Transcript - Sunrise with Natalie Barr
NATALIE BARR, HOST: There are renewed calls to ban the burning of our Australian flag after one was set alight at an Invasion Day protest in Brisbane on Australia Day. The Federal Government slammed the act, calling it divisive, while the Opposition said the Australian flag is a national symbol that deserves protecting.
And for more we're joined live by Education Minister, Jason Clare. Good morning, Jason. Should this be made illegal?
JASON CLARE, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION: Good morning, Nat. Yesterday we saw some seriously bad things. In Perth someone threw a bomb into a crowd. If that had worked, if that was real, then a lot of people could have been killed. On the other side of the country we had a Neo‑Nazi that was spraying some evil language from a lectern about Jewish people. Haven't we learnt anything here?
We know that words can lead to bullets. That's why we passed those hate laws through the Parliament last week. We need to turn the temperature down here.
I think most Australians would be looking at that idiot burning the flag and just shaking their head.
BARR: You know what they are saying, Jason -‑
CLARE: There's already state laws around the country -
BARR: Yeah, you know what they're saying -
CLARE: Yeah, yeah, that's right.
BARR: They're saying, "make it illegal".
CLARE: Most Australians would be thinking we should be looking up to the flag, celebrating the fact that we live in the best country in the world.
As I understand it, Nat, there's already laws in states for the police to be able to act here, but this bloke's obviously an attention seeker.
I remember John Howard saying that if you change the law here you just turn yahoos into martyrs. This bloke's obviously looking for a bit of attention, and he got it.
BARR: But it happens all the time at these protests. And I know the Opposition tried last week to make banning the Australian flag illegal. Do you think banning the Australian flag should be made illegal?
CLARE: I'll leave that to the legal eagles, but I just make -‑‑
BARR: What do you think?
CLARE: The general point here that this bloke's an idiot. I think this bloke doesn't understand how great this country really is. Most Australians weren't protesting yesterday, most Australians were at a barbecue with their mates having a bit of pav, having a few beers, catching up with their friends before they go back to work or before school starts, celebrating the fact that we live in the best country in the world, and that doesn't represent that -
BARR: No, we know that, so do you think -
CLARE: We need to turn the temperature down a little bit here -
BARR: ‑Burning the Australian flag -
CLARE: And that's what that's all about.
BARR: Should be made illegal, Jason?
CLARE: Well, as I understand it, Nat, in different States the police have already got the powers to act here, and they do.
BARR: So you don't think we should make it a Federal offence to burn the Australian flag, making that illegal?
CLARE: As I said, I'll defer to the experts here about what works. I do remember John Howard saying that if you did this, you just turn these people into martyrs. But we do need to send a message to these people that this is a country we should be proud of.
BARR: That's not - okay.
CLARE: This is a flag we should be proud of, it's not a flag we should be burning.
BARR: Okay. Moving on, it is the first day back at school for many kids, and in the news this morning medical experts are pushing to make sunscreen mandatory. They want to see a five‑minute application window enforced by schools. Is that something you would consider?
CLARE: Well, this is personal for me. I was diagnosed with melanoma a couple of years ago, as you know, Nat, and it was only because I spotted a mole on my leg that was changing colour and changing shape and I went and saw the doctor that I'm still here. I was able to get it cut out and that saved my life.
So whatever I can do here to help to save lives, I will. I know with my little guy in childcare, he's not allowed out into the backyard of the childcare centre unless he's got sunscreen on and he's got a hat on; my big guy in primary school, it's no hat, no play.
But there's always more that we can do here. I suspect the reason I got melanoma was a lot of time out on the playground or out on the cricket field. And we do do a better job today at school than we used to, and it is up to all of us, mums and dads as well as schools, but if there's something more that I can do here, then I will. It's one of the things I want to talk to state education ministers about this year.
BARR: Okay. So talking to them about maybe having sunscreen across all schools?
CLARE: Well, about what works.
BARR: Okay.
CLARE: What's the best way to get the message across and to keep kids safe. We know the sun kills. It may not be as obvious, you know, as a shark attacking somebody or a crocodile attacking somebody, but the sun kills, and we know that all too well.
BARR: Yeah. In the Northern Territory our schools are going to enforce mandatory singing of the National Anthem at assemblies. Are you for that?
CLARE: It already happens a lot.
BARR: Yeah.
CLARE: I never knew the second verse until I became a pollie, but you go to schools across the country and kids sing the first verse and the second verse. There's a great line in the second verse, Nat, that says, "With courage let us all combine to advance Australia fair."
Given the awful things that happened yesterday, I reckon that's a message for all of us. "With courage let us all combine to advance Australia fair". Not the evil, nasty hateful rhetoric in Sydney or the bomb throwing in Perth, or the burning of the flag in Brisbane.
This is the best country in the world, and with courage, let us all combine here. So if kids are singing that in the NT and other parts of the country, I reckon that's a good thing.
BARR: Something for us all to adopt. Let's all go learn that second verse. Thank you very much, Jason Clare.