Interview on The Project

HOST: We’re now joined by a man who knows about asylum seeker policies, the United Nations and being the most powerful man in the country. Please welcome Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. Great to see you. We will get to the UN in a second. You’ve got yourself a new job. Congratulations.KEVIN RUDD: I’ve, since last year, been in the United States, maintaining this 12,000 mile principle, which is while I’m out of politics I should be out of sight as well. This most recent thing on sanitation water, which I’m doing as well.HOST: So a global Kenny with the sanitation and the water.HOST: I thought you would come up with something like that. (LAUGHTER)HOST: I want a yes or no.KEVIN RUDD: Do you think could get away with the word dunny?HOST: You could work it in there somewhere.KEVIN RUDD: I’m not sure how it would translate actually, I’m just thinking of it in Chinese.HOST: What is it? Have a stab. Have a stab.KEVIN RUDD: No. I don’t want to lose 1.4 billion supporters.HOST:  Do you feel responsibility for some of the criticism that’s been levelled at our treatment of asylum seekers?KEVIN RUDD: Let me say to start with, and I won’t avoid your question, l’ll come straight back to it – that the important thing is that Australia has got broad enough shoulders to accept these reports when they come along. There was a day a decade or so ago that we would deny access to UN rapporteurs coming here to look at the conditions in detention centres and all the rest. Second is, if you look at the actual nature of the criticisms, they go to mandatory detention, including mandatory detention of children. I do not support that. Okay? Certainly in government we did not support that.HOST:  What about offshore detention processes? You take some responsibility for the criticism of that?KEVIN RUDD: I think that our approach to that is the only rational approach given our geographical circumstances in the world. But with this big caveat – that when a boat comes to Australia, it should not be in the business of turning it back on the high seas. When a boat comes, Christmas Island, whatever, you then should transfer people, as I agreed in 2013, with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, to take them to a centre in Papua New Guinea or elsewhere within the Pacific in the case of Nauru, for quick, temporary processing, whereby, if they their refugee status is established, well and good. If it’s not and they are not bona fide refugees, then they are sent back.HOST:  Have you noticed we have a new PM?KEVIN RUDD: Yes.HOST: Are you across that?KEVIN RUDD: Tony… ?HOST: No, that was last week.KEVIN RUDD: Tony Turnbull. Tony Turnbull. You can read the news abroad, too.HOST: How’s he doing do you think?KEVIN RUDD: Malcolm? Well objectively speaking I think he’s had a good start.HOST:  What about Tony, did you have any sympathy for him? Did you contact him?KEVIN RUDD: No I didn’t contact him but yes, I talked about with that with my family that night. When you encounter a very public personal political and political loss, look, everyone is a human being. So therefore you do feel for people under those circumstances. But as we know, it’s a rough and tumble business. Mind you, Malcolm’s got his own challenges. He has to deal with the lunar right of his party, and there are serious nut jobs there, we all know that.  Just as, you know, when I was Prime Minister and Bill today has got to deal with a whole bunch of factional thugs from certain trade unions who make life difficult for you. We all have our problems.HOST:  Now that you’re not Prime Minister, do you think you can use the term “nut job” on television?KEVIN RUDD: Did I not use “nut job” before?HOST:  It’s one that you may not have used in your term. Or terms.KEVIN RUDD: Some of those people on the lunar right, it’s actually a pretty generous term in the case of some.HOST:  Waleed Ali is across all the social issues. You’re an ex-PM and he’s not here. He’s at the GQ Awards walking the red carpet. What do you say about that?KEVIN RUDD: I’m cut.HOST:  We have to take a break. Before we go, can we all thank Kevin Rudd.