HOST:
Welcome to Brisbane, the Prime Minister of Australia, Malcolm Turnbull. Good morning Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER:
Good morning, how are you?
HOST:
Very intrigued to know -
HOST:
How do we know it’s not an impersonator?
HOST:
It could be, is that really you?
HOST:
Is it really you, Malcolm?
PRIME MINISTER:
It is really me.
HOST:
Do you know Donald Trump?
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
I do, I do I met him in New York only the other day.
HOST:
Yeah we saw a few photos.
PRIME MINISTER:
It was a great meeting – beg your pardon?
HOST:
We saw a few photos.
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes. You know it was great to meet, Lucy and I were thrilled to meet President Trump and Melania, they were very, very welcoming and very warm. But it was amazing to meet some of the old veterans you know who had served in the Australian and US Navy’s in the Battle of the Coral Sea 75 years ago. They were there in their early 90’s.
HOST:
Wow.
PRIME MINISTER:
In this old World War ll aircraft carrier, the Intrepid and they had turned the tide of war in the Pacific in 1942 when they were teenagers. So it was amazing.
HOST:
You’re lucky that you get to meet those people.
HOST:
Travel is great yeah -
PRIME MINISTER:
I was very honoured, yeah. Very honoured.
HOST:
Travel’s great but of course the highlight is a warm up to come and do a walk around Brisbane this morning. Now John Howard was famous for walking round in his Wallabies jersey, can’t remember when he played for the Wallabies. Tony Abbott doesn’t mind a bike ride or a budgie smuggler in the water. Is there a legacy of your morning exercise routine that you’re going to leave for us?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, you know I normally walk along, through the gardens and across the bridge, across the river and then down through -
HOST:
Kangaroo Point?
PRIME MINISTER:
Through that beautiful sort of longer with bougainvillea on it.
HOST:
Oh the arbor.
PRIME MINISTER:
This morning I actually did some exercise in the hotel, so I didn’t get out this morning. But look it’s a beautiful, beautiful city to walk around along the river, along the south bank, it’s fantastic.
HOST:
We love our Brisbane.
PRIME MINISTER:
It’s really great, and it’s getting better. It’s getting I think, more pedestrian friendly all the time. More places to walk, so I’m a very big fan, as is Lucy.
HOST:
You should try the city cycles, that’s a whole other story.
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
All the cycling, what - the sort of men-in-lycra, you think that’s a good look?
HOST:
Yes, Abbott’s done enough of showing off what that can do, so don’t worry about it.
HOST:
In the next little while Prime Minister we’re going to build a big casino down complex along North Quay, are you good on the punt? Have you got a game? If I had to play a game of poker against you would I win, or would you take my money?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think you’d probably beat me. Look I must tell you, we’re talking about walks. I must tell you a story about Wallaby jumpers.
HOST:
Okay yeah.
PRIME MINISTER:
Some time ago, not long after I’d become Prime Minister I was in Canberra and it was a cold morning. I got up - Lucy was there - and I pulled on a football jumper out of drawer in our bedroom.
HOST:
Yeah.
PRIME MINISTER:
And it actually was a Wallaby’s jumper. And I was walking along and Daisy our daughter called us on Facetime. And so she was talking to Lucy and then Lucy turned the phone so she could see me. And there I was with my Wallaby jumper and Daisy said: “Oh my god. You are the Prime Minister”.
(Laughter)
HOST:
That’s what it takes.
(Laughter)
HOST:
Because you’re in your Wallaby’s jumper!
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
Walking around Lake Burley Griffin in a Wallaby’s jumper so -
HOST:
I love that you’re up to date and you’re doing the whole Facetime thing. I think it’s great. Listen Malcolm, we quite often do this. Oh do I call you Prime Minister? What do I call you?
PRIME MINISTER:
Malcolm is fine.
HOST:
Okay.
PRIME MINISTER:
Everyone else does.
HOST:
Oh, okay.
HOST:
The Honourable Malcolm.
HOST:
The honourable Prime Minister. We do this thing called a minute with Bianca and its rapid-fire questions and you just give rapid-fire answers. You just say the first thing that comes to your mind when I ask you a question.
VOICEOVER:
Bianca, Terry and Bob’s minute with Malcolm.
HOST:
Are you ready to go Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER:
I’m ready.
HOST:
I still think it’s an impersonator. Anyway let’s go. Let’s go. Okay Malcolm, let’s start it.
Have you had your heart broken?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes.
HOST:
Has Lucy ever had a spray tan?
PRIME MINISTER:
No.
HOST:
What’s the first thing you do on your day off being Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER:
Sleep.
HOST:
(Laughter)
Glad you’re not the only one. Are you on Instagram?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, I am.
HOST:
Oh! Okay, have you got as many followers as grumpy cat? Don’t answer that. What’s on your bucket list to do before you die?
PRIME MINISTER:
Just spend lots more time with my grandkids and Lucy.
HOST:
Do you ever feel like getting in your car-
PRIME MINISTER:
That’s the main thing.
HOST:
Do you ever feel like getting in your car and just driving away?
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
Never. No, I love this job and I’m a very, very happy Prime Minister.
HOST:
Okay sunsets or sunrise?
PRIME MINISTER:
Sunrise I think, yeah sunrise.
HOST:
Do you ever Netflix and chill with Lucy?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, yes we do. Yep.
HOST:
Good to know.
HOST:
What do you watch? House of Cards?
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
We have watched House of Cards, actually we haven’t watched much on Netflix lately, but we do watch things on Netflix. We’ve watched a bit on iTunes.
It’s interesting isn’t it the way that so much of the entertainment that you see on television nowadays is over the top – you know, I mean over the top as in over the internet.
HOST:
Yeah.
HOST:
Absolutely.
PRIME MINISTER:
iTunes or Netflix and other applications like that. Such a huge change in the television business.
HOST:
Oh no it’s totally turned it upside down. Netflix and Stan and all of those. Tell us, one last question I’m going to sneak in. When you interviewed Donald Trump, the elephant in the room, did you stare at his hair?
(Laughter)
HOST:
Come on! Be honest!
PRIME MINISTER:
No, lots of eye contact. No hair contact.
HOST:
I’m so glad you did because I’d just be staring at that hair. It’s got a mind of its own. What’s the last thing you cooked?
PRIME MINISTER:
The last thing I cooked was some pasta on the weekend. It was just some spaghetti with, you know, tomato sauce.
HOST:
I love it. Malcolm does a spag bol.
PRIME MINISTER:
Yeah. Actually I love making passata, you know where you roast a whole tray of tomatoes and –
HOST:
Yum.
PRIME MINISTER:
With some garlic, if you like garlic, and some salt and olive oil and when they’re all roasted, then put them through a mouli and mush them up. You have a beautiful tomato sauce. You can use some, and what we do it we use some and generally freeze some, do it in bulk. Freeze some and you can make a really lovely tasty pasta dish very quickly.
HOST:
I love that the Prime Minister food-preps for the rest of the week!
HOST:
Makes his own passata. Yeah.
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
I love passata, yeah it’s great. Good for you too, all of those tomatoes.
HOST:
I should warn you Prime Minister, we have hung out with a Masterchef this week.
A couple of listener questions coming right here, just very quick ones. What colour are Bill Shorten’s eyes.
PRIME MINISTER:
(Laughter)
I don’t know. I don’t know, you’d have to –
HOST:
Not paying attention.
PRIME MINISTER:
I’ll endeavor to peer, to look into them, next time I see him.
HOST:
Gaze lovingly.
HOST:
Apparently – we tried to Google it – apparently blue and piercing as it turns out.
This is actually quite a serious one; at the moment there is a lot of stuff about the girl they’re calling Cocaine Cassie in Columbia. But it’s about when young people get into to trouble overseas. You’ve got Schapelle Corby coming back. How much can you actually do? At which point do you pick up the phone and talk to another country.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well the answer is the first thing is, when you’re overseas, obey the laws of the country you’re in., I’ll say that again. When you’re overseas, obey the laws of the country you’re in. You know, they’re often very different to Australia and often much harsher than Australia, particularly with respect to drugs. So that is the absolutely vital message.
Secondly, take advice from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website, the Smartraveller website. Always make sure you’re up to date on that. They go to a lot of trouble to provide updated advice on security and other matters.
Now as to what we do. Well, we provide consular assistance, but if people break the law in other countries, they will face the legal process there. Just like foreigners who break the law in Australia, face legal process here. Do we contact other Governments? Yes we do. Our consular officials do that and we, you know, we’ve often made representations, particularly when Australians are subject to sentenced to or threatened with a death penalty. You know, there have been a number of cases of that. But the fundamental message guys –
HOST:
Don’t stuff up in the first place.
PRIME MINISTER:
Yeah, if you’re going overseas, respect the laws of the country you’re in. Recognise that they are, you know, it’s not Australia. When you leave Australia, you’re under the jurisdiction of another country.
HOST:
Thank you for giving us that very long answer.
(Laughter)
PRIME MINISTER:
I’m sorry about that!
HOST:
No! But you’re the Prime Minister, that’s your job.
PRIME MINISTER:
But it’s an important point and a lot of people forget it and overlook it and get into a lot of trouble. You know we do everything we can to help them, but you know, if you break the law somewhere else, you’re subject to the laws of that other place.
HOST:
Alright let’s ask a really serious question. Will you still be in town for Paniyiri?
(Laughter)
HOST:
It’s this weekend, it’s the big Greek festival.
PRIME MINISTER:
No I won’t, I’m in Queensland all week, for the rest of the week here. I’m here in Brisbane today, I’m going up to Rockhampton tomorrow and then to Emerald. But I’ll be back in New South Wales by the weekend.
HOST:
You’re so busy.
HOST:
Never mind, never mind.
HOST:
Such a busy life.
HOST:
That means Bianca will have to Zorba dance by herself Prime Minister, she was going to hit you up but you got out of town in time.
PRIME MINISTER:
I’m sure I would only cramp your style, Bianca. You’re better off Zorba dancing by yourself.
HOST:
I think you’re a very cool Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Thank you so much for your time, thanks for chatting with us exclusively this morning. It’s been lovely, thanks for having fun with us.
PRIME MINISTER:
Okay, it’s great to be with you.
[ENDS]