Television Interview, NEWS24 News Day

SUBJECTS: Submarine Rotational Force-West; AUKUS; Luke Gosling; Victorian Government; Suburban Rail Loop; Private Health Insurance; Garma; Australian Broadcasting Corporation

TRUDY MCINTOSH, HOST: Joining me live now from Geelong is the Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles. Richard, good to see you. Explain to our viewers why shouldn't Luke Gosling be stood aside whilst this matter is before the court?

RICHARD MARLES, ACTING PRIME MINISTER: Well, nice to talk to you, Trudy. Look, Luke Gosling has obviously denied these allegations. There is a presumption of innocence in this country and from there this is now a matter which is going to play out in the courts and so it's difficult to comment on it as we need to allow this process to play out. But there's a presumption of innocence in Australia and we just need to let this now play out in the courts.

MCINTOSH: Could this be a distraction, though, Richard, from his ability to do that role in the community?

MARLES: Well, I mean, I, I think Luke is a very effective representative of the people of Darwin as the member for Solomon. He's done a great job as our Special Envoy for Defence. We just need to let this process play out now and obviously we can't comment on it because it is before the courts. Luke continues to do his job.

MCINTOSH: Have you been able to speak to him, Richard, in the last 24 hours?

MARLES: Yeah, I've spoken with Luke. I had a chat with him last night and, you know, he's keen to be there for the people of Solomon. Luke's focus is on them, as it has always been throughout the entire time that I've known Luke as a representative of the people of Solomon, and none of that has changed.

MCINTOSH: I wanted to get your reaction to this other breaking news we've had today. Hamas has confirmed to the news agency AFP that it has agreed to the disarmament agreement announced by President Trump. How can we, though, trust that Hamas as a terror group, will stick to its word?

MARLES: Well, firstly, that comment is right. I mean, Hamas has been an appalling organisation over a long period of time and we have condemned Hamas for the various actions that it has taken. And most significantly, of course, on October 7, we've been calling for a long time for the de-escalation of conflict in the Middle East. I mean, we need to allow peace to be able to reign and for there to be an opportunity for humanitarian efforts to take effect and, you know, to be there to support those who have experienced the horrors of conflict and war over the last few years. So, anything which involves a de-escalation is clearly to be welcomed. I mean, clearly we need to watch this play out and we will watch it very carefully. We are cautiously optimistic is perhaps the way I would put it in terms of hearing this news as it's been breaking over the last few hours. But you know, we've seen a lot of news break over the last few years in respect to the Middle East and we've all ridden the ups and downs of that. What we need to ultimately see though is a de-escalation of hostilities and an enduring peace in the Middle East.

MCINTOSH: I wanted to ask you about the AUKUS submarine pact. There's been confusion sparked this week by your Defence Industry Minister, Pat Conroy, about whether the US presence at the moment in HMAS Stirling is going to come to an end in the early 2030s. He said that in a TV interview three times earlier in the week. Now he's released a statement saying that no, it's enduring. As Defence Minister, which is it? It can't be both.

MARLES: Well, the Submarine Rotational Force-West at HMAS Stirling is intended to be an enduring feature of America's force posture in Australia and it is underpinned by very strong sovereign -

MCINTOSH: So, did he get it wrong the other day?

MARLES: Well, Luke [Pat] has, as you said, has put out a statement which is consistent with what I've just said and this has been the position of the government from the outset and it's underpinned by very strong sovereignty arrangements that we have in relation to how the Submarine Rotational Force-West will operate, as we have in respect of all of America's force posture in the Australian continent, be it the joint facilities including Pine Gap or the Marine Rotation Darwin. I mean, all of these are underpinned by sovereignty arrangements which provide Australia with full knowledge and concurrence. And for what it's worth, that's not just applicable to the United States, it's in respect of any country that operates in Australia and there are others who do so, such as Singapore. But the Submarine Rotational Force-West is intended to be an enduring feature of that American force posture in Australia and it's a really important part of the AUKUS framework. It will enable us to establish our own capability in terms of operating our own sovereign fleet of nuclear-powered submarines more quickly and to have much greater capability in relation to that. And that is to start at the end of next year, the Submarine Rotational Force-West, and we're on target for that and we're very much looking forward to that commencing.

MCINTOSH: Well, it's good to get that clarification. There's a lot to get through today. There's a lot on your plate in your home state of Victoria. We've seen a big shift this week with the new premier in Ben Carroll. He's promised as his first act this royal commission into the big build corruption. Are you able to guarantee today that the Federal Government will cooperate entirely with that state royal commission?

MARLES: Oh, we will obviously cooperate with Victoria and we'd cooperate with royal commissions. I mean that's an absolute given and I mean clearly this is a matter for the new premier and the Carroll government as to how to progress this and we very much respect that. But of course we cooperate with state governments and we cooperate with royal commissions.

MCINTOSH: The other big question I suppose at the moment in the state is about the future of these big build projects. The main one being talked about is the suburban rail loop. In your view, should the funding be paused or redirected to other projects?

MARLES: Well, we'll work with the Carroll government as we worked with the Allan government to deliver infrastructure for the people of Victoria. I mean, what we saw under the former federal coalition government was Victoria really effectively being starved of infrastructure funding. We've turned that around under the Albanese Labor government in significantly supporting Victoria's infrastructure needs. And we've very much enjoyed the relationship we've had since we've been in government with the Andrews government, the Allan government and now the Carroll government. And we'll work with Ben and his government about the priorities that they have in relation to the state's infrastructure needs. But our focus is on making sure that Victoria gets its fair share and that as a Commonwealth partner in terms of the delivery of this infrastructure, we're the best partner that the Victorians could -

MCINTOSH: Is the Suburban Rail Loop value for money though, for taxpayers, in your view?

MARLES: Well, we've been supporting the Suburban Rail Loop and it is going to transform the means by which people are engaging in their commuting, well, across Melbourne, particularly in the eastern suburbs. But there's elements of the Suburban Rail Loop right across Melbourne, and so it is a really important project – and that's why we were partnering with the Allan government in respect of it. But we'll work with the Carroll government around its priorities in terms of infrastructure. But we come to this from the perspective of wanting to make sure that Victoria gets its share because under the former federal coalition government it did not. And that's our starting point. And you know, we work with the, the state government in respect of its priorities, as we have up until this point.

MCINTOSH: On another matter, there's growing pushback today to Labor's decision to scrap the private health rebate for the over-65s. There's pushback from some of the states, including a Labor state government in New South Wales. The industry as well is sceptical of the forecast that only 40,000 people will ditch their cover. They think that's going to be a lot more in terms of older Australians, are you willing to revisit this?

MARLES: Well, I mean, firstly, that, you know, what we've seen in the media this morning is modelling that's come out of the insurers. I mean, we are confident that this will be a marginal impact on private health insurance for this cohort. But, you know, the money that is being saved here is being reinvested into aged care. We have an ageing population. It's really important that we have the investments required so that people who are receiving at-home packages get the care that they need and that there are the beds available in aged care facilities for an ageing population. And that does mean that hard decisions need to be taken. This is one of them. But we feel that this will have a marginal impact based on the modelling that we've undertaken in respect of private health insurance. But the money that is recovered here is really important in terms of being able to reinvest into aged care services in the context of an ageing population. And that's our focus.

MCINTOSH: I wanted to ask you, you're acting Prime Minister. Anthony Albanese is on leave at the moment. This very weekend, the Garma festival is being held in the Top End. Anthony Albanese had promised that he would attend every year that he was Prime Minister, but he’s not doing so this time around. Why is he breaking that promise to Indigenous leaders?

MARLES: Well, I mean, firstly, the Prime Minister is entitled to have leave and actually it's really important, I think, that the Prime Minister has leave. But he's, as both the Leader of the Opposition and as Prime Minister, attended Garma, every Garma since 2019. And it is a really important event. It's one of the most significant celebrations of Indigenous culture and Indigenous Australians in the country. And we are going to be well represented there -

MCINTOSH: - he must have known it was going to be on this weekend far enough in advance? Is this a signal at all and a shift in the government's approach to Indigenous policy?

MARLES: It is absolutely none of that. What it is a reflection of the fact that the Prime Minister has a packed calendar, as one can understand. And it's important, given that he's a human being, that he has some moment to recover and to have a break. And I can tell you that, my advice to the Prime Minister, since he's been the leader of the Labor Party and I have been his deputy, is that he should be taking more time off rather than less. By and large, that's advice he does not take. So, this is actually a rare moment that he is taking a break, and I think it's important that he does that. And there's always a significant event and so nothing should be read into it in that regard. The government's going to be well represented at Garma with Senator Penny Wong, our leader in the Senate, and of course, Malarndirri McCarthy, the Minister for Indigenous Australians. We see this as a really important celebration of Indigenous Australians and Indigenous culture and the government will be well represented at it.

MCINTOSH: A final one, Richard. The ABC has aired this segment that depicted a fictional assault on Gina Rinehart. Yesterday, the creator of that content apologised. While the matter is being referred to the Ombudsman. I suppose the question that still remains here is: Can the ABC issue an apology to bring this matter to a close? That's what Gina Rinehart and her company are calling for.

MARLES: Yeah, well, look, firstly, I haven't seen this vision or this video, so I want to make that clear. But certainly, as it's been described to me, you know, from my perspective, this sounds completely unacceptable and I'd want to make that clear. That the ABC has referred this to the Ombudsman is a good step. Obviously it has editorial independence. But I think it is appropriate that this has been referred to the Ombudsman. And all I can say from my perspective is as it's been described to me and as I've been advised about this video, this sounds entirely unacceptable.

MCINTOSH: And something that would be pretty easy, you'd imagine, to have a quick apology - if the creator themselves apologised, Richard?

MARLES: Well, I mean, you've made that observation in relation to the creators. As I say, as it's been described to me, this sounds like it's completely unacceptable. This matter appropriately has been referred to the Ombudsman.

MCINTOSH: Acting Prime Minister Richard Marles. Always great to see you. Thank you.

ENDS