Television Interview, ABC News Breakfast

SUBJECTS: Farrer by-election; Federal Budget; 125th anniversary of the opening of the first Federal Parliament.

JOHANNA NICHOLSON, HOST: A very significant moment. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles is attending today's proceedings. He joins us now. Minister, thank you so much for your time this morning.

RICHARD MARLES, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, how are you?

NICHOLSON: Well, thank you. We'll get to those events in Melbourne in just a moment. But first it is the Farrer by-election today. We've been speaking about it this morning. That was the seat of former Liberal leader Sussan Ley. Now, the Labor Party has opted not to run a candidate in that by-election. Has your party abandoned Labor voters in Farrer?

MARLES: No, I mean, I think this is a pretty normal decision. I mean, the point here is that Farrer has been a long-held Coalition seat. It's the seat of Sussan Ley, obviously, but you know, in the past, Tim Fisher, I mean, this is absolutely blue-ribbon Coalition seat. And I think really the remarkable story today is, is around whether or not the Coalition can hold this seat. It really is a test for Angus Taylor. In any normal moment, you would expect Farrer to be held by the Coalition. And if they're unable to hold the seat today, I mean, that says so much about where the Coalition currently stands.

NICHOLSON: No doubt that is part of the story today. But Labor is in government and one of two major parties and voters, voters are already moving away from the major parties. So, how can you expect to stop that from continuing to happen if you're not putting up a candidate?

MARLES: Well, again, I think that the decision of the Labor Party is pretty normal in these circumstances, where you're talking about a by-election in the context of a blue-ribbon seat being held by the Opposition, in this case the Coalition. And so the decision that we've taken is pretty consistent with that. But the remarkable moment here is the Coalition's contest to try and hang onto this seat. And really that's the question. I think the other point to make here is if One Nation ultimately win the seat today. And I think, you know, between One Nation and the community candidate, it'll be close and we'll see what happens. But if One Nation win this seat, they'll be winning it with Liberal support. And I think Australians need to understand that. And it says everything about where the Liberal Party is at today.

NICHOLSON: I also want to get your thoughts on the Budget. The Treasurer will be handing down the Federal Budget this coming Tuesday. How will the Government be balancing that difficult tension of not doing anything that will further fuel inflation, which is something that the RBA Governor is warning against, but also providing that much needed relief to the many Australians struggling with cost-of-living pressures?

MARLES: Well, that has been the balance that we have been managing really since we've come to government. Cost-of-living relief has been an absolute feature of every budget that we have handed down. But so too has prudent budget management. It's why we've delivered two surpluses. But it's why in across all the budgets, we've delivered around $114 billion of savings and reprioritisation. I mean, under us, spending growth is around 1.7% compared to when the Coalition were in government, which was around 4.1%. So, we will continue in this Budget to be focused on those same issues on prudent budget management, on looking at where we can in assisting cost-of-living, but also really this time having a major focus on productivity. We need to get productivity going in this country. And cutting red tape will be a focus of the Budget as well.

NICHOLSON: Now, as we said earlier, you are there in Melbourne marking 125 years since the opening of Australia's first Federal Parliament in 1901. How are you reflecting today on how much the country has changed in that 125 years?

MARLES: Well, it is. I mean, there are things about our country which are very different to what they were 125 years ago. We are a much more diverse, multicultural, open society than we were in 1901. But I think there are also elements about our country which have remained consistent. I mean, back then there was a sense of egalitarianism and the fair go. I mean, we can trace that right back to those earlier years, and that very much is a feature of the Australian character today. And so I think, you know, whenever you are looking back over history, it is a combination of how far we've come, how we've changed, but, but in some respects those elements of our national character which have remained the same. But I think there's also, you know, 125 years down the track, Australia is a remarkable country. I mean, this is the best country in the world to live. And it is a huge achievement that has occurred over that period of time. And this really is a very significant moment to be acknowledging this milestone. And behind me, the exhibition buildings, they're a World Heritage listed building. They're the first building in Australia to be put on the World Heritage list and its hosting of that first ceremonial opening of the Parliament 125 years ago today is very much a part of this building's history.

NICHOLSON: And that was a significant moment in Australian democracy. When you look at the pressure that democracy is under across the world, how much, how strong is Australian democracy today? Is it in a stronger or a weaker position than it was back in 1901?

MARLES: Well, I think we have a very strong democracy, but I think that's also a good question, because when you're thinking about those, you know, what's stayed the same and what's changed? An inherent part of our nation has been that we have been democratic from the very first day of the federation. Democracy was strong back then. It is today and it's a critical feature of Australia. You know, we have compulsory voting in this country, so all Australians participate in our democracy. And that actually was instituted very early on in the history of the Federation of our nation. And so that is a distinctly Australian character to our democracy. And I really do think that it adds to the strength of our democracy. I think you're also right, though. When you look around the world today, all of those values are being challenged. And the democracy that we have here is something that we should look upon as being very precious and very special. We should not take it for granted. And it fundamentally underpins the wonderful country that we live in today.

NICHOLSON: Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles, we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you.

ENDS