Subjects: The Death of Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II; National Memorial Service; Vladimir Putin’s escalation of the war in Ukraine.
MARK LEVY:
Let’s bring in a man who will be there today at the National Memorial in Canberra. I speak of the Federal Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, who speaks to Ray each and every Thursday and I’m pleased to say he joins me on the line right now.
Mr Dutton, good morning to you.
PETER DUTTON:
Good morning, Mark.
MARK LEVY:
It’s obviously a really special day today and a chance for Australia to pay its respects to Her late Majesty the Queen.
PETER DUTTON:
It will be, and they were pretty solemn words that she spoke and she was true to every one of them. It’s an incredible journey that she’s taken and many Australians obviously have been glued to their television sets over the course of the last fortnight. It’s been an incredible spectacle and the way in which the pomp and ceremony was pulled off by the Brits: quite remarkable, and a true credit to them.
But underneath all of that is just a celebration of the office, of what she’s been able to achieve, what she’s bequeathed to the next generation now and King Charles as well. The celebration today of her life will take place in Parliament House, the Memorial Service will bring together about 600 people and that will commence at 11 o’clock this morning.
MARK LEVY:
That’s when we’ll pause for a minute’s silence, Mr Dutton?
PETER DUTTON:
Absolutely, and I’d encourage all Australians to do that. It’s a very significant day and it’s an historic day and for our country, like many others, we’ve been well-served by the stability. I mean, you look at what’s happening in Europe at the moment, great uncertainty, even in our own region and I think what the Queen has done has provided the stability through her service and her dedication to us and to Commonwealth countries. I think it’s quite remarkable and I don’t think we should take it for granted. So, I think Australians have been incredibly respectful over the last couple of weeks with a few notable exceptions, but discounting them, and putting them to one side, I think most Australians have seen the decency, have celebrated her life and been very respectful of the process and I think it’s to our country’s great credit.
MARK LEVY:
What about you, Mr Dutton, did you ever have the privilege and pleasure of meeting Her Majesty?
PETER DUTTON:
I didn’t meet Her Majesty in person. We had a photo with the ministry in 2006 in the Great Hall in Parliament, so I was there with her and I looked up that photo the other day, actually. It was a very special occasion, but no I didn’t meet her in person.
MARK LEVY:
Of course, after today, we obviously do our bit as a nation of the Commonwealth – a member of the Commonwealth – to pause and reflect on her incredible life, the royal attention will turn to King Charles III’s coronation, and then of course, Australia will be a part of that as well.
PETER DUTTON:
Absolutely. Again, I think we should celebrate that. I think the stability that’s been present in our system, I think a lot of us take it for granted, in a similar way, frankly, that we’ve taken for granted peace since the Second World War. Eight decades now of relative peace and the actions of Putin and others around the world at the moment, I think are really concerning to people and I think one of the great attributes of the monarchy, of now the succession to King Charles, I think has been remarkably steady, calm, as it’s supposed to be, and that again is something that we shouldn’t take for granted.
I have no doubt that he will continue in the same vein of service as his mother, and it’s remarkable. You look at William now and his family as well, I mean, they’re trained from birth effectively. It’s quite a remarkable model that they have and the grace that they carry themselves with, they don’t seek publicity, they’re not grandstanding, they’re there to provide stability in the UK, here and elsewhere and I think that’s something our country shouldn’t take for granted.
MARK LEVY:
You’re a father, Peter. I tell you what, Charlotte and George – weren’t they on their best behavior? Even Charlotte saying to her big brother; ‘you have to bow when the coffin makes its way past.’ They were on their best behaviour on Monday night our time, weren’t they?
PETER DUTTON:
Yeah, they were, and again, it shows the upbringing and no doubt, the influence of the Queen on their own lives, as their great-grandmother. Those private moments that they would have shared together, the stories that she would have conveyed to them – as she’s done to her grandchildren, she’s done to her great-grandchildren as well. I think that’s a wonderful thing. I think they’re obviously very young and it’s a tough time for them, as it is for any child going to the funeral of a grandparent or somebody that they love and the composure and the way in which they carry themselves, I think was a great credit to their parents.
MARK LEVY:
And that will all get underway, the National Memorial at 11 o’clock this morning.
While I’ve got you Mr Dutton. On an unrelated note, Russian President Vladimir Putin has ramped up his threats overnight, he’s mobilising 300,000 reservists and has taken another swipe at the West with a veiled threat regarding his nuclear capabilities, what’s your response?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, it’s deeply concerning, no question about that. So, we join with the government in condemning those actions and I think the words of the US President overnight in the United Nations General Assembly should be noted by all. Nobody’s seeking to take Russian territory. The Ukrainians have experienced a very, very significant blow, but they’ve pushed back and I think the fighting spirit of President Zelenskyy, in particular, has just inspired his nation and to his great credit, and to the credit of those within his population, who have been fighting, they’ve got Russia on the back foot, and that obviously has unsettled Putin.
We don’t want to see Russian troops killed, frankly. Many of them I suspect are there not of their own free will and the world wants and deserves stability. We’ve had that stability, as I say for eight decades, and if we think that dictators and autocrats are confined to history, then we’ll be condemned in the future.
So, we have to stand up and fight for our democracy, for our freedom of religious belief, for our freedom of speech, for the ability for women to be educated, all of those basic things that in a society like ours for generations we’ve just we’ve just come to accept. We have to stand with other countries across Europe and across the world, against any of the tyranny that we’re seeing emerging. That’s why I think sometimes it’s inconvenient to be frank and to speak up and to be heard, but it’s necessary because if we just sit back and pretend that nothing’s going to happen, then, as history records, as we’ve seen in the 1930s, it does lead to war.
So, I think the world calling out President Putin, at the moment, is the right thing to do. I hope that that continues so that Ukraine can return to peace and to the rebuilding process, which will take many years and many billions of dollars, and allow those people to lead the peaceful life and the tranquility that we enjoy in our great country.
MARK LEVY:
Hear, hear. I know it’s an important day, a special day and it’s a busy day for you. I thank you for sparing us a couple of minutes to have a chat on the Ray Hadley Morning Show. Good luck with everything today.
PETER DUTTON:
I’ve got a bit of a flu but I’ve tested negative for COVID, mate, so I’m ok, so I’m a bit croaky, but I’ll get through my speech today, but appreciate your interest in the Service today. It’s a very important day.
MARK LEVY:
Good on you mate, you’re sounding good to me. Thanks very much.
PETER DUTTON:
Thank you. Bye bye.
[ends]