Subjects: Visit to BayCISS; Labor’s cost of living crisis; income tax; Ambassador Rudd; the Coalition’s plan to get Australia back on track; APEC; the Coalition’s plan to protect children from online harm; Victoria Police industrial action.
E&OE.
JANE HUME:
Well good morning everyone. It’s fantastic to be out here in Hampton East with the Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton, and the preselected Candidate for Goldstein, and former Member for Goldstein, the Honourable Tim Wilson.
We’re here at BayCISS today, which is an extraordinary facility, servicing so many needy people in the community of Bayside, and there are many needy people in the community of Bayside because we’re hearing that the cost of living is the number one issue – not just here, but right around the nation – and that there is an increased number of people seeking the services of organisations just like BayCISS right around the world.
I’ve been out in the streets of Bayside in Goldstein with Tim Wilson now for a couple of months, and it doesn’t matter whether we’re in Brighton, or whether we’re in Bentley, whether we’re in Hampton, or Mordialloc, there are people that are doing it tough, and the good news is they’re very pleased to see Tim Wilson back on the beat., a representative that is there that meets their needs, rather than the needs of their own political purposes.
The current Member for Goldstein, Zoe Daniel, has been a disappointment to the people of Goldstein. In fact, rather than representing their needs, she’s been voting with the Greens. She’s voted with the Greens eight times out of 10. She’s only voted with the Coalition two times out of every 10 on pieces of legislation, important pieces of legislation that could lower the cost of living, that could raise the quality of life and the standard of living for the people that live right here.
Now, I’m going to turn over to my colleague, Tim Wilson, who is the right man to represet this community and he can introduce the Leader of the Opposition.
TIM WILSON:
Well, thank you Jane, so much. Welcome to Goldstein, and welcome to you, of course, Peter Dutton, welcome to Goldstein as well.
When we talk to people across the electorate, one of the clearest messages we are receiving is the pain of rising interest rates and inflation and cost of living pressure. This morning we’re at BayCISS talking directly to those who are on the front line of the challenges that are faced – whether it’s people coming in presenting with issues around domestic violence, homelessness, or just needing to be able to get food to get through the day.
One of the clearest things that we’ve heard consistently and in the roundtable we held earlier this year on cost of living, and this morning, is that expanding profile and the changing profile of many local residents needing support that they didn’t traditionally need. That’s incredibly important to understand just how much that is impacting people’s lives, because sitting behind the challenges of cost of living pressure is, of course, urgent need, but there’s also pride, there’s also dignity, and there is also the importance of everybody feeling like they have a place in the community and are confident about their future.
We came to BayCISS this morning to show the Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton, exactly what the challenges are that are being faced in this community, that are not being given a proper voice on the national stage.
Peter, you’re always welcome in Goldstein, we love the opportunity to show you the challenges that are presented on the ground, and it’s really important that we see the re-election of a Coalition Government so that they actually have voices in our nation’s Parliament, but [inaudible] part of a Government that can deliver for the people of Goldstein, not simply stand on the sidelines observing local challenges.
PETER DUTTON:
Tim, thank you very much.
Jane, fantastic to be here with you as well.
I really want to firstly say thank you very much to Rose, to all of the volunteers, the students and others that we met this morning. These are people who are doing saintly work, to be honest. Helping mothers who are the victims of domestic violence, people who are working hard, full time workers, but they’re finding themselves without stable accommodation, people are couch surfing, people are turning up for food because, as was pointed out before, they can pay for their rent, or they can pay for food, but not both.
It’s part of the reason that we need to make sure that we can get our country back on track, because there are a lot of Australians now who are really, really hurting, and we’re only six weeks away from Christmas, and this Christmas will be the hardest Christmas for many families in their lifetime. It’s not just because of higher interest rates – and we know with higher interest rates, rents go up as well – we know with an energy policy that’s just continuing to drive up the cost of electricity and gas, that people just can’t make their budget balance. Their insurance is going up, they can’t afford to pay for their car rego, and when you look at the services that are provided here, it is quite remarkable – the volunteer hours that are given, the philanthropic support, but just the one-on-one conversations that can change your life and perhaps save a life, puts somebody, a young family on a different course back to safety and back to an environment that’s conducive to young students being able to do their homework at a night time, being able to be fed and bathed and clothed to go to school the next day. These are basics that many Australians take for granted, but those clients who are coming through the door every day, they’re in need of that basic support.
So, I just want to say to BayCISS and to all of the staff that we’ve met here today, thank you so much for what you do, it’s even more important now in the run up to Christmas, as we know, and I think the lives that you impact, I’m sure it’s incredibly invigorating, but frustrating in relation to many cases where you can’t provide the help that people deserve as well.
There is a cost of living crisis in our country at the moment and Australians know that. They know that the Government’s had three budgets to address what we knew was coming down the line with inflation, not just here, but overseas as well. But the way other countries have dealt with inflation means that interest rates have already come down there. Interest rates have come down in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, but they haven’t come down here yet, and I desperately want to see a reduction in interest rates so that families can have some relief. But 25 or 50 basis points is not going to help families change what has been a compounding impact of bad government policy.
As the Reserve Bank Governor points out, the government spending, the reckless spending that we’re seeing at the moment is fuelling inflation, and that’s what’s keeping interest rates higher for longer here in Australia.
So there are a lot of problems that need to be addressed and a lot of concerns that people have that I believe only a Coalition Government can address after the next election.
I’m very happy to take any questions.
QUESTION:
Just on this centre that we’re obviously at today, and speaking to some of the volunteers and people that work here around this space, it’s obviously quite a small centre and they cover a large range of issues. How can you realistically see expanding a centre like this to ensure that those people, there’s so many people that need help, can actually get it?
PETER DUTTON:
Well look, it’s a really good question, and full credit to the Council, and I acknowledge Andrew as well, but this is a site that’s owned by council. I know that there’s a proposal around putting in place proper infrastructure, because when you think about what has happened here, the impact on a per square metre basis in pretty poky rooms, the lives that have been impacted positively, it’s quite phenomenal, the success that’s been enjoyed here, but it’s not fit for purpose – that much is obvious as you move around. The spaces are too cramped. But council obviously don’t always have the funds to be able to provide that support.
So Tim has been working closely, I know, with BayCISS and certainly has spoken to me on a number of occasions about the need for some capital here to really either renovate, or rebuild, or as we heard from the CEO earlier, the prospect of relocating perhaps to a bigger premises.
So, we’re in that conversation at the moment. I think that’s really important because ultimately we want people to have a better service and we want there to be space so that more volunteers can come to work, more students can be hosted and more people in need can be given the support that they deserve.
QUESTION:
Have you ditched your ambition to abolish a tax bracket and extend tax cuts for high earners?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, I think a couple of points. Firstly, the Liberal Party will always be the Party of lower taxes and lower interest rates, because we manage the economy more efficiently – I think that’s a really important point to make.
The next point is that we have to look at the numbers in the pre-budget context and decide what it is we can afford for our country, because the highest priority at the moment is to bring down inflation. When you go into the supermarket at the moment, and you’re paying more for every item that you’re putting into the trolley, you’ve got to ask yourself, why? I mean, why is that happening? Well, it’s not just your electricity bill and gas bill that’s gone through the roof. It’s the farmer, it’s the manufacturer of food, it’s the producers of the packaging, the glass manufacturers. All of their electricity bills and gas bills have gone up dramatically as well. So all of that inflationary impact is what’s making it harder and harder for families to balance their budgets – and not just families, the number of small business closures, cafes that are closing their doors, or putting staff off, those numbers continue to rise.
So we need to get inflation down, and our decisions around where we spend money in the economy will be based on how we can reduce inflation so we can bring interest rates down.
The Government now has had multiple, multiple warnings from the Reserve Bank Governor to say if you keep spending in the reckless way that you’re spending now, you’re going to keep inflation higher for longer. As I say, Australia is in a situation where our interest rates are staying higher compared to the UK, and the US, New Zealand and Canada – comparable economies –because of the Government’s bad decisions.
That’s why the Liberal Party, the Coalition, is always better at managing the economy, and if we manage the economy well, then we can afford to provide more support to services likeBayCISS and those around the country that provide those life saving supports.
QUESTION:
So will bigger tax cuts for higher income earners be off the table for your Government?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, as I say, we’ll see how much money there is in the bank. Labor’s great at spending, they’re great at taxing, but they’re not good at spending money efficiently.
I want to make sure that we provide our policies in a responsible way. The most irresponsible thing would be to go out and promise billions and billions of dollars worth of spending, whether it’s on tax cuts or something else, if it’s going to be inflationary and therefore counter-productive. There’s no sense giving somebody a reduction in their mortgage repayments of $80 a month and then driving up the price of their grocery basket by $100 a month. That just doesn’t make sense, and yet that’s what has happened under this Government.
So, we’ve got a lot of work to do and we’ll have our policies out in good time before the election, but it will be based on how much money there is. As we know, the reckless spending has to stop and Mr Albanese has to start showing some strong leadership and getting control of the budget, because at the moment the people who are paying the price for Mr Albanese’s bad decisions are mum and dads, and small businesses across the country.
QUESTION:
Do you think it was smart of the PM to appoint Kevin Rudd as US Ambassador?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, this was a captain’s call, as we know, from Prime Minister Albanese. I know that there are many people in the Caucus, in the Labor Cabinet at the moment, who are backgrounding and briefing against Kevin Rudd. That’ll continue because there’s that history of animosity.
I want what is best for our country. I want us to have a functioning, stable relationship with our most important partner. I want to make sure that there is mutual respect toward Australia and toward the United States, I want to make sure that we can have an Ambassador who can work effectively with the Government, whether that’s the US, or wherever an Ambassador might be appointed.
In terms of the comments that Mr Rudd’s made, well, I guess the difficulty that the Prime Minister’s in at the moment is that if he sacks Kevin Rudd, then what does he do with Penny Wong? And if he sacks Penny Wong, what does he do given he’s made his own disparaging remarks about President-elect Trump as well? Look, these are issues for the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister’s got a lot of messes to deal with at the moment – all of his own making – and as I say, unfortunately because the Government’s distracted by all of these messes of their own making, Australians are paying the price through their bills and through an economy which is slowing down.
QUESTION:
Do you agree with Malcolm Turnbull’s comments that the media is to blame for bringing up Rudd’s old remarks?
PETER DUTTON:
I haven’t seen his comments.
QUESTION:
He blames Sky News or News Corp for bringing up his own comments. So, do you think it’s the media’s fault that he’s the one that said it?
PETER DUTTON:
I think people take responsibility for their own comments, and where you’ve made comments, then you have to own them and have to explain them, and that’s an issue for Mr Albanese to explain.
QUESTION:
A senior Trump Adviser suggested Rudd’s time as US Ambassador could be up with an hourglass GIF. What does that tell us about the Ambassador’s position?
PETER DUTTON:
Well again, I mean the Government’s in a difficult position. The Prime Minister’s made a number of captain’s calls and they’ve been at odds with the advice that he’s received from his closest advisers and colleagues, and I suppose that’s a question about the Prime Minister’s judgement.
It’s not just the Prime Minister’s judgement when it comes to Mr Rudd, it’s his judgements about spending $450 million on the Voice when we could be providing support to families who are in need this Christmas, it’s the decisions that they’ve made in subsequent budgets which have actually made it harder for families, not easier. We’ve seen a three fold increase in the number of manufacturing businesses that have closed so we lose those jobs, we see those businesses go offshore.
Look, it’s a difficult situation for a lot of Australians at the moment and I think a lot of Australians are looking to Anthony Albanese and wondering whether or not it’s the same person they voted for two and a half years ago, because it’s been a hard two and a half years for many, many millions of Australians. You can only imagine how much worse it would get if the Albanese Government’s re-elected. Three more years of Albanese Government will make it just harder and harder for families and for small businesses across the country.
QUESTION:
Trump’s appointed Elon Musk to head of bureaucracy slashing project, do you want to see something similar here if the Coalition was to win government?
PETER DUTTON:
Well look, I think every government should be looking to spend taxpayers’ money wisely. If money’s being wasted, then we should ask ourselves, what’s it being spent on?
There are another 30,000 bureaucrats that have been employed in Canberra, and you come out to services like this today who need a number of millions of dollars, but relative to the billions of dollars being spent by the Government at the moment, wouldn’t we be better off to help support local services like BayCISS than employing another 30,000 public servants in Canberra? Wouldn’t we be better off to try and provide food packages to families who are sleeping rough or sleeping in the back of their cars at the moment? It’s a question of priority. You can’t continue just to tax and spend, you have to be responsible, no different to your own household budget.
I think the difficulty that the Government’s got at the moment is that they’ve got all of their priorities wrong. Our country’s heading in the wrong direction under Mr Albanese and Australians are paying the price for that. I want to make sure that we put our country first, that we help Australians, and that we provide support to families this Christmas who are doing it as tough as they’ve ever done it, and I think over the last two and a half years our country has really suffered because of bad decisions of the Albanese Government. I want to get our country back on track.
QUESTION:
The PM’s just landed in Peru for APEC. How important is a unified commitment between those nations at APEC to challenge potential Trump tariffs?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, APEC obviously is an incredibly important forum and Australia is a significant participant in the APEC process. There’ll be issues that are important there. Ultimately, what Australia should be doing is advancing our interests in the region, that includes more trade opportunities so that we can create jobs and we can grow the economy. It means making sure that we stand up for our national security and our equities and interests in the region as well. I’m sure the Prime Minister will do that on our country’s behalf.
QUESTION:
Just on social media, on the ban for under 16s; the Government is now flagging a ‘digital duty of care’ to hold tech platforms responsible if Australians suffer harm. Do you support that?
PETER DUTTON:
Well, what we’ve said to the Government is that we want the legislation in place by Christmas. I think there is every opportunity for us to work together. I was with some parents in Brisbane earlier this week, part of a terrible story that many Australian families know. One mother had lost her son, Oliver, to an eating disorder – he’d taken his own life. Another mother, who was just caring day and night for her child. Social media has a big role to play in the lives of young Australians. What we’ve said, what we announced in June, was a desire to put the age at 16 before young Australians can access social media. The Government’s sat on their hands for all of this year, in fact, all this term.
Our argument is that there should be bipartisan support, we welcome the Government’s commitment to the announcement that we’ve made, but we think it should be legislated by Christmas. No carveouts for the companies as the Government’s now talking about. These social media companies couldn’t care less about Australian kids, so we have to and we have to make sure the online environment is a safe one for them.
I hope that the Government can present a bill to the Parliament next week so that we can pass it by Christmas and give what I think would be a really good present to Australian families and to parents who want to say to their kids ‘you need to be operating safely online’.
People who are passing images and videos of sexual abuse, of children, of women, our kids shouldn’t be involved in that environment at 12 and 13, 14, 15 years of age. That’s what we see as a priority and I hope the Government does as well. If they do, they can get it passed by Christmas.
QUESTION:
Sorry, Jane, can I just ask you one quick question? Just on the police that are going to be striking for around 30 minutes today, what is your message to the Labor Government here? What do they need to do to help bring these pay rise and pay deal negotiations to a close so cops can see a better deal put on the table?
JANE HUME:
Well, that’s a question that’s far better directed to the State Labor Government here in Victoria who have essentially left our state broke.
There’s a reason why the State Government isn’t funding essential services and that’s because of economic mismanagement. Quite frankly, that should be the canary in the coal mine for the rest of Australia. When a State Labor Government mismanages the economy in their state so badly that you can’t fund frontline police, that you can’t fund your health services, that you can’t fund an organisation like BayCISS, as the one we are here seeing today, well that’s when you know that a Labor Government has put its political interests ahead of those of its constituents.
Only a Coalition Government at a state level and a federal level will make sure that it’s looking after the interests of Australians, not the interests of themselves.
PETER DUTTON:
Excellent. Thank you very much. Thank you.
[ends]