Prime Minister, thanks for your time. As Trudy just mentioned, there some congressional figures, senior figures, MAGA Senator Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz. They're sounding positive about a social media ban, potentially in the United States. That must have surprised you, did it?
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Well, this is a global issue, Kieran, and no matter where you are in the world, parents are talking about the impact of social media on their kids and the social harm that is being caused. So, we as a sovereign nation have taken this decisive step, this leadership, as a direct result of the advocacy of parents who'd lost a young son or daughter who've shown incredible courage to come here to Parliament House and advocate so that other parents won't have to go through the loss of a child.
GILBERT: The MAGA Republican senators, though, you know, speaking positively about it, that I guess would surprise some in the sort of political debate. It must be encouraging to you, given the warning had been that the US might push back?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, this isn't an issue of ideology, of course. And to give credit where credit's due, as I did yesterday, Peter Dutton was very supportive of this reform. Yeah, there'll be bumps in the road. I've just been to a school here in Canberra, John Paul II College. And their students, of course, have some mixed views. It's hard for the 13, 14 and 15 year olds who will lose access to accounts that they've been used to using. That will require a transition. It will require discussion between parents and their sons and daughters, between teachers and students. But I tell you what, Kieran, this is one of those reforms that will transform the way that our society functions. Because if you're a younger child, if you're, you know, 10 years old today, you won't lose anything. You won't have that expectation. You will grow up with a transition occurring, which is back to, how about we get kids playing sport, learning an instrument, reading a book, engaging with each other one on one? Learning those social skills that come from real human interaction. I've been asked about social isolation and will this exacerbate? I can't think of anything more isolating than a 13 or 14 year old in their bedroom with the door shut, going through their device, not knowing who it is. Is it someone who potentially is a predator they're engaging with? We know that has occurred, grooming online. All of these issues are very real. Now we have a responsibility as a society to keep our young Australians safe.
GILBERT: And you praise the News Corp campaign, Let Them Be Kids, and the other media campaigns on this. And they've obviously had a big impact, I think, in terms of societal expectation and acceptance of this move. But we're seeing already doubts and people getting around it here and there. Does that undermine it from the get-go?
PRIME MINISTER: No, it doesn't. And there were always going to be. Just like this Saturday night, I predict, Kieran, that somewhere in Australia, a young person under the age of 18 will get a beer in a pub. But society sets these rules down. This is the law. This isn't something that can be flouted. One of the things that's happening is that some young people who haven't yet been pulled off social media are sending out notices. Are bragging about it. Of course, that just tells the platforms who they are, and so it will be taken down. We have - the eSafety Commissioner, has written to all of the platforms, the ten today, asking how many people were on the platform on the 9th of December, how many are there today. And we'll ask that that be updated each and every month so we can keep a record as this occurs. But we always said this would not be perfect. And it won't be. But let's not allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good. This is a good change. If it was easy, Kieran, someone else would have done it.
GILBERT: And I know on another matter, it came from that initial event in New York, but it sort of flowed into other questions now on travel expenses. And Sarah Hanson-Young, the Greens Senator, her partner husband flying nearly 80 times on the taxpayer. $50,000 expenditure. He works as a lobbyist. Is some of this stuff concerning to you? Should it be re, should it be looked at? Should there be a review of that given - is that a breach of the family reunion idea, given her husband works in Canberra?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, of course, these issues are of genuine concern to the taxpaying public, but we have an independent authority. I'm going to allow them to do their job. The Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority, of course, was set up in the wake of Sussan Ley's resignation for flights to the Gold Coast, which involved purchasing a property. So, we have an independent authority. I want them to be able to do their job. Anika Wells has referred herself to the Authority. They'll examine that, and no doubt we'll come up with recommendations or findings. That's up to them to act independently. My focus -
GILBERT: Would you like them to look at a few of the other things, too? Because if you're hearing family reunion and someone's actually working here and getting taxpayer support to fly, should they be looking at a few of these other matters?
PRIME MINISTER: Look, my focus this week, Kieran, has been very much on what is one of the most important reforms that my government or any government will do. I did yesterday interviews with Japanese TV, CNN, which is why I assume it's got a bit of a run in the United States, the BBC. The world is watching us. My focus is very much on this and doing my job as Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: Look, my focus this week, Kieran, has been very much on what is one of the most important reforms that my government or any government will do. I did yesterday interviews with Japanese TV, CNN, which is why I assume it's got a bit of a run in the United States, the BBC, the world is watching us. My focus is very much on this and doing my job as Prime Minister.
GILBERT: On your job as Prime Minister, as we look to the new year, the alliance is obviously a massive focus for Australia in a security sense. We have AUSMIN this week. Can you give us any sense of your thinking on the alliance heading into 2026? Not a lot of attention yet, but Australia playing the United States in the Football World Cup-
PRIME MINISTER: Indeed.
GILBERT: Will you seek to try and use that as a means to get there and meet up with Donald Trump again?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we'll wait and see, but certainly I'll have meetings with President Trump next year. The United States is hosting the G20 next year, for example. There'll be a range of business. I've been to the United States three times since the election. They are our great friends and allies and the relationship is in great shape - AUKUS is full steam ahead. And just today we've had confirmation of the AUKUS Defence Ministers of the UK, of the United States. Hegseth, Healey and Marles have all met, have said it's on track, it's on time and this is going to be -
GILBERT: Is there anything in that review that you're concerned about that they're asking us to do?
PRIME MINISTER: Look, the big picture is that it's full steam ahead. I'm not worried about any of the little micro issues where there may well be differences, but we are very much focused on the big picture, which is getting on with it and the timetable's going very well.
GILBERT: Give us a sense of what the micro issues are.
PRIME MINISTER: There'll be, well, it's a review which is the United States review. It's not up to me to comment on their details. But suffice to say as the President said in the meeting with myself there at the White House - full steam ahead.
GILBERT: Have you spoken to him since we were in Korea and you sat next to him at that dinner?
PRIME MINISTER: We had a fantastic dinner. I've received well wishes and I look forward to continuing to engage with President Trump and with members of his administration. It's a good relationship.
GILBERT: Well wishes on the -
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we've received a whole range of things on a private basis. I do keep private things private, as you know, Kieran.
GILBERT: Fair enough. And on the US waiver, visa waiver, were you surprised that they're now going to require Australians to provide their social media for the last five years? There are some people who will just say, I won't go to America.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, they're a sovereign nation, they're entitled to make their own rules. What we'll do is advise travellers to the United States of what those rules are so that Australians are fully cognisant of the obligations that are being imposed on them by the United States. But we respect their sovereignty, just as we expect our right to make decisions such as the social media ban and other decisions that we've made.
GILBERT: As we look to the new year, childcare, universal childcare, is something you've said is a goal of yours. Can I ask you, a universal scheme being proposed at the time, and I know Deloitte's doing work on it now, is it a fair thing to be looking at that now, given that we're still struggling as a nation to pay for the last universal scheme, which is still growing unsustainably in the NDIS?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what we're doing, Kieran, is making sure that this year be the year of delivery. And I must say that just in the last month we had the aged care reforms kick in on November 1. We had a really important figure has just come out this week, which is the result of our tripling of the Bulk Billing Incentive for Medicare GP visits so people can go see the doctor for free. Now, in October there were 7 million free visits, in November there were 11 million. What that tells us is that that is working. I was at the opening of a Medicare Urgent Care Clinic this morning as well. We have our First Home Buyer Scheme being taken up by more than 20,000, particularly young people getting into their first home with just a 5 per cent deposit.
GILBERT: But the budget's under pressure, isn't it? Would you need to go hard on that, be bold?
PRIME MINISTER: The budget is always under pressure and you'll see some further savings in MYEFO. We constantly look at that. The ERC is constantly meeting, making sure -
GILBERT: You know, people say you need to be bold, though. Your 94 seats, be bold on reform. Fix the budget.
PRIME MINISTER: I'll tell you what, what we have got -
GILBERT: Are you willing to do that?
PRIME MINISTER: This is the day after we have world leading reform. That's what boldness looks like. The aged care reforms are the biggest reforms this century, making a difference.
GILBERT: Expensive as well.
PRIME MINISTER: But making a difference to older Australians, the issue is reform when it comes to aged care. There, of course, we change some of the payments that are being made. We've made fiscal decisions as well across a range of areas, some of which are difficult decisions. We changed deeming rates, for example. We did the energy bill rebates concluded, as we said they would at the end of this year. We're making difficult decisions, but we're also -
GILBERT: The public service, are you going to rein in the spending there?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we're doing that as well. And we've written through to public servants about all of the departments are undergoing that. We will make sure that we address the issue of inflation. But today's figures on unemployment maintaining the same position of 4.3 is good news. In terms of the relatively low unemployment. We had a good growth figure as well. We want to make sure we continue to put that downward pressure on inflation.
GILBERT: And that's from government expenditure too.
PRIME MINISTER: Our budget will reflect that. We'll continue to look at the bigger picture, but we have been absolutely determined to deliver on the commitments that we asked Australians to vote for on May 3rd. In the lead up to the budget next year, we'll give the full sweep. The job of reform is never done. So, economic policy, social policy, we got through our environmental reforms, the biggest reforms this century, to the environmental laws of this country that are so important, that will be good for business but also good for the environment.
GILBERT: You've been very generous with your time with Sky News and with me, as you are, always. I just want to finish, if I can, on a social cohesion question, because we have many viewers of the Jewish community in Australia that watch Sky News. And I know more broadly than that, there's been fears about the issue of social cohesion and the antisemitism that's erupted in the last few years. Is this a big focus for you heading into 2026, to try and get some equilibrium and to make sure that kids going to school, whether it be Jewish, Christian, whatever, that they feel safe?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, absolutely. And we have a great multicultural country. We have the three parts of our history, really. The fact that we share this continent with the oldest continuous culture on earth is a great privilege. Then we have our British experience of the colonies that became the Federation and in recent, more recent times, of course, in the post war period in particular, but going back further than that, of course, migration, people who've come to Australia to make a better life for themselves and for their children and grandchildren to come. Now, it is important that Australia continue to be defined as we are overwhelmingly, by harmony and by being enriched by the diversity of our cultures. People who live side by side, whether they be Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist or of no faith, is really important. It lifts us up as a nation. Now we need to cherish that. There has been a rise in antisemitism. We need to make sure that we address those issues, and my government will continue to do that. We need to continue to address Islamophobia wherever we see it, wherever we see any discrimination against any group, and particularly a targeting of groups. We have seen a rise of neo-Nazis. That is just, I mean, quite shocking. You know, you and I have been around a while. The idea that 20 years ago, if you had said to me that people would openly, without masks or anything, be dressed in black outside Parliament House in Victoria or in New South Wales, is quite shocking. We need to address that. There's a range of things that are contributing to that. Social media is one of it. People think they can say whatever they like anonymously online. Some of the hate which is being propagated as well. But I'm optimistic. I think overwhelmingly Australians want to get on. And can I say that just now, 12 days into my marriage with Jodie, the well wishes that I received from everyone from the archbishops of various, of Peter Comensoli and Anthony Fisher in Melbourne and Sydney respectively, from the Adass Synagogue in Melbourne, of course, who went through that horrific attack on them. The well wishes that I've received from the Sheikh Shady, the Chief of the Imams Council. You know, just said to me just how much this country really is such a privilege to live in now. We need to cherish it, not take it for granted, make sure that we continue to reach out. I'm very hopeful that we can continue to do that because, you know, when you go overseas and when you look at what's happening in the world, a land war in Europe that's continuing, ongoing conflict in the Middle East, the conflict in Africa, that is quite horrific. There's nowhere you'd rather be than Australia. And Christmas is a time, of course, for Christians to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ and to reaffirm their faith. But for all Australians, it's a time to take a, take a bit of a step down, relax a little bit. People will be watching the cricket over in Adelaide and then Melbourne and Sydney and, you know, enjoying time with their family and friends. For those who don't have that, of course, it's also a time where volunteers at places like Exodus Foundation, where I'll be on the morning on Christmas Day, we'll be feeding not just people who are in need, some people are in need of just friendship, and are lonely at this time.
GILBERT: Well, we wish you and Jodie and Nathan a very Merry Christmas, and thank you for being on Sky News once again and throughout the year. Appreciate it.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks very much, Kieran. And to you and yours. I know you're taking a bit of a break after this week. I wish you all the very best and hopefully we can catch up informally here in Canberra. It's a nice time to be in Canberra, I found over Christmas, because the place really does slow down.
GILBERT: It's very quiet.
PRIME MINISTER: Everyone seems to go to the coast.
GILBERT: There's no beach in Canberra, that's right. We'll talk to you soon. Appreciate it.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks very much.
