TRANSCRIPT: INTERVIEW ON SUNDAY AGENDA, SKY NEWS, 30 May 2021

8:06AM

E&OE

Subjects: Victoria, Coronavirus, Hunter Pre-Selection, Australian Agriculture;

KIERAN GILBERT

Let's go live to the Acting Prime Minister Michael McCormack – Acting Prime Minister because Scott Morrison is across the ditch. Thanks for your time. Does the Federal Government accept some of the responsibility and accountability for the fact that this fourth lockdown is happening in Victoria?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Well, irrespective of, you know, the blame game that's being obviously, played out by federal Labor, what we are doing is working closely with the Victorian authorities to make sure that it is only a seven-day lockdown. No doubt, if Victorians do the right thing and the contact tracking and tracing occurs, as it needs to, hopefully by Thursday, the restrictions will be lifted. This is so important, Kieran and I messaged James Merlino last night to say, “If you need anything, don't hesitate to contact me.” Obviously, we've put 160 Defence Force personnel into that system – that jurisdiction –   to assist the Victorian authorities and they're doing everything they can, the public health officials in that State, to make sure that they get, very much, this situation under control.

KIERAN GILBERT

 The Business Council boss Jennifer Westacott, well respected in the business community, obviously well aware of how much this is costing, more than a billion dollars in the seven-day lockdown. She expressed her dismay with Ross Greenwood, my colleague, saying that the Victorian contact tracers have process and systems problems. Have they improved enough to deal with these sorts of outbreaks?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Well, that's a matter obviously for Victoria, but New South Wales has been the exemplar, the gold standard, when it comes to contact tracking and tracing. If other states could follow that system, that approach, then we would be so much better off. This is so frustrating not just for Melburnians but indeed, for regional Victorians who are trying to get on with growing the food and the fibre and continuing to do what they've done all along and that is be their best selves. To make sure they've kept their communities COVID-free and COVID-safe and indeed, many hundreds of kilometres away from where these decisions have been taken. They're still doing everything they've been asked to do as far as the mask wearing and social distancing and gotten on with their lives. So, that is why so many Melburnians, indeed 26,000, have actually made the move to regional Australia. I've said all along that regional Australia is the safest place in all of the world to live during this pandemic.

KIERAN GILBERT

Scott Morrison said the vaccination roll out is not a race. Was that a mistake in hindsight? Because it certainly didn't encourage people to get the jab and rush out and do it.

MICHAEL McCORMACK

It has to be systematic. It has to be rolled out in a way that Australians obviously, need to know that they have to get the jab but we can't have everybody going and getting it at the same time and that is why there has been a phased-in system and there – 

KIERAN GILBERT

Is it the wrong message though because we need to get it done? We don't want hesitancy, do we? And that's what we are seeing?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

We don't and that's why 120,000 Australians got the the jab yesterday and 2 days before, 111,000 the day before. Wes are getting the vaccinations done. 1 million Australians already – and I urge Australians listening and watching this show when they're able and eligible to do so to get that jab and follow it up and get the second.

KIERAN GILBERT

Is it the Federal Government's view that the lockdown should be lifted on Thursday?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Yes, but that is entirely up to the Victorian State Government and their public health authorities. That is a matter for them. But we don't want to see closed borders, we have said that all along. So long as they've got the situation under control, so long as they're satisfied they've contacted, had all those people that have contracted the virus and they've got all them identified and they've done the proper health checks and situations to make sure that they've got everyone, then there is no reason why they shouldn't re-open their borders. There is no reason why they should keep people in their homes and away from their offices.

KIERAN GILBERT

You look at the number, 50 per cent of the adults in the US have been fully vaccinated, only 2 per cent of the population here has received the jab. Australia 80th in the world in terms of the roll out, the speed of it. We are lucky it is not a race in your view because we would be coming close to last.

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Well, Adam Bandt made this point in question time the other day and made the point about America. Adam Bandt, if he thinks America is so great, he should live there. We would all better off. I know where I'd rather live and that is right here in Australia. Yes, we have had 910 deaths and that's been very sad for their families but we have had just one this year. We've been on top of this virus. We've put out so much economic support but most importantly we have had those health outcomes like no other country and we are doing very, very well as far as keeping the case rates low and keeping the death toll low. I know where I would like to be and that is right here in Australia and where I live in regional Australia, which is the safest place in the world in which to live.

KIERAN GILBERT

That's fair to make that comparison with where we've got to at the moment. You know, in that football analogy, I know you love your football, we are not in the final quarter yet. We don't want to stuff it up in the final quarter. In the UK, they have Elton John in this campaign to create awareness. In the US its Dolly Parton, this is the point that Labor’s making and across the ditch they have this pathway to freedom campaign to say to people please go and get the jab. Why don't we see a widespread awareness campaign?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

You mentioned football and there's been tens of thousands of people enjoying the ability to actually go to the football. The MCG has been packed over and over again to watch club footy in the AFL and that is fantastic. They're going to the horse racing –

KIERAN GILBERT

Not at the moment.

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Not at the moment, sure, but that's because of the outbreak in Victoria but we’ll keep on top of these things. Elsewhere in the world, they're not going to anything at all, they're still very much not quite in Victorian lockdown phases but certainly their case rates are much, much higher. Their death toll is staggeringly higher, this pandemic is raging still across the world and you mentioned the last quarter, we're certainly nowhere near the last quarter. I doubt we're even near half-time, worldwide, as far as this pandemic is concerned and of course, then you're getting variants of the disease, of the virus. These are troubling times. These are very challenging times and we need Australians to continue what they've done all along and that is follow the health advice, get the vaccination – I know it sounds corny – but we are all in this together.

KIERAN GILBERT

In that context that you said we've got so much to live through with this thing, are you going to build the stand alone, fit-for-purpose quarantine facilities around the country as my colleague Andrew Clennell reported earlier, that the Government will be doing this outside of our major cities to make it fit-for-purpose?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Well, we've said all along they need to be nearby capital cities because that is where the health services are. We've said all along they need to be obviously near airports where we can get international flights into those destinations and we have said all along that we'll work with states and listen and look at their submissions very closely and we will provide the support, dollar wise, that we have done the whole way through. Even before the Budget we put down on the table $253 billion dollars of economic support, to keep businesses going. I don't know how many times people have come up to me – just yesterday I was out and about in the Hunter Valley and so many business people came up to me and said, “But for your government support we would not be in operation any more, we wouldn't have been able to continue to keep our people employed.” So, we've done that –

KIERAN GILBERT

Are you going to change the approvals for planes arriving at Toowoomba airport? My understanding is that large freight planes do land there. They just need Federal approval to land passenger planes there and then the Toowoomba option is a goer?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Well, again, it goes back to what I said before about the health services and also the communities around those particular destinations and whether the local communities are or aren't in favour of these quarantine hubs being established. Now, of course with Avalon, you know, it's a situation there where there's a lot of boxes that it ticks. I know that Toowoomba, the community is in two minds, very much so, as to whether or not that facility could be opened up as a quarantine facility, could be purpose built, fit-for-purpose and of course, we will continue to work with local communities, just like we'll continue to work with proponents of these, whether its Wagners, whether it’s the Fox families, whether it is indeed, the state authorities.

KIERAN GILBERT

You have pre-selected the Maitland Christian School Community Relations Officer, James Thomson, as your candidate in the Hunter. Are you confident of picking that up?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

He's outstanding, I mean, I stood beside him yesterday and listened to his narrative about jobs and about resources. I listened to him talking about family and community. He is an outstanding community member. He and his wife, Claire, have a lovely 18-month-old daughter. They are ensconced in that community and he's been working for that community and for the education system for many, many years. A great Nationals’ candidate and I’m very much looking forward to campaigning with him as we work towards the next election, whenever that might be, Kieran.

KIERAN GILBERT

And finally, the industry, the flower growers, they're looking at a decision made by the Government in the next few weeks. Currently, they are the only fresh product not to have Country of Origin labelling. This allows pests to come into the country via those flowers. This is something I wasn't aware of but is this something the Government should look at to attach Country of Origin labelling to fresh cut flowers, too?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

It reminds me that I probably should go and buy my wife Catherine come flowers, Kieran. I haven't been home all that much, lately. I've been touring around regional Australia selling a Budget. But I will get them from a good local shop in Wagga Wagga, paying less tax thanks to the Liberals and Nationals. Yes, this is something we will look at, something that – anything that comes in from overseas needs to tick-off that biosecurity agenda and make sure that they have the right bio-photo sanitary clauses ticked off.

KIERAN GILBERT

So you would like to see them labelled?

MICHAEL McCORMACK

They may well need to be. So, as you say you weren't aware of it. We have obviously, been made aware of it. I know David Littleproud and others, the Ag Minister and others, are certainly looking into it as we speak.

KIERAN GILBERT

Acting Prime Minister, thanks for your time, appreciate it.

MICHAEL McCORMACK

Any time at all, Kieran.

ENDS 8:17AM

Shane Manning