KATHRYN ROBINSON, HOST: The Prime Minister joins us now from Garma. Good morning to you, Prime Minister. It looks like a beautiful day that is dawning up at Garma.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Kathryn. It is magical here at Gulkula, just on the coast. But it's a pity that it's not a good idea to swim here.
ROBINSON: No, stay out of the water.
PRIME MINISTER: It is very enticing, let me tell you. As you can see.
ROBINSON: Yes. We know this year's Garma is without Yunupingu, and his brother said while he is grieving, he is more determined than ever to unite the nation. How confident are you that unity will be achieved and can be taken out across the country as you campaign for the Yes vote?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, unity certainly has been achieved here at Garma. I was given the great honour yesterday of being given a spear to stay strong. And that was to give me strength. And that presentation I regarded as an incredible honour. We met yesterday afternoon with the Dilak Council here, which is made up of traditional owners, the leaders of 13 different clans. It's the sort of structure that will work with the Voice. It shows what can happen in practice. And these communities show us as well the benefit of listening to local voices, because you have better education outcomes, kids are staying at school, they're completing school, better health outcomes, better housing outcomes. This community here is a beacon for Australia. And this festival is where two worlds come together here, Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, celebrating culture and that 65,000 years of history. That is part of the Australian story. But the Australian story doesn't end. We have an opportunity to write a new chapter, voting Yes in the referendum in the last quarter of this year.
ROBINSON: Prime Minister, is it possible to achieve unity when there is so much division over treaty or is it possible to achieve unity without treaty?
PRIME MINISTER: Of course, it is possible to achieve unity. Indeed, the Queensland Government passed legislation for treaty-making unanimously. That's with the support of David Crisafulli, the LNP Leader in Queensland and Annastacia Palaszczuk's Government. What Australian also have the opportunity to vote for in the last quarter is two simple things. Recognition and then listening. That is the form of recognition Indigenous Australians have asked for. And listening so as to achieve better results. It's the means to the end. The end we're aiming for here is how can we close the gap? We can't continue to do things the same way and expect different outcomes.
ROBINSON: You mentioned Queensland going ahead at a state level on treaty. The Northern Territory is also in some sort of way. The states are going ahead. What is happening federally? This Uluru Statement from the Heart as you know very well, is three-pronged, it's about Voice, Treaty, about Truth. If the Federal Government doesn’t address this, is that not fulfilling the promise of the Uluru Statement from the Heart?
PRIME MINISTER: No, because the whole idea isn't about top-down. It's about bottom-up. In 2015, the Barnett Government came up with what effectively is a treaty, a settlement - that's all treaty means, coming together. Both sides have to agree. The Barnett Government in 2015 with the Noongar people in Perth did that. This has been happening for a long period of time. What is occurring with this referendum is it's a clear proposition, a clear proposition, the words are clear that have been put forward, they've been passed by the Parliament, overwhelmingly by the House of Representatives and the Senate. Indeed, across the Parliament, both sides say they support constitutional recognition. Both sides say that you need to legislate the Voice. The only difference is that Peter Dutton is saying that if you actually put it, enshrine it in the Constitution, that that is something that they oppose. The wording makes it very clear that the structure and operations and functions and make-up of the Voice are subject to the Parliament on an ongoing basis. What we are seeing is some confected search for difference, when what we need to do is to come together, focus on what is actually before the Australian people that they will vote for. Because the No campaign seems to have given up finding arguments on why people should vote no or what is for the Australian people and are therefore saying, ‘Look over here, over there’, at a range of issues that are actually not what is in the referendum.
ROBINSON: Two final questions. How do you reflect on the discourse in Parliament and across the country on treaty this week and other elements of the Voice and how that is impacting on the Yes campaign?
PRIME MINISTER: You just conflated the issues there. The Voice to Parliament is very clear. We will continue to put the case. How I reflect is that if people don't have an argument for what is before the Australian people, and bear this in mind, the legislation with the wording to be voted on in the referendum went through the House of Representatives and the Senate without divisions on amendments. None were put forward. Because it is such a straightforward proposition. From time to time in this country people have sought to look for division. I'm looking for unity. That's what people who have gathered here at Garma in their thousands, whether they be from Indigenous communities, from non-Indigenous Australia, business leaders, union leaders, sporting organisations, all here, all participating. And what we see here is two worlds coming together and how positive that is when that occurs.
ROBINSON: Finally, on the date, Prime Minister. There was high expectation you would announce it at Garma. We know that won't happen. We know it's after all the footy finals. Why did you decide not to announce it at Garma?
PRIME MINISTER: I announced a long time ago I wouldn't announce it at Garma. I don't know why there would be speculation. I made that very clear. A year ago I outlined a timetable for when it would be. And people in Australia, we don't have election campaigns and people going to the polls with many months of notice. Because people really don't want that. I don't think your listeners say, ‘We want a four-month campaign’. They want to be told well in advance that they will, more than a month in advance, as provisions apply for. I've made it clear a year ago what the timetable would look like, that it would be in the last quarter of this year. Obviously, when we get into December, you are into the rainy season. So that gets knocked out. September, it could be held then except we have the footy finals. So, we will make an announcement soon, we will talk through with the Australian Electoral Commission and make sure that it's an appropriate date. One that doesn't clash with other events so that people can go and seize this opportunity to vote Yes, to make a difference. We know that we need to do better than just have more of the same. And I am confident that Australians will take up this gracious request from Indigenous Australians.
ROBINSON: Prime Minister, thank you for joining us.
PRIME MINISTER: Thank you, Kathryn.