Television Interview, Sunrise

SUBJECTS: US Election; Parliamentarian travel. 

MATT SHIRVINGTON, HOST: Well, the US-Australia alliance is looking a little shaky ahead of the American election after old footage of the Prime Minister has resurfaced. In this clip from 2017, Anthony Albanese admitted that Donald Trump scares him. 

Now, there are growing concerns as to whether the comments will hinder relations between the two countries and if Mr Albanese is fit to work alongside the Republican if he does win. For more, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles joins us now live in Canberra. Great to have you with us. So, Richard, how will the PM be able to work with Donald Trump if he gets back in, if he's scared of him?

RICHARD MARLES, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: Well, I think when you look at what Anthony has done as the Prime Minister of Australia in terms of repairing our standing in the world, working with leaders right around the world, he's demonstrated a capability to work with anyone, and that'll be the case no matter who wins the election later this week in the United States. I've got no doubt that whether it's a President Harris or President Trump, Anthony will be able to work with either of them in a relationship which is profoundly important for our country, but also one which, to be frank, over many, many years, many decades, has transcended whoever is the Prime Minister of Australia and whoever is the President of the United States. 

SHIRVINGTON: In terms of Defence, you might need to work with him as well. Are you scared of Donald Trump? What's your opinion of him?

MARLES: Look, we are very confident that no matter who wins the election this week, Australia's alliance with the United States will remain strong and the major equities that we have in that alliance, for example, AUKUS and acquiring our future submarines, that that will remain on track. And we don't– that's not a guess. You know, we've worked very closely with people across the political spectrum in the United States; Democrats, Republicans, Trump Republicans, and all of them are supportive of the Australian alliance, supportive of AUKUS, supportive of what we're doing.

SHIRVINGTON: Well, if we hear Anthony Albanese say Donald Trump scares the s*** out of him. What do you think of him?

MARLES: Well, I think it is a matter for the American people as to who they elect as the– 

SHIRVINGTON: But you're going to have to work with him at some point, potentially as allies.

MARLES: And if he is the next President of the United States, we will work very closely with him, as we will if it's President Harris. You know, this is a relationship which genuinely transcends the individuals involved, the political parties. We've been in alliance with the United States for decades. We share strategic alignment, we share values. That's fundamentally what underpins this. And that's as well understood in the United States as it is here. And again, we've been speaking with people across the American political spectrum, and the alliance is in good shape no matter who wins the election.

SHIRVINGTON: I've got to ask you about the flight perk scandal, of course, which broke a couple of weeks ago. It's not going away anytime soon. There are some MPs saying that they're going to hand back their Chairman's Lounge memberships. There are others saying that airlines should scrap all upgrades for politicians. What do you reckon, should pollies fly economy?

MARLES: Look, I don't think this is the issue that people are talking to me about when I go about my businesses as an MP. The single biggest issue out there is cost of living, and that's what people are focused on. We made an announcement on the weekend which will see millions of students who have HECS debts get HECS debt relief. We've delivered two budget surpluses since we've been in government and unsurprisingly, in that same period of time, we've seen inflation drop very significantly, and that's the most significant thing we can do about cost of living. That's what people are talking about. They're not talking about flight upgrades or Qantas. You know, I get there is an interest in the media, but when we talk to people on the street, what they want to know is what's happening to them and what we are doing as a government about that, and that's what we'll continue to be focused on.

SHIRVINGTON: Richard Marles, thanks for your time. Appreciate it.

MARLES: Thanks, Shirvo. 

ENDS