this plan worked up during the election. We said we'd do it and we're delivering on that promise.
DAVID EISENHAUER
It's good news in that sense. There's a lot of talk. We've talked with people about Snowy 2.0 and we're going to talk to the Prime Minister about that after 8 o'clock. Job creation –
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, that alone. Snowy 2.0 is creating 4,000 direct jobs over the life of the project. I mean, plus not to mention of course, clean energy. Not to mention making sure that we've got the reliable, affordable power and this forestry announcement that we said we would do prior to the last election, this is delivering on jobs as well and that's what we need particularly as we work through COVID‑19. We're not out of the woods – pardon the pun – when we're talking forestry and we're talking Emission Reduction Fund accessibility but we're not out of the woods yet. As we've seen in Victoria, 81 new cases yesterday. We've just tipped over the 8,000 cases but I have to say, with that 8,000 cases, just in Texas alone on Tuesday, there were 5,000 new cases. That's just one State in America and that's of course, emblematic of what's happening right across the world where thousands upon thousands, if not tens of thousands of new cases every day, so we've done pretty well. But we need to, of course, still make sure we've downloaded that COVIDSafe app and do all the right social distancing measures.
DAVID EISENHAUER
What's your thoughts on New South Wales? We had a couple of cases emanating this morning on ABC, I noticed them reporting that this morning. We listened to the assistant Chief Medical Officer last night talking on the news, exactly the same words you're saying this morning Mr McCormack when we talk about having that COVIDSafe app, but thoughts on the state of New South Wales?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
I'm not in favour of closing borders, because it's one of those things we've not been in favour of that and the Chief Medical Officer more importantly having followed his information, having followed Brendan Murphy's expert advice all the way through, I can understand New South Wales being upset. I can understand why they've taken all the quarantine cases from international flights. They're now being diverted elsewhere to Brisbane and other areas. Melbourne can't, of course, take them. I've overseen that process for the next fortnight, if not months. So, we need to get Victoria back to the curve being flattened. We need to, of course, make sure that if we are feeling a bit crook, go and get tested. There are plenty of respiratory clinics. There's one in Wagga Wagga. There's respiratory clinics all over the place. Doctors as well, of course, will take those necessary tests. We need to make sure that if we're feeling flu‑like symptoms we get checked out. We need to exercise social distancing. We just need to follow the rules and we'll get through this. Yes, there will be cases. There will be occasionally cases in states other than Victoria where there is a bit of an outbreak. But pleased to see people getting off flights at Wagga Wagga and other regional centres are being tested and it just has to be mandatory that people cannot refuse one of those tests if they are in quarantine down in Victoria. I mean, this is just nuts.
DAVID EISENHAUER
Was it something like 900 people the other day, a couple of days ago refused tests, that's a very unusual thing to do?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
You have to do the right thing for other people, and yourself. Who wouldn't want to get a free test to make sure that they're not COVID-positive? It just doesn't make any sense to me, but then again David, those people in regional areas sometimes are a little bit more sensible than those who sometimes think they know everything.
DAVID EISENHAUER
And we spoke to Dr Paul Mara from the medical centre in the region.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Good man.
DAVID EISENHAUER
And we actually spoke to him yesterday and reiterating the fact of not just the COVID testing, but people maintaining their health and not shying away from doctor's surgeries, looking after themselves including, of course, the all‑important test. Before we go, one of the big messages coming from the Deputy Prime Minister's office is this moving to the bush and I've seen it a lot. A lot of the media picked it up, that's a real positive story.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Indeed. Well, I've always said that regional areas, regional towns whether it's a Tumut or a Tumbarumba or one of the larger regional capitals. They're big enough to get a good cup of coffee, small enough to still care and there's tens of thousands of people that are making that transition from the hassle and hustle and bustle of metropolitan areas and they're moving to a beautiful area in the country. The Regional Australia Institute – I would advise your listeners to go on, have a look at the website, Regional Australia Institute, have a look at the website. Just have a quick check of the executive summary of the report, which shows that 65,000 people in recent times have actually moved from a capital city to escape the rat race and moved to a regional area because of the lifestyle, because of the fact they can be just minutes from work or indeed they can work from home. They can have everything they have in a capital city but with the freedom to have more time instead of spending time stuck in a traffic jam.
DAVID EISENHAUER
It's a great place to live particularly this time of the year. I know we spoke with Mick Pettitt, Director of Parks for the Southern Ranges yesterday about some alternatives for this year's snow season for those people that aren't skiers or boarders, but are travelling up for some snow play and that's good news for the regional economy as far as our tourism businesses are concerned, like our caravan parks.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
The other thing too, David and I know that businesses per se and right across the board and larger organisations, and Government and quasi‑Government etc organisations have been hard‑hit with COVID. I know there are a lot of people who have lost their jobs, I do appreciate that, but there's still jobs in regional Australia and in fact, the Regional Australia Institute in a separate report showed this week that there were 30,000 vacancies in May. Now, that's been at the height of where the curve was just getting started to be flattened, basically, but there are still jobs in regional Australia. Now it mightn't be the job that you want for the here and now, but it will lead to something better later on and there are still jobs and good‑paying jobs too, in regional Australia and people in metropolitan areas need to know that and need to just give it a try, because as you know, they're great areas. You're minutes from work, you don't get stuck in traffic congestion and people – I just find – just have a little bit more time. They're a little bit friendlier. That's just regional Australia for you. People, like Paul Mara, like Mick Pettitt, like yourself, they tell it like it is and it's a good place. Even tomorrow on the Eden‑Monaro polling booths you'll find people will be pretty friendly to each other, unlike sometimes when we have city elections and there's a bit of argy‑bargy on the polling booths. I think you'll find that most people tomorrow will be getting along. Get the by‑election out of the way, vote for a Coalition candidate. Of course, I'm backing Trevor Hicks, but Fiona Kotvojs the Liberal candidate. Either one of those will be in Government and will be able to deliver for the people of Eden‑Monaro, unlike any other candidate who will be in Opposition.
DAVID EISENHAUER
It will be a very interesting time from tomorrow night onwards, that's for sure.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Indeed, it will and I'm actually coming up to Tumut to help Trevor, so looking forward to mixing with a few people there. I love the area. As you know I represented it for six years and I'll be spending a bit of time in Batlow and Tumba, as well.
DAVID EISENHAUER
Excellent, looking forward to catching up with you and thank you very much for taking some time out of your schedule to have a chat to us today on this Friday morning, Michael McCormack.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
I believe you have a very important guest later on this morning too, chatting with ScoMo.
DAVID EISENHAUER
Absolutely. I appreciate both your times on the station today as well.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Any time at all. Good on you.