JON FAINE: Kevin Rudd is busy representing the nation with one of our most important foreign partners, Japan. There he is negotiating over nuclear non-proliferation treaties, he is dealing with the prospect of a new economic free trade zone throughout Asia, he is talking about solving the problems of the world and then - he gets a phone call. About a backbencher who has gone on a bit of a, well, a bit of a rampage, if not much more. Causing substantial embarrassment within some sensitive parts of the Labor Party.
The Prime Minister takes time out from his important international mission to tell Belinda Neal to get anger management. Women on the Labor backbench and the caucus screamed double-standards. Coming as it does at a time when we have a Deputy Prime Minister who is a woman. Julia Gillard, good morning to you.
JULIA GILLARD: Good morning John.
JON FAINE: Are there double standards being displayed here, as some of your colleagues are saying?
JULIA GILLARD: No, certainly not. I spoke to the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, about this matter yesterday. I was obviously disturbed that there was a pattern of behaviour here. I thought we needed to discuss the matter and there needed to be some action taken. I had a conversation with the Prime Minister and then the Prime Minister talked to Belinda Neal directly. I would have done exactly the same thing, exactly the same thing had it been a male Member of Parliament.
JON FAINE: What's the pattern of behaviour you refer to?
JULIA GILLARD: Well obviously there was the incident in the restaurant which has received so much publicity. The matter involving the soccer match and the suspension. There was a pattern emerging there and I thought the matter needed to be discussed with the Prime Minister and needed to be addressed, and it has been.
JON FAINE: So, what, one little tiff of the soccer field - many of us who engage in competitive sports find that, you know, a bit of white-line fever can set in. And then Belinda Neal denies that she swore, denies that she threatened - her denials are obviously dismissed. And that's enough to get you on the front page of the nation's newspapers and the attention of the Prime Minister while he is in Japan?
JULIA GILLARD: Well, I don't write the newspapers, Jon, so obviously it's been on the front page of a lot of newspapers for a number of days. Most particularly in New South Wales - so that's an editorial judgement that you'd have to take up with the people who edit those newspapers...
JON FAINE: And you're reacting to that. Is that what this is all about?
JULIA GILLARD: No, no we're reacting to a circumstance where we thought it was appropriate for the Prime Minister to have a conversation with Belinda. He has had that conversation. Obviously what has come out of that conversation is that Belinda is going to seek some professional assistance here. I believe that is the appropriate course.
JON FAINE: (inaudible) the Prime Minister personally counsels a backbencher who has an argument in a pub?
JULIA GILLARD: Well, what happened here Jon, is obviously there was in my view a pattern of behaviour. There needed to be some action taken in relation to the matter. I've spoken to Kevin about that...
JON FAINE: But have there other things that we haven't yet heard about that have established that pattern of behaviour?
JULIA GILLARD: No, I'm referring to the events that are publicly known, Jon...
JON FAINE: Nothing more?
JULIA GILLARD: No, I'm referring to the events that are publicly known. That is what motivated me to make the phone call to the Prime Minister yesterday. The events that as you say, have been the subject of a great deal of media attention. And the matter has now - action is going to be taken, in terms of Belinda undertaking some professional counselling in relation to this...
JON FAINE: Does she have a drinking problem?
JULIA GILLARD: Well, Jon, that's a pretty silly question I think. What...
JON FAINE: Well, I think it's the one that most people listening to you, and who are not part of this New South Wales obsession with Belinda Neal, are wondering about. What is going on here?
JULIA GILLARD: What is going on here is exactly what I've just said Jon. There is no second agenda, no third agenda, no deep dark mystery. It is all exactly as I've said, absolutely transparent. There was an incident in a restaurant, obviously was reported in the newspapers. You've read those newspaper reports; other people have read those newspaper reports. There was a further matter reported on yesterday - obviously I wasn't aware of the matter until I saw it in the newspaper, but it relates to an incident playing soccer. Putting those two things together, I was obviously concerned about them. People would also be aware that there was a matter involving an exchange in Parliament, which has been the subject of public attention...
JON FAINE: With Sophie Panopoulos-Mirabella?
JULIA GILLARD: That's right. And on the basis of those things, I've discussed the matter with the Prime Minister yesterday - we agreed that he would speak to Belinda Neal and the rest of it is very much now in the public domain and recorded. And Belinda Neal will be seeking some professional guidance in relation to these matters. And I think that that's the appropriate course.
JON FAINE: It's raised many other issues. Labor backbencher, your colleague Julia Irwin, had this to say:
Julia Irwin: Oh yes, I'm definitely disappointed, and always have been that it's the women of the Parliament who are singled out.
JON FAINE: And she in fact went on to refer to the fact that Mark Latham was never told to go off to anger management counselling. And she's leading the charge, saying in fact you're over-reacting and it's not fair.
JULIA GILLARD: Well I just disagree with Julia Irwin on this matter. I think she's got it wrong. As I say, Jon, obviously I was literally involved with these events yesterday and everything I did yesterday, I would have done exactly the same had it been a male Member of Parliament.
JON FAINE: Is this a slight changing of the guard within Labor politics too? Does this mean the New South Wales right, of which Ms Neal is a member and her husband is a leading light as well, as Minister in the New South Wales government? With a Queenslander as Prime Minister and a Victorian from the left as Deputy Prime Minister, they don't have the same clout as they used to?
JULIA GILLARD: (laugh) Jon I can see you're desperate to weave a conspiracy theory around all of this. But there isn't one to be woven. It is exactly as I have described to you, no less, no more, no more complicated than that. I would have taken the same action had it been a male Member of Parliament. I would have taken the same action had it been a Member of Parliament from another state. I would have taken the same action had it have been a Member of Parliament from another faction. There is no conspiracy theory to be woven here. It's straight up and down, plain and simple as I have just explained it to you.
JON FAINE: Moving to similar issues but in the state forum if I possibly can, Julia Gillard. The Labor Party in Victoria is having its problems too over finding someone to replace Andre Haermeyer for the by-election in Kororoit. Is the preselection of Marlene Karuse guaranteed or is it off to the ALP's National Executive?
JULIA GILLARD: I understand that the preselection processes were finalised last night, from the point of view of the Victorian ALP. Obviously I'm not directly involved in those preselection processes. I wasn't in attendance at any of those meetings last night, but I understand that they've all happened and obviously the candidate is now there and in the field and campaigning to replace Andre Haermeyer in the Parliament.
JON FAINE: It's not been done by the book though, this preselection, has it?
JULIA GILLARD: Look, as I understand it there was a local vote of Party members and then the central preselection committee met...
JON FAINE: Local and (inaudible) of Party members which was then sought to be over-turned by a larger meeting.
JULIA GILLARD: Well Jon, I am not an expert in the details of what has happened in this preselection. As I understand it, local Party members got to vote. Then the central preselection panel which usually deals with these matters got to vote. And a candidate is now in the field and campaigning.
JON FAINE: So do you expect this to go on appeal? Are you aware of any moves to take this to an appeal?
JULIA GILLARD: I think I'm very clearly indicating to you John this is a State preselection. It's been undertaken by the ALP. It's not a matter for me. I'm not directly involved in the matter. And the only important thing is to make sure that an electorate out in Melbourne's west, Melbourne's north and west, gets good representation in the State Parliament.
JON FAINE: Later this morning we'll talk to Les Twentyman, the high-profile youth worker who has announced his candidacy as an independent. The Labor Party is vulnerable when you are caught up in your in-fighting are you not?
JULIA GILLARD: I think the thing here is people will make a determination ultimately on the issues. And when you look at the future of this state and what has been achieved by the Brumby Government and obviously the Bracks Government beforehand, I think people will look at that and say that they want to see that built on. And that's what will motivate people to vote.
I'm obviously aware, as someone who lives in Victoria, that we've seen substantial new investments into our schools, into our hospitals, into our infrastructure that's been brought by the Brumby and Bracks Government and I think they're the kind of things that motivate people when they vote.
JON FAINE: Julia Gillard, a couple of other quick things. You're making an announcement about computers in schools, the rollout of an election promise I understand. Where will you be?
JULIA GILLARD: I'll be at the Essendon East Keilor District College and I will be linked by web technology with a school in the ACT and a school in Western Australia. So we'll be showing the power of the technology. And what I will be announcing is that the first round of the computers in schools is being announced today. There are 896 secondary schools that are going to benefit. They're going to benefit with more than 116 000 new computers. It's the first round of our $1.2 billion Digital Education Revolution. And I think importantly, we focus this first round, which is an expenditure of $116 million - we focussed it on the schools most in need of the technology. So we ordered it through and identified those schools that had a ratio of computers to students where there were eight or more students looking at the one computer or looking to use the one computer. And we've said, let's invest to bring that ratio to one to two.
JON FAINE: Can you guarantee that this program will be on budget and we won't see the sort of blowouts in your rollout of computers in schools that we are seeing - for instance, the Auditor-General yesterday, the Victorian Justice Department - a $14 million computer rollout from eight years ago still not finished and now costing more than $40 million.
JULIA GILLARD: We are determined to deliver this program on time and within budget. We've got a budget of $1.2 billion - that's a lot of money. Obviously we have delivered this first round as promised. We went to the Australian people and said that there would be a round one, that round one would be delivered before the 30th of June. Obviously when you have an election in late November and a government sworn in early December, to do that we've had to get an absolute canter on. But we've done that.
I'm going to give great credit to all of the schools that have worked with us, the school systems, to make sure that we could rollout such an ambitious program in its first stage so quickly. And this is just the start. But I am pleased and very happy to see that this start has been focussed on those schools that need assistance the most. That's what we wanted to do - help those most in need first.
JON FAINE: Alright, just finally Acting Prime Minister and I know your time is precious. Have the proposal for Victoria to introduce a HECS-style loan system to fund the TAFE sector is coming under fire as submissions to the State government on this from TAFEs themselves are being leaked to the media and various large TAFEs, particularly RMIT in this instance, according to a report in today's Australian newspaper - in their own submission to the state government say that this would be a disaster. Do you want Victoria to introduce a HECS-style scheme?
JULIA GILLARD: I think we just need to take a step back here and remind ourselves that the relevant Minister, Jacinta Allen, deliberately put out a paper for consultation and discussion and that's obviously what's happening. And I think that that is a good process. For those people, this is what the government is looking at, what do you think - that is exactly a good process. Obviously we are going to be working with our state and territory colleagues right around the country...
JON FAINE: But you haven't answered my question about whether you think a HECS-style system is good for TAFE.
JULIA GILLARD: Well, this is a debate that's happening in Victoria. And obviously the Brumby Labor Government is working its way through it. What I am working on, and we are working on new investments in this area, is the delivery of our 630 000 new training places...
JON FAINE: Aren't you going to answer my question? You don't want to tell me whether you think it's a good idea or not?
JULIA GILLARD: Well, look, the discussion is happening in Victoria. Obviously there are discussions between governments - that is between the Commonwealth Government and every state and territory - on the best way forward for vocational education and training. Everybody realises we need to form a new investment. Everybody realises that there is a skills crisis and we've got to address it. Those discussions between us and the states and territories are continuing under the umbrella of COAG. So I'm not going to make any pre-emptive announcements about those discussions.
JON FAINE: Well thank you for explaining to us the context for it all. I'm grateful to you for your time.
JULIA GILLARD: Thank you very much Jon.
JON FAINE: Julia Gillard, who is Deputy and Acting Prime Minister at the moment.