WEBVTT - Paul Murray Live | 8 September 0:00:02.370 --> 0:00:07.500 This is Paul Murray Live. Thank you, Shari. G'day, mate. 0:00:07.540 --> 0:00:10.080 He's standing, which means I have a News 24 pulse, 0:00:10.140 --> 0:00:12.660 but that is not the only thing on tonight's show. 0:00:13.039 --> 0:00:17.140 The Victorian leader of One Nation, Warren Pickering, exclusive. The 0:00:17.200 --> 0:00:19.959 chat that he's having after that extraordinary press conference is 0:00:20.079 --> 0:00:23.200 here in just a couple of minutes' time. The guy who... 0:00:23.950 --> 0:00:26.900 was trying to campaign against all of those tax changes, 0:00:27.040 --> 0:00:29.780 especially for small business. Well, he's played tennis with the 0:00:29.820 --> 0:00:33.020 Prime Minister today. He too will be joining us before 0:00:33.060 --> 0:00:36.830 we are done on tonight's program. And the Reform Party 0:00:36.890 --> 0:00:41.170 candidate who wants to fight crime in London... Layla Cunningham, 0:00:41.210 --> 0:00:43.260 she joins us in a moment or two's time. But 0:00:43.620 --> 0:00:45.960 because I'm standing up, it means we've got some big news, 0:00:46.020 --> 0:00:48.640 and that is the very latest opinion poll from our 0:00:48.659 --> 0:00:51.580 colleagues at YouGov. You can find the details right now 0:00:51.640 --> 0:01:03.300 at news24. com. au. We call it the News 24 Pulse. This 0:01:03.410 --> 0:01:06.370 is our bi-weekly look at Australian politics, not just about 0:01:06.390 --> 0:01:09.010 the horse race, but about some significant issues and where 0:01:09.110 --> 0:01:12.850 Australians are right now. The headline out of this one 0:01:13.010 --> 0:01:15.830 is that One Nation is back on top as the 0:01:15.870 --> 0:01:19.209 most popular political party in the country. There has been 0:01:19.310 --> 0:01:21.790 quite a lot of movement in the past two weeks. 0:01:21.830 --> 0:01:24.979 Let's have a look here at the overall national primary vote. 0:01:25.780 --> 0:01:31.200 One Nation, up 4% to 30%. Labor, down 3% to 26%. 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:33.220 So what was neck and neck where it was one 0:01:33.300 --> 0:01:36.520 point either way, now a little bit of distance. 30% 0:01:36.520 --> 0:01:41.540 to 26%. The Coalition at 18%, down 3%. This is 0:01:41.600 --> 0:01:44.270 a number that is worse than the number just before 0:01:44.650 --> 0:01:48.750 they made the change to Angus Taylor from Labour. Susan Lee. Alright, 0:01:48.830 --> 0:01:52.290 as for the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's ratings 0:01:52.410 --> 0:01:55.390 in all of this, how do Australians feel? Well, they 0:01:55.470 --> 0:02:00.580 remain deeply dissatisfied with the Prime Minister. 59%, almost 6 0:02:00.580 --> 0:02:02.440 out of 10 voters have a problem with the way 0:02:02.460 --> 0:02:05.260 the Prime Minister is running the country right now. 36% 0:02:05.260 --> 0:02:10.700 are okay, the rest remain dissatisfied. undecided. In terms of 0:02:10.740 --> 0:02:13.820 the overall race of who is the preferred Prime Minister, again, 0:02:13.980 --> 0:02:18.000 Angus Taylor versus Anthony Albanese. There is some data here 0:02:18.030 --> 0:02:19.930 when it comes to Pauline Hanson, but she's not running 0:02:19.950 --> 0:02:21.830 in the lower house, so let's just keep it on 0:02:21.850 --> 0:02:25.730 the headline number here, where Anthony Albanese is in front 0:02:25.790 --> 0:02:28.390 of Angus Taylor, but Angus Taylor, despite the fact that 0:02:28.450 --> 0:02:32.690 the Libs have gone backwards to virtually their worst position 0:02:32.990 --> 0:02:36.290 that has been in the News 24 Pulse, that we've 0:02:36.310 --> 0:02:39.180 been doing for several months now, he is within striking 0:02:39.190 --> 0:02:43.820 distance in terms of Anthony Albanese at 43%. The don't 0:02:43.860 --> 0:02:48.480 know factor, it is at 18 people right now. All right. Now, 0:02:48.639 --> 0:02:52.600 One Nation made its major announcement when it came to superannuation. Now, 0:02:52.840 --> 0:02:57.519 this was in anticipation of that announcement where people were asked, 0:02:57.540 --> 0:02:59.639 do you oppose support or are you not sure about 0:02:59.660 --> 0:03:05.000 the superannuation plan? Again, details matter. Now, remember, the detail 0:03:05.040 --> 0:03:08.079 here is that under the scheme that's been suggested by 0:03:08.260 --> 0:03:11.700 One Nation, it's people who earn under $ 100, 000 being able 0:03:11.720 --> 0:03:16.360 to take out $ 2, 500 from their superannuation for three years 0:03:16.600 --> 0:03:21.450 in a row. Now, 47%, they oppose the idea. Well, again, 0:03:21.490 --> 0:03:24.590 it's not compulsory. It's just an option for people who 0:03:24.630 --> 0:03:29.130 may well want to access that superannuation. 33% support, so 0:03:29.190 --> 0:03:33.300 very similar to One Nation's primary vote at 30%. And 0:03:33.320 --> 0:03:35.500 a lot of people still left undecided. Now, as I 0:03:35.540 --> 0:03:38.220 always tell you about the undecided number, split it in 0:03:38.240 --> 0:03:40.120 half and which way does it go? Well, that, of course, 0:03:40.360 --> 0:03:45.120 puts the majority of people opposing the position. Early days, 0:03:45.160 --> 0:03:47.530 we'll all see where that goes. What about housing? That, 0:03:47.550 --> 0:03:50.490 of course, has been the total focus of the federal government, 0:03:50.530 --> 0:03:56.030 or at least politically their focus, since the budget. Well, again... 0:03:56.390 --> 0:03:59.970 Rental queues, they remain very difficult. Building houses not happening 0:04:00.030 --> 0:04:02.570 fast enough and all of it is too expensive. So 0:04:02.850 --> 0:04:05.880 what do people want? Well, number one answer, people want 0:04:05.940 --> 0:04:08.790 more houses. 37% of people say it's time for the 0:04:08.840 --> 0:04:11.800 government to do everything it can to build more houses, 0:04:12.220 --> 0:04:18.180 followed by more public housing or low rent accommodation as well. 0:04:18.600 --> 0:04:23.419 reducing the financial concessions for investors. 20% say that the 0:04:23.460 --> 0:04:25.900 government should be going further than what they have in 0:04:25.940 --> 0:04:28.690 the budget thus past. Leave it as is. All the 0:04:28.750 --> 0:04:32.650 changes are enough. 9%, and then as you can see there, 0:04:32.710 --> 0:04:35.549 people who believe that we should just literally, the solution 0:04:35.589 --> 0:04:38.350 is to have as many people living... as close to 0:04:38.390 --> 0:04:41.690 each other as possible, well, that also is 9%. The 0:04:41.750 --> 0:04:44.710 ongoing issue in Australia is cost of living. The number two, 0:04:45.130 --> 0:04:48.940 according to our poll, is immigration. It will not surprise 0:04:48.960 --> 0:04:51.840 you that when asked yet again, a huge amount of Australians, 0:04:51.900 --> 0:04:54.700 more than six, almost seven out of ten, in the 0:04:54.720 --> 0:05:00.130 brand new News 24 polls, say we need to decrease immigration. 27% 0:05:00.130 --> 0:05:03.850 of people saying keep it as is. Increase is important. 7%, 0:05:05.800 --> 0:05:08.609 the rest sits in the don't know category. Now, there 0:05:08.750 --> 0:05:11.730 is a little more information inside of this. There I 0:05:11.770 --> 0:05:14.270 say the Goldilocks number of just how much up, just 0:05:14.310 --> 0:05:19.909 how much down. Well, unsurprisingly, 42% of people, so huge number, 0:05:19.930 --> 0:05:24.820 60-something percent, 66% saying that they want a decrease in migration. 0:05:24.900 --> 0:05:27.780 Of that, the biggest number is a big decrease. A 0:05:27.820 --> 0:05:31.260 quarter of people say a small decrease. About a quarter 0:05:31.279 --> 0:05:33.440 of the country says, no, leave it pretty much where 0:05:33.620 --> 0:05:37.310 it is. Then you have a scenario where the small 0:05:37.430 --> 0:05:41.670 increase is 4%, a big increase is 3%. All of 0:05:41.710 --> 0:05:45.360 this detail is up right now at news24. com. au, news24. com. au. This 0:05:45.460 --> 0:05:59.580 is the News 24 Pulse. Now, of course, immigration remains 0:05:59.810 --> 0:06:03.490 an absolute bedrock position when it comes to voters and 0:06:03.510 --> 0:06:06.390 the party, as always, that is associated with it is 0:06:06.710 --> 0:06:07.210 One Nation. 0:06:08.710 --> 0:06:10.730 One that I've been very consistent with for the past 0:06:10.730 --> 0:06:14.250 30 years is immigration. We have too many people coming 0:06:14.260 --> 0:06:16.770 into the country. Cut back on the immigration. I'm selecting 0:06:16.790 --> 0:06:19.890 to figure around about 130,000 people. You've still got to 0:06:19.910 --> 0:06:22.370 allow those into the country because a lot of businesses 0:06:22.910 --> 0:06:25.240 and doctors and nurses that we need, you fill those 0:06:25.300 --> 0:06:28.300 positions by all means. But cut back on the immigration 0:06:28.339 --> 0:06:32.060 will actually address the housing issue that we have. 0:06:33.500 --> 0:06:35.340 Now, to the rest of the day's news, including that 0:06:35.380 --> 0:06:39.800 the Labor Party has been caught red-handed rorting with taxpayers' money. 0:06:40.020 --> 0:06:42.800 This is a news story. It's a news story today. 0:06:43.640 --> 0:06:46.920 And it yet again features each way elbow. Because when 0:06:46.940 --> 0:06:49.500 the Prime Minister was the opposition leader and when there 0:06:49.520 --> 0:06:52.930 was the spreadsheet showing when previous Liberal governments were doling 0:06:52.970 --> 0:06:55.410 out money, they knew which electorate it was going to, 0:06:55.690 --> 0:06:58.570 be it a favourable one for them or a Labor 0:06:58.650 --> 0:07:02.130 or Greens electorate, well, this was the reaction of the 0:07:02.150 --> 0:07:05.230 now Prime Minister... but then opposition leader, as to why 0:07:05.290 --> 0:07:09.560 Australia needed to change the government because of this rorting. 0:07:10.780 --> 0:07:14.460 Is there any aspect of this program that wasn't rorted? 0:07:14.820 --> 0:07:17.260 A bit like sports should be and a bit like 0:07:17.280 --> 0:07:20.180 these grants should be, there's meant to be a level 0:07:20.220 --> 0:07:20.840 playing field. 0:07:20.980 --> 0:07:25.090 I think that the world can see that this appalling 0:07:25.130 --> 0:07:27.430 scheme that ran in the lead-up to the last election 0:07:28.410 --> 0:07:30.890 was a scheme where the Prime Minister and his office 0:07:30.910 --> 0:07:31.890 were up to their neck in it. 0:07:32.960 --> 0:07:35.440 Well, the sting in the tail, guess what? They've done 0:07:35.480 --> 0:07:39.310 exactly the same thing, but worse. Multiple stories broke this 0:07:39.430 --> 0:07:43.270 afternoon after a major report belled the cat here that 0:07:43.310 --> 0:07:48.270 Labor seats were receiving disproportionate amounts of taxpayer money as 0:07:48.330 --> 0:07:51.430 decided by the Labor government. So much so that the 0:07:51.710 --> 0:07:54.710 Audit Office is now being asked to have a look 0:07:54.730 --> 0:07:58.800 at this to see whether all processes have been followed. 0:07:58.880 --> 0:08:01.100 It's a major scandal and it is thanks to the 0:08:01.140 --> 0:08:04.160 people of the Centre for Public Integrity. Now, this is 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:07.960 a group, a non-partisan group that has called out previous 0:08:08.120 --> 0:08:10.900 Liberal governments that now is calling out the Labor Party. 0:08:11.940 --> 0:08:15.000 This is made up of, among others, former judges. So 0:08:15.020 --> 0:08:18.680 we're not talking here Mickey Mouse. They found half a 0:08:18.840 --> 0:08:26.260 billion dollars was put into an invitation-only, non-competitive, one-off Commonwealth 0:08:26.460 --> 0:08:32.920 grants program. Over 220 entries were invited to apply. So 0:08:33.300 --> 0:08:37.120 let's be clear, taxpayers' money, not anyone who would like 0:08:37.320 --> 0:08:39.650 a project, put your hand up. Instead, you had to 0:08:39.679 --> 0:08:45.410 be invited by the government to actually apply. The grants 0:08:45.450 --> 0:08:52.110 were heavily focused on notionally ALP seats. What a surprise. 73% 0:08:52.110 --> 0:08:56.810 ended up in Labor seats or Labor-likely seats going into 0:08:56.830 --> 0:08:59.240 the last election. And, of course, they were able to 0:08:59.300 --> 0:09:03.040 turn their majority into the mega majority based off, in part, 0:09:03.080 --> 0:09:06.400 the promises that were made because of this fund. Just 22.6% 0:09:06.400 --> 0:09:13.030 ended up in coalition seats. Marginal seats, which Labor was competitive, 0:09:13.150 --> 0:09:16.830 also received disproportionate high funding. Let me show that to 0:09:16.850 --> 0:09:20.390 you in graph form. If you're not paying attention to 0:09:20.410 --> 0:09:22.110 the words and you just want to see the pretty pictures, 0:09:22.350 --> 0:09:32.330 how non-pretty is this picture? $ 409 million, $ 409 million, invitation only, 0:09:32.910 --> 0:09:36.960 and handed out to people and projects in seats that 0:09:36.980 --> 0:09:42.040 the Labor Party held or the Labor Party wanted to hold. 0:09:42.660 --> 0:09:45.950 The 7.30 report this evening on the ABC, I apologise, 0:09:45.970 --> 0:09:46.410 the 7.30 program, they. 0:09:48.070 --> 0:09:49.880 And we've got to give them credit here, they actually 0:09:49.960 --> 0:09:52.960 dug into this information and spoke to two of the 0:09:53.000 --> 0:09:57.190 people who are from the centre that put the report together. Remember? 0:09:57.510 --> 0:10:01.940 Half a billion dollars, and it was invitation only and 0:10:01.960 --> 0:10:06.730 it ended up going to Labor seats. This again, non-partisan group. 0:10:07.790 --> 0:10:11.429 Prima facie, it looks like the misuse of public money 0:10:11.929 --> 0:10:14.530 or serious pork barrelling as it's sometimes called. 0:10:14.750 --> 0:10:17.460 For every dollar spent in a coalition seat. 0:10:17.460 --> 0:10:23.199 $ 3. 20 was spent in a notionally ALP-held seat. 0:10:24.179 --> 0:10:27.979 Now, perfect example. There's a golf club in Rutherglen, which 0:10:28.120 --> 0:10:30.370 is part of the electorate that Helen Haynes has, the 0:10:30.410 --> 0:10:34.050 city of Indi, or the seat of Indi, which is 0:10:34.429 --> 0:10:38.809 very close to the border in Victoria. 7.30 again went 0:10:38.850 --> 0:10:42.740 and spoke to exactly the type of group who you 0:10:42.780 --> 0:10:45.740 would think would have received this sort of money because 0:10:45.780 --> 0:10:48.500 the money was there to, among other things, fix up 0:10:48.559 --> 0:10:53.280 community and sporting infrastructure. But of course, Labor had no 0:10:53.320 --> 0:10:55.580 interest in that seat, so guess what happened? 0:10:56.800 --> 0:11:00.620 At the 100-year-old Rutherglen Golf Club, asbestos still lines the 0:11:00.660 --> 0:11:02.890 walls and white ants gnaw at the wood. 0:11:04.440 --> 0:11:07.220 We can't do anything because there's asbestos under here, so 0:11:07.240 --> 0:11:10.060 as soon as we start to take that off, that's 0:11:10.100 --> 0:11:11.810 a major cost, major headache. 0:11:12.010 --> 0:11:14.970 The club had reached out to local MP Helen Haynes 0:11:15.030 --> 0:11:17.730 to ask how it could be considered for a grant 0:11:17.870 --> 0:11:18.650 under the program. 0:11:18.670 --> 0:11:22.080 I had to say to them, I'm really sorry, but 0:11:22.140 --> 0:11:23.820 you can't get an invitation to this one. 0:11:24.100 --> 0:11:27.640 You had to be invited by the Labor government of 0:11:27.700 --> 0:11:28.020 the day. 0:11:29.070 --> 0:11:32.030 But of the half a billion dollars that was set aside, 0:11:32.070 --> 0:11:36.640 that was decided by the government, that $ 400 million ended 0:11:36.720 --> 0:11:40.500 up in Labor seats that they held or wanted to hold, 0:11:41.100 --> 0:11:43.060 guess what would be an example of a golf club 0:11:43.200 --> 0:11:44.880 that did get the money? 0:11:46.260 --> 0:11:50.480 Marrickville Golf Club in Anthony Albanese's electorate of Graindler is 0:11:50.540 --> 0:11:55.360 getting a taxpayer-funded facelift, a $ 6 million renovation of a 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:57.760 club he feels a close connection to. 0:11:59.420 --> 0:12:04.490 Extraordinary. Absolutely extraordinary. Now, again, everyone will say in opposition, oh, 0:12:04.530 --> 0:12:07.410 pork barrelling, it's a disgrace. But these were people who 0:12:07.429 --> 0:12:09.650 decided to make it a scandal so large that the 0:12:09.690 --> 0:12:12.699 minister at the time had to resign because of the 0:12:13.000 --> 0:12:17.380 political nature of the money being handed out. Instead, you 0:12:17.440 --> 0:12:21.460 are seeing here not $ 100 million, not $ 50 million, but 0:12:21.559 --> 0:12:26.250 half a B4 billion that miraculously ends up In the 0:12:26.330 --> 0:12:29.530 political advantage of the government, this is mega. This is 0:12:29.610 --> 0:12:33.339 a mega story, a mega scandal. Of course, I'll talk 0:12:33.380 --> 0:12:35.140 about it as the days roll on, but let's see 0:12:35.179 --> 0:12:39.929 where this goes in Parliament when it resumes tomorrow. Of course, 0:12:39.970 --> 0:12:42.890 the social media changes are on their way. The government 0:12:43.050 --> 0:12:46.170 is pushing hard for what is called a duty of 0:12:46.270 --> 0:12:49.770 care bill. Let me make this nice and simple. Basically, 0:12:49.950 --> 0:12:52.309 they want to change the way social media works. Here 0:12:52.350 --> 0:12:55.929 is the communications minister explaining how it would change if 0:12:56.050 --> 0:12:56.829 the law passed. 0:12:58.010 --> 0:13:00.910 This is about choice, the choice for an adult to 0:13:00.929 --> 0:13:03.850 decide what their default feed will be, the algorithm or 0:13:03.870 --> 0:13:07.030 their following feed, their friends and the content creators they've 0:13:07.130 --> 0:13:07.880 chosen to follow. 0:13:09.010 --> 0:13:11.860 So, again, You would only see the people that you follow. 0:13:11.880 --> 0:13:14.300 There would be no suggestions of things that you might 0:13:14.360 --> 0:13:18.280 like but don't follow. The argument here is that if 0:13:18.300 --> 0:13:21.000 you've got a collection of followers and then you start 0:13:21.020 --> 0:13:23.000 to get things that are suggested, it takes you off 0:13:23.160 --> 0:13:27.780 into the crazier parts of the internet faster. The Prime Minister, again, 0:13:27.880 --> 0:13:31.210 wants this piece of legislation passed in the next two weeks. 0:13:32.850 --> 0:13:37.410 This is not about giving government control. It's about giving 0:13:37.530 --> 0:13:41.660 people control. It's about putting choice back into the hands 0:13:41.720 --> 0:13:46.040 of Australians online. Through our digital duty of care, we 0:13:46.080 --> 0:13:51.679 will require platforms to protect children from harmful content, including 0:13:51.760 --> 0:13:58.300 content that promotes eating disorders, misogynistic content, pornography and content 0:13:58.340 --> 0:13:59.800 that glorifies crime. 0:14:01.280 --> 0:14:03.280 Now, the opposition doesn't know exactly where we're going to 0:14:03.300 --> 0:14:05.620 land on this because in the past there have been 0:14:05.660 --> 0:14:09.730 attempts by this government to censor the information via the 0:14:09.910 --> 0:14:13.929 idea of misinformation. We'll wait and see what the legislation says, 0:14:13.970 --> 0:14:17.210 but if the legislation essentially means that it'll be your 0:14:17.290 --> 0:14:19.570 choice whether the only things you see on social media 0:14:19.590 --> 0:14:22.430 are the people you are already following or you want 0:14:22.470 --> 0:14:24.609 to jump into the one where random stuff turns up 0:14:24.650 --> 0:14:26.790 in the middle of the night, well, that seems to 0:14:26.860 --> 0:14:29.400 be a significant change but not one that would go 0:14:29.520 --> 0:14:35.160 anywhere near potential censorship. That said, I'm with Andrew Hastie 0:14:35.200 --> 0:14:37.580 on this, is that I understand the importance and if 0:14:37.620 --> 0:14:40.180 it is as simple as it is presented, I get it, 0:14:40.560 --> 0:14:41.300 but why the rush? 0:14:42.590 --> 0:14:44.870 We're about to embark on the Joint Select Committee for 0:14:44.910 --> 0:14:48.370 Artificial Intelligence. It's a two month committee process. And I 0:14:48.390 --> 0:14:50.430 don't see the rush here from the government to bring 0:14:50.470 --> 0:14:54.090 in legislation before we've had a chance with people from 0:14:54.110 --> 0:14:58.370 across the parliament, both houses, to examine artificial intelligence and 0:14:58.550 --> 0:15:00.850 all the other issues bound up with it through the 0:15:00.870 --> 0:15:02.580 committee process. And at the end of that, we'll have 0:15:02.620 --> 0:15:04.320 a better idea of what we're talking about when we're 0:15:04.340 --> 0:15:07.820 talking about algorithms, how they work, how big tech operates 0:15:07.900 --> 0:15:10.800 and designs its programs. We're going to examine all of 0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:13.280 this in detail. So I think the government can pump 0:15:13.300 --> 0:15:16.030 the brakes here, let the committee do its work, and 0:15:16.070 --> 0:15:18.150 then we may have a better understanding of what's at 0:15:18.170 --> 0:15:18.570 stake here. 0:15:19.730 --> 0:15:22.370 This week and today, two big anniversaries. There was a 0:15:22.410 --> 0:15:25.230 time when Australia wasn't as nuts as it is right now, 0:15:25.310 --> 0:15:28.370 and I can take you back just 13 years. That is, 0:15:28.410 --> 0:15:31.720 of course, on this week is when Tony Abbott had 0:15:31.760 --> 0:15:36.040 his landslide win, more than 90 seats, a forever change 0:15:36.140 --> 0:15:39.520 to Australian politics. One that, of course, was broken a 0:15:39.560 --> 0:15:42.660 couple of years later when Malcolm Turnbull brought down that 0:15:42.700 --> 0:15:45.260 Prime Minister, ruined the libs, and we are where we 0:15:45.400 --> 0:15:48.460 are today. The second is a little more personal to 0:15:48.500 --> 0:15:52.140 me as a lifetime fan of the great Peter Brock. Today, 0:15:52.240 --> 0:15:54.380 believe it or not, 20 years to the day since 0:15:54.420 --> 0:15:58.030 the great man died, we all remember where we were 0:15:58.070 --> 0:16:00.190 when we heard the news that he died in a 0:16:00.270 --> 0:16:04.090 rallying accident in Western Australia. He, of course, won Bathurst 0:16:04.350 --> 0:16:08.410 nine times and won He's as good as it gets 0:16:08.450 --> 0:16:10.830 when it comes to Australia and peak Australia of the 0:16:11.190 --> 0:16:14.190 1970s and the 1980s. Just to relive a moment of 0:16:14.210 --> 0:16:16.460 the magic before we get back to the news, here 0:16:16.480 --> 0:16:18.880 he is going around Mount Panorama. 0:16:19.980 --> 0:16:23.240 I used top gear here because it saves the engine 0:16:23.280 --> 0:16:25.400 a bit. Then back to third here for this corner. 0:16:25.420 --> 0:16:28.490 It's a very tricky one. Now, I brake very late here. 0:16:28.570 --> 0:16:30.630 There's a lot of time debate up just here. Touch 0:16:30.670 --> 0:16:33.410 the accelerator there and just sort of back to third 0:16:33.450 --> 0:16:35.609 just before I get to this earth bank. Keep it 0:16:35.650 --> 0:16:39.810 very close there. Cross the dipper and boot it down here. 0:16:40.070 --> 0:16:42.430 Keep it flat in third. A lot of people use 0:16:42.470 --> 0:16:42.890 second there. 0:16:42.910 --> 0:16:43.090 I don't. 0:16:44.520 --> 0:16:46.000 I could watch it all day, but back to the 0:16:46.060 --> 0:16:48.800 day job right now. So let's talk to Warren Pickering, 0:16:48.840 --> 0:16:51.989 the One Nation leader in Victoria. Now, past couple of days, 0:16:52.140 --> 0:16:55.410 stories have appeared via the Australian newspaper with some pretty 0:16:55.450 --> 0:17:00.270 wild allegations about his past. Well, today he decided to 0:17:00.430 --> 0:17:04.570 confront those in a Answer Anything press conference. He was 0:17:04.630 --> 0:17:08.450 even there with his stepson and his delightful daughter. We've 0:17:08.470 --> 0:17:10.650 met Warren in the past, but it was big news. 0:17:10.750 --> 0:17:13.470 Lead story all over Victoria tonight. 0:17:14.780 --> 0:17:18.660 Fronting the cameras with his daughter and stepson in support, 0:17:18.740 --> 0:17:22.790 the man leading One Nation's run in Victoria, confessing to 0:17:22.850 --> 0:17:27.430 drug use up until his mid-20s. Flanked by his daughter 0:17:27.530 --> 0:17:32.490 and stepson, Victoria's new One Nation leader makes an extraordinary admission. 0:17:33.590 --> 0:17:37.750 Warren joins us now from Melbourne. Warren, emotionally, what's this 0:17:37.790 --> 0:17:41.030 week been like for you as the things that are 0:17:41.070 --> 0:17:43.770 true and untrue about your past seem to be fair 0:17:43.810 --> 0:17:46.340 game for a very significant part of the media? 0:17:48.359 --> 0:17:51.100 Thanks, Paul, and good evening to your viewers. It has 0:17:51.140 --> 0:17:53.520 been a very emotional few days, not just for me, 0:17:53.580 --> 0:17:55.720 more so for my daughter. 0:17:55.960 --> 0:17:56.560 And her brothers. 0:17:58.080 --> 0:18:02.020 We know in politics nothing's off limits. However, you would 0:18:02.080 --> 0:18:04.919 hope that a lot of the more reputable media outlets 0:18:04.980 --> 0:18:08.970 would use a little bit more critical discernment before dragging 0:18:09.030 --> 0:18:13.169 families into things. For me, it's been very overwhelming to 0:18:13.190 --> 0:18:15.450 have the support not only of the party but a 0:18:15.510 --> 0:18:20.020 lot of the broader community and my family get right 0:18:20.060 --> 0:18:24.440 behind me 100%. It wasn't something that I anticipated I 0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:26.939 would have so much support to be honest, mate, but 0:18:26.980 --> 0:18:28.840 we have to be authentic on these things, don't we? 0:18:29.140 --> 0:18:31.340 If it comes out, we have to own it. 0:18:31.609 --> 0:18:35.370 Yeah, I want to be sensitive to your former partner 0:18:36.150 --> 0:18:40.530 because there's a whole series of issues that she's dealing with, 0:18:40.590 --> 0:18:45.590 but obviously the decision to take this from the internet 0:18:45.710 --> 0:18:51.169 to the mainstream is why you've had to respond. Again, 0:18:51.950 --> 0:18:55.320 you had a life and it was a life that 0:18:56.420 --> 0:18:59.619 wasn't perfect and wasn't going well a lifetime ago. But 0:19:00.320 --> 0:19:03.380 the thing that I find curious about all of this 0:19:03.460 --> 0:19:06.450 story and about why this story deserves another go around 0:19:06.530 --> 0:19:09.050 now is that you've had a transformative moment and that 0:19:09.090 --> 0:19:12.430 was your service for Australia in the Defence Force. Now, again, 0:19:12.450 --> 0:19:17.520 the experimentation and the poor choices of your 20s were 0:19:17.560 --> 0:19:21.620 replaced with national service and you've come out the other 0:19:21.720 --> 0:19:24.679 end as an example of a changed human being, haven't you? 0:19:26.550 --> 0:19:29.670 I absolutely have. I think that's an important one to note. 0:19:30.130 --> 0:19:33.260 I want that to be something that people can point to, 0:19:33.400 --> 0:19:36.879 people that maybe are struggling with similar circumstances in their 0:19:36.920 --> 0:19:41.679 younger years and have aspirations to be a part of 0:19:41.720 --> 0:19:45.489 their community or provide service in a different way. It's 0:19:45.530 --> 0:19:47.989 never too late. I think that's the message there. It's 0:19:48.030 --> 0:19:51.520 truly never too late. And whereas Australians are forgiving people. 0:19:52.800 --> 0:19:57.939 You know, if you're community-oriented and you're prepared to apply 0:19:57.980 --> 0:20:03.220 yourself to the benefit of others, I think sky's the limit. 0:20:04.220 --> 0:20:06.879 Watching that press conference today, as people did either live 0:20:06.940 --> 0:20:09.600 or they've heard about it since, there's... not one that 0:20:09.640 --> 0:20:11.840 immediately comes to mind, and I've been watching this pretty 0:20:11.880 --> 0:20:14.700 closely for a very long time, about openness and honesty. 0:20:15.500 --> 0:20:18.280 The idea that your family was there to back you 0:20:18.400 --> 0:20:21.260 up as strongly as they did when, of course, they 0:20:21.600 --> 0:20:25.460 know the circumstances, they know the backstory, they know the 0:20:25.680 --> 0:20:29.590 current story. Can I just ask, as a dad, how 0:20:29.619 --> 0:20:34.470 did you feel having your daughter there and your stepson 0:20:35.010 --> 0:20:37.190 and them to have the courage to stand in front 0:20:37.250 --> 0:20:40.400 of a media pack? Because That's something normal people would 0:20:40.420 --> 0:20:43.699 be absolutely bowled over by, let alone people who are 0:20:43.720 --> 0:20:47.859 talking about the most private parts of their mum and dad. 0:20:51.369 --> 0:20:55.350 It absolutely, it blew me over, to be honest, Paul. 0:20:55.430 --> 0:20:57.790 It's very difficult to do these things, as you know, 0:20:57.810 --> 0:21:01.670 as I know. I didn't ask them to support me 0:21:01.690 --> 0:21:04.570 in that respect. They chose, they asked to come along 0:21:04.609 --> 0:21:08.090 and be a part of that process. So look, I'm 0:21:08.109 --> 0:21:10.710 incredibly proud of how brave they've been. I think it 0:21:10.750 --> 0:21:12.650 gave them an opportunity to get some things off their 0:21:12.710 --> 0:21:14.810 chest as well that they maybe wouldn't have any other way. 0:21:15.609 --> 0:21:19.450 But look, I wouldn't wish it on anyone. Absolutely not. Look, 0:21:19.990 --> 0:21:27.270 it's disappointing for me that, again, reputable media sources didn't 0:21:27.330 --> 0:21:29.469 look at this story and think that that's maybe not 0:21:29.490 --> 0:21:31.889 for public viewing, that that's maybe something that should be 0:21:32.390 --> 0:21:35.690 should be left alone rather than allowing someone a soapbox 0:21:35.770 --> 0:21:37.090 to gaslight effectively. 0:21:37.510 --> 0:21:39.730 Last question here to the people of Victoria who are 0:21:39.770 --> 0:21:42.470 considering supporting you, or according to the polls, many who 0:21:42.510 --> 0:21:45.830 already are. What can you say to them about how 0:21:45.950 --> 0:21:48.810 mistakes in the past are in the past? And in 0:21:48.850 --> 0:21:52.730 an extreme question, would you be willing to do a 0:21:52.950 --> 0:21:55.780 random drug test at any point between now and the election? 0:21:57.300 --> 0:22:00.580 Yeah, absolutely. Look, I've actually made that suggestion. But to 0:22:00.600 --> 0:22:04.580 your first point, It pays for people to remember. You 0:22:04.619 --> 0:22:07.500 do not have to be a victim of your previous circumstances. 0:22:07.520 --> 0:22:09.480 You do not have to be a perpetual victim of 0:22:09.520 --> 0:22:13.639 your past forevermore. In fact, I think everybody should aspire 0:22:13.680 --> 0:22:17.070 to move beyond that and take those as a lesson 0:22:17.590 --> 0:22:22.570 and develop as a person as a result. I've absolutely, 0:22:22.730 --> 0:22:26.170 I've actually put that submission forward earlier today to say, 0:22:26.190 --> 0:22:28.130 you know what, I think I probably should do. 0:22:28.050 --> 0:22:28.810 That for the party. 0:22:28.869 --> 0:22:31.700 I'd take it a step further too, I think, Paul. 0:22:31.720 --> 0:22:34.260 I think I've make the request of the Victorian people 0:22:34.280 --> 0:22:36.560 to demand the same of every candidate in this Victorian 0:22:36.580 --> 0:22:41.530 state election, including those incumbents that intend to re-elect. We 0:22:41.570 --> 0:22:46.010 talk about, you know, operating heavy vehicles and machinery under 0:22:46.030 --> 0:22:49.470 the influence. What about those ministers that make decisions on 0:22:49.490 --> 0:22:52.040 the daily that affect the lives of 6.5 million Victorians? 0:22:52.260 --> 0:22:52.860 It will be a fascinating. 0:22:52.880 --> 0:22:54.639 I think Victorians deserve to know that those people are 0:22:54.680 --> 0:22:56.090 of sound... Sound mind. 0:22:56.210 --> 0:22:58.409 Yeah, it'll be a fascinating start to every candidate forum 0:22:58.430 --> 0:23:00.370 and then we'll see what happens when the results kick 0:23:00.410 --> 0:23:02.210 in an hour later. Thank you very much, Warren. Again, 0:23:02.270 --> 0:23:04.830 very difficult day, but I do appreciate the conversation. Thank 0:23:04.850 --> 0:23:05.310 you very much. 0:23:06.390 --> 0:23:07.210 Thanks for your time, Paul. 0:23:07.530 --> 0:23:09.310 Good on you, Warren. Warren, of course, is the leader 0:23:09.330 --> 0:23:12.689 of One Nation in Victoria. All right. Now, there was 0:23:12.710 --> 0:23:14.930