HOST: Prime Minister, good morning and welcome to AM.PM: Good morning Sabra.
HOST: You've heard what Tony Abbott's had to say in London. What's your response?PM: Mr Abbott is using weasel words to avoid answering very simple questions here. Sabra, let's take the broader view. I mean when Australians voted in 2010 they got the result right. Australians always get elections right and our nation accepts the result. The result here was an unusual Parliament, a minority Parliament but Government was formed.Unlike Oppositions when there have been minority Parliaments in the past, Mr Abbott never accepted the result, he never accepted the will of the Australian people and so we've been treated to two years of negativity, two years of personal attacks and two years of smear.Now I think Australians want this to stop. They want to see a debate on policies and issues and certainly that's what the Government has been doing and we will keep doing.Mr Abbott to get to that stage now needs to come clean about the mess his political party is mired in following this adverse judgement from the Federal Court.HOST: Well, Mr Abbott says that Mal Brough has been transparent and upfront about his involvement in James Ashby and he's also pointed out that his pre-selection will stay.PM: Well, Mr Abbott in saying that is insulting the intelligence of the Australian people. Mr Brough when he was first asked about this matter lied about it and then was forced to come clean as a result of media enquiries. Mr Brough has been anything but transparent in this matter.Mr Abbott needs to require Mr Brough to come here to Parliament House and to stand in front of the Federal Parliamentary Press Gallery and answer every question put to him and then he should still disendorse Mr Brough. Mr Brough has been the subject of a judgement by a Federal Court judge that he, with others, conspired to attack Mr Slipper to change the balance of power in the Federal Parliament.Mr Brough has been involved in using sexual harassment claims as a political tool. In standing by Mr Brough, Mr Abbott is standing by conduct like that.HOST: The judge didn't find a conspiracy. Certainly in his judgement he talks about alleged conspirators. Has the Government over-egged this? You've got Ministers talking about Australia's Watergate, you've got Anthony Albanese talking about a conspiracy, Craig Emerson talking about a conspiracy. Are you over-egging this?PM: Sabra, read the judgement, read the words.HOST: I have read the judgement.PM: I'd be very happy for you to read the extracts of it on air word by word. The judge finds facts that cannot be denied, the judge finds that Mr Brough conspired with Mr Ashby and one other person to try and destroy Mr Slipper's involvement in politics in order to change the balance of power in the House of Representatives; that Mr Ashby in making sexual harassment claims was doing that for a political purpose. Not actually about the sexual harassment matter but motivated by a political purpose.Mr Abbott's answer to that is weasel words - no ‘specific knowledge' about details. Well, Mr Abbott needs to come clean so the nation can move on to what ought to be the next stage of Australian politics which is debating the issues.HOST: The Government's talked about an enquiry into this. Why not have an enquiry?PM: Well, the Government will consider that matter. We won't rush to judgement on it. We will think about it.HOST: Would it be a waste of taxpayer's money putting money towards an enquiry into this?PM: Well, the issue here is will Mr Abbott, Mr Brough, Ms Bishop, Mr Pyne, any other Coalition member with knowledge of this matter come clean and answer questions about it. This is really an issue of leadership for Tony Abbott. I want Australian politics to be a red-hot debate about the issues.I spent the last Parliamentary week for example putting the big issues on the table for the nation's future, making sure our kids get a world class education so we can have a world class economy, making sure people with disabilities get a fair go.Mr Abbott answered that with a torrent of sleaze. I would like to see this cycle of politics about sleaze and smear and negativity, the cycle Mr Abbott started the day after the last election, come to an end and come to an end before the end of this year. For that to happen Mr Abbott has to extract himself and his political party from the filth they're rolling in and the only way of doing that will be by coming clean.HOST: Wouldn't a good circuit breaker on this be a full enquiry then? That would clear the decks wouldn't it?PM: Wouldn't a good circuit breaker be an act of leadership by Mr Abbott.HOST: Mr Abbott says that he only knew about this case on Saturday the 21 April, the morning that it was published in the newspapers. The metadata date on the press release that he's issued shows the document has a time date of 11PM the evening before. Mr Abbott's office says there is a simple explanation for this, that there was a problem with that computer. Do you accept that explanation?PM: Sabra, you haven't used all of Mr Abbott's weasel words. Mr Abbott is saying to us that he didn't have specific knowledge of the details of the allegations before they were in the newspaper. Well, specific knowledge, what knowledge did he have if it wasn't about the details, what knowledge did he have about the matter generally?HOST: Specifically on his press release, his office says that there was a problem with that computer. Do you believe that?PM: Look, I am not going to put myself in the position of being a computer expert but what I do know absolutely is this, Mr Abbott is using fudge words to stop coming clean about this matter. Mr Abbott ought to stand and frankly answer every question.Mr Abbott is very good at calling on others to make full statements. Let's just do the comparison, Sabra. I'm happy to. Mr Abbott spent a Parliamentary week on a matter involving me that happened the best part of two decades ago. I answered Parliamentary Press Gallery questions on two separate occasions until effectively the Press Gallery was out of questions.I took questions in Parliament. We ended up with a Parliamentary debate on the matter. If that's the standard for something that happened 17 years ago and has absolutely no implications for public life today, what's the standard for this? Well, 100 times more and Mr Abbott ought to acquit himself of that obligation.HOST: If you feel that Mr Slipper has been wronged here, why not reinstall him as the Speaker?PM: This is the most ridiculous straw man debate being put up by the Coalition as a shield.HOST: Is it?
PM: Absolutely.
HOST: The man was forced aside because of these allegations.PM: Absolutely Sabra, a most ridiculous straw man debate put up by a Coalition to try and avoid answering questions. Joe Hockey started this yesterday.HOST: It's a question now for you. You officially installed him as Speaker.PM: And I'm prepared to answer it. Mr Slipper resigned, full stop. Mr Slipper resigned. This is not about Mr Slipper's resignation. This is about Mr Brough, Mr Ashby and the conspiracy they were involved in and who else was involved in it.HOST: But if you feel that Mr Slipper has been wronged here, surely-PM: Mr Slipper resigned appropriately having seen in the public domain text of an unacceptable nature. Let's not conflate the issues.HOST: But I'm also asking you whether you would like to see him back in the role?PM: Mr Slipper resigned, Anna Burke is doing a good job. Anna Burke will be continuing as Speaker. Sabra, let's not pretend that the Coalition raising Mr Slipper's future is an answer to specific and legitimate enquiries about what they knew, when they knew it and what they did about it.HOST: But it is also a question for you in your judgement as well.PM: Well, I've just answered your question. Mr Slipper resigned, Mr Slipper resigned appropriately. So that has been done, that's dealt with. This is not about that. This is about what did Mr Abbott know? What did his office know? What did Ms Bishop know? What did Mr Pyne know? What did Mr Hockey know? Who else is involved in this conspiracy? What were their motivations in misusing sexual harassment as a political tool of attack?HOST: Mal Brough also says the issue here is one of those vile text messages that were sent and that Mr Brough says that he has acted appropriately at all times.PM: Well Mr Brough should have absolutely no problem then coming to Canberra, standing in, I'll happily make the press conference room available, standing in the press conference room, take questions hour, hour and a half, two hours until the Press Gallery hasn't got any more questions.If he has done nothing wrong, Mr Abbott is very fond of using this phrase, if Mr Brough has done nothing wrong, he's got nothing to hide why isn't he here today?HOST: The economy will be front and centre next year heading into the election year. The Government Chief Whip Joel Fitzgibbon says he thinks it is time for the Government to ditch its promise of delivering a surplus. He thinks that people will understand that and that the Government could do things with extra money to help boost productivity. Is he right?PM: Well, Mr Fitzgibbon is entitled to his views but these decisions will be made by me, the Treasurer, the Finance Minister and the Cabinet. We have released the most recent economic forecast. We don't jump at people's figments of imagination here. We deal with the facts, we deal with the forecasts and I refer you to what we said in that mid-year statement.HOST: He is your Chief Government Whip. He says there are many in caucus who think the same way. Are they wrong?PM: Look Mr Fitzgibbon is, yes he is the Chief Government Whip. He plays an organisational role working with Mr Albanese who is the Leader of Government Business. Policy is made by me and the Cabinet. We have published the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook.HOST: Are his suggestions helpful in your organisation of Government?PM: Look, people are entitled to a view and we'll get on and make the decisions.HOST: Mr Fitzgibbon says he thinks your Government and you have been spooked by the Opposition.PM: Well, once again, we'll get on with the decisions.HOST: And there are many economists, respected economists who also argue the same thing, that now with Government spending slowing to such a point that you actually could do more harm to the economy than good.PM: Sabra, we deal with the facts. We deal with the forecasts. They are in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook. I don't come in, in the morning into this building where very important decisions are made and run around the corridors seeing what people have thought up overnight. I deal with the facts.HOST: You speak to economists?PM: I deal with them carefully. I deal with Treasury forecasts and if you want to see the most recent forecasts, have a look at the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook.HOST: Respected economists like Bill Evans don't know what they're talking about, is that what you're saying?PM: That is not what I said. I do what Governments in the past have done. We work with the Treasury forecasts. That is the appropriate thing to do. I would remind you that the most recent Treasury forecast published in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook showed us at trend growth.HOST: The budget, will Australians know come budget time how you're going to pay or how the Government's going to pay for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, how the Gonski education reforms are going to be paid for? Are they going to know where every cent is going to come from?PM: They will see from us every cent for Gonski and the National Disability Insurance Scheme over the forward estimates and they'll see more than that. They'll see us detail a long term funding strategy. We will be absolutely transparent with the Australian people. Budget forecasts properly done, Treasury forecasts, all the rest of it, every dollar, every cent and a long term funding strategy.The issue here for 2013 is one, Mr Abbott needs to extract himself from the pile of mud he's standing in so Australian politics can move on and number two, when he's done that, he should commit to acquitting every word of the charter of budget honesty so next year's election campaign is about people being able to see the figures and having them at their disposal for both sides of politics, not one side of politics. They will certainly have them from us.HOST: Prime Minister, thanks for your time this morning.PM: Thanks Sabra.