Sarah Ferguson, Host: Foreign Minister Penny Wong is acting Prime Minister this week. She joins me live from Canberra, Foreign Minister, welcome to 7.30
Penny Wong, Foreign Minister: Good to be with you.
Ferguson: I just mentioned earlier in the program that the number of people missing overall has gone up very sharply today. What is the hope and expectation of still finding survivors first?
Foreign Minister: I think the package that you just played for us all was devastating and it gives us a sense of the scale of this crisis and the extent of the devastation. We've been working around the clock to get information to seek to confirm the whereabouts of Australians and to support the crisis response, including through humanitarian assistance. As you said in your opening, in excess of 4,000 people are missing – that number continues to grow and some 900 people have been confirmed dead. We have 43 Australians, we are urgently seeking to ascertain their whereabouts. What I would say is we do hold grave concerns for their safety, but we are determined to do everything we can to try and ascertain their whereabouts.
Ferguson: And how difficult is it for you and your department to get information from those different places where the flood struck?
Foreign Minister: First, I want to say the Nepali government has been extremely helpful to all foreign nationals and I spoke to my counterpart, the Foreign Minister, I think it was on Friday night, and expressed my appreciation for that engagement. We've also been engaging with the Chinese authorities. Obviously, the situation in Nepal is devastating, and the recovery effort and the search effort are very difficult. We have difficult terrain, we have the extent of devastation that your footage demonstrated, and of course, so many people who have lost their lives as a consequence of this. So, this is a very difficult situation. We've deployed additional personnel into Nepal. We've provided additional humanitarian assistance and I was interested, I think you showed one of the workers talking about kits, hygiene kits and other shelter and solar lights. These are some of the things that we will be providing in a RAAF aircraft, which will be departing tomorrow morning.
Ferguson: And just on one of the specifics, we understood from the initial reporting that a number of Australians were in that position on the border where the disaster first struck. Have you been able to get any information from that area?
Foreign Minister: What we have been able to ascertain is nine of the 43 were on the Chinese side of the border - the information from the Chinese is that they had crossed over. What we don't have as yet confirmed from any authorities is any information about the 43 in total. They were the group that had already passed over the border but there were at least three tour groups that have been reported in the media, and in addition to that, there were travellers who are not associated with any particular tour.
Ferguson: So, this lack of information, of course, is excruciating for the families here and includes some people who are travelling to Nepal. What can you do for the families who are struggling to find any information about their loved ones?
Foreign Minister: I first want to again express what I have been expressing to the families and friends of the 43 Australians who are not accounted for, that this is such a difficult time. It's incredibly distressing, a traumatic time. And I think all Australians are with you and certainly we are with you. We are working to do whatever we can and to provide any information we obtain. It is obviously in the context of that many people missing, the thousands missing. It is difficult to get information, information is not available, but we will continue to work to do that and our heart goes out to the families and friends of those who are not accounted for.
Ferguson: And in terms of what remains of the time available in the rescue operation, is there enough equipment reaching these heavily damaged, devastated areas?
Foreign Minister: First in relation to search and rescue, because a number of people have spoken to us about that, I have offered that personally to the Nepali authorities. They're not seeking assistance with that, they've actually deployed some 20,000 people on search and rescue in terrain which obviously they are familiar with, and it is very difficult terrain. The support we are providing, which is the humanitarian assistance, and in addition the kits and other solar lights that we are providing, that have been requested, these are in accordance with the requests that the Nepali Government has made. I would say in what has been a really sad time, the fact that Australians themselves have donated, when I was last advised, some $2 million since this occurred, on an appeal that we said we would match funding, I announced it, I think it was on Friday, the Emergency Action Alliance, people have gone to that website, they have made their own donations, and so we have now matched the additional monies that Australians put in but I do want to say to your viewers, if you have donated, we thank you for that and I'm sure the people of Nepal thank you too.
Ferguson: Is there more Australian aid going in over the next couple of days?
Foreign Minister: There is, we've had two tranches. It's $8 million so far. And in addition, as I said after discussions with the Nepali authorities, we are deploying an RAAF aircraft to deliver these kits which we have, which are designed to support people in circumstances where natural disasters essentially destroy infrastructure and their shelter. So, whether it's shelter kits, as I said, lights, hygiene kits - these are the things which are needed for those people who are facing the devastation of their homes and their communities.
Ferguson: This is a deeply complicated time, at the same time, we've also got the Pacific Islands Forum taking place – a number of leaders have cancelled their attendance. Did China play a role in encouraging or influencing those leaders not to attend the Pacific Islands Forum?
Foreign Minister: Leaders, countries, will make their own decisions about their delegation and who leads them. From Australia's perspective, we think the Pacific Islands Forum leaders have got it right when they said that this forum matters, that it enables decisions to be made for the Pacific by the Pacific and in a time of regional contest and competition, and we know we live in that, having a strong regional organisation and regional decision making is one of the ways in which that asymmetry of power between great powers and smaller powers can be navigated.
Ferguson: At the same time, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters says it's logical that foreign interference played a role. Has he got that wrong?
Foreign Minister: Winston can speak for Winston. Penny will speak for Penny, and I have said previously, we do live in an era of permanent contest in the Pacific. We understand that and the way Australia is dealing with it is by being a responsive, respectful partner that respects and supports Pacific priorities.
Ferguson: Let me ask you a question as Acting Prime Minister, the actual Prime Minister and the Treasurer both argued at the weekend that One Nation doesn't understand working people. But the thumping win for One Nation in Secret Harbour suggests they do and the Labor Party doesn't, what do you take from such a major loss?
Foreign Minister: Obviously, this is a very disappointing result in a state by-election and I know WA Labor will be, and we all are, disappointed by this result. I think what we do know is people are doing it tough. We know that many Australians believe the status quo is not delivering sufficiently for them. And so I think we in the Labor Government understand that and that we have to make sure we do deal with some of the very pressing cost-of-living issues that people are talking about and are experiencing and so that's why you've seen tax cuts, that's why you've seen our investment in Medicare and in childcare and in schools, and why you've seen the tax changes that we've made in all of that.
Ferguson: And yet, Penny Wong, none of those things made a difference in influencing people's vote in the by-election. At the weekend, they knew all those things. You had a long run-up to this by-election. It was expected for a considerable length of time. Why did Labor perform so poorly?
Foreign Minister: Obviously, we didn't run that campaign. It's a campaign that is run by Western Australian Labor --
Ferguson: Did they run a poor campaign? Is that what you're saying?
Foreign Minister: No, you're asking me about a campaign and I'm just saying to you, but I think the more important issue, I accept that there is a message sent in this by-election for us. I accept that and I think we understand that, we understand the importance of delivering real change, and as someone who sits in the Senate with Pauline Hanson, what I would say to you is there's a lot of anger and a lot of complaint, but really very few solutions.
Ferguson: Penny Wong, thank you for joining us and covering that very wide range of issues. I appreciate it.
Foreign Minister: Good to be with you.