TV interview with Minister Butler, Sunrise – 17 July 2026

NATALIE BARR, HOST: The families of two Australians backpackers who died in Laos from methanol poisoning are urging the Prime Minister to please step in, after they received advice that the likely maximum penalty those responsible will receive is one year in jail, and a collective fine of $1600 Australian dollars. The parents of 19-year-olds Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles say this isn’t genuine justice, and are calling on Anthony Albanese to reach out to his Laos counterpart. And government spokesperson said they are disappointed Laos authorities aren’t pursuing the most serious charges.
 
Let’s bring in Health Minister Mark Butler, and Deputy Opposition Leader Jane Hume. Good morning to both of you. Mark, you are also acting Foreign Minister at the moment. Will the Prime Minister personally get in touch with his counterpart to ensure genuine justice is served?
 
MARK BUTLER, MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND AGEING, MINISTER FOR DISABILITY AND THE NDIS: We're all devastated by this, Nat. Holly and Bianca lost their lives at just 19, two young Melbourne girls who were off on their coming-of-age trip, and four other foreign nationals lost their lives at the same time in what was an absolute tragedy, an absolute travesty, and our hearts are breaking, I'm sure, for their parents all over again, having heard this news. We've been really clear with the Lao authorities that we expected transparency and importantly accountability, and if they didn't have the resources to conduct investigations - this is a very poor country - we offered our own federal police to go over there and assist with gathering the evidence that would ground a proper prosecution here to ensure that people were held accountable for the loss of all of these innocent young lives.
 
This news is devastating, most importantly for Holly and Bianca's parents and family and friends, but I think for all Australians because we have argued so strongly for that accountability. We understand there will be a press conference from Lao authorities later today. We'll be watching that closely. We'll have more to say after that, but I want to assure Australians we feel as deeply about this lack of accountability and transparency as everyone else does. It's not the right thing to do but it's also frankly not in the interest of Lao itself. What parents now are going to let their young people go on this coming-of-age trip to that country, when authorities have shown such a lack of interest in accountability and transparency.
 
BARR: Yes, they didn't even get charged with breaching hygiene laws, I understand, and that would have been about five years. Mark, Australia gives Laos, I understand, $50 to $60 million in aid each year. If there is no justice for these two Australian girls, will this aid be reviewed?
 
BUTLER: We'll have more to say about this when we understand fully what is said in the press conference later today. But I do make the point that sort of foreign aid is intended to prevent these sorts of things happening, not only to lift people out of poverty in our own region, but to introduce the sort of systems of transparency and accountability that we want to see in every country in our region. For example, some of that foreign aid is going to initiatives now to prevent methanol poisoning, the sort of cases that took the lives of Holly, Bianca, and other foreign nationals. So yes, we’ll have more to say about this, we'll look at all of those things, but I do make the point that these foreign aid provisions are intended to prevent these sorts of things happening in the first place.
 
BARR: And look where we are. Jane, the Lao authorities have been accused of dragging their feet on this. That is an understatement, I would guess. You have two families mourning, all their families- all their friends as well and a country looking on shaking their heads. What would you do here?
 
JANE HUME, DEPUTY OPPOSITION LEADER: My heart breaks for the families of Holly and Bianca too. I think all of Australians do. And I know that any parent who waves their children off at the airport expects them to come home safe and well. And if they don't, if something goes horribly, terribly wrong, they expect their government to step up and do everything in its power to make sure that somebody is held accountable for that tragedy. And that's what we'd expect of our government now. I would hope that the Prime Minister would use every single level he can, pull every diplomatic lever he could, including engaging with his counterpart, to make sure that justice can be delivered for these two young girls.
 
BARR: Okay, thank you very much on that one. Moving on, the Prime Minister has been accused of breaking another promise after revealing he will skip this year's annual Garma Festival because he, quote, hasn't had a day off all year. Mark, last year he told the festival that he committed to returning every single year returning every single year that he is prime minister. It's hard, isn't it, why is he taking time off when it contradicts a commitment, a promise he made 12 months ago?
 
BUTLER: I make the point that Anthony has gone to Garma more than any other leader, I think, of any major political party, certainly more than any other Prime Minister. He's been there every year since he became Leader. He's off to the Northern Territory again in coming days to visit another festival. But these are really hard commitments for Prime Ministers to be able to make, all of the commitments that Prime Ministers are asked of. I know even Jane and I are unable to fulfil every request that we receive. But there's no lack of commitment by this Prime Minister to that festival. It's an important festival. We'll be very seriously represented there. Penny Wong will be there, and obviously Malarndirri McCarthy and other members of Government, but the Prime Minister simply can't make every single commitment he's asked to. He's shown enormous commitment to this festival in every one of the last several years and I'm sure he'll be there at another time in the future, just not this year.
 
BARR: Jane, does he deserve a week off or is he breaking another promise?
 
HUME: Everybody deserves some time off. Everybody deserves a day off at some stage. You can't function without it. But pick another week. This was a commitment that the Prime Minister made. He looked people in the eye and he said, I will be here every year. And it was only a year ago. But I don't think we should be surprised. It's not as if this is the first promise that the Prime Minister has broken, even within the space of a year, whether it be to not touch capital gains tax or not touch negative gearing, not touch taxes on family trusts. This is a Prime Minister that quite clearly feels comfortable about breaking promises that he makes to people that theoretically should be important to him.
 
BARR: OK, we'll leave it there. Thank you very much. We'll see you next week.