TRANSCRIPT: SKY NEWS ACROSS AUSTRALIA INTERVIEW, 29 July 2020
E&OE
Subjects: Coronavirus, Border Closures, Australia’s Meat Industry;
PETER GLEESON
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack joins us tonight on Sky News across Australia. Deputy Prime Minister, look, I think it's such a shame that with this aged care crisis really deepening in Victoria, that you've got someone like Daniel Andrews who is trying to politicise it.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, it is unfortunate because we've been very conscious right the way through since COVID-19 first became a household-word across Australia back in late January-February that we didn't want to play the partisan politics. We wanted to, as best we could, Scott Morrison and I and the rest of the Federal team to be all inclusive to make sure that the states had a say around the National Cabinet table to make sure that their views were heard and to make sure that we put this above politics because that's what the public expected, this is a global pandemic. It's not the time to be playing petty politics and those petty political games that sometimes occur and we've been very, very conscious of that, right the way through.
PETER GLEESON
And things not getting any better in Queensland, today a third case just confirmed in the last hour or so. And of course, a Police investigation, a criminal investigation underway into two 19-year-old women who have contracted the virus and didn't self-isolate. I mean where –
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, they've just got to tell the truth Peter, as you said and I appreciate the sentiment you said it with. Every single person needs to tell the truth. And if you're asked on a form, whether you've been to a certain area, whether you've been in a hotspot – tell the truth. It's not that difficult. Don't place the lives of others at risk and don't place your own life at risk. Do what's right for your community. Do what's right for others, particularly those vulnerable members of the community. They deserve at least that.
PETER GLEESON
Well, it’s just common sense really, isn't it? I mean it all comes back to us all being in this together. Look, a couple of other issues I'd like to talk to you about now. A little bit of internal division going on in the Labor Party at the moment. Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese, he slapped down Joel Fitzgibbon, the pro-coal Federal MP Joel Fitzgibbon today –
MICHAEL McCORMACK
I think Albo certainly hasn’t been invited to an Otis dinner, Peter. I think he’s confirmed that he hasn't been invited to one of the salubrious Canberra restaurant dinners that the Otis Group are secretly having.
PETER GLEESON
Well, that could be the case. I mean, they tell me the tucker there is pretty good, but Fitzgibbon's saying that there are green T-shirts that are infiltrating the Labor Party, particularly the left of the Labor Party. Albanese says, that's just not true, that's just not right.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
It's been happening for years and Joel's only cottoned on to the fact that he nearly lost his seat, he had a near-death experience at the last election on May 18, 2019 and all of a sudden he's realised that he might lose his seat at the next election. He said he wants to put the ‘Labour with a u’ back into the Labor Party. The ‘Labour with a u’, it's been out of the Federal Labor Party since about 1912. They don't think about the workers, they don't think about you. What they do think about is Green votes in metropolitan seats. They forgot about regional Australia years ago. Joel's trying fast to make-up ground. It's too late Joel, it's too late Albo.
PETER GLEESON
Too late, Joel, too late, Albo. All right, now you mentioned regional Australia, job listings up by 11,000, about 22 per cent up in the June quarter. Fantastic result, Michael?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, why wouldn't you want to come to regional Australia and take a job? Why wouldn't you want to work in a town where you don't have to get caught up in traffic, where there's no smog, no pollution, no congestion? Seven minutes to work and that's getting two red lights, you know, on a bad day. And there's jobs out here, well-paying jobs, very friendly people. I always say these towns whether they're a regional capital or a smaller town the size of Narrabri or Narrandera or one of those particular centres, they're big enough to get a good cup of coffee in, but they're small enough to still care and that's so important. And people who come and make the tree change, they love it. Kevin Mack, the Albury Mayor told me that they've been tracking people for 10 years and those families that have made the tree change to Albury-Wodonga over the past decade have benefited to the tune of around $110,000 dollars. That's significant, that's money in people's pocket to be able to spend on the things that they want to do and they can still have the lifestyle that they had in Sydney, Melbourne or wherever. All the capital city benefits but with country living, country ambience, country atmosphere and friendly country people.
PETER GLEESON
Now, many of our viewers are citrus growers and they derive their income from the citrus growing industry. They're having a few dramas at the moment, they can't get workers for a whole range of reasons. Now you've even broached the subject of out of work locals being the answer when you consider that just 8% of the fruit pickers in this country are actually Australian.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Yes look, it is a problem and whether it's fruit picking, whether it's a number of jobs in agriculture, we do rely on those overseas workers. We do rely on those backpackers, they're fantastic people, they contribute mightily and they leave a lot of money in Australian tills too, Australian small businesses. But we do need them, but we also need Australians to be able to take those jobs when they are available. And Peter, they're certainly available now. So I'd suggest that people go onto that FarmHub website. Have a look where there are jobs available. Yes, it might be might be hard work but nothing wrong with a hard day's work. There are plenty of jobs in the Sunraysia area. Anne Webster will, I'm sure if somebody rings her office, I'm sure she'll put them to where they need to go and they’ll be doing a good job, they'll be getting well paid for it and for many of those university students or the like who are looking for a bit of extra work, a bit of extra cash, then there's plenty of jobs there.
PETER GLEESON
Look, I think the National Party really stepped up on quashing any appeal on the Live Export Ban decision. I think that was fantastic. But I want to get your thoughts on this United Nations claim. They're saying that the meat industry is responsible for more greenhouse gas emissions than the world's biggest oil companies. Now meat, you know, those in the graziers, those in the meat industry are outraged at such a statement. Has the UN got this hopelessly wrong?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Look these reports aren't worth the paper they're written on quite frankly. And we know how much the meat industry is playing a part in improving people's protein, improving people's lives and their diet and making sure they've got that valuable iron in their system to be able to go out and work and play and do all the sorts of things that people do and that is why China is looking to Australia for sheep meat, for beef and all the rest. They know that the best quality protein comes from Australia and many other countries besides also are a well aware of that. That's why our farmers produce the best cattle, the best sheep in the world. That's why I only spoke to John Berry from JBS Meats yesterday. He's excited at the trading opportunities, exciting at the opportunities that are being provided by our national herd increasing after years of drought. But also a bit concerned of course, about the situation in Victoria with COVID-19 and what it is doing in meat processing plants. But rest assured our quality beef, our quality sheep meat is the best in the world and I’m pretty proud that I come from an area where Junee sheep meat is one of the most tradable commodities in Australia. And I know the job that our farmers around the Junee District in the Southwest Slopes in the Riverina area of New South Wales do for and on behalf of our balance of payments.
PETER GLEESON
Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack always great to have you on Sky News across Australia. Thanks for joining us tonight.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
A pleasure Peter, thank you so much.