RICHARD KING, HOST: The Prime Minister is going to be in my neck of the woods today alongside a number of his Ministers, Catherine King, the Infrastructure Minister, for a number of announcements, one of them being concerning the M1 Pacific Motorway. I think there are only two sections of the east coast M1 Motorway that are actually on urban roads, one being Coffs Harbour. I think the bypass there is due to be completed in 2027. It's certainly underway here, the Hexham Straight. The widening has been going on for some time now and I think that's due to be completed in 2028, which will make, and I think that's going to cut out a whole stack of traffic lights, improve times. And it's a combo of money from both Federal and State Governments and with more on that joining me now is our Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, who's on the line. Good morning, Prime Minister.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Richard. I very much enjoyed listening to that little historical segment about the significance of this day, it’s a fantastic little segment. Do you do that every day?
KING: Yes, I do. Usually every day in the morning.
PRIME MINISTER: I'll have to get online and listen to it. It's terrific.
KING: Well, there were a couple there that, look, I might just mention there was one about Cloncurry, and also it was on this day I think in 2019 the Bureau of Meteorology tweeted that the previous four days were the country's hottest on record. I think 49, which was in, I think they were mainly in South Australia actually back in 2019.
PRIME MINISTER: And up in WA as well I think at the time. Last year, of course, was the hottest year for the world on record unfortunately.
KING: Well look, there's been a bit of criticism of the Bureau of Meteorology, saying, I think in September, that we were going to have a hot, dry end of the year and the start of this year. It certainly hasn't turned out that way, though.
PRIME MINISTER: No, it certainly hasn't. But meteorology and other areas of science, of course, aren't exact. But the trends are certainly there and the trends that we are seeing are very unfortunate in that I've spent the beginning of this year going to flood affected areas in Queensland, South East Queensland, Far North Queensland, Victoria, having a real impact. We've got bushfires in WA and today in the great city of Newcastle. I'm looking forward to getting back there. It's for a much more pleasant and exciting event, the beginning of the M1 Extension there at Raymond Terrace. It is the last piece of the puzzle linking Sydney and Brisbane. I've been very passionate about fixing the Pacific Highway during my time in politics. We put record funding in when I was the Minister in the Rudd and Gillard Governments, and this is the final bit. I actually promised it prior to the 2019 election there with Meryl Swanson and others. We didn't get elected then, but we did get elected in 2022. And the project is off and running and it will make a big difference. There's almost $1.7 billion of Federal Government investment and over $400 million from the New South Wales Government.
KING: And due to be completed, I think, in 2028. But you said the final piece. The other piece. There is another piece, Coffs Harbour Bypass.
PRIME MINISTER: Yes. And I've visited that site a couple of times now and it's certainly off and running. It was a very difficult and challenging project because of tunnelling that's required, and it will make a big difference as well. It is a real road safety issue. One of the reasons why you want a non-stoplight, non-stop and start journey is that it is better for road safety if you have that. The last time when I was the Minister, the Hunter Expressway there is something that I'm very proud of, and Joel Fitzgibbon in particular will always remind me about what a great project that was during his time as a Member for Hunter. Dan Repacholi and Meryl will be very excited by today's project and it will make a big difference for road safety, but it's also about jobs. There'll be around 3,500 jobs created to get the two parts of this project up and running. So, it's good for jobs in the short term, but it also will be good for tourism, good for road safety, good for productivity, because it'll cut down on travel times as well.
KING: And another thing that's going to be good for tourism and improving travel times is the very fast rail. I noticed last week, I think it was last week that the head of the fast rail authority has been appointed. Look, a lot of people think this is pie in the sky and it's never going to happen. Mark emailed in, very fast train, ‘Richard, VFT another distraction from Albo, ask him about my home loan payments being $12,000 a year higher under him, petrol prices and the homeless situation.’ Is it? I've spoken to you over a number of years now. It's been a core celeb of yours for some time. A lot of money has been spent on this. Do you think we're actually going to see something actually happen, re a very fast train?
PRIME MINISTER: I do. It stacks up. It stacks up as it operates in every continent. Every inhabited continent in the world now has fast rail, every single one, including Africa and South America. North America, it's being expanded in Europe. There's a massive network and of course, throughout Asia as well, Japan and China. It makes an enormous difference. It's a convenient way to travel. Way back in 2013, before we lost office, there was a study done. It showed a $2.45 benefit from high speed rail along some of the routes. It takes cars off the road. It's a much safer journey to undertake and it is something that is important. At the same time, we're taking enormous measures. We've seen inflation fall from 4.9 to 4.3 per cent. This is the smallest annual increase since January of 2022. Families in the Hunter are benefiting from cheaper child care. We have Urgent Care Clinics open across Australia, 58 of them, including one at Cessnock and one at Lake Haven. They're making a difference with people being able to go in there, get treatment, all they need is their Medicare card, not their credit card. Already Australians have saved over $200 million on cheaper medicines. And people in the Hunter have benefited, and I've met them when I've visited rail manufacturing there in Newcastle with Sharon Claydon. The Fee Free TAFE places, seeing more people undertake those apprenticeships and get the training that they need. So, we are taking measures in the immediate sense, but you always have to look beyond the 24 hours media cycle if you're going to change the country for the better. And I make no apologies for that.
KING: Look, I get continually, and I've had a heap of them this morning saying, this is just a distraction. As I understand it, they've now appointed a head of the fast rail authority and planning will begin sometime this year. I mean, it still sounds like it's something that's way off over the horizon.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, high speed rail, you can't make a decision on Tuesday and get on the train on Friday, that's the truth. You need proper planning, proper financing, you need cooperation across the three levels of government. We will be looking for private sector involvement as well. But I'll tell you what, when I became the Transport Minister, people said that fully duplicating the Pacific Highway would never happen. We put $7.6 billion into the Pacific Highway in record amounts. The previous Government had put $1.3 billion under the Howard Government over twelve years. So, we massively increased the funding. We got it done. Projects like the Kempsey Bypass with the longest bridge in Australia over, because of the wetlands that are. There was a very complex project. We got it done.
KING: Look, I just think now, look yes, I agree and they're all wonderful initiatives, but cost of living is the thing that most of my listeners this morning are saying, look that's the number one priority, cost of living.
PRIME MINISTER: And it is of ours as well.
KING: Well, and I believe there's going to be an announcement today about relief on power bills for some 30,000 households. Can you elaborate what that's going to be about?
PRIME MINISTER: We'll have further announcements over coming days. And we have, of course, this week as well, I met with Dr Craig Emerson yesterday, who's having the review about food and grocery prices. We have the ACCC chair looking at what further monitoring may be necessary as well.
KING: All right, so there will be an ACCC inquiry into price gouging by supermarkets?
PRIME MINISTER: The ACCC are having an ongoing look at it, and the head of the ACCC, the Chairwoman, Gina Cass-Gottlieb, is carefully looking at potential litigation and is saying in a very clear warning that that's an option that's open to the ACCC. What we've said is that we will do whatever is necessary, including looking at changing the voluntary code of conduct, looking at mandating, in order to provide that support for people. We want to make sure that people are paying the lowest possible prices when they get to a checkout, that's our priority, along with other measures to assist people. And I've said very clearly we'll look at ways to take pressure off cost of living whilst not putting pressure on inflation. And the fact that it's headed in the right direction is a very good sign.
KING: Right, look while we're talking about supermarkets, Peter Dutton suggested last week we should be boycotting Woolies after their decision, and Aldi as well, not to sell Australia Day merchandise. And we saw yesterday the Woolies Metro supermarket in Queensland vandalised. People are outraged over the move. Woolies, as I said, obviously one of their stores was vandalised. Shouldn't it be up to the Australian public to decide if they want to purchase the merchandise or not?
PRIME MINISTER: Of course and people can make those choices. I find it bizarre that the so called party of the free market is calling for a boycott of a company that employs 200,000 Australians. Now think about the implications of this. If everyone boycotted Woolworths, that's 200,000 people who would lose their jobs. It's an extraordinary overreach by a guy in order to make a point on a radio interview. It's just extraordinary, and an example of how Peter Dutton will say anything without thinking through the implications of it. This call, of course, Kmart made a similar decision more than a year ago and he's always looking for a culture war. What I'm engaged in is a war on inflation.
KING: Right, okay. Well, while we're talking about Australia Day, I think it's now up to 80 or 81 councils around the country have decided not to hold, I think, citizenship ceremonies and events on Australia Day. They're moving it. What's your view on that? The number of councils that are cancelling sort of Australia Day celebrations on the 26th of January?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I note that many of them are certainly in NSW. The majority of them, I noticed, were certainly not in seats that were held by the Labor Party. My view is that I'll be attending the Australia Day commemorations here in Canberra, the national commemorations as I did also as the Opposition Leader. I hope that Peter Dutton turns up this year to the national commemorations and the Australia Day awards where we will name the Australian of the Year and the Senior Australian of the Year and the Volunteer of the Year as well as the Young Australian of the Year as well. I'll be attending those events and I think they're important events. I'll be hosting the nominees here at the Lodge in Canberra on the 25th of January. And I certainly will be attending then the commemorations that take place in the morning of the 26th and then travelling to Sydney to attend the events that take place there at the Opera House in the evening with the concert that is traditionally held as well.
KING: I saw the, I think his position is the Executive Vice President of DP World, the ongoing stausch on our waterfront. I believe Tony Burke will be sitting down and trying to sort this one out. But the Deputy Vice President of the company was saying this industrial dispute on our waterfront could be going on for months and might effectively lift the prices of white goods and food around the country. And with cost of living pressures, nobody wants that. I think they also said the average salary of the waterside workers in that company is about $130,000 a year. Do you think they're being greedy, asking for an eight per cent increase over the next several years?
PRIME MINISTER: I think that the company and the union should sit down in good faith and sort this out. That's what I think. It's in the interests of both to occur. This is a company that, of course, is based in Dubai that's made considerable profits and certainly there should be a mutually beneficial outcome. And I'd urge both parties to organise in good faith and to get this done.
KING: I received an email from the New South Wales Minerals Council and obviously they've got a vested interest in pushing the barrow of nuclear energy. They reckon that a recent survey shows that three Sydney federal electorates have overwhelmingly indicated support for lifting the ban on nuclear power, one of them being the seat of McMahon, Chris Bowen's seat, where they reckon 69 per cent of voters support the use of nuclear energy. You still agree with our Energy Minister that it's a fantasy wrapped in delusion, nuclear power?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, you could ask the Council to find anyone who's prepared to put up money for it. The market is speaking on this and the market indicates that I'm yet to see any investor come forward and say I want to spend billions of dollars on something to create an energy production that is far more expensive than the other options that are available.
KING: On a lighter note, do you think Alex de Minaur can go all the way and win the Australian Open?
PRIME MINISTER: I certainly hope so, mate. He's a fine young Australian and it's been such a long time since we had someone in the top ten. It seems like a lifetime ago since Lleyton Hewitt was such a great ambassador for Australia. And of course, Ash Barty I think lifted up the entire nation when she won not just the Australian Open, but the French and Wimbledon as well a few years ago. And I certainly hope that Alex can have a great tournament. He's off to a start through to the second round.
KING: Yes. Look, I really appreciate your time this morning. Enjoy your time in the beautiful city of Newcastle today and I hope 2024 is a good year for you Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: It is always great to be in Newcastle. It's a great city with a great culture. People are always very warm and I just admire the way that Novocastrians always bond together and look after each other and have such spirit. The footy team, they turn up even when the footy teams aren't going well. But they had a great year last year and I think the Knights will have a cracker of the year this year and give it a real shake.
KING: Well, I hope so. And you're off to Las Vegas to see the Rabbitohs kick the season off, are you next year or this year I should say?
PRIME MINISTER: No, I'll be watching it on TV. And I do note they're playing on my birthday, so I regard that as an omen.
KING: All right, thank you very much for your time. Have a good day.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks Richard.