Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks out against ‘repulsive’ Mark Latham, opens up on meeting with Xi Jinping

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says he regrets Mark Latham ever having led the Labor Party and described the former leader’s views as “repulsive”.

The comments came during a wide-ranging interview with 7.30 in which Mr Albanese spoke on his trip to China, his relationship with President Xi Jinping and whether he felt the US would be concerned by their meeting.

While Mr Albanese was in China, Mr Latham — now an independent NSW MP — faced mounting pressure to resign following allegations he participated in a consensual sex video in his parliamentary office, an allegation that arose as part of a wide-ranging complaint of emotional and physical abuse by his ex-partner Nathalie Matthews.

Mr Latham has denied breaking any laws or breaching legislative standing orders and as a former Labor leader his portrait still hangs in the Labor caucus room in Parliament House.

Federal Labor decided on Monday that the portrait will remain hanging and new text will be added, reading: “In 2017, Mark Latham was expelled from the Australian Labor Party and banned for life. His actions do not accord with Labor values and fail to meet the standards we expect and demand”.

Tanya Plibersek previously told the ABC that Mr Latham’s election to the party leadership was the only thing that made her cry during a long political career.

Mr Albanese was asked if he wanted to take the picture down and, while he stopped short, he did comment on Mr Latham’s leadership.

“I didn’t want Mark Latham to be the leader of the Labor Party, and was very clear about that at the time,” Mr Albanese told 7.30 before speaking about the decision to keep the portrait hanging.

“It’s a historical fact. It’s a bit like statues and a range of things, history is there. The way to deal with that is to point out the changes that have occurred.

Mr Latham was elected to the leadership of federal Labor in December 2003 when he defeated Kim Beazley.

He would go on to lose the 2004 federal election to Coalition prime minister John Howard, dropping five extra seats in a landslide defeat.

Mr Albanese told 7.30 it was lamentable Mr Latham was ever in that position.

“That’s something I fought very hard on when I was one of the people doing the numbers for Kim Beazley in that ballot. 

“I think that history has proven that judgement to be correct.”

No regrets on Xi meeting

Mr Albanese expanded on his private lunch appointment with Xi Jinping, which he told Nine newspapers involved personal exchanges between the two leaders.

The meeting came in a week where the federal opposition’s defence spokesperson Angus Taylor called for Australia to take a stronger stance on any potential Chinese action taken against Taiwan.

The prime minister said he would not break Mr Xi’s trust by releasing the details of their conversation but said it related to of their personal histories.

“It wasn’t so much discussing the affairs of state that we did in our formal bilateral meeting as President of China and Prime Minister of Australia, it was more talking about personal issues, our history, our backgrounds,” he told 7.30.

“I learned a fair bit … he I think is quite a private person and its important that you’re able to have those conversations … and I feel as though we got to know each other much more.”

Pressed as to whether the pair discussed Taiwan given that Mr Xi’s father’s final role in the Chinese Communist Party was to pursue the reunification of Taiwan, Mr Albanese said not.

“We support the status quo when it comes to the Taiwan Straits.”

Mr Albanese said he had no reason not to trust his Chinese counterpart.

“I have said before that anything that he has said to me has been fulfilled,” the prime minister said.

“There hasn’t been any breaches of personal commitments that he has given to me. 

“That doesn’t mean he’s agreed with everything that I’ve put forward far from it, but I’d rather that than someone on an international level saying, ‘yep, we can do all that’ and then doing the opposite.”

While Mr Albanese has been criticised by the Coalition for not meeting with Donald Trump since the US president took office for his second term, the prime minister looked to dispel any concerns about the optics of spending days in China and personal time with Mr Xi.

Those included whether Australia’s Ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, had to do any damage control on the government’s behalf.

It was a notion the PM rebuffed.

“I would’ve thought that Australia engaging with our major trading partner is something that’s very sensible.

“I visited the United States five times since I’ve been prime minister, I’ve visited China twice. 

“China is our major trading partner. One in four of Australia’s jobs, depends upon trade and China is larger. The export, our export trade with China is worth more than the next four countries combined.”

Childcare legacy?

With parliament set to return, one major issue facing the government is the crisis in Australia’s childcare sector. 

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Recent ABC reports have revealed several issues within the sector and that came before alleged paedophile Joshua Dale Brown was charged with 70 offences relating to eight children between October 2021 and February 2024, including sexual assault and producing child abuse material.

“We need to do better,” Mr Albanese said of improving the childcare sector.

“Which is why this week we’ll be introducing important legislation, allowing the Commonwealth to use the power that we do have, which is essentially funding power, as well as using increased access to make sure that the Commonwealth can play a role there.”

Mr Albanese said he could understand the concerns of parents and that he was not focused on his own legacy, rather the safety of children. 

“Overwhelmingly, childcare centres are good in the way that they function and we shouldn’t tar the whole sector with what has been serious issues,” he said.

“It would cause enormous distress and I understand that as a parent who’s had a child in childcare.

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