Senator Nampijinpa Price appears on the first episode of The Jury, Sky News with Danica De Giorgio

4 February 2024, 8pm AEDT

Subjects: Should Albanese be a one term Prime Minister?

Danica De Giorgio
… telling us he was a man of his word, Albo backflipped big. He sold us a total pop at the federal election. The PM is in freefall, and it's reflected in the polls from the divisive Voice referendum to his government's lack of action on the cost-of-living crisis. How can voters trust him again?

So, our first question for the jury, “Is Albanese a one term Prime Minister?”

Joining me now is Shadow Indigenous Affairs Minister Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Labor Councillor Linda Scott, great to see you both, thank you so much for joining us this evening. Jacinta, we'll start with you. Six months ago, nobody thought we would probably be having this conversation, it just felt like the honeymoon for Anthony Albanese was never ending, he was popular in the polls. Then came the Voice referendum and after that the polls were sliding. Do you think it was the Voice referendum that sealed his fate as a one term Prime Minister?

Senator Nampijinpa Price
Well, to be very honest with you Danica, I think the Prime Minister from the outset has demonstrated to the Australian people just how deceitful he can be and how he is unable to lead this nation, and aside from the referendum, it began with his promise to reduce Australians electricity bills by $275. Now the referendum showed us all how he would prefer to lead with ideological ways forward as opposed to common sense ways of supporting, certainly our most marginalized, and dividing our nation along the lines of race. We heard many of the arguments throughout the referendum, but mostly the fact that there were absolutely no details, so Australians were left to determine what exactly the Voice was about. It was not demonstrated with any clarity how it was supposed to improve the lives of our most marginalized and therefore Australians, I believe, looked through the Prime Minister's deception and that is why we have the result that we had with the referendum. And the circumstances certainly have not changed on the ground for our most marginalized going forward. And of course, as you've mentioned, with the current proposed new tax cuts, yes, he's backflipped and he continues to backflip to the Australian people.

Danica De Giorgio
Yeah, and this is the problem now, Linda, is there is a credibility issue, because he's come out and said, “I am a man of my word,” but he backflips on a key election promise. He also made Australians go to the polls in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis to vote on something that they simply weren't interested in. Has this impacted him now moving forward?

Linda Scott
I think that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will proudly run on his record into the next election and that is a record of creating 561,000 new jobs, the fastest growing job record for a government. He's got a great record of $23 billion of cost-of-living relief. And of course, the latest decision to provide every taxpaying Australian with a tax cut is the right decision for this time. I think nobody could accuse the Prime Minister of not making a decision here in the interests of all Australians. And that's what he's done. The real question now is whether Peter Dutton and the opposition will stand in the way of every working Australian getting some form of tax relief.

Danica De Giorgio
Well, I guess it's tax relief, though, the changes, middle Australia will only end up with about $16 extra a week. Given that the cost of petrol has gone up, rentals, the housing market, is that really enough? Why should voters be thanking him?

Linda Scott
Well, voters should be looking at their decision at the next election in light of the record, and I think what we've seen from Prime Minister Albanese is an incredible record of focusing policy area after policy area towards the cost-of-living relief. We're talking about cheaper childcare, we're talking about free TAFE places we're talking about getting real wages moving for the first time in a decade, rent relief, income relief for those on our lowest incomes in Australia. This whole $23 billion package of cost-of-living relief is making a difference and it's doing so and not increasing the pressure on inflation. That's a really economically challenging thing to do. But Anthony Albanese and his government have delivered the right outcome for Australia. It's what we need now.

Danica De Giorgio
I guess Jacinta the big test will now be the Dunkley by election which is coming up in March. Labor should theoretically be quite safe with that seat. It's held on a margin of just over 6%. If Labor retained Dunkley, how will you argue against the changes to the tax cuts?

Senator Nampijinpa Price
Look, I think these decisions are decisions that have made been made on the run by the Prime Minister. You know, we're talking about sort of a short-term solution. If we look forward, Treasury has demonstrated recently through their documents that it will be at a cost of $28 billion in the next 10 years. And somebody has to pay for that. And unfortunately, you know, I have yet to see - and this is supposed to, these tax tax cuts are supposed to take place in July, people are hurting right now because of the cost-of-living. I don't see any immediate relief for the Australian people. When you've got a situation where you have people who are on multiple incomes, who are still seeking support from organizations like the Salvation Army, it's just not working and again, it's another broken promise that's been made to the Australian people. What more are we going to see from this Prime Minister going forward? He just cannot be trusted.

Danica De Giorgio
Alright, let's get the jury to weigh in here. Susan, in the front row. We'll start with you. How are you feeling about Anthony Albanese right now? He was elected a very popular man, he's backflipped on a lot of key policies. Where do you sit with him?

Juror - Susan
Well, I mean, I'm a longtime Labor voter, but I'm a longtime Canberra resident and I basically, most in my lifetime, politicians got caught lying about stuff varied stuff. So, it's like, I'm gonna benefit because like I’m a low income earner, but so to me, he probably could have backflipped worse on another issue, but I can see with this, that he made the decision like, for at this moment, he made that decision. But I to me, like I'm not someone who's going like “he lied he lied he lied!” But I do find generally politicians do get caught that one day they'll say something and then the next day they'll say something else. I

Danica De Giorgio
Well, I hate to be cynical Jacinta, but has Susan got a point there, that's the politician lifestyle?

Senator Nampijinpa Price
Well, look, I mean, there is the fact that there the record of this Prime Minister has continuously backflipped as we saw in the referendum, also the gaslighting of the Australian people when he denied that the Uluru statement from the Heart was, you know, a particular length in terms of it being a document. Or whether he's going to pursue Truth or Treaty going forward and what that means for the Australian people. We're still in the dark on that. He came to Alice Springs this time last year because he was shamed into finally coming as the Prime Minister to see the destruction on our streets. He made a promise of $250 million, it has not made a single difference. And the issues are still the same that we're faced with.

Danica De Giorgio
I would ask another Juror, Tate. How are you feeling about how the Prime Minister is going right now?

Juror - Tate
I mean, the fact is that, you know, Jim and Albo keep sitting there saying that we're delivering a tax cut to everyone, but the truth of the matter is they had to steal from some Australians to give that money to other Australians. So, it's not a tax cut for everyone, he had to redistribute money from people that actually pay a higher amount of tax in general, and actually deserve that money, were relying on that money. Now apparently last year, the referendum was so important, even though it was going to fail because he was a man of his word, but now that word means nothing when there's a by-election in Dunkley, and he gives everyone $20 and wears a pink bucket hat. We're all meant to believe him? So, I think he probably will get another term because history dictates that we will let him, but it certainly won't be on my vote.

Danica De Giorgio
I'd say this is the perception now, Linda that we were talking about, that he has backflips on that promise. And even in Dunkley, even a narrow victory, surely that would be fatal for Anthony Albanese’s leadership moving forward?

Linda Scott
I think we know that governments do struggle in by-elections and Australian voters historically do tend to use them, if they wish, to send a message to the government. So, I actually think that Labor has a hard but possible task in the Dunkley by-election. The job of the government, though, is to listen to the people to make sure that they're doing what's in the public interest. And I think over time as Australians assess the possibilities of having Peter Dutton as their Prime Minister, a return to dysfunction and division and cultural wars. The look favorably on the prospect of having Prime Minister Albanese serve another term because, let's just remember that record, actually cutting under the Abbott government $500 million from remote Indigenous communities, and during Labor's term, opposing income support increases, opposing rises in real wages. These are the things that Australians want their government to be doing. We're yet to see if he'll oppose the tax cuts for all Australians, but these are important things that Australians want to see government delivering.

Danica De Giorgio
Jacinta, I’ll give you the final word on that, realistically, is Peter Dutton the man that's going to take over from Anthony Albanese?

Senator Nampijinpa Price
Well, I think if all the Prime Minister has is to try to compare himself to Peter Dutton, he's got a long way to go before he can convince the Australian people that he can continue. Because his leadership has been abysmal, and certainly in the area that I'm concerned with he has failed to support my call for an inquiry into land councils and statutory authorities, and the spending that goes on for our most marginalized Indigenous Australians, so that we can better support those people. He's failed to actually acknowledge any of those very critical issues.

Danica De Giorgio
Okay. All right. Well, you’ve both had say on the matter. It's time to call on the jury. Jurors, you have 10 seconds to decide, is Albanese a one term Prime Minister?

Okay, time is up Jury. What is your verdict? Okay, there is an overwhelming “Yes.”

So, 11 of you voted “Yes,” one voted “No” an overwhelming vote that they do believe that Anthony Albanese is a one term Prime Minister. I'll just ask you Susan. Why have you kept your vote as “No” ? We spoke to you before, but why do you really believe that Anthony Albanese still has your vote?

Juror - Susan
Because I mean he, well like I’ll always vote for the Labor Party. Like I was saying to people on the Jury, like I have a disability and so I do find my old ideology it suits the Labor Party ideology. So, I'd always vote for the Labor Party. And I still think there's time between now the next election, you don't know what will happen tomorrow. Yeah, and so, but I'd always, I'd always vote Labor.

Danica De Giorgio
Okay, so it hasn't changed your vote then. Bruce, right next to you. You were one who voted overwhelmingly “Yes.” Why?

Juror - Bruce
I think this is the worst government in the in the nation's history. I think Australians are waking up to what life is like under a socialist regime, given the fact that they mess up every single subject area that they touch, in my personal view, Albo’s a dead man walking.

Danica De Giorgio
That's pretty strong words there, “dead man walking,” and you’re adamant?

Juror - Bruce
Absolutely.

Danica De Giorgio
Linda, I’m sorry, how do you feel hearing that?

Linda Scott
Well, look, I respect the jury from Sky News, you know, is going to have a strong view perhaps that is not particularly necessarily representative of the Australian population. I think there's a long time between now and the election. And I think that Prime Minister Albanese and his team will continue to do the right thing by all Australians and make decisions in the public interest and I hope Australians reward that kind of election time. Okay, well,

Danica De Giorgio
Okay, well, it's going to be a big year ahead.  Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Linda Scott, thank you to both of you for joining us this evening.