‘Brazen as it is bizarre’: Pollies clash on TV

Senior Labor and Nationals MPs have clashed in a fiery confrontation over Chinese-Australian relations.

Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth and Nationals senate leader Bridget McKenzie squared off either side of referee-slash-television host Karl Stefanovic on Tuesday morning.

Sparks flew over announcements and sideline events stemming from Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s visit to Australia this week.

In recent months, a Chinese fighter jet dropped flares in the flight path of an Australian navy helicopter, and a Chinese warship emitted sonar pulses that injured Australian navy divers; both incidents were in international waters.

During Mr Li’s visit, the two countries promised to improve military-to-military communication, including a new “maritime affairs dialogue”.

Speaking on TV Tuesday morning, Ms Rishworth backed the Sino-Australian communications commitments.

“The Prime Minister had a fruitful meeting … we’ll continue to look at ways we’ll co-operate. But of course, when it comes to protecting our defence force and standing up for our national interests, we will keep doing that,” Ms Rishworth said.

But Senator McKenzie took aim at an incident involving Australian journalist Cheng Lei, who was detained in China for more than three years.

Cheng was in Canberra and on Monday it appeared Chinese government staff blocked her from getting in the shot of cameras while Mr Li and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed co-operative agreements.

“I’m only guessing this is to prevent me from saying something or doing something that they think would be a bad look, but that in itself was a bad look,” Cheng said on Sky News, the outlet she works for.

Senator McKenzie said the incident was “as brazen as it is bizarre”.

“It’s absolutely appalling,” she said on the Today show.

“And listening to Amanda (Rishworth) talk about our national interests, I tell you what is in our national interest, having a free press and having journalists of all stripes being able to front up in our people’s house, the Australian parliament, and ask our own politicians, and foreign politicians, whatever questions they like.”

Asked about the incident, Mr Albanese said he had not been aware of the attempted blocking, adding only that “people be allowed to participate fully” in democratic processes.

Senator McKenzie said press conferences such as the Prime Minister and Chinese Premier’s were “managed within an inch of their lives”.

Defending her Labor leader, Ms Rishworth said there needed to be a free and open press.

She said “we expect appropriate behaviour” when it came to freedom of press, and Cheng did ask Mr Albanese a question at the event.

“She asked the Prime Minister a question, good on her, and he answered it.”

Cheng, a mother of two, was accused of “illegally supplying state secrets overseas”. She was tried in secret and her charges were never made public before her surprise release in October last year.