TRANSCRIPT: TV INTERVIEW - SKY NEWS - THURSDAY, 25 NOV 2021

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TELEVISION INTERVIEW
SKY NEWS WITH KIERAN GILBERT
THURSDAY, 25 NOVEMBER 2021

SUBJECTS: Coalition in chaos, Parliament in disarray, corruption and lies.

KIERAN GILBERT, HOST: Tony Burke thanks for your time. We saw a Liberal member vote with Labor and Helen Haines, and other crossbenchers, for that corruption watchdog but it wasn’t successful was it? Even though there was a majority, because it didn’t hit that absolute majority mark of 76. But at the moment it’s impossible to get an absolute majority given so many people are in other states.

TONY BURKE, MANAGER OF OPPOSITION BUSINESS: Yeah a whole lot of people are in states where they can’t come to Parliament because to return and isolate for two weeks its impossible for them in their circumstances. Had everyone been here we would have debated that legislation today. It wasn't actually a lack of support across the parliament. The only reason we didn't get moving on an anti-corruption commission today? Well, there's two reasons. One, Mr Morrison blocked it. Two, they hid behind a standing order and took advantage of COVID-19 restrictions. That's why. We get to February next year when you can expect everybody to be here. If that exact motion were put again you would expect it to be carried.

GILBERT: But the prime minister also says that they've got their own plan, they're going to put to Parliament in due course. So shouldn't they, if they’ve got their own plan on a corruption watchdog, why shouldn’t they stick to his own timetable, particularly given his scathing critique of ICAC in New South Wales, which he called today a kangaroo court?

BURKE: Yeah, well, that was extraordinary. But if I can deal first of all with the first part of your question, which goes to why not their proposal? Now, he put forward a proposal 1000 days ago. What the Prime Minister effectively said today is he won't introduce anything unless he's already got complete support from both sides. And think about that. There's two things going on here. One, he has had a different excuse every week for why they hadn't acted on an anti-corruption commission. And when you look at a series of scandals they've had over the last few years, we can probably work out why he hasn't introduced an anti-corruption commission. But his reasons have changed from week to week. Today, he went to a new one, which was to say, you know, Labor hasn't supported it and that's why we haven't introduced a bill. And why would that be? Why would it be that a government that's meant to be a majority government thinks it can't have the confidence to even legislate itself? And that's because of the chaos that's happening. If you want an example of where the real life impact is, of the chaos that's going on in their ranks, you look at what Mr Morrison said today with his new excuse, contradicting previous excuses, about why he won't establish an anti-corruption site.

GILBERT: Is ICAC in New South Wales in a kangaroo court?

BURKE: Not at all, not at all. And, you know, we'll wait to see how things unfold with respect to the inquiries that have been made with former Premier Gladys Berejiklian. But be in no doubt ICAC is not making an examination of a personal relationship. They're making an examination of the expenditure of public funds. Now what the Prime Minister did, and all week we've been talking about the Prime Minister lying and today he lied about what ICAC is doing. It’s actually an extraordinary attack on an institution that was established by a Liberal government, by the Greiner Government.

GILBERT: It was also an extraordinary defence of a premier under direct scrutiny of that corruption watchdog. And the PM said today Gladys Berejiklian was “done over” by ICAC. What do you say to that?

BURKE: Well, I say the same as I've said with every ICAC investigation: which is you wait to see how it unfolds. This is a serious organisation, it has serious powers, and a quality of investigating the powers that go beyond what you are I have, and even what the Prime Minister has, in terms of having access to information. They are looking into the expenditure of public funds. Now, what he did today was pre-judge a corruption inquiry. I cannot think of a single time, I've heard a Prime Minister of Australia do that. I can't think of a time when I've heard a Premier do that. To really pre-judge the outcome of a corruption inquiry and to try to interfere in it that way. I just found extraordinary.

GILBERT: Do you suspect that he might have other plans for the former Premier, ie running for federal parliament? A can someone run for federal parliament if they have a corruption cloud over them as the former premier does.

BURKE: We don't know what finding she'll get. And as I say, I'm not going to pre-judge it. But the allegations that have come out of ICAC – I have no interest in who she’s had a relationship with. That is not the issue. The issue is whether or not there was a corrupt use of public funds, taxpayers’ money. Now the Prime Minister might think, you know, he's relaxed about colour-coded spreadsheets. He's been relaxed about paying, you know, $30 million for land at Leppington worth $3 million. He's got a very relaxed view of how to spend other people's money. I don't. Labor doesn't. And ICAC doesn’t. So we'll wait to see what the finding is. I’m not going to make disparaging comments about Gladys Berejiklian other than to say there are really serious questions being asked. And for the Prime Minister to be flippant about an allegation of corruption is extraordinary.

GILBERT: Christian Porter, the reference to the Privileges Committee that you sought with Tony Smith, you again sought that with the new Speaker, Andrew Wallace. He's decided against that. You heard the ruling after question time, was his explanation reasonable?

BURKE: Look, I made clear that there's 100 years of precedent that’s been broken only once and it was broken a few weeks ago – which is when you try to, when you ask a Speaker to give precedence, they make their judgment and whether it goes your way or the other way you cop it because that gives us a principled way of running the Parliament. Now, obviously, I didn't like the decision that was made today, I wouldn't have raised it unless I thought there should have been a Privileges referral. But you would have noticed I didn't stand up and move dissent. I didn’t try and take issue with it. We did the opposite of what Mr Morrison did a few weeks ago, when Tony Smith, as Speaker, gave precedence, found a prima facie case, and the government acted to cover-up basically as a protection racket, to try to make sure that the formality of that Privileges reference never happened.

GILBERT: If we go back to where we began with Bridget Archer crossing the floor. Do you see this as something that will bolster her prospects of winning back the most marginal Liberal seat of bass in Tasmania?

BURKE: Look, I'll be campaigning for Ross Hart. I don't know what the implications politically will be. In terms of today's vote, she did the right thing. And she did the opposite of what her party believes, she did the opposite of what her Prime Minister believes. And so I'm not going to be critical in any way when somebody does the right thing. Today she did. Let’s not forget the level of chaos that's happening. It wasn't just cross the floor today. Yesterday, George Christensen crossed the floor. I was glad he did that. The Senate, you had five senators crossing the floor to vote with One Nation. I wasn’t impressed interest by that one. But whichever way you look at it, the government is in disarray. They are no longer governing.

GILBERT: Is it your view and those of the powers-that-be within Labor, that we won't come back to Parliament? Given how messy this week has been for those on the Treasury benches?

BURKE: Mr Morrison is so much in denial, he's probably going home today thinking he's had a great week. Because he's been able to say more things than he used to do with the rulings of the new Speaker, he does get to say more than he used to. And he just sledges Labor, he shouts at us, he delivers his abuse. Even on a question about a report into the treatment of women, with no character attack, just a really responsible question from Anthony Albanese today, Mr Morrison just went back to sledging in his response. He probably thinks he's done well. But if you're a member of the public, watching what's happened in Parliament this week, you've seen a circus. You've seen a mob of people who only care about themselves. And you've also been watching just a group of people who are campaigning in the pre-caretaker period and are no longer governing.

GILBERT: Tony Burke thanks for your time.

ENDS