Scott Morrison has contrasted his “busy” schedule while isolating with Covid earlier this year with Anthony Albanese’s “quiet” week at home during the campaign, while pushing for two commercial TV election debates next week.
Morrison has not yet answered a request from the national broadcaster to join a leaders’ election debate on 9 May but signalled he wants two debates on the Nine and Seven networks next week after Albanese emerges from isolation.
The Labor campaign has proposed a National Press Club debate in the closing week of the campaign before the 21 May election. It would be moderated by the club’s president, Laura Tingle.
There is always jostling over election debates but the press club has played the leading role in hosting them since the mid-1980s.
The prime minister contracted Covid prior to calling the election and isolated at home in Sydney early in March. Albanese is about to complete his week of isolation after testing positive last Thursday.
“I’m looking forward to him re-joining the campaign,” Morrison told the Nine Network on Wednesday.
“He’s had a pretty quiet week. I remember when I was in iso I had a very busy week attending Quad summits and doing all those sorts of things.”
Morrison was then chided by the Nine presenter Allison Langdon. “Oh, come on,” she said. “He’s been out there. He’s been zooming. He’s been doing his best.”
During his week of isolation, Albanese did five television interviews and eight radio interviews, as well as liaising with his campaign team.
Labor’s campaign director, Paul Erickson, has written to his Liberal counterpart, Andrew Hirst, seeking agreement for the press club face-off on 18 May. Erickson noted the Liberals had been “extremely eager” to stage a single-moderator debate at the club during the 2019 contest.
“A National Press Club debate during the election campaign was good enough for John Howard, Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull – and good enough for Mr Morrison in 2019,” Erickson said.
“Given your enthusiasm for this format in 2019, I can’t imagine why you would not be similarly willing to agree now.”
A debate at the press club, hosted by Tingle, who is the chief political correspondent for the ABC’s nightly current affairs program 7.30 and a two-time Walkley award winner, could be carried live by all Australian television networks.
The ABC is proposing a 9 May debate moderated by the Insiders host and three-time Walkley winner, David Speers.
The ABC has proposed a prime time Leaders' Debate on Monday May 9, available live across the ABC main channel, news channel, radio, iView and YouTube. The ABC's Managing Director has written to both major parties, highlighting the importance of a debate on the public broadcaster.
— David Speers (@David_Speers) April 27, 2022
Morrison and Albanese have squared off in one debate thus far hosted by the pay TV broadcaster Sky News. The first debate was a town hall format with swinging voters posing questions to the leaders and a majority in the audience scored the encounter for the Labor leader.
The prime minister told reporters in Cairns on Thursday he was available for two debates next week hosted by commercial free-to-air broadcasters. The Seven debate would be hosted by the network’s political editor, Mark Riley, another Walkley winner, while Nine has proposed a panel of presenters and senior journalists.
The Liberal party has not declined the other proposals but Morrison signalled three encounters was a good number. Similarly, Labor has not declined the proposed debates hosted by Nine, Seven and the ABC, but campaign strategists would prefer Albanese had a chance to recover fully from his bout of Covid-19.
The Labor leader is due out of isolation on Thursday night and will head west before the ALP’s official campaign launch in Perth on Sunday.
* Katharine Murphy is a former longtime board member of the National Press Club
