Andrew Clennell, Presenter: Well, joining me live now is the Assistant Tourism and Pacific Island Affairs Minister, Nita Green. Nita Green, thanks for your time. Didn't think I'd be asking you about this this afternoon, but I wanted to ask you about the sad death of Sam Neill. Could I have a reaction from you to that?
Senator Nita Green, Assistant Minister for Pacific Island Affairs: Oh, it's very sad news, and I'm shocked and I'm sure many Australians would be shocked to hear this news. I think because Sam has been such a part of our screens and our living rooms and our memories over so long. And you mentioned him being in lots of blockbusters. He also dedicated his time and his craft to small productions in Australia and New Zealand. And so he will be sorely missed, and I think we, you know, we respect the privacy of the family. I think people will want an opportunity to express, though, how much he's meant to them.
Clennell: Indeed, I wonder if he'll be the subject of a State Funeral, but I won't put you on the spot there. That's not your decision. Now, what's the thinking behind these, I want to move on now to the announcement today, digital passenger cards? How do they work? How will they cut time? What's the advantage of them? They're still another 12 to 18 months away. Is that right?
Green: Yeah, thanks. This is a big announcement from the government today. We've made the decision to, off the back of a pilot that we've been delivering with Qantas in several airports across the country, to roll out across the country and in every single port a digital passenger card. We're going to do away with those pieces of paper that you get handed on the plane and you have to try to find a pen and scribble down, you know, your flight number. We're going to get rid of that system. What we're going to do instead is give people the opportunity to use a digital card. It makes it more seamless for people. There's a lot of countries around the world that are doing this now, and it really improves the visitor experience. They find for visitors coming through our airports it will be a much better entry point for them. And we're thinking for the future. This is something where we're seeking to deliver by the end of 2027, but it's all about getting ready for what will be a huge opportunity for Australian tourism, the Olympic Games in 2032.
Clennell: And is that about the volume of people coming? Or just, is it just consumer friendly? Are you looking for the Olympic Games for this?
Green: Oh, look, it's definitely about the, it's consumer friendly. We've had discussions with the tourism industry for a long time, and they've been calling for this, and I know that they've welcomed this decision today. It's something that I think we see our major competitors in tourism are doing, other countries that are delivering this type of seamless transition when people arrive. So anything that we can do to make the visitor experience better is something that we're keen to do, we want to improve our industry. We know that we attract high yield visitors from high value markets. So we have to be on top of our game, and this is one way that we're going to do it.
Clennell: Are we too strict with the number of questions that are asked when you enter this country? I mean, you go to other countries, you don't get these, you know, 20 odd questions on the form that we have to fill out at the moment.
Green: No, I don't think so, Andrew. I live in regional Queensland. I'm in Tassie today. We've got to take our bio security really seriously. And part of those questions and those tests that we put people through in a really simple way is just to make sure that we have all the information that we need when someone passes through our border. We'll be collecting that information, obviously, through this digital system. It will help us have a more secure bio security system because we'll have more data. And it's something that I think that Australians would be really pleased to hear that this is something that we're doing, not just to improve traveller experience, but to strengthen bio security systems, to make sure that all of the systems work together, as seamlessly as they possibly can through this digital system. You, at the moment, if you travel into Brisbane, Sydney, or Melbourne on a Qantas International flight, you just have to use your Qantas app to do this. It’s been working well, so what we're going to do is roll that out into other airports and we'll have Perth and Adelaide online before the end of the year.
Clennell: Well, I wanted to ask you now as the Assistant Minister for Pacific Island Affairs. How disturbed is the government about the Chinese missile test last week coinciding with the PM's visit to the region? What's the response been from leaders of those countries?
Green: Yeah, look, I mean, we obviously made some strong statements from the Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister, my minister, Pat Conroy, as soon as this missile test occurred, to make it very clear that the Australian government was disappointed with the decision to test this missile in this direction. And we were also very, we also wanted to express how destabilising this is for the Pacific region. But you also saw, in response, not just commentary from our government and our Prime Minister, but very strong statements from Pacific leaders, and our Prime Minister just happened to be in Fiji and with the Solomon Islands Prime Minister at the same time as the media was seeking response to this. And actually their statements, I think, were very strong and indicative of what Pacific countries thought about this decision by the Chinese.
Clennell: Has the government heard from the US administration in terms of the benefits of these agreements with Fiji and PNG recently announced, or is it effectively just doing its own work in the region, and the US isn't as involved as they've previously been in the Pacific?
Green: Well, I'd answer that question in two ways, Andrew. Firstly, we don't necessarily go into diplomatic conversations we have with other countries, that's not how we operate diplomatically, but what I can tell you is that the US are engaged in our region. I visited Honolulu and met with officials from the US government and Pacific leaders earlier in the year. And that was an opportunity to really highlight to the US the work that is being undertaken by our government in the region, but also how the US can assist. They have close relationships with, particularly northern Pacific countries, and so they undertake those relationships, you know, to the best of their national interests. We engage in the Pacific in our national interests, but often I think that those interests are aligned and that's how we work together in the region.
Clennell: And how concerned is the government about the US Iran conflict starting up again? Where do you think the conflict will go from here?
Green: I think what I can say is I think that we've called for the conflict to end and for a ceasefire for since it started. We see the pressures that the conflict is having on particularly, you know, the global economy, but particularly here at home when it comes to fuel prices, fuel security. As I said, I'm in Tasmania today and I've been talking to tourism operators about just the impact that this is having on increase of costs and fuel. So we would like to see an end to this conflict as soon as possible. And we know that the longer the conflict goes on, the more we will see pressure on people's household budgets, on businesses, and we're doing everything that we can to alleviate that pressure while this conflict continues. But unfortunately, we're not a party to the conflict. We would like to see it end as soon as possible.
Clennell: Just finally, we've got ALP National Conference next week in Adelaide, and you're from the left faction. Are you expecting any issues to cause the government any trouble at the conference, such as AUKUS, the nuclear submarine agreement?
Green: Yeah, look, our national conference is a really good opportunity to have robust debates about policy. I think it is still extraordinary that we have this open conference system, and we allow the public to see and the media to come in. I'm sure you might be there next week or some of your colleagues, to observe, they observe the discussions that we have. And that's a very good thing, not just for our grassroots movement, but also for democracy in this country. And I'm not going to preempt what any of those debates might be. I'm not at the centre of those discussions, but I look forward to it because it's always a good opportunity to really have a discussion about the future of the Labor Party, but how we can respond to the needs of all Australians, which is the primary focus of our government.
Clennell: Well, let's see if there are some real fights, I guess us reporters hope for it. I will be there next week with you Nita Green. Thanks very much for your time this afternoon.
Green: We’ll, see you there.