Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with Member for Solomon Luke Gosling

Transcript

Katie Woolf spoke with Member for Solomon Luke Gosling · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: And joining us live in the studio this morning is
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: the Federal member for Solomon, Labour's Member for Solomon, Luke Goslin.
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Good morning to you, Luke.
• 0:06
  Speaker 2: Good morning Katie.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Great to have you in the studio. We know that
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Parliament is back next week. Well, federal parliamentary sittings might
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: look a bit different though, due to some of the
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: lockdowns around the place.
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we'll be back to minimum numbers, but I'm definitely
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: heading down. Even last year I didn't miss a parliamentary sitting,
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: so I just think it's so important that we're actually
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: physically they're representing the territory and there's not going to
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: be many people from New South Wales. So my plan
• 0:33
  Speaker 2: is for Territorians and South Australians and people from the
• 0:37
  Speaker 2: smaller states and we battle to get a look in.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: With so many people from New South Wales, this is
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: our chance to try and get some things done.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: So you reckons slip a few things through for the
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: northern territory while there's not as many people there. I
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: like it. I think that's a good idea.
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: Oh, we'll give it a crack. At least we'll get
• 0:55
  Speaker 2: our points across easier and there's a lot to talk about.
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: It has been really tough, hasn't it though, for so
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: many different sectors. But when you look at those lockdowns
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: and the impact that it's having, it's something that you
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: and I have spoken about on numerous occasions in terms
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: of the quarantining for some of our farm workers and
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: different industries. I know that their ongoing issues. Has there
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: been much movement in that space, not really.
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: I keep hearing that the federal government's going to look
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: at different dedicated quarantine facilities around the country, but it's
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: almost daily we're hearing another hotel quarantine leak that's leading
• 1:35
  Speaker 2: to lockdowns. Are up to twenty eight hotel quarantine leaks now,
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: So I wish that they move on that, and I'll
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: be talking to some of my colleagues about that in
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: the government when I get down to Canberra to get
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: an update on what's happening in that space. But I
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: think there's finally an understanding. I think that a quick, short,
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: sharp lockdown like we did here in the territory and
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: that Victoria's successfully done over the last weeks, is how
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: you nip the virus in the bud and get everyone
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: back to normal. So hopefully that message is starting to
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: be understood by the Prime Minister and the federal government.
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: Well, it is something that's not sort of going away
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: in a hurry. I know that we're all hoping as well. Well,
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: here in the territory we've done a pretty good job
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: I think you'd have to say in terms of the
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: vaccine rollout, But in some of those other states it's
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: been a bit more difficult or there has been concerns.
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: But I guess are the more and more people that
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: are vaccinated, hopefully the more and more we open up
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: around Australia as well.
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, I mean yeah, there's no two ways about it.
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: The federal government stuffed up the vaccine roll out because
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: they didn't order enough vaccines early enough. However, we are
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: where we are, we're all looking forward. One thing the
• 2:41
  Speaker 2: Federal Labour saying is Job Keeper should have always been
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: kept for times when there's significant lockdowns that affect certain industries.
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: And as early as you know, February this year, I
• 2:52
  Speaker 2: was saying, you know, the Tourism ministry needs targeted support
• 2:55
  Speaker 2: for when there's lockdowns because it doesn't just affect New
• 2:58
  Speaker 2: South Wales businesses. When there's a lockdown in Sydney. That's
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: a big chunk of our tourism.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: Well, it's actually a good point that you've raised. It
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: something that was brought up with us a little bit
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: earlier this week by Tourism Central Australia's CEO, Daniel Rochford,
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: and he had said that they're having such a difficult
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: time in Central Australia over the last few weeks with
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: those lockdowns and had raised that point whether there does
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: need to be some more targeted support for some of
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: those businesses, particularly in the likes of Central Australia, but
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: even up here in the top end. I mean, is
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: it something that you and your labor colleagues are talking
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: about on that federal stage and trying to push for
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: even for us here in the territory even though we're
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: not in a lockdown, but those lockdowns still have an impact.
• 3:43
  Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely, businesses that are affected, job keeper should be used, like,
• 3:48
  Speaker 2: not all the time, but when there's a lockdown that
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: affects businesses, job keeper should be used to keep employees
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: connected to the businesses. And what people down south have
• 3:57
  Speaker 2: got to understand is when you've got such a seasonal
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: tourism set up as we have, particularly for the tourism industry,
• 4:04
  Speaker 2: the hospitality industry. A lot of our businesses had fifty
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: percent cancelations when those lockdowns occurred. Now I'm hearing that
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: the Melbournians of Victorians are coming back. They're rebooking to
• 4:15
  Speaker 2: come up to the territory. They're rebooking to go to
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: the Darwen Cup on Monday, which is great news. But
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: there's still that big chunk of New South Wales that
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: is locked out. So we should have job keeper when
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: it's needed until the vaccine rolls out further and we
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: can open up fully.
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: And we are going to be catching up with hospitality
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: ntis Alex Bruce a bit later this morning to find
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: out a bit more about some of those some of
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: the situations with our hospitality businesses. Hopefully we are seeing
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: more of those bookings return. Look, I do want to
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: ask you, I know that well the end of the
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: Australian operations in Afghanistan is quite a bit happening as
• 4:52
  Speaker 1: well with some of our with our veteran the Peak
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: body for our veterans as well here in the territory,
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: talk us through what is going on in this space
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: at the moment.
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: I think a lot of people are thinking back as
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: we've pulled out. In my opinion, we shouldn't have pulled
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: out all our diplomats and all our military advisors. But
• 5:11
  Speaker 2: in any case, after twenty years, we're seeing the end
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: of Australian military operations in Afghanistan and the Afghani nation
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: is going to have a difficult time as the Taliban
• 5:23
  Speaker 2: is resurgent. I've been calling for the federal government to
• 5:26
  Speaker 2: do the right thing by the interpreters and other staff
• 5:29
  Speaker 2: that saved Australian lives over there the Afghanis. Some of
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: them have been given visas to come back. There's more
• 5:35
  Speaker 2: still that are under daily threat from the Taliban, so
• 5:40
  Speaker 2: we need to be doing the right thing there. But
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: we also need to remember that the majority of veterans,
• 5:48
  Speaker 2: overwhelming majority of veterans did an incredibly great job over
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: there and have come back and have just transitioned back
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: into society, and I think coming up after twenty years,
• 5:58
  Speaker 2: it's an opportunity for us to recognize the great workout
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: people did there and also recognize that the best thing
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: a business or an organization can do is employ a veteran.
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: They're really passionate, dedicated, disciplined, people. So part of that
• 6:12
  Speaker 2: twenty year celebration is we're going to have a big
• 6:14
  Speaker 2: concert up here by the end of the year with
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: veteran bands. It's called Rock for Reflection and Remembrance Tour.
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: It's a national tour and it's going to come here
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: to Darwin, probably to the Darwen Entertainment Center and that'll
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: be and it's going to include a veteran art exhibition
• 6:31
  Speaker 2: and it's going to be a really good opportunity for
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: our veteran community to get together and by no means
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: celebrate Afghanistan, but just to commemorate the lives lost like
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: our own Scottie Palmer, and just think about moving forward
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: into the future. And the Royal Commission's going to help
• 6:47
  Speaker 2: with that.
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I reckon there'll be plenty of territories will be
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: very keen to find out more about that. Is there
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: just very quickly? Is there much movement when it comes
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: to that Royal Commission into veteran suicide at this point
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: in time, you and I have spoken about this on
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: so many cases. He see much of an update.
• 7:01
  Speaker 2: When I get down to Camber next week, I'll be
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: meeting with the new Veterans Affairs Minister I think it's
• 7:06
  Speaker 2: the six to one that the current government have had.
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: But I'm really hoping that he will get a little
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: bit more engaged in the Royal Commission and make sure
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: that it starts as quickly as possible, and that we
• 7:19
  Speaker 2: get the recommendations then as quickly as possible, and obviously
• 7:22
  Speaker 2: the implementation. We all know that a Royal Commission's only
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: as good as the will and the determination of the
• 7:28
  Speaker 2: Government of the day to implement those recommendations. So I'll
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: be talking to him about that in Canberra next week.
• 7:34
  Speaker 2: Here locally, in some great news, there's a new organization
• 7:37
  Speaker 2: that's been formed as sort of a peak body for
• 7:40
  Speaker 2: veterans organizations in the Northern Territory called Council of Australian
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: Veterans NT. They'll be launching on the eleventh of September
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: this year, which is really significant because it is the
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: end of that twenty years in Afghanistan and it's a
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: good time for us to get together and as a
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: veterans and defense community, coordinate our efforts and work together
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: as a team to do the best thing by our
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: veterans and their families.
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: Well, remember, for Solomon Luke Gosling always good to catch
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: up with you. We are going to have to leave
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: it there. We'll catch up with you again soon. Let
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: us know if anything happens in Parliament next week that
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: territory and should be aware of.
• 8:13
  Speaker 2: If there's a bit of a takeover down there, Cardio,
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: I'll let you know.
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: Good on you, Thank you.