HOST: Can I begin with the Royal Commission into child abuse that is opening today. It has an indefinite period of sitting, what are you looking to this commission to resolve?
PM: This is an important moral moment for our nation. When I established this Royal Commission I understood that it was going to require our whole country to stare some very uncomfortable truths in the face.
What I want to achieve out of the Royal Commission is two-fold.
For the survivors of child sexual abuse I want this to be a moment of healing, for us to say to them as a nation we hear you, you're valued and you're believed. Because for too long so many of these survivors have just run in to closed doors and closed minds.
And second, I want the Royal Commission to provide for us recommendations about the future.
We've let children down in the past as a country. We need to learn what we can do as a nation to better protect our children in the future.
HOST: There's also quite a sharp edge to the Royal Commission beyond any healing process that it can recommend prosecution. Are you looking to the commission to produce prosecutions of criminal activity?
PM: The Royal Commission, of course, doesn't do prosecutions itself but it will have an investigations unit and it can refer people to the police for the police to make proper judgments about prosecutions.
Wrong doers in my view should be brought to justice.
I don't underestimate the difficulty of doing that. We're talking sometimes about events that are 20 and 30 years ago and so there are problems with evidence and problems with proof, indeed some people may have died in the intervening period, so it's complex.
But, wrong doers should always be punished if that can be done.
HOST: There have been concerns raised by some organisations, including the Catholic Church, that this might become simply a witch hunt, is there that danger?
PM: I don't think that there is that danger at all. This is about a proper look at our past and what we can learn from it.
Today, we are announcing that the counsel assisting the commission will be too very well qualified female lawyers, Gail Furness and Melinda Richards.
We're announcing that there will be a free legal advisory service for child sexual abuse survivors who want to engage with the commission's processes.
I believe the commission we have put together led by many eminent Australians - six eminent Australians - will find the right way through.
So this is healing but it is also clear recommendations for the future.
HOST: How well do you believe the Catholic Church, which is right in the eye of this storm, has handled the issue of child abuse and specifically the responses of Cardinal Pell as the most senior Catholic?
PM: I'm not going to get involved with an exchange about any one individual or indeed any one institution.
When I announced the Royal Commission I was very clear that this was about institutional child sexual abuse.
Of course there are some matters in the Catholic Church that will therefore be the subject of inquiry, but it's not focused on the Catholic Church.
There are a number of other institutions where survivors can tell truly horrific tales, and I've heard some of those myself.
That's why we haven't said this is about one body, one church, one entity; it is about institutional child sexual abuse.
HOST: Prime Minister, to another topic; superannuation. There's a lot of speculation around about what changes you intent to make to superannuation taxation arrangements, superannuation arrangements generally.
Are you going to let that run until the Budget next month or can you offer some clarification of your plans?
PM: We're now in one of those pre-budget cycles where speculation feeds on rumour, feeds on speculation, feeds on rumour, and that is playing out in our newspapers and in the media day after day.
I've been very clear over the past few days when I've been asked about this matter that superannuation is a Labor invention in this country.
It is therefore, of course, safe in Labor's hands.
What we think about when we look at superannuation is decent retirement incomes for working people, and the long-term sustainability of the system.
That's already made us make some decisions that are very important.
First and foremost, to increase superannuation for working people from nine to 12 per cent so people get decent retirement incomes.
Two, to boost the superannuation of low income earners, that is to give them a better tax arrangement, and unfortunately that's contested.
Mr Abbott has said that he would take that away, and therefore put more than three million low income earners in a worse position for their superannuation.
And then we always look at the long-term sustainability of the system; so that's our focus.
HOST: But can you offer any clarification because there's a lot of scare out there, there's a lot of uncertainty out there and you know what you intend, what do you intend in terms of change to superannuation?
PM: Marius, we'll make budget decisions and make them available publicly at the proper time.
HOST: Is that May 14 or before May 14?
PM: I'm not going to get involved in the speculation and rumour that's there at the moment. But I can be very clear with people about the set of principles that guide us.
They are the principles about sustainability and decent retirement incomes and I can also be very clear that the only policy on the table to cut superannuation today is the plan of the Opposition to cut the superannuation of more than three million working people.
That's one in three working people who would have a superannuation cut imposed on them.
HOST: But can you offer some clarification because at the moment all people know is that nobody has anything to worry about except the fabulously wealthy. Can you tell us what the income of a fabulously wealthy person is?
PM: What people know is that superannuation is a Labor creation.
It's only in this country because of the Labor Party and consequently I think what people know is that when Labor looks at superannuation we do it from a set of values and principles which are always about advantaging working people and keeping the system sustainable and secure.
HOST: Well that confirms the view that the fabulously wealthy are in your sights, who is fabulously wealthy? For example, your income is nearly half a million dollars, are you fabulously wealthy?
PM: Well I'm not going to get into income ranges, but I will say this. We made some superannuation changes in the last budget for people who earn more than $300,000 a year and of course those superannuation changes should flow through to people like me, precisely, absolutely.
HOST: So $300,000 is-
PM: I'm not nominating, I'm not playing the game.
HOST: It's a clear inference from what you've just said.
PM: No, no. I'm referring you to-
HOST: You are playing the game but you're playing sometimes rule in, sometimes rule out.
PM: Marius, I'm actually taking you to a measure that was in last year's Budget. There was no speculation in that. No speculation.
It was announced last year and the income level was announced. Now I'm not asking you to draw an inference from that other than to note when Labor has dealt with superannuation in the past, we've dealt with it on the basis of sustainability. We took a decision on sustainability last year.
HOST: What about retrospectivity. Will the changes be retrospective or can you rule out that they will be retrospective?
PM: I've said to you the principles we are always bringing to bear on superannuation. At the moment when people pick up their newspapers, what they are seeing is speculation, some of it very wild speculation indeed.
HOST: But that's a central issue: retrospective or not retrospective?
PM: What's a central issue here is prudent decision making and making sure people get more income when they retire.
That's what nine to 12 per cent is about; that one in three workers who are lower income earners do better.
That's why we have the low income superannuation contribution scheme, so that they do do better, and that over time the system is sustainable.
HOST: But on that specific of retrospectivity, we've had Simon Crean, former leader, saying that it must not be retrospective.
Can you not say one way or the other whether it will be retrospective?
PM: Marius, I'm not playing a game about this.
HOST: Just a question.
PM: Other than to say when people pick up their newspapers obviously they should discount things that are just speculation and rumour.
HOST: Rupert Murdoch says your remarks about 457 workers, your remarks were disgusting and racist, do you accept that criticism?
PM: Certainly not. My job as Prime Minister is to make sure that Australians - Australian citizens - have their job opportunities put first.
HOST: But does it worry you when Rupert Murdoch criticises your rhetoric, Bill Keelty criticises your rhetoric, the Greens criticise your rhetoric. It's a fairly unusual alliance against you there.
PM: My job is to put the jobs of working Australians first; that's what I will always do.
People can say whatever they like in response to that but as Prime Minister I will always make sure we are growing the economy, we are creating jobs and we are ensuring that Australians are getting those jobs first.
HOST: The Minerals Council is launching a new ad campaign today to warn you against looking to them for extra revenue in the Budget. In 2010, the Minerals Council, the big miners' campaign was hugely damaging, it was a big contributor to the downfall of Kevin Rudd.
Are you worried about this campaign and do you have the miners in your sights for revenue?
PM: The only thing I ever worry about is the national interest and making sure that we keep growing the economy, we keep creating jobs. We've created more than 900,000 of them during the worst of global economic times.
And that we are sharing opportunity for the future which is why I want to see every child getting a great education. And we're making sure we don't leave people behind. So things like Disability Care are to make sure that Australians with disabilities and their families get to live a decent life too.
They're the decisions that guide me, that's what I do as Prime Minister.
Yes, of course, people will enter the public debate from their perspective. I don't see too many people running into the public domain saying I'd like to pay more tax; we don't tend to see that.
We tend to see people running into the public domain saying they don't want to pay any more tax, or they'd like to pay less tax, or they'd like more of a benefit. Such is the nature of vibrant debate in a democracy.
HOST: On tax, you're taking action to close loopholes for multinationals, giants like Google, you're going to require them to reveal how much tax they pay. Is Google a tax dodger?
PM: I think tax should be transparent and people are entitled to know how much tax is paid.
You could get on the Tax Office website and work out for every income level how much a Pay As You Earn taxpayer pays in tax.
I don't see why there shouldn't be comparable transparency in relation to company tax.
HOST: But this is a new requirement for them to reveal how much they're paying, why are you bringing in this new requirement?
PM: I think it's important that the tax system is understood and that there are facts in the public domain that people can make judgments against the basis of solid information.
HOST: These multinationals, is there a view that they're not paying their fair share?
PM: I don't want to name any specific company but clearly around the world, and it's not just Australia, these things are talked about.
At the G20 table when the leaders of the 20 biggest economies in the world, including our own, meet around the G20 table we have discussed - and there have been discussions at finance minister level too - about the issues in a very mobile world where companies can move money around, what that does mean for domestic revenue bases.
So this is an ongoing discussion at an international level. I'm sure it will be an ongoing discussion in our own economy.
HOST: And it's real money according to the reports you're talking about, maybe you're looking for an extra billion dollar a year from missed tax that's being missed at the moment?
PM: As a matter of principle, taxpayers, whether they're companies or individuals, should pay their proper rate of tax.
HOST: You have two ministers in Indonesia at the moment discussing asylum seekers, is any progress being made there?
PM: Some progress has been made and I think it's very important progress.
There's been an agreement at that meeting to ensure that people smuggling is criminalised.
Now, this might seem to us an obvious step; people smuggling is a criminal activity here in Australia and we prosecute people smugglers.
But we have had to advocate across the region for people smuggling to be a criminal offence in countries where asylum seekers flow through.
We succeeded in making sure through advocacy with Indonesia that Indonesia made people smuggling a criminal offence and now we've seen people prosecuted.
What has been achieved at this international forum where Ministers Carr and O'Connor are in attendance is an agreement across the whole group that people smuggling should be an offence.
HOST: Real difference or just a gradual step in a continuing process?
PM: I think there's a real difference between something being against the criminal law or not being criminal at all.
There's a real difference because then you get police engaged, you get people prosecuted, you get people going to jail, that is a real difference.
HOST: You're going to China on Friday. Korea is the major talking point at the moment, will you be going with a specific request for specific action from China on Korea?
PM: The issue of North Korea will come up in my discussions in China.
We welcome the fact that China is enforcing the UN sanctions against North Korea.
But of course this threat to peace and stability in our region will be the subject of discussions that I will do personally, and I'm taking the most high-powered delegation to China that our nation has ever sent. So of course there will be broader discussions involving the Foreign Minister too.
HOST: Prime Minister, thanks again very much for speaking with News Radio this morning.
PM: Thanks Marius.