LATIKA M BOURKE: PM Anthony Albanese scrubs ‘Gulf of Hormuz’ gaffe from official transcript of UN address

Anthony Albanese has erased from his official transcript an embarrassing gaffe in which he wrongly called the Strait of Hormuz the Gulf of Hormuz

The Prime Minister made the blunder while attempting to claim fewer than 1 per cent of Australians could locate the vital waterway during a speech in which he launched his bid for Australia to sit on the United Nations Security Council in 2029 and 2030.

He spruiked his five years as Australia’s leader as a factor, saying his relatively longer time in office compared to other world leaders meant he had established relationships with those who will determine whether to vote for Australia’s admission.

And he said it could help address the cost of living, citing the war in Iran, which has pushed up petrol prices at home and around the world.

But as he drew the connection between the conflict and Australia’s national interests, he mistakenly called the Strait of Hormuz the Gulf of Hormuz.

“If you had of asked a random group of Australians to find the Gulf of Hormuz on a world map last year, I don’t know you reckon the correct figure would have been, but I would suggest it would be under one per cent,” he said.

“Because it just wasn’t an issue and now it has been since February 28, front and centre, not of something that is obscure that doesn’t impact us, but front and centre to everything that we do.”

“Because fuel affects not just people getting from to A to B, it affects freight, it affects the resources sector, the agricultural sector, the capacity to engage in our economy. So I think that Australia putting ourselves forward is something I’m, I’m proud, I’m so proud to be Australian prime minister.

“And often one of the things that I get frustrated by sometimes is us talking Australia down.”

But the PM’s official transcript scrubbed the gaffe from the public record and falsely recorded him as referring only to “Hormuz.”

The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, has become a geopolitical and economic flashpoint as a result of the US and Israel’s war on Iran, as the Iranians have effectively cut off maritime access to the waterway, through which 20 per cent of the world’s water supplies passed before the war began.

The United States and Iran have been locked in a six-month battle to control the waterway, sending oil prices back above US$100 per barrel. And Iranian proxies, the Houthis, have seized control of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, heightening concerns about fuel prices staying higher long-term.

Opposition’s defence spokesman James Paterson said the PM was pathologically incapable of telling the truth, even over the smallest of issues.

“We all make mistakes. But Anthony Albanese is incapable of ever admitting to them. He’d rather force everyone around him to lie rather than concede fault - even over tiny things,” he told The Nightly.

“Whether it’s falling off a stage, insulting foreign leaders or mislabelling geographic features, he’d rather gaslight Australians than fess up. We deserve a Prime Minister who is honest with the Australian people and owns their mistakes, not this bizarre pathology.”

The erasure of the gaffe from the official record is not the first time the Government has been caught releasing transcripts of press conferences to paint themselves in a more flattering light.

Earlier this month, when The Nightly repeatedly questioned Defence Minister Richard Marles about whether or not he would lift defence spending, Defence claimed in the official record issued a short time later that the questions were “inaudible.”

UN BID

Mr Albanese played down suggestions that the UN bid could cost taxpayers as much as $25 million - sum it cost last time when Labor successfully won a non-permanent seat in 2013-2014.

In the end it was the Coalition, which initially opposed Labor’s bid, that used the position to maximum effect, when former foreign minister Julie Bishop was able to secure a strong resolution relating to Russia’s downing of MH17 over eastern Ukraine in 2014.

“No, I don’t think that will be necessary, in part as well, because of the role that we have played and I expect very strong support from Pacific countries,” Mr Alabenese said.

“I expect strong support as well from our ASEAN neighbours, and as well, we have such strong relationships across the world, across Europe, across Africa, the Middle East, and I’m confident that we will be able to pursue this position with a very modest when it comes to financial contribution, a very modest campaign as well. We produced the video ourselves that we’re launching here.

“But a lot of it will be on the relationships that we’ve been able to build. I’m in my fifth year as prime minister now, and I think that is an assistance as well. When you look at the rollover that occurs around the world, I have relationships that are very strong, and I’m able to talk directly to other world leaders,” he said.

But the latest Newspoll contains more bad news for the Prime Minister. His net approval rating is now lower than his predecessor Scott Morrison and Labor’s primary vote has slumped to 27 per cent, one point shy of the level former PM Julia Gillard recorded, when Mr Albanese helped factional leaders depose her and reinstate Kevin Rudd as Labor leader.

Australia will require the support of two-thirds of the General Assembly to secure a seat when the vote is held in 2028.

One of Australia’s confirmed competitors is Finland, whose President Alexander Stubb will be honoured alongside Mr Albanese at a glittering awards ceremony in the Big Apple on Wednesday night.

Cynthia Erivo will also be lauded, and Hollywood star Keanu Reeves will be speaking at the event.

Asked by The Nightly if he felt a fraud for accepting the award given his dire domestic situation at home, Mr Albanese said: “No.”