ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Good morning everyone. I am absolutely delighted to be joined here by Professor Richard Scolyer and Gail O'Brien, and today I am pleased to announce that my Government will build on Professor Richards Scolyer's contribution to brain cancer research and advocacy. We will invest $5.9 million to establish the Richard Scolyer Chair in Brain Cancer Research at Chris O'Brien Lifehouse in Sydney. The Chris O'Brien Lifehouse is an amazing world-class facility named in honour of another extraordinary Australian who made such an incredible contribution. This investment will support a number of research positions, including a professorial chair as well as postdoctoral fellows, research assistants, and PhD scholarships along with research costs. It will be done in partnership with the University of Sydney and the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. Professor Richard Scolyer is an extraordinary Australian and it has been an honour for me to get to know Richard over the past couple of years since his very fine choice as Australian of the Year.
For so many Australians, his story has resonated so deeply. Professor Scolyer is a renowned pathologist, a melanoma researcher who has made remarkable contributions to Australian medical research, particularly in the field of melanoma and skin cancer as Australian of the Year in 2024, along with his research partner, Professor Georgina Long. Professor Scolyer represents the very best of this country. Skill, tenacity and courage are embodied in this fine Australian, inspiring so many Australians through his own cancer journey after being diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer in 2023. In the face of that, he's carried on his work, his advocacy and his leadership. The courage he has shown is an inspiration to all of us. Whether he had met him, worked with him, or seen his story on TV, Professor Scolyer was the first in the world to receive an experimental treatment approach, adapted from his own melanoma immunotherapy research, becoming both a patient and a research subject. He has received treatment at the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse.
Today's announcement means Australia can continue to stay at the forefront of the fight against cancer. We can continue to train the world's best researchers and we can continue this important work. Professor Scolyer, thank you for what you do. Thank you for getting to know each other. We had a chat about this last week and this is a legacy of Professor Scolyer that will be there for a long period of time at the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse. That makes such an enormous difference. I've been there both to look at it as someone whose electorate is very close to RPA, but also fortunately, but unfortunately as well. I guess as someone who has had friends who've been there and I've seen firsthand the incredible difference that Lifehouse makes to people going through difficult times, including my former chief of staff, Kris Cruden, who sadly passed away a few years ago. This is an important announcement. This is just the next part of Richard's contribution to this country as a great Australian, and I'd ask him to make some comments. I'll ask Gail O'Brien to make some comments. Happy to take questions about this and then happy to take other questions as well. Professor?
PROFESSOR RICHARD SCOLYER, AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR: Well, thank you very much, Mr Prime Minister. Australia does have problems with cancer, particularly brain cancer. It's the commonest cancer causing death in less-than-40-year-olds in Australia. So, we need to do more about it if we're going to improve outcomes and basically it's, at present, an incurable disease. I think back and think about our work in melanoma, and we have changed outcomes in that disease. For people with stage four advanced melanoma, its survival was the same as brain cancer fifteen years ago. But now through great discoveries that we've made here in Australia with colleagues overseas, it's now about 60 per cent for stage four disease. So, we've got to try and push things forward in brain cancer. As I say, more people die of brain cancer than die of melanoma, and we know that as one of Australia's national cancers. Chris O'Brien was someone who had a big impact on my career growing up. He mentored me, we researched together, we did a lot of things, and then for him to get brain cancer when I was an up-and-coming doctor in the field and the mentorship he gave me impacted my life. And him, to end up getting brain cancer and passing away from it, and then to follow in his footsteps many years down the track has been, well, heartbreaking. But for me also, an opportunity to try and work with some great people to push the field forward and see if we can improve outcomes in brain cancer, like we have in many other cancers. Thank you.
GAIL O’BRIEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CHRIS O’BRIEN LIFEHOUSE: Thank Prime Minister. Thank you, Richard. Well, it's a great pleasure and an honour to be able to speak a little bit today here. Richard and his beautiful wife, Katie and I became really quite close friends last April when we decided, what can we do to leverage off your illness, as you have done with Chris, as Chris did, to do good for people. And so we talked about a chair in brain cancer associated with Sydney University and Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, which is a powerhouse in medicine. But a chair has to be located at a particular hospital, so, at the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse. So, that's how it has originated. I was insistent it needed to be called the Professor Richard Scolyer Chair. He has been resistant to that, but we might have to do it behind his back. So, thank you very much for attending, Prime Minister and Health Minister. I'm very grateful for this day. Thank you.
PRIME MINISTER: Thanks so much, Gail. Questions about this issue.
JOURNALIST: How does it work?
MARK BUTLER, MINISTER FOR HEALTH: So, it's so terrific to have Gail O'Brien here, because the Lifehouse will be partnering with the Commonwealth in this chair, as will the RPA through the state government, local hospital district, and also Sydney University. In that way, we can ensure that this is an ongoing chair at the Lifehouse named in Richard's honour.
PRIME MINISTER: When Richard and I first discussed this not that long ago, he spoke about payments over four years. We decided that it was more suitable to do an upfront. That gives the certainty and the capital, which then enables you to establish the human and physical infrastructure that will be needed.
JOURNALIST: Where do you see this falling alongside other joint cancer commitments with the New South Wales government? Is this something that they're also contributing to?
PRIME MINISTER: This is a national initiative that we're making in partnership with the University of Sydney and RPA, which of course will then bring in, through RPA, brings in the state government through the area health service.
JOURNALIST: Professor Scolyer, if you're comfortable, a lot of Australians would really like to know how you're going at the moment.
SCOLYER: Well, to be honest, it's a tough journey up and down and I had a great period after I was initially diagnosed and could enjoy life. I've had a few recurrences of the tumour, and I guess as an end point, and who knows how far it is away, but we're definitely getting closer.
JOURNALIST: Professor Scolyer, how does it feel to have this as part of your legacy?
SCOLYER: Legacy? Well, it's not what I was aiming to do. I want to make a difference for people and I've dedicated my life to doing that, particularly in adulthood when I became a doctor and that's what I want to see. But my name to it or not, it's not where the difference happens. It's through learning how to do things, being surrounded by the right team of people who know how to organise themselves to address things and get the right answers as best you can and that steers you in the direction you need to go. We're not going to talk about brain cancer today, but it's something that you know, I obviously know a fair bit about. And some of the challenges that are there that we couldn't address fifteen years ago, but we potentially can address them much better way now – so, I sincerely hope that's what happens over the next few years.
PRIME MINISTER: It really does say something about the humility of this extraordinary gentleman next to me that as late as – just inside in my office there, he was still saying it shouldn't really be named after me.
JOURNALIST: Professor Scolyer and perhaps to Gail O'Brien as well, I just wanted to know whether or not you think enough is being done to help people in regional areas access treatment? One of the biggest issues for people in the regions who have these kinds of cancers – does more need to be done?
O’BRIEN: Thank you, Anna. Look, Chris O'Brien Lifehouse is really trying to establish our regional – we have twelve regional centres already. Nothing brain cancer specific, although we do go and outreach in these twelve regional centres and I'm really glad you raised that point because it's something I'd like to talk to government about.
SCOLYER: And you need expertise to address things, and in some ways you can't spread it out everywhere. You've got to concentrate things in certain areas to get the best thing. But yeah, it all depends on what the disease is and what the questions are that you're trying to fix up.
PRIME MINISTER: Anything more on this? Thank you, Professor and Gail.
JOURNALIST: Just on some comments in relation to immigration by Sussan Ley, she says that our current levels of immigration are affecting our way of life. Do you agree with that premise?
PRIME MINISTER: It's a very broad statement. Immigration has played a role in this country over a long period of time, and with the exception of First Nations people, we're all either migrants or descendants of migrants in this country.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, just reminded, talking about legacy, one of the things that you've spoken about a lot – and your ministers – is repairing Australia's relationship with China. If our relationship's in a much better place than it was, how come Dan Andrews is the most senior representative at the events today in China and we're sending fairly junior diplomats to it?
PRIME MINISTER: We're sending a diplomat. We'll be there. The last time around, ten years ago, Minister Ronaldson, my understanding is, was the appointment.
JOURNALIST: What do you think of Dan Andrews joining a line of people greeting President Xi at this parade, which includes Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un. Do you like that Dan Andrews and Bob Carr are there?
PRIME MINISTER: He's not meeting them. As I said the last time around ten years ago, Minister Ronaldson was the Government's representative.
JOURNALIST: I guess, just on that, why is there no more senior Australian official going? And just on a separate matter, the JSCEM inquiry is looking at fixed four-year terms and having the Parliament reflect the size of the population. What are your thoughts on those two proposals?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I support fixed four-year terms, always have. Referendums are pretty hard to carry in this country and opportunism kicks in. And unless you have bipartisan support, then it's not going to be supported. Most state and territory governments, of course, have four-year terms. I think most of them have fixed four year terms, with the exception of Tasmania that seems to have annual elections.
JOURNALIST: Would you seek bipartisanship as Sussan Ley to try and advance it?
PRIME MINISTER: I have no intention of any referendums this term. Peter Dutton raised that last term. I made clear my Government's position. But we support it. If people want to go out there and advocate and build support for it, that would be a sensible thing.
JOURNALIST: The Pacific Islands Forum next week, how do you feel about Taiwan's exclusion and are you concerned that China will skirt the rules that have been imposed on dialogue partners this year because it has a large embassy on the Solomon Islands?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, we supported the status quo in which you had representatives from a range of places, including from Taiwan, from the United States, from China. We didn't support a change to it. But we recognise the Solomon Islands is a sovereign nation and they've made that decision.
JOURNALIST: So, you want it to go back to the original arrangements?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I confirmed we supported the previous arrangements. That's what we have historically done, and I think that engagement by partners was something that had operated for some time and we didn't propose any change. The Pacific Islands family have to very much – and this will be a theme, though, look after our own interests and that means Australia of course, being a security partner of choice in this region.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, a joint parliamentary committee on the NDIS this morning revealed plans to send members to Europe if that was to be approved. Do you support that decision? Do you accept that there is an issue with perception if we are doing reforms for the NDIS at the same time that parliamentarians are going to Europe?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the committee put forward a proposal and that won't be proceeded with.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, on the FOI bill, it does make it harder to access freedom of information documents. Does this break your promise for a more transparent and accountable government?
PRIME MINISTER: Not at all, it's the opposite. I stood here last week – I want to make this point. I stood here last week and spoke about a national security issue, including the expulsion of an ambassador, the first since the Second World War, since the Japanese ambassador was expelled during World War II. I think most people, and people that I've had discussions with, would find it surprising that people can put in anonymous FOI requests. What that means is that there's no way to determine whether a foreign agent or actor is putting in requests about information that are sensitive and no way of ascertaining that. I think most Australians, and I know some of – without giving up people in the gallery, I know that there are people in the gallery I spoke with this morning who weren't aware – I dunno if you were aware that you can put in an FOI request anonymously. I've got to say I was somewhat surprised by that. And the obvious implications of security, for example, are there for all to see.
JOURNALIST: Will you be raising Iran at the UN? You're recognising Palestine. Will you be raising the Iran situation?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh look, I'm concentrating on the Pacific Islands Forum at the moment, next week.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, speaking of the Pacific Islands. When will the public be able to know more about the MOU that your Government has signed within the Nauruan government?
PRIME MINISTER: We have arrangements with governments. We have arrangements between governments and those arrangements are ones that we enter into across the board.
JOURNALIST: I understand there's been some negotiation across the aisle in the Senate, and I believe this might be happening at the moment, about some amendments for the Aged Care Bill. Are you able to give us any update on those negotiations and do you think there's a case to be able to open up more home care places now as the industry and advocates for older Australians have been asking?
PRIME MINISTER: I'll tell you what, there's a case to be made, and I'll ask the minister to back this up. There's a case to be made for aged care reform, which is why we did it. The biggest reform this century is what we announced and are delivering. We inherited a system that was summarised in the Royal Commission with one word in its interim report: neglect. And since that, since we came to office, the reform that we have done – to make sure aged care workers were paid properly, putting a nurse in aged care residences 99 per cent of the time, better food, better care across the board – has been substantial. And we're continuing to get on with reform after what was a period of just one of the areas of mess that we inherited in 2022.
BUTLER: Thank you, Prime Minister. Just adding to that, I don't think there was an area of policy during the first term of our Government where we invested more than in aged care, because there was so much to do really quickly. There was a lost decade there where there should have been a rolling process of reform to get the system ready for the big spike in demand that we always knew was coming from the ageing of the baby boomer generation. We compressed a decade of reform into three short years. I know that put a lot of pressure on the providers sector, on advocacy groups, but there was frankly no alternative. We delivered more packages in the '23 Budget, in the '24 Budget in the '24 MYEFO and in this year's Budget as well. We have to get this legislation through this week. Of course, there have been discussions across the aisle. The substantive bill, which passed before Christmas to their credit, was the subject of negotiation and ultimately agreement between the Government and the Coalition. Because I think they recognised then that aged care reform is best underpinned by agreement between the two parties of government. So, of course there are discussions going on. We are committed to getting this bill through over the course of the next couple of days.
JOURNALIST: Do these discussions include a willingness to release more packages?
BUTLER: Well, I'm not going to go into the content of those discussions.
JOURNALIST: Thanks, Prime Minister. Just back on what's happening in Beijing, a lot of people are watching the leaders of China, of India, North Korea, Russia together, and wondering about this apparent strategic shift in power in the world and what it means for countries like Australia. Is this a product of what Donald Trump has done, his approach to global affairs? Is this a natural shift in power away from the United States as a unipolar giant in the world?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the United States is our most important partner. I make that point. And I look forward to discussions with President Trump for the discussions. My job as the Australian Prime Minister is to stand up for Australia's national interest. That's what I continue to do. I engage diplomatically across the board and I look forward to continuing to participate this month. It's going to be a busy month, beginning with the Pacific Island Forum next week in our neighbourhood. The relationships that we have, whether it be that or the week after – Papua New Guinea's 50th anniversary will be a very significant event. Australia, of course, played such an important role in that. For Prime Minister Marape, I know, is very much looking forward to the visit. We'll have some significant announcements attached to that commemorative day. I look forward to it.
Thanks very much.