SUBJECTS: Polls; Anthony Albanese’s strong leadership; Cost of living; Wages going backwards; Liberal waste; Economic benefit of childcare; National Security Cabinet leak.

PATRICIA KARVELAS, HOST: Penny Wong is the Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate and our guest. Welcome.

PENNY WONG, SHADOW MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS: Good morning. Good to be with you Patricia.

KARVELAS: Labor is still ahead but all the published poll results are within the margin of error, why do you think the contest has narrowed so much in these last few weeks?

WONG: Oh look, this was always going to be a tight election. We said that at the start. We've known that every day since the election was called and before. And now we've got one more day. So, you know, it's a big decision for the Australian people to make tomorrow. Their choice is more Morrison, or a better future. I guess after six weeks, it really does come down to just those six words, doesn't it, Patricia? More Morrison or a better future.

KARVELAS: Do you believe Anthony Albanese has been an advantage for Labor in the campaign?

WONG: He's been a strong leader. He's been a leader who's demonstrated authenticity. A leader who's demonstrated empathy, because he actually feels it. I thought yesterday when he went and did a media event outside of his house, the unit, the public housing unit, he and his mum, who was on an invalid pension, lived in for years, it's a reminder about why he's running. You know, Anthony always says, I am a product of better governments. I'm a product of government shaping opportunities for me. And he's had an opportunity to lead the Labor Party and if people vote for him to lead the country, and that's why he's doing this. He wants to lead the country because he wants other people to have the sorts of opportunities that he got. He's doing it for the same reasons that you see reflected in his life. Good governments can shape outcomes for the better.

KARVELAS: Labor is planning to spend $7.4 billion more than the Government if you win office. Is that risky, given one of the Coalition's most effective attack lines is that you can't manage the economy?

WONG: Well, can I just say, I'm not sure anyone's going to take much heed of that particular scare campaign given people are facing the worst real wage cut in 20 years, where they've got a trillion dollars of debt and so little to show for it. We put forward a very responsible plan, a plan that recognises the difficult circumstances any incoming government will face, that is rising inflation, likely rising interest rates and very high levels of debt. And the difference in the two bottom lines is more than explained by our responsible investments, which are about growing the economy better. So investment in skills and training, so we get more Australians into higher paid work and deal with some of the skills shortage you put to Simon. Childcare, which we know will increase women's economic participation, that is good for families and it is very good for the economy. And, of course, our investments in renewable energy, which also have an economic dividend. So, we've been very conscious not of spending money on car parks in the Treasurer's seat that people don't want, but on putting investments into those areas, which enable the economy to grow without inflation, and tackle the challenges of the future.

KARVELAS: Do you accept that now that we have unemployment at a record low with a three in front of it, that people will look at that and think clearly the Government has done something right here with the economy.

WONG: We all want more jobs. But I’d make this point, we have a Government whose approach has been to reduce people's wages. I mean, real wages over time are 2.7% less than than the cost of living. And what that means is people are going backwards. So, I don't think people are going to sit around applauding Scott Morrison for that result. And I don't think they're going to be applauding Scott Morrison for the fact that childcare has become increasingly unaffordable for Australians or that people don't have the capacity to get the skills they need to get higher paying jobs.

KARVELAS: Well, the Coalition says you want to give, you know, childcare funding essentially to rich families. What's your response to that?

WONG: My response to that is this is an economic policy. It's not just a social welfare issue.

KARVELAS: Well why should rich families get the money?

WONG: Because we all benefit if there are more women, and it is primarily women who are affected, in the workforce. We all benefit, and I mean, the fact that that they're running that line, they're happy to, it’s extraordinary isn't it, they're happy to say people on the minimum wage should not get a $1 an hour increase, but they want to oppose childcare being broadly available to the majority of the Australian population on some weird politics of envy. I think it is a good thing to have a policy that supports or enables more women to get into the workforce. We know that women at all sorts of family income levels, don't enter the paid workforce for the fourth and fifth day because it is not financially viable for them. What's wrong with fixing that? It’s good for the economy, it's good for all of us.

KARVELAS: If you're just tuning in, Penny Wong is my guest. Should the Coalition have adopted Marise Payne’s proposal, on the front page of the Australian newspaper, to double Pacific aid funding to counter China's influence?

WONG: Well, they certainly shouldn't have dropped the ball on the Pacific and we've seen during this campaign the consequences of that. I think there are a few things about that story today. One is the question you asked Simon Birmingham, which is, the day before an election, we have a leak out of the National Security Committee of the Cabinet. That’s an extraordinary proposition and really shows that this Government is falling apart. But apart from the fact that the National Security Committee has leaked the day before the election, what this shows again is Mr Morrison dropping the ball. That they simply did not ensure that they looked at how Australia could make sure we were the partner of choice. How do we ensure that we secure our region. That's the key strategic question. And on this, Mr Morrison dropped the ball and Australian security is paying the price.

KARVELAS: You've been in politics for 20 years--

WONG: Argh, thanks for that.

KARVELAS: So have I but on the other end, watching it. What's your sense of the mood of the electorate given the high levels of support for independents and minor parties?

WONG: Look, I've been to every State and territory. And I've spoken to voters in seats across this country. From Tasmania to the Northern Territory from the seat of Swan to seats in Victoria, and I say this, that the one common theme is people really don't think Mr Morrison is the man for the future. I think people understand that he's a man who blames others. They've heard ‘it's not my job’ too many times. They've heard him blame others; they've heard him always make excuses. People want change and Mr Morrison gets that, but the only change he's offering is a promise that he's going to change. That's the thing that’s most remarkable about this last week, the Liberals’ final week strategy is ‘oh, I promise I'll change’. Well, they're not going to are they. The only way you're going to change things is if you change the government.

KARVELAS: Literally 30 seconds for this, Penny Wong, but what do you think should happen around people with COVID and voting?

WONG: Well, the Government's incompetence around this is meaning that a couple of hundred thousand Australians are not going to have the chance to have their say and the Government needs to fix it.

KARVELAS: Thank you so much for your time and speak to you on the other side.

WONG: Talk to you then, bye.

Authorised by Paul Erickson, ALP, Canberra.