: Please be upstanding. The Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese. The Budget's out last night. I know Jackie loves nothing but stopping a party to talk about budgets.
JACKIE "O" HENDERSON, HOST: Yeah. Hey, Cyril, you can join us for this chat.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: She sounds so excited.
JACKIE O: Oh I am sorry, Prime Minister, you know how I am with the Budget.
SANDILANDS: Yeah.
JACKIE O: How can we make this exciting this morning for us to talk about?
SANDILANDS: And by the way, Albo, DJ Cyril's here. Great Australian DJ. He was mixing the songs. Cyril, you're going to join the interview as well.
CYRIL RILEY, HOST: Hello, Mr. Prime Minister.
PRIME MINISTER: That was pretty good. A bit of stumbling in there.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, I love it. Albo, I know you used to be a DJ and Cyril's like the new Albo. Would you say you're the new Albo, Cyril? Or something different?
RILEY: Vote for me 2026.
PRIME MINISTER: No election in 2026, I hate to tell you.
JACKIE O: The life of a DJ.
RILEY: That's how much I know about politics.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, the levels DJs operate on.
PRIME MINISTER: Stick to your night job.
SANDILANDS: Now you're sitting there, you got your calculator out, post it notes everywhere, no doubt. The Budget's been handed down. Jackie was worried that she might just drift off to sleep because budgets aren't fun. But they're a necessity of life, right?
PRIME MINISTER: They matter. They matter. And our Budget is about helping family budgets when it's needed, so the top-up of the tax cuts.
SANDILANDS. So, Jackie's out, she's got no family left.
JACKIE O: I have a fractured family.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, me too, sadly.
PRIME MINISTER: No, no, everyone, everyone benefits from a tax cut for every single taxpayer, some $2,500 a year once fully in place, now, the top up of our tax cuts.
SANDILANDS: That's fantastic. I'm going to put my $2,500 on the bar today for all the staff here. Just so you know, my tax cut is going back into the economy there immediately.
PRIME MINISTER: Good on you, Kyle. That'll make them happy. Make sure it's after the show though, not before.
SANDILANDS: Oh, yes. Now the last thing I want to do is get dragged up in front of the government tribunal for carrying on. That's the last thing I like. So, what else is there?
PRIME MINISTER: We are a responsible Government -
SANDILANDS: Tax cuts for everyone. What are your highlights? What is everyone talking about with you today? The other medias?
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, the big thing has been Medicare, what we've done there in tripling the bulk billing incentive so that more Australians can see a doctor for free. We estimate this will bring up bulk billing - that is people going to the doctor just needing their Medicare card - up to 90 per cent of times. Opening more Medicare Urgent Care Clinics will make a difference. Where you are in your studio there, pretty close to there, there'll be one in the Chatswood area to make a difference as well. And that has been a huge success. The schools funding. We finally have better and fairer public schools funding so that every child will be funded to the extent needed so that they can create better opportunities in life. So, $16.5 billion dollars of additional Federal funding over 10 years. Additional money from state and territory governments. This was talked about 15 years ago. Now we're actually delivering it to make a difference. Cheaper Medicines down to $25 bucks for medicines of the Pharmaceutical benefits Scheme.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, that's great. Oh, by the way, Prime Minister, I was on the phone yesterday to my doctor, had to give him my Medicare card to get the update for the weed script. Is that, is that, is that covered at all? For us that are suffering and we can only smoke the weed because we're very sick people and the only thing that makes us happy is the weed? Is that - do we get any benefits there?
PRIME MINISTER: That's not on the PBS, I've got to say, Kyle.
SANDILANDS: Damn it. I miss out again. It's all right. Now, maybe, maybe I'll get it - if I get a house in Canberra, I can grow seven of my own trees. I might do that, yeah.
PRIME MINISTER: Canberra has different rules. It's a different place, our national capital.
SANDILANDS: It's like Amsterdam really, isn't it? So, okay, so saving money on scripts.
JACKIE O: Our medical system here, in this country -
SANDILANDS: Best in the world.
JACKIE O: You know, it's so amazing. Like, even when people, like, I turned 50 recently, and then in the mail comes the bowel screening test, and you -
SANDILANDS: That makes you feel sexy, doesn't it?
JACKIE O: It feels very unsexy. But I will say, how great is that you know, you care.
PRIME MINISTER: It saves lives.
JACKIE O: It saves lives, and I think that's to be commended.
PRIME MINISTER: And you know what? Early intervention like that not only saves lives, it saves money. So, you get that early detection when it comes to healthcare. That's why tripling the bulk billing incentive, getting people to see their GP is so important for free, because your local GP is someone who'll pick up on an issue. And if you need more tests, go and get that. But early intervention, if people can't afford to see a doctor, and the last time government went to the Coalition, they ripped $50 billion out of the health system, $30 billion out of the education system. The only thing that Peter Dutton doesn't want to cut is your taxes -
SANDILANDS: What'd they do with all that money that they ripped out of all those systems? Where'd they spend that?
PRIME MINISTER: Goodness knows what they spent it on, but they didn't spend it on your listeners, let me tell you. Because it just wasn't a priority. And so what we had was 10 years of deficits under them. We've halved the deficit this year of what we inherited after we produced two budget surpluses in a row. So, we're being responsible economic managers, but at the same time we've created the space to have this investment in education and health. And making more things here in Australia is something we need to do as well.
SANDILANDS: Oh, yeah, you know, that's what I wanted to bring up. I wanted to bring up that Australian thing because, you know, obviously my interests are very different than the average Australian. But luxury car tax, now that was put on years ago to keep manufacturing of cars in Australia. Now we don't manufacture any cars in Australia. Why are we still paying the luxury car tax when we've got no option but to buy cars from overseas?
PRIME MINISTER: I've got to say, Kyle, we had a range of priorities leading up to the Budget. One wasn't cutting the luxury car tax. Our priority was cutting taxes for people on those low and middle income earners.
JACKIE O: Yeah, but overall, overall, why do we have the tax there now? Like, what is the point of having that if it's not to -?
SANDILANDS: Well, once it's there, it's there. It's one of those situations, isn't it?
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, you've got, to take it away you then have to work out what you're balancing that up with. So, budgets are about priorities. Our priority has been helping people who are doing it tough, making sure that we provide that cost of living relief. Free TAFE, making an enormous difference now. I've been to the TAFE there at Meadowbank and other places, people are getting their apprenticeships for free. Whether it be carpentry, electricians, whether it be the care economy, people doing nursing and doing aged care. All of that is making difference. 600,000 Australians have benefited from Free TAFE already and we're going to make it permanent.
JACKIE O: How good is TAFE? I love TAFE.
SANDILANDS: Cyril, the DJ, the internationally renowned DJ Cyril, do you have any questions for the Prime Minister that only relates to your industry, Cyril?
RILEY: Not really, to be honest.
SANDILANDS: Okay.
RILEY: I'm going to be honest, I'm sort of chilling here looking at the beautiful Sydney Harbour Bridge.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I'll tell you one of the things we need to do, Cyril - and watch this space - is more support as well for music festivals that have really declined in recent years.
JACKIE O: Yes.
PRIME MINISTER: And we'll have more to say about that, as well. But we think that the art sector is really important. Our quality of life is about the economy and our standard of living, what's in our pocket, but it's also about -
SANDILANDS: And pill testing as well. Pill testing at those festivals, free pill testing -
RILEY: Selling pills.
SANDILANDS: Well, no, no, not allowed to sell pills. That's side hustle.
RILEY: Sorry about that.
SANDILANDS: Sorry. Prime Minister, what do you think of that?
PRIME MINISTER: That saves lives. And the New South Wales Government are doing their trial and I think that's a good thing.
RILEY: Yes, I like the 24 hour thing in Sydney. The 24 hour -
SANDILANDS: The 24 hour party all day, all night thing?
RILEY: Yeah, yeah, that's happening.
PRIME MINISTER: Oh, absolutely. Chris Minns is bringing the fun back to New South Wales.
SANDILANDS: I knew he would. He's a handsome chappie, that Chris Minns and a very good Premier.
JACKIE O: Oh, yeah, it helps, doesn't it, when they're like, they look like that.
PRIME MINISTER: He's doing a cracking job.
BROOKLYN ROSS, HOST: Can I ask you a question, Prime Minister, on Chris Minns?
SANDILANDS: Okay. Yep - that's Brooklyn by the way.
ROSS: Because Chris Minns in New South Wales is trying to get all the state public servants back into the office. But you, Prime Minister, are saying that Peter Dutton's plan to get the federal public servants back into the office is too far. So, who's right? You or Chris Minns?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, what we need is flexible workplaces, and the truth is that productivity -
SANDILANDS: And yeah, everyone's doing pilates and stuff like that.
PRIME MINISTER: Productivity can benefit from the fact that -
ROSS: So, you're right, you're right and Chris Minns is wrong?
SANDILANDS: No, they're half - they're both half right and they're both half wrong.
PRIME MINISTER: No, well, what I'm about is making sure that for working parents in particular, if you have Mum and Dad working, then those flexible arrangements can make an incredible difference to the economy and make sure that workforce participation is up. And one of the things we've seen in recent years is people moving to regional communities, enjoying the quality of life that come from living in Coffs Harbour, or living in a smaller area.
SANDILANDS: There's no quality of life in those places, let me tell you. I've lived in all of them. They're all terrible. There's nothing to do.
PRIME MINISTER: No, a lot of people - lot of people like it. You look at towns like Orange and Mudgee are growing -
SANDILANDS: Yeah, if you're the manager of KFC Coffs Harbour, you're killing it. I get it. I get it. You're right. It is a beautiful area. The regional areas, I've lived in them all.
PRIME MINISTER: You can work with the National Broadband Network being rolled out with fibre everywhere, that will make a difference.
SANDILANDS: Should we get that or should we do - or should we just get Starlink? Should we roll all those cables out or should we just get old Musk over there? To bring Starlink over, what's better for the long term?
PRIME MINISTER: You need to make sure that we aren't dependent upon anything else, that we're more resilient here in Australia. And the key to that is a fibre based National Broadband Network.
JACKIE O: That's fair enough.
SANDILANDS: Hang on. Lachy, Lachy. Out of everyone here, you remember Lachy from Beauty and the Geek? Obviously you didn't watch that, Prime Minister. You've got many better things to do. Lachy was all over that?
PRIME MINISTER: I didn't watch that, I've got to say. I missed that one.
SANDILANDS: It's rubbish. It was a geek got with a hottie. It was unrealistic. It was almost fiction. So, Lachy, you were on your socials last night going on -
PRIME MINISTER: Is that the one that Sophie was in?
JACKIE O: Yes. Yes.
SANDILANDS: No, that's Love Island.
JACKIE O: No, Sophie hosted Beauty and the Geek.
SANDILANDS: Oh, did she? I never watched that.
JACKIE O: Yeah. Yeah.
PRIME MINISTER: See I'm all over it.
JACKIE O: You're more up on it than what Kyle is.
PRIME MINISTER: She's a good mate of mine, she's such good fun.
JACKIE O: When did you to hang out? I don't know about this.
PRIME MINISTER: We've hung out. She's a mate of Jodie's. Both good Coasties.
JACKIE O: Yeah. Do you remember, Prime Minister, you and I hung out before you were Prime Minister on -?
SANDILANDS: Oh, now that shouldn't be mentioned in front of his new fiance. That was when Jackie was going through her dirty days. Is that right, Jackie?
JACKIE O: We were on the set of like, the big music quiz or something like that?
SANDILANDS: That's not a date, just so you know.
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, that was awesome.
JACKIE O: Yeah that was a fun day.
PRIME MINISTER: That was awesome, we did well.
SANDILANDS: Lachy wants to desperately ask you some of his concerns.
PRIME MINISTER: My team won, I think, I recall, Jackie, I've got to say.
JACKIE O: Yeah, they did. They did. We lost.
SANDILANDS: He's not interested in hearing from Lachy. Lachy, are you there? What's your question for the Prime Minister and what are you going on about with this?
LACHLAN MANSELL, HOST: Yes, Prime Minister. I'm interested in these non-complete clauses for workers earning under $180,000. How are they going to work and will they apply to every industry?
PRIME MINISTER: They will work across the board. What we've done is to make sure that if you're a hairdresser, right, and you're not allowed to go and earn more money at another hairdresser's, for example, these non-compete clauses just stop people being able to earn more wages or to transfer their skills and they lock people into a single employer because they can't use their skills other places as well. Whether it be in the finance sector or a hairdresser -
SANDILANDS: Right, so if you're a hairdresser at Joh Bailey's. You're on a non-compete clause. There's no way you're going to JustCuts no matter what? Is that right? You've like - you've taken that, you've taken that blockade away they can go and do their own JustCuts now?
PRIME MINISTER: As they should be able to.
JACKIE O: What's wrong with that, though? Yeah what's wrong with that -
PRIME MINISTER: Why should we stop people being able to do that? Now, you guys would never want to change -
SANDILANDS: I don't know, we've changed before. Never say never.
PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, I was. I was waiting for you to jump in there, but, you know, and fair enough. Why shouldn't you be able to do that?
JACKIE O: Do you have an issue with that? Do you, Lachy?
MANSELL: Well, I'm just interested to see how businesses are still going to be able to protect their intellectual property if an employee decides to leave and move to a rival organisation.
SANDILANDS: From a hairdresser?
PRIME MINISTER: What intellectual property is there, in there?
SANDILANDS: Yeah, it's not Edward Scissor Fingers here. It's just hairdressers.
MANSELL: Yeah, but it's not just hairdressers that this is going to apply to. It's all workers earning under $180,000 a year.
SANDILANDS: Well, that's not even you, so what do you even care?
PRIME MINISTER: It is common sense, you know. You're not the CEO of a major company earning under $180,000. It is a sensible thing. So, that the people there - I've been in your studios there, you have a wonderful army of loyal workers. But if they want to go just across the corridor there -
SANDILANDS: No! I'll have them knocked before I'll allow them to go to Nova.
PRIME MINISTER: To another station - well, Nova aren't in the same building. I was thinking of another network that are there on your floor. So, you know, why shouldn't they be allowed to do that if they want to do it?
ROSS: Do these non-compete clauses even stand up in court now? I thought they were a bit of a scare tactic.
SANDILANDS: They are a scare tactic. But if you're taken to court by an employer and you've got no money to back yourself, you cave. So, this is a - it's a good thing you've done, Prime Minister. I like that. Even though that means I'm gonna have to raise the salary of all these idiots that work for me so they don't turn on me.
PRIME MINISTER: I tell you what, Kyle, as you go outside the studio there, they will love the fact that you're backing this in. Because it's good for them. It's good for people who are working people - should be able to do this. It's like the right to disconnect, the common sense reform.
JACKIE O: Kyle doesn't like that.
SANDILANDS: What's that mean? What's that bullshit?
JACKIE O: After work you can turn off your phone and you're not responsible to -
PRIME MINISTER: You can turn off your phone -
SANDILANDS: No, no, I don't allow that with my staff.
PRIME MINISTER: If you're not being paid 24 hours a day you shouldn't be on call 24 hours a day, either.
SANDILANDS: No. You know what I want? I want people to care about their job. That's what I want. And if you've made a mistake, you don't go home, put your feet up watching Home and Away.
PRIME MINISTER: But you shouldn't punish them if they're not on call for you, at 3:00am.
SANDILANDS: Oh well, that's where we disagree. Yeah, well, I'd like to give them a right slap in the head.
PRIME MINISTER: I'm standing up for your workers there. I'm going to be very popular next time I'm in the studio there. I'll walk in, I'll be cheered.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, yeah. And as soon as you get into the chair behind the microphone, you're going to have to deal with me.
PRIME MINISTER: Then I'll be in trouble.
SANDILANDS: We get, we get on. We get on fine. And Albo and I, we don't always agree on many things but we're still friendly and we still listen to each other's point of view.
PRIME MINISTER: We agree on most things.
SANDILANDS: Yeah, we do. Yeah, we do. You know, the naughty boy stuff, you mean?
JACKIE O: I don't think that's what he's referring to.
PRIME MINISTER: No.
SANDILANDS: Now what are you going to do about decriminalising all drugs immediately? What are we doing there? I told you get these (bleep) Chemist Warehouse.
PRIME MINISTER: As I have said, that is an issue for state and territory governments. I've got a big job to do running the national economy.
SANDILANDS: I know. Wouldn't it be better, wouldn't it be better, though if everyone was hitting the clubs on the weekend instead of meeting the dealer down the back streets in a hatchback, we just went to Chemist Warehouse. We knew what we were getting. You guys were taxing it. You weren't chasing international criminals. The cops could get back to worrying about speeding tickets and everyone was just high and happy?
PRIME MINISTER: You are very focused on this issue.
SANDILANDS: Oh yes. A lot of research as well.
PRIME MINISTER: Very focused. And I'm sure you have done a lot of research over the years, but it is a matter for state and territory government, so. I'm trying to fix Medicare, build a stronger economy, fix schools, fix TAFE, do all of that -
SANDILANDS: Okay, we'll let you go and we'll get the Premier on, I think. Oh yeah, yeah. That's real stuff. That's real stuff. You've got to fix that. You're right. You're right.
PRIME MINISTER: That's my focus.
SANDILANDS: Okay, I'll let you fix the real things and we'll deal with the premiers with getting the gear decriminalised and good luck. Thank you for the Budget. Well done. I know you guys have worked hard and I hope it all works out, Albo. Thank you.
PRIME MINISTER: We are. Budget in May - Budget in March I mean, sorry. It's usually May. The good thing about this year was I was outside doing all the TVs and it's normally freezing cold. And having it in March, I reckon it's a big plus. Was a lot warmer this morning. And we will now go into an election in May. So, I'll see you in the studio. I'll drop in there.
JACKIE O: Puffer jacket and all. Yeah.
SANDILANDS: Don't forget, bring a plate. Because no one's welcome around here to talk politics unless they providing some free food.
PRIME MINISTER: What are you talking about? I'm very popular after the measures that I've just put in place there with your workforce. Just remember that, Kyle.
SANDILANDS: Well, just to be able to afford those things I'm going to have to go and doze this whole staff again. We going to have to be mass sackings on the cards sometime between now and June, guys. What we'll just do is we'll just pull it out of a hat to make it fair for everyone. Jackie and I and Brooklyn will not be involved obviously with the senior talent. Okay. Thank you, Prime Minister.
JACKIE O: Thanks, Prime Minister.
