Albanese and Bowen in hot mic gaffe at COP31

By chief digital political correspondent Clare Armstrong in Türkiye

• Topic:Climate Change

Posted Sat 14 Nov 2026 at 12:34pmSat 14 Nov 2026 at 12:34pm

In short:

A private exchange between Anthony Albanese and Chris Bowen was inadvertently recorded at the COP21 summit in Türkiye.

The Prime Minister's office said the pair were joking between meetings.

What's next?

Mr Albanese has travelled to the Philippines for the ASEAN summit, while Mr Bowen remains in Türkiye.

A conversation between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen about phone radiation and "dicks" has been caught on camera on the sidelines of a UN conference.

Mr Albanese's office said the pair was sharing a "joke" between meetings when the exchange was recorded by Australian media at the COP31 climate summit in Antalya, Türkiye.

The comments were captured shortly before a business roundtable spruiking renewable energy transition investment opportunities in Australia began overnight on Friday.

Cameras were rolling ahead of the event during which time Mr Albanese and Mr Bowen were privately chatting to each other.

Mr Albanese put his phone in his jacket pocket and — as he did so — told Mr Bowen he had heard it was better to store the device away from the heart because "it can interfere with your rhythm".

Mr Bowen responded in a joking tone if it was because the phone was "a little bit radioactive".

The prime minister laughed, saying the idea "makes absolute sense".

Mr Bowen then responded he was more conscious about putting his phone in his pants pocket.

Mr Albanese asked, "Because of your dick?"

The pair laughed and Mr Bowen agreed, adding it was "arguably more important than the heart".

Hot mic gaffe came ahead of roundtable

The exchange, which did not appear to be overheard by anyone in the room but was captured by a news camera microphone preparing to record the opening remarks at the event, was later broadcast by Channel 7 after it was noticed in production.

A spokesperson for Mr Albanese's office said, "They were having a joke in between meetings."

During the official proceedings of the business roundtable, the prime minister made a pitch to international investors to back Australia's clean energy transition.

"If you're an investor, there's nowhere you'd rather be than Australia," he said.

Mr Albanese said having abundant renewable resources, critical minerals and a stable investment environment meant Australia was well placed to capitalise on the multi-trillion-dollar industry.

The prime minister left Türkiye shortly after the roundtable to travel to the Philippines for the ASEAN summit in Manila.

Mr Bowen has remained in Antalya, where he is playing a critical role as the co-president of negotiations for COP31.