Minister Rishworth interview on the Today show

E&OE TRANSCRIPT

Topics: Israel; Palestine; Protests; Senator Fatima Payman's new party; Cost of living; Housing.

KARL STEFANOVIC, HOST: Welcome back. The first mercy flight out of Lebanon has landed in Sydney overnight, reuniting hundreds of Australians with their loved ones. Emotional scenes there at Sydney International Airport. Joining us to discuss today's headlines is Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth and Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie. Good morning, ladies. Amanda. First up, I think the Australian Government's done a terrific job on this. Plenty more to get out, though. How long will these missions out of Beirut go for?

AMANDA RISHWORTH, MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SERVICES: Well, look, of course we have been able to get a number of Australians, in fact over 1000 Australians, out of Beirut, but there are still over 3000 people indicating they would like to leave Lebanon. So, it is really important that we continue working on this, but we do have to be mindful of the security situation along with a number of other factors. So my strong message and the message of the Government is for people to take any opportunity if they want to leave, to get out. To take the first opportunity that comes their way. But we will keep, of course, working to support Australians to get out of Beirut. But we do have to be mindful of the security circumstances and other factors at play as well.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Okay. So, they'll keep going while they can. This as thousands gathered across the country marking October 7, but not everyone shared the same sentiment. The Daily Telegraph this morning reporting that pro-Palestinian protesters at a rally outside a prominent Western Sydney mosque were told to celebrate the date. Bridget, we've also seen fake bodies on stretchers in Melbourne. Your thoughts on that?

BRIDGET MCKENZIE, NATIONALS SENATOR: Yeah, Karl, it's shocking. It's sickening. At the Shrine of Remembrance, one of our most sacred places to see those sort of scenes. It's useful to remember that the Holocaust didn't start with gas chambers and Jews on cattle trains. It started with protests, hate speech and antisemitism becoming normalised. Yesterday was an opportunity for us to mourn with Jewish Australians in the state of Israel, to actually pray for the families that were impacted, and to be reminded of the resilience and strength of the state of Israel and the Jewish people in their darkest hour. We shouldn't be letting this divide us here at home. And the scenes we saw in Sydney and Melbourne seek to do that now.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Amanda, have you failed in taking the heat out of all this?

AMANDA RISHWORTH: I agree with Bridget. I think the scenes that we saw around the celebration and some of those comments were absolutely repugnant. And of course, what happened on October 7 still absolutely has a horrific wave of impact. And the antisemitism we're seeing is absolutely appalling. So, our job is to promote social cohesion in this country, to ensure that people come together. And there is no place for some of these comments around celebration. We have peaceful protests in this country but those comments were appalling.

KARL STEFANOVIC: In the context of all this revel, Senator Fatima Payman will this week announce her new party. And the Prime Minister isn't happy about it. She says, bring it on. She's going to run a candidate in Albo's seat of Grayndler. Amanda, are you worried about that seat?

AMANDA RISHWORTH: To be honest, what Senator Payman does is a matter for her. If she really wanted to be endorsed by the Australian people, she could stand down for the Senate and run herself at the next election. But it's really a matter for her. She wouldn't be the first, and won't be the last Senator that gets elected with a different party and then decides to split from that party and run as an Independent. That's entirely a matter for her.

KARL STEFANOVIC: You don't think Albo's shaking in his boots, though, is what you're saying?

AMANDA RISHWORTH: I think the Prime Minister is very popular in his local electorate. If you ever go down with him, I think you'll see that firsthand.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Bridget, the Muslim party will only add to the numbers that you all might have to deal with after the next election, by the looks of it.

BRIDGET MCKENZIE: Well, I absolutely agree with Senator Payman's comments that Albo should actually stick to his day job in addressing the cost of living crisis and the real concerns of everyday Australians, instead of treating her like a wayward teenager rather than a member of the Australian Senate. So, you know, I think everybody's entitled to run. She shouldn't be intimidated to be running at the next election. She's representing the state of WA in the Australian Senate for the next five years. I look forward to working with her.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Cost of living is the number one issue for Aussie voters. Amanda, the latest poll says the Australian people still don't think you've got this. Nearly 40 per cent say you are responsible.

AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, look, Karl, it is a difficult time for people. Cost of living challenges are real.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Are you taking ownership of that, though?

AMANDA RISHWORTH: We've been working every single day to deal with costs of living pressures. Whether it is our energy bill relief, whether it is our housing policies about putting more supply as well as increasing Commonwealth Rent Assistance. Whether it is our most recent announcements on making sure people get a fair price at the checkout, these are all measures that we continue to undertake and we will keep working every single day to tackle.

KARL STEFANOVIC: Bridget. Hold it, hold it. You know what happened last time? I'm surprised Peter Dutton isn't a mile in front.

BRIDGET MCKENZIE: Well, Karl, Amanda's, you know, explanation here just doesn't wash and the Australian people know it. They know their mortgage is staying higher for longer than it needs to be because this Government hasn't got inflation under control. It's not just the Coalition saying this. Economists are saying it, the Reserve Bank Governor's saying it. So, despite all the platitudes, the reality is they haven't taken action on their spending profile and that hasn't put downward pressure on inflation, which means your groceries, your insurance, your mortgage is higher than it needs to be. And this is evidenced when we compare ourselves to, like, economies around the globe.

AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, I just…

KARL STEFANOVIC: Amanda, you are, sorry I just I need to finish this one off if we can, Amanda. You aren't getting your housing bill through. You've got Buckley's of getting that through. Why don't you just pull the pin? Go on, send us to the polls.

AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, let's be really clear. There is a bill in the Parliament that will help 40,000 Australians get into home ownership. I mean, quite frankly, what is holding up the Liberal National and the Greens party? Why do they keep saying no? Why do they want to be obstructionist?

KARL STEFANOVIC: I know, but it's not going to happen. Why don't you just pull the pin, send this to the polls?

AMANDA RISHWORTH: Well, that's a choice for the Liberal Nationals and Greens in the Senate about whether or not they will support more home ownership in this country.

KARL STEFANOVIC: All right. Good to talk to you ladies. Thank you so much. And it was civil this week. I liked it. Bring the fire back next week.