Sarah Ferguson, Host: Matt Thistlethwaite is the Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration. Matt Thistlethwaite, welcome to 7:30.
Matt Thistlethwaite, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade: Good evening, Sarah.
Ferguson: What's the latest information you have from Nepal?
Assistant Minister: Obviously, our thoughts and sympathies are with the people affected by this terrible tragedy in Nepal. At the moment, we know that at least 35 Australians were touring the area. Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials are working around the clock to verify their whereabouts to try and ensure their safety. We're notifying their next of kin and their family members. Obviously, we're doing our best to locate those people. We offer our sympathies to the members of the Nepalese and Tibetan diasporas here in Australia. And if anyone has any concerns, if they know of loved ones that are in the region that they can't contact, then they should call the hotline number on 1300-555-135 as soon as possible.
Ferguson: And just in relation to those people we understand to be missing, from those numbers that you gave us just now, that's 35 missing Australians. Do you know where they all were when the flash flood hit?
Assistant Minister: Look, those numbers are based on our consultations with the Nepalese tourist board and with DFAT officials on the ground. They were in the region, we don't know exactly where. Obviously, this is the trekking season in Nepal. It's a very popular time for people to visit in the adventure tourism industry. It's also a sacred Hindu site and an area of pilgrimage for people of Hindu faith. So, we're working as quickly as we can, as we possibly can, to verify their whereabouts. All we know at this stage is that those people were in the Rasura region where this tragedy has occurred.
Ferguson: And do you think that there are other Australians not attached to a tour that could possibly also be missing?
Assistant Minister: That could be the case. That's why we know of at least 35. As I said, we're working with the Nepalese authorities. The roads are cut off, unfortunately, at the moment, there's no communication into the region. So, our DFAT staff are working from the Kathmandu post. We have crisis response team individuals who are trained in these circumstances. We've got one of those people on the ground in Kathmandu and another one travelling to the region as we speak. So, we're doing everything we can to provide as much support as possible for those Australians in the region. But if anyone is aware of anyone that's travelled to that area, they may have a loved one or a relative or a friend, then please notify the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the hotline. Or you can visit the Smartraveller website as well.
Ferguson: And has DFAT been able to speak to the tour operators either outside of Nepal or inside the country at this stage?
Assistant Minister: We're trying to make contact with those tour operators. Obviously, this tragedy occurred on Wednesday morning. We'll do our best to get in touch with those tour operators. We work through the information that we have about the people that run those tours, the information that we have about the Australians that are on those tours. Communication is difficult at the moment because the telecommunications infrastructure has been taken out, as has the road network. So, it's quite difficult. But we're doing everything we can to contact people as quickly as possible.
Ferguson: And does DFAT have a reliable assessment at this stage of what the forecast loss of life may be beyond those Australians we've been talking about?
Assistant Minister: It's difficult to estimate that. It's only based on the information that we're receiving from the Nepalese Government. Obviously, a lot more will be released over the coming 24 hours. Australia will work with the Nepalese Government through the United Nations and also through trusted partners in the humanitarian space, like the Red Cross. We stand ready to provide assistance if we're requested by the Nepalese Government. Australia is a great friend of Nepal and we'll do our best to assist with the rescue and recovery, providing expertise associated with that and any humanitarian aid requests that may come through in the coming days.
Ferguson: What are the plans to offer assistance to Nepal?
Assistant Minister: Well, we need to wait and see what the Nepalese Government want. Obviously, at the moment, our priority is to try to verify and contact Australians and make sure that they're safe. That's our number one priority at the moment. But we've also got consular staff that are working with Nepalese authorities to understand what their needs are, their requests are, and we're preparing Australia's support and we'll make announcements early in the morning based on those consultations about what support Australia will provide.
Ferguson: And just in terms of other forms of assistance, are there already preparations being made for the ADF to go to Nepal?
Assistant Minister: Look at this stage, we're working with the ADF to understand how long it would take them to stand up a team to be ready. We need to wait and see what the situation is on the ground there first before we can send in any infrastructure from the Australian Defence Force. We need to know things like whether or not aircraft and helicopters can get into the region to assist. And that will require us working with the Nepalese authorities, their disaster recovery authorities, their government, through our Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade staff on the ground in Kathmandu. But we're ready to assist in any way that we can.
Ferguson: Just a final question on politics at home, on immigration. Tony Burke looked set to cut the refugee intake. That decision has been reversed by the PM. How much disagreement is that internally on how the government is going to reach its targeted figures for net overseas migration?
Assistant Minister: Well, we've been successful in reducing net overseas migration by about 45%. But our targets in the Budget require a further reduction and we're aiming to achieve that. And that's why we're looking at a further policy response. We've confirmed today that the humanitarian intake will remain at 20,000. We increased it from 13,500 to 20,000 when we were elected in 2022.
Ferguson: So, what, so, what's happened here? Clearly this morning, clearly this morning, the report was that Tony Burke had made a decision to cut that number. The refugee groups were expecting it too. Someone made a decision to cancel that decision. I presume that was the Prime Minister?
Assistant Minister: Well, we fund these programs over the Budget forward estimates and we funded the 20,000 figure for four years. That was due to be assessed and renewed in the next Budget. The Prime Minister has made the announcement today that that 20,000 figure will be committed to in the future and funded in future Budgets. There's a cost associated in the Budget to settling someone in Australia. They get access to adult migrant English programs --
Ferguson: We're aware of all of that, my questions are about the change in decision. A decision was made, clearly that decision has now changed. I'm trying to understand why.
Assistant Minister: Well, we've maintained our commitment because we think it's the right thing to do. And we've increased it from 13,500 to 20,000 that will be maintained. We think we've got the balance right there, as well as making sure that we meet our commitments regarding net overseas migration. And that's why there's further deliberations around policy that are occurring in the Cabinet at the moment. And once the Cabinet has finalised those decisions, they'll be announced to the public.
Ferguson: Matt Thistlethwaite, thank you very much indeed for joining us.
Assistant Minister: Thank you, Sarah.