Bandt says Australia should cancel Aukus payments and leave pact
Bandt says Australia should reconsider its relationship with the US and particularly the Aukus pact.
It is being led by a very dangerous man, and we should get out of Aukus. Now is not the time to be hitching Australia’s wagon to Donald Trump. It puts Australia at risk, and it is billions of dollars that is being spent on submarines that might never arrive, even the United States Congress has said that they’re not building the submarines at the rate that is needed to in order to abide by the Aukus agreement.
Bandt says that Aukus commits Australia to serving as “an attack force of the United States” and that any assumption the Trump administration is committed to standing with Australia if there was a security threat is a mistake.
Thinking that Donald Trump will ride to our rescue if there’s any security threat, is now absolutely wishful thinking.
Key events
Bandt is asked about a proposal by the Greens to “Dutton-proof” certain policies by legislating policies to lock them in and ensure they are delivered regardless of the outcome of the election.
These include a promise to reduce student debt by a fifth, and triple the bulk billing incentive. Bandt says Greens would like to see dental and mental health get into medicare and more affordable homes built.
Asked about internal politics within the Greens – the suspension of Queensland Greens co-founder Drew Hutton over social media posts in 2022 that were allegedly transphobic – Bandt says internal party process within the Queensland Greens are being followed.
There’s a process that is going through. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on that.
There is no need to continue delivering gas to people’s homes, Bandt says.
Because gas is as dirty as coal and we’ve just seen communities smashed by a cyclone. We’ve got people still dealing with the aftermath of floods. And we know these extreme weather events are being fuelled by coal and gas. Now, we should be having a discussion at the moment about how to take real climate action and stop opening coal and gas mines.
The Australian government could use publicly owned electricity generators and retailers such as Snowy Hydro to offer power at cost to households and businesses, Bandt says.
I think a surplus mentality, understanding that we have got an enormous amount of sun and wind and if we back it up with storage, we could really drive down the cost of electricity in this country, and make it a place that you bring your businesses to from overseas, deliver cheap electricity from households. A mind shift is needed and the Government could play a big role in that given its stake in a publicly owned generator.
Asked about AEMO saying 26 new gas plants are needed by 2050 to support renewables, Bandt says: “There’s plenty of gas in the system at the moment.”
We need to fast track the build of renewables and also of storage.
On whether Australia should commit to a peacekeeping force in Ukraine, Bandt says his party would prefer “not to be putting troops in harm’s way” but left the door open for his support.
But look, we have to wait to see – is there a peace? What is the agreement? What is the request that is being made? There are things that could be done right now, though. The ABC reported a couple of weeks ago that Australia is still the largest buyer of Russian oil. And it’s meant to be sanctions imposed.
Bandt said the Greens would support more sanctions on Russian oil which is something Australia “could do right now”.
Asked about whether Australia should close Pine Gap, Bandt says his “priority right now is Aukus” given that Australia has already been paying the US and UK to rebuild their shipyards.
The Prime Minister and the Government just gave Donald Trump the best part of $1 billion in the last couple of weeks for submarines that may never arrive. And what’s happened in return? We have tariffs imposed on us and now the threat of more.
That is something that we could concretely do right now, instead of spending hundreds of billions of dollars on submarines that may never arrive.
Pressed on the possibility of increased defence spending if Australia were to walk away from the US alliance, Bandt says the money currently being spent on nuclear submarines could be reprioritised, including to other parts of the defence force.
We have costed the AUKUS contributions. It’s over the near-term, the next decade. We’re looking at $70 billion being spent on it. Now, reallocating that would go a long way to ensuring that Australia has a fit for purpose Defence Force.
Bandt says Australia should cancel Aukus payments and leave pact
Bandt says Australia should reconsider its relationship with the US and particularly the Aukus pact.
It is being led by a very dangerous man, and we should get out of Aukus. Now is not the time to be hitching Australia’s wagon to Donald Trump. It puts Australia at risk, and it is billions of dollars that is being spent on submarines that might never arrive, even the United States Congress has said that they’re not building the submarines at the rate that is needed to in order to abide by the Aukus agreement.
Bandt says that Aukus commits Australia to serving as “an attack force of the United States” and that any assumption the Trump administration is committed to standing with Australia if there was a security threat is a mistake.
Thinking that Donald Trump will ride to our rescue if there’s any security threat, is now absolutely wishful thinking.
‘We need to rethink our relationship’ with US, Bandt says
Retaliatory tariffs are not the answer to Donald Trump’s tariffs right now, the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, says, adding that it is “clear” Trump will not be giving Australia special treatment.
I think that Donald Trump is dangerous. Donald Trump is a threat to peace. Is a threat to democracy. And he’s a threat to Australia as well. And Donald Trump right now is attacking marginalised communities at home and delivering for billionaires and abroad he’s attacking allies and ripping up long-standing arrangements. Now, this should be a wake-up call for Australia that we need to rethink our relationship with the United States.
Bandt says he believes more tariffs are on the way, and that “it is clear that Donald Trump does not have regard to longstanding arrangements with other countries”:
I think that there’s strength in numbers at the moment. Donald Trump is doing this to other countries around the world, and economically, we should be exploring, diversifying our relationship with those other countries who are also on the receiving end of Trump’s actions.
But in terms of a lasting arrangement now for the future, it has to be much more based on what’s in Australia’s interest rather than hoping that Donald Trump will ride to rescue or somehow give us special treatment. It’s clear that he won’t.
Boots on the ground in Ukraine matter for Europe: Coalition deputy leader
Deputy Liberal Leader Sussan Ley has poured cold water on the suggestion a Coalition government would commit Australian troops to a peacekeeping force in Ukraine.
Speaking to Sky News on Sunday morning, Ley said the Coalition “will always stand with Ukraine against the illegal and immoral invasion” by Russia, but flagged that Australia’s support has limits.
We think, though, that when it comes to boots on the ground, this is a matter better handled by Europe.
Ley said that “when it comes to Ukraine, it’s what you deliver that counts”.
Sydney to swelter through Sunday before cold front brings relief
Sydney has been staring down the barrel of its hottest March day as it swelters through a weekend heatwave but a cold front sweeping through southern Australia is expected to bring relief later on Sunday.
A hot air mass settled across south-east Australia on Saturday, bringing temperatures as high as 44C in Ceduna, South Australia and above 42C in other parts of the state.
Victoria peaked at above 40C, with the mercury reaching 35C in Melbourne. Further north, temperatures spiked to around 39C in Western Sydney, with a very warm night developing.
The Bureau of Meteorology says there’s more hot whether in store until the fever breaks with senior meteorology Jonathan How says New South Wales can expect to see maximum temperatures of between 6c and 12c above average.
That means we will see temperatures soaring into the mid-to-high 30s inland, even pushing 40C through western parts of the state.
We’ll see temperatures reaching the mid-to-high 30s, including the Illawarra, the Hunter and in Sydney, the temperature will reach 37C in the city and 37C-to-38C in Western Sydney.
How also warned of increased fire risk across New South Wales, South Australia and parts of Victoria.
Australia willing to consider joining peacekeeping effort in Ukraine
Anthony Albanese has told European allies that Australian would consider contributing to a future peacekeeping effort in Ukraine.
The PM spoke to the UK prime minister Keir Starmer and other European leaders overnight where he committed Australia to a “coalition of the willing” that would continue to provide support to Ukraine as it seeks to defend itself against Russia.
Albanese described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as “imperialistic” and said Australia would continue to stand with Ukraine “for as long as it takes”.
It is the right thing to do and it is in Australia’s national interest. Because what happens in the Euro-Atlantic has serious implications for our region – the Indo-Pacific – and vice versa.
This is a struggle not just for the people of Ukraine and their national sovereignty. This is a struggle for the international rule of law.
President Putin’s regime has imperialist designs, for Ukraine and beyond.
The PM said Australia has already committed $1.5bn to help Ukraine defend itself, including $1.3bn in military support including equipment and training.
The “coalition of the willing” is a throwback to the collection of companies that George Bush organised to facilitate the invasion of Iraq.
The Greens leader, Adam Bandt, will speak to ABC insiders host David Speers on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the minister for trade and tourism, Don Farrell, has been doing the rounds on Sky News this morning, with the Coalition’s Sussan Ley following on his heels.
We will bring you the latest as it happens.
Good morning
Royce Kurmelovs
And welcome to another Sunday morning Guardian live blog.
Anthony Albanese has told the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, that Australia will consider joining a future peacekeeping effort in Ukraine as part of a “coalition of the willing”. Albanese made the pledge in a virtual meeting overnight where he reiterated Australia’s support for Ukraine in its defence against Russia.
Sydney is braced for a very hot day with gusty winds after a warm evening but the Bureau of Meteorology says a cool change is on the way. A cold front has swept through South Australia and parts of Victoria overnight, and is expected to bring relief through the Sydney area later on Sunday.
I’m Royce Kurmelovs and I’ll be taking the blog through the day.
With that, let’s get started …