WEBVTT - Credlin | 15 October 0:00:02.040 --> 0:00:06.740 Peter Credlin, live from News 24. 0:00:07.760 --> 0:00:10.139 Good evening. Welcome to the program. Here's what's coming up 0:00:10.180 --> 0:00:14.420 tonight on Credlin. More revelations tonight of Victorian money, the 0:00:14.500 --> 0:00:18.910 money pit under Daniel Andrews. An IPAC report today reporting 0:00:18.950 --> 0:00:22.410 almost a quarter of a billion dollars in COVID payments 0:00:22.489 --> 0:00:26.430 to people and businesses that were not eligible. We'll take 0:00:26.470 --> 0:00:29.190 a look again at that shocking use of abortion today 0:00:29.230 --> 0:00:32.530 as a political tactic in the Victorian campaign by a 0:00:32.550 --> 0:00:36.620 very desperate Labor. But a backflip response from the Liberals 0:00:36.659 --> 0:00:40.460 this afternoon. We'll talk about that. The inspiring mission of 0:00:40.500 --> 0:00:44.500 two former paratroopers using the power of remembrance to help 0:00:44.680 --> 0:00:48.940 tackle veteran suicide. This is a phenomenal story. I can't 0:00:48.960 --> 0:00:51.040 wait to meet them a bit later in the show. 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:55.020 And Annika Wells out today selling her digital duty of care, 0:00:55.420 --> 0:01:00.520 a censorship legislation. Never mind, though, this Freudian slip today 0:01:00.580 --> 0:01:02.940 during her address to the press club. 0:01:04.180 --> 0:01:08.870 We are controlling suicide. We are not controlling free speech. 0:01:09.490 --> 0:01:12.010 We are not conducting covert surveillance. 0:01:15.590 --> 0:01:18.690 But first, we've discussed government wasting your money a fair 0:01:18.709 --> 0:01:22.720 bit this week, whether it's the $ 560 million spent on 0:01:22.780 --> 0:01:28.220 taxpayer grants to dodgy multicultural groups or the millions spent 0:01:28.260 --> 0:01:32.120 supporting other organisations that hate our country and hate our 0:01:32.180 --> 0:01:35.980 values and including that incredible case of the Western Sydney 0:01:36.000 --> 0:01:39.979 Islamic media group called One Path, who had their funding 0:01:40.040 --> 0:01:45.880 terminated yesterday after shocking revelations of Jew hatred splashed across 0:01:45.920 --> 0:01:50.560 the newspaper front pages. Then there's the $ 300 million pork 0:01:50.640 --> 0:01:54.180 barrel that Labor called their local and community grants program 0:01:54.760 --> 0:01:58.140 that integrity experts have confirmed has paid out money 73% 0:01:58.140 --> 0:02:03.090 of the time, to Labor seats in key marginals in 0:02:03.130 --> 0:02:06.630 a program where you can't even apply for support, you 0:02:06.670 --> 0:02:09.050 have to get a Labor MP to tap you on 0:02:09.190 --> 0:02:13.329 the shoulder. Now, I kid you not. Which is precisely 0:02:13.370 --> 0:02:16.800 what happened when the PM's mates at the Marrickville Golf 0:02:16.820 --> 0:02:21.740 Club got that $ 6 million sling one week out from 0:02:21.780 --> 0:02:25.139 last year's May election. But it's not just the big 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:28.000 dollars where Labor wastes the money you work so hard 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:31.770 to pay in taxes. It's the snouts in the trough 0:02:31.910 --> 0:02:35.669 stuff where voters are really angry. At a time when 0:02:35.750 --> 0:02:40.470 some 50,000 businesses have collapsed since this government was first elected, 0:02:41.290 --> 0:02:44.880 we've got a small business minister in Anne Arley who 0:02:45.340 --> 0:02:49.960 is so comprehensively out of her depth, it's embarrassing. 0:02:50.740 --> 0:02:53.360 Now, there's no doubt, Mr Speaker, that small businesses are 0:02:53.400 --> 0:02:56.880 doing it tough. The costs of doing businesses are getting higher, 0:02:57.320 --> 0:03:03.370 margins are getting thinner. and businesses are struggling through. We 0:03:03.430 --> 0:03:06.780 on this side of the house can and do and 0:03:06.860 --> 0:03:10.340 will continue to consult with small businesses, to listen to 0:03:10.380 --> 0:03:14.260 small businesses, to understand them and to bring their concerns 0:03:15.220 --> 0:03:20.840 to this parliament. Those on the other side can talk 0:03:20.900 --> 0:03:22.919 as much as they like, but they're not out there 0:03:22.940 --> 0:03:23.990 visiting small businesses. 0:03:26.650 --> 0:03:30.270 They're not out there visiting small businesses, she says. Well, 0:03:30.470 --> 0:03:34.650 incompetence is one thing. What's worse is she too can't 0:03:34.690 --> 0:03:38.410 help herself with your money. Revelations today that she has 0:03:38.530 --> 0:03:44.560 billed taxpayers more than $ 150, 000 for luxury overseas travel to 0:03:44.600 --> 0:03:51.020 nine countries, including Spain, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, twice to Qatar, Indonesia, Singapore, 0:03:51.040 --> 0:03:55.560 the UAE, India and Bangladesh. All very essential, she says. 0:03:56.220 --> 0:04:01.140 Will you be the judge? And then there's Annika Wells, 0:04:01.560 --> 0:04:05.040 the Sports and Communications Minister. When she's not trying to 0:04:05.100 --> 0:04:09.400 censor your digital device and crush free speech, you'll find 0:04:09.460 --> 0:04:11.720 her too at the pointy end of the plane living 0:04:11.740 --> 0:04:15.370 it up. A few days ago, Freedom of Information documents 0:04:15.410 --> 0:04:18.690 confirmed there was no meeting in the diary of South 0:04:18.730 --> 0:04:23.750 Australian Labor MP Chris Pickton, as Wells had claimed, when 0:04:23.810 --> 0:04:27.290 she was at his house in to celebrate his wife's 0:04:27.890 --> 0:04:32.010 40th birthday. But it gets worse. We now have the 0:04:32.070 --> 0:04:36.720 Albanese government refusing to comply with new FOI requests to 0:04:36.760 --> 0:04:42.840 release other documents related to the birthday weekend junket. Well, 0:04:43.240 --> 0:04:47.870 they now say all the records have vanished. All up, 0:04:48.490 --> 0:04:54.300 Arnica Wells has billed taxpayers $ 2, 500 for flights between Brisbane 0:04:54.320 --> 0:04:56.220 and Adelaide. I mean, you could fly to London for 0:04:56.240 --> 0:05:03.280 that much. Almost $ 600 for her com-car limos. Another $ 430 0:05:02.980 --> 0:05:07.159 for her hotel room. Now, any wonder older Australians are angry, 0:05:07.260 --> 0:05:10.140 isn't it, when this sort of waste happens on an 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:14.049 epic scale? Yet today the Albanese government said that they 0:05:14.060 --> 0:05:19.590 will again try and cut back their private health insurance rebates. 0:05:22.600 --> 0:05:24.740 The government is committed to moving ahead with this bill. 0:05:25.140 --> 0:05:29.140 Older Australians deserve better aged care services. The government is 0:05:29.180 --> 0:05:31.860 of the view that it is important that the parliament 0:05:32.200 --> 0:05:34.370 have a proper debate on these matters. 0:05:36.510 --> 0:05:39.330 Knocked back in the Senate tonight, but Labor will keep 0:05:39.470 --> 0:05:43.650 coming after older Australians. But as bad as all of 0:05:43.710 --> 0:05:48.420 that might be, just listen to this. In Victoria today, 0:05:48.480 --> 0:05:53.170 the state's anti-corruption watchdog released a bombshell report into hundreds 0:05:53.190 --> 0:05:58.090 of millions of dollars rorted during the Daniel Andrews COVID era. 0:05:58.770 --> 0:06:06.690 Codenamed Operation Harmonia, IBAC revealed that almost $ 260 million was 0:06:06.910 --> 0:06:10.560 shoveled out by the Andrews government to applicants not even 0:06:10.900 --> 0:06:14.260 eligible for the money. It included $ 108 million paid to 0:06:14.279 --> 0:06:19.810 businesses that that haven't even fully traded during the time. 0:06:20.450 --> 0:06:25.070 And information regarding this multi-million dollar taxpayer loss was scrubbed 0:06:25.370 --> 0:06:31.130 from official documents. According to IBAC's bombshell report, these incredible 0:06:31.210 --> 0:06:35.380 overpayments were then covered up by senior public servants, all 0:06:35.440 --> 0:06:40.610 appointed by Labor, and erased from official financial records. We 0:06:40.670 --> 0:06:44.290 only know about the existence of this almost $ 300 million 0:06:44.310 --> 0:06:48.640 bogus operation because of the whistleblowers who went to IBAC 0:06:49.020 --> 0:06:53.760 not long after COVID ended. According to the IBAC report, 0:06:53.800 --> 0:06:58.860 this industrial scale rort, quote, was not a one-off event, 0:06:59.380 --> 0:07:03.930 nor was it due to an oversight. Instead, the anti-corruption 0:07:03.990 --> 0:07:09.350 watchdog found that ethics and integrity were secondary considerations in 0:07:09.390 --> 0:07:13.290 the face of scrutiny. IBAC also found that more than 0:07:13.290 --> 0:07:17.060 9,000 applicants took advantage of this opportunity to pick up 0:07:17.130 --> 0:07:21.380 free cash when governments, state and federal, blew the budget 0:07:21.440 --> 0:07:24.420 in sheer and utter panic over the arrival of the 0:07:24.480 --> 0:07:28.100 virus into Australia. When the fraud was discovered, says IBAC, 0:07:28.440 --> 0:07:32.660 rather than raising the alarm and stemming the losses, Andrew's 0:07:32.760 --> 0:07:35.560 government insiders, well, they just tried to make it all 0:07:35.600 --> 0:07:36.180 go away. 0:07:37.440 --> 0:07:37.820 But who. 0:07:38.940 --> 0:07:40.620 Who is shocked here? 0:07:40.640 --> 0:07:42.660 I can't specifically recall. 0:07:42.780 --> 0:07:43.660 I can't recall. 0:07:43.940 --> 0:07:46.900 I presume I did. I don't recall the conversation. 0:07:47.000 --> 0:07:49.700 And I have some memory, but not full memory. 0:07:49.840 --> 0:07:52.380 I don't recall specifically, not to my recollection. 0:07:52.700 --> 0:07:53.920 I have no recollection of that. 0:07:54.120 --> 0:07:55.720 I can't specifically recall. 0:07:55.740 --> 0:08:00.580 I mean, we know the Andrews government was rotten to 0:08:00.610 --> 0:08:04.610 the core. We know the anti-corruption reports from IBAC keep 0:08:04.750 --> 0:08:08.720 stacking up, but so supreme was Daniel Andrews' grip over 0:08:08.780 --> 0:08:13.600 Victoria that Labor Party corruption became just another byword for 0:08:13.620 --> 0:08:16.500 the broken state. It's why at the time I was 0:08:16.540 --> 0:08:18.500 one of the lone voices out there demanding a Royal 0:08:18.540 --> 0:08:23.100 Commission into Australia's COVID response. I mean, how on earth... 0:08:23.380 --> 0:08:25.960 Governments were allowed to lock us up, as they did 0:08:26.020 --> 0:08:29.640 for two years, to damage our young people, as they did, 0:08:29.700 --> 0:08:32.600 to kill the vulnerable, as they did with the sheer 0:08:32.640 --> 0:08:36.230 incompetence of hotel quarantine, and to bring so many small 0:08:36.260 --> 0:08:40.210 businesses to their knees. Well, that still staggers me today. 0:08:40.230 --> 0:08:43.910 And that's before we even get into those vaccine mandates 0:08:43.970 --> 0:08:46.970 that led so many people to lose their jobs. And 0:08:46.990 --> 0:08:50.390 when people protested, we saw the use of rubber bullets 0:08:50.870 --> 0:08:52.350 on the streets in Melbourne. 0:08:55.030 --> 0:08:56.610 Media! Media! 0:08:56.670 --> 0:08:59.370 They're throwing. 0:09:01.030 --> 0:09:04.510 Stuff now. 0:09:05.520 --> 0:09:07.180 OK, they're shooting. 0:09:07.500 --> 0:09:08.260 They're now shooting. 0:09:13.559 --> 0:09:17.160 We don't see any of that, do we, for the pro-Hamas, pro-Hezbollah, 0:09:17.220 --> 0:09:22.170 pro-Palestinian rallies, but they were just ordinary Australians sick of 0:09:22.330 --> 0:09:26.090 two years of lockdowns. And as much as I hold 0:09:26.110 --> 0:09:29.190 Daniel Andrews responsible for the terrible time and the loss 0:09:29.230 --> 0:09:32.910 of our democratic rights and liberties, all of those, all 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:35.179 of those involved in the Morrison government, well, they bear 0:09:35.220 --> 0:09:39.260 their own responsibility too. Because it was the Morrison government 0:09:39.640 --> 0:09:43.540 that enabled the brutality of premiers like Andrews. It was 0:09:43.580 --> 0:09:47.660 the Morrison government, a Liberal government in name only, that 0:09:47.780 --> 0:09:52.620 bankrolled the cruelty and the waste of Daniel Andrews. Now, 0:09:52.640 --> 0:09:55.240 I know that there's some who are playing the game 0:09:55.280 --> 0:09:59.280 of revisionism and self-justification, but no one should buy that. 0:10:00.170 --> 0:10:03.179 At any time, the Morrison government could have called its 0:10:03.500 --> 0:10:07.380 own inquiry into COVID to properly analyse all the things 0:10:07.420 --> 0:10:10.199 we got right as well as the things we got 0:10:10.300 --> 0:10:13.440 wrong so that Australia is better prepared for the next 0:10:13.480 --> 0:10:19.870 pandemic when it comes. And it will come. It will come. I, 0:10:19.890 --> 0:10:22.530 like many others, are concerned even now about reports out 0:10:22.570 --> 0:10:25.710 of Russia of the sudden death of a lab worker, 0:10:26.350 --> 0:10:29.340 allegedly the result of a breakout of a deadly pathogen, 0:10:30.030 --> 0:10:33.840 and understand that one of the new frontiers in warfare 0:10:34.420 --> 0:10:38.460 is the use of biological agents. So the idea that 0:10:38.520 --> 0:10:43.160 Australia has never done a comprehensive review into everything from 0:10:43.590 --> 0:10:47.830 border closures to lockdown protocols to our billions and billions 0:10:47.890 --> 0:10:52.230 in wasted spending is to the surge capacity of hospitals 0:10:52.290 --> 0:10:56.150 across the country, well, it's not only just stupid, it's 0:10:56.309 --> 0:11:00.939 criminally negligent. And knowing governors are due, the only reason 0:11:00.960 --> 0:11:05.780 they've not had an inquiry is that every politician involved 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:11.059 is complicit in the backside covering that silence gives them. 0:11:12.140 --> 0:11:15.949 And given we were all cannon fodder in the COVID experiment, 0:11:16.610 --> 0:11:19.610 And given that every dollar they spent was our money, 0:11:19.630 --> 0:11:24.370 even now, three years on, Australians deserve the truth because 0:11:24.710 --> 0:11:29.230 as this IBAC report today shows, we were lied to 0:11:29.950 --> 0:11:38.059 and we were treated with utter contempt. Let's go to 0:11:38.080 --> 0:11:40.380 Canberra now. Quite a lot happened there. It's a busy day. 0:11:40.440 --> 0:11:44.460 Big show at Canberra News tonight as well. Our political reporter, 0:11:44.660 --> 0:11:45.080 Cam Redden. 0:11:46.100 --> 0:11:46.540 Good evening. 0:11:46.880 --> 0:11:50.320 Green Senator Jordan Steele-John has taken leave from the party 0:11:50.360 --> 0:11:54.040 room and is under internal investigation after allegations were raised 0:11:54.160 --> 0:11:58.420 about inappropriate comments towards women. The allegations date as far 0:11:58.460 --> 0:12:01.660 back as 2017 and were laid out in a letter 0:12:01.780 --> 0:12:04.410 to new leader David Shoebridge on Tuesday. 0:12:05.010 --> 0:12:10.630 What we need now is fairness and independence and timeliness. 0:12:11.059 --> 0:12:14.560 News24 has since revealed these minutes from a NSW Young 0:12:14.620 --> 0:12:18.610 Greens meeting in 2018, suggesting that any proposal of a 0:12:18.750 --> 0:12:22.890 formal investigation into claims of sexual harassment into Jordan Steele-John 0:12:22.910 --> 0:12:28.810 be deferred. Senator Steele-John denies the allegations. Labor's Digital Duty 0:12:28.830 --> 0:12:31.480 of Care Bill has now been introduced to the Parliament. 0:12:32.010 --> 0:12:35.969 So all Australians are protected from seriously harmful and illegal content. 0:12:36.110 --> 0:12:38.750 The government has narrowed the scope of powers that would 0:12:38.790 --> 0:12:42.980 enable the eSafety Commissioner or approved researchers to create so-called 0:12:43.100 --> 0:12:46.040 sock puppet accounts that could then be used to monitor 0:12:46.220 --> 0:12:50.260 or even generate content online. Regardless of the government's intent, 0:12:50.380 --> 0:12:54.969 critics warn that creating this capability could enable government censorship 0:12:55.350 --> 0:12:58.130 or propaganda. Does it prevent that from happening? 0:12:59.100 --> 0:13:01.520 Well, you can see in the section introduced, there is 0:13:01.620 --> 0:13:03.140 nothing in what you've just set out there as a 0:13:03.160 --> 0:13:05.100 worst-case scenario that is in the bill. 0:13:05.500 --> 0:13:07.360 Would you just say in the bill that can't be 0:13:07.460 --> 0:13:09.780 used for those purposes, government propaganda and so forth? 0:13:10.750 --> 0:13:11.280 It can't. 0:13:11.380 --> 0:13:12.470 In a worst-case scenario. 0:13:12.540 --> 0:13:12.750 It can't. 0:13:12.760 --> 0:13:14.930 The worst person you imagine gets the power of the 0:13:15.030 --> 0:13:16.950 key safety commissioner one day, for example. 0:13:18.050 --> 0:13:18.550 It cannot. 0:13:19.910 --> 0:13:21.070 I don't know how to be more emphatic. 0:13:21.770 --> 0:13:22.470 It doesn't exist. 0:13:22.870 --> 0:13:23.630 It is not possible. 0:13:24.210 --> 0:13:25.170 Cameron Redden, News 24, Canberra. 0:13:28.059 --> 0:13:30.340 Sorry, but we don't believe you, do we? Let's go 0:13:30.360 --> 0:13:33.700 down to my panel. News 24 contributor Carolee Katzenbarnes. and 0:13:33.760 --> 0:13:38.780 Women's Forum Australia's Stephanie Bastian. We'll start, if we can, Carolee, 0:13:38.820 --> 0:13:43.260 excuse me, with the IBAC report. In the public domain today, 0:13:43.300 --> 0:13:49.620 an extraordinary $ 300 million-odd COVID business grant cover-up. Bureaucrats in 0:13:49.660 --> 0:13:53.090 Victoria knew what they were doing was wrong, knew that 0:13:53.140 --> 0:13:56.989 about 10,000 people were not entitled to this money. It 0:13:57.050 --> 0:14:01.590 was paid out and then covered up, but we're not surprised, 0:14:01.670 --> 0:14:05.220 are we? Well, we're not. 0:14:05.280 --> 0:14:08.740 I mean, it was titled Operation Harmonia. There's nothing harmonious 0:14:08.800 --> 0:14:11.780 about this. But the most worrying thing was the fact 0:14:11.820 --> 0:14:16.720 that ineligible businesses were able to backdate their GST registrations 0:14:16.780 --> 0:14:20.100 by up to four years. But even more worrying is 0:14:20.160 --> 0:14:22.450 the fact that it has actually come out that it 0:14:22.500 --> 0:14:26.690 was the fear of a ministerial backlash which led bureaucrats 0:14:26.750 --> 0:14:29.650 in the department to cover it up. Now, the then 0:14:29.730 --> 0:14:34.440 Victorian Jobs, Trade and Innovation Minister, Martin Bakula... even actually 0:14:34.580 --> 0:14:39.630 admitted himself to IBAC that his temper, he wasn't surprised 0:14:39.650 --> 0:14:42.950 that people were afraid of his temper. And there are many, 0:14:42.990 --> 0:14:46.250 many references throughout transcripts that say that a lot of 0:14:46.290 --> 0:14:50.800 these bureaucrats were worried about the backlash and the spray 0:14:50.820 --> 0:14:52.920 that they would get from Mr Pakula. And as I said, 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:55.960 he conceded that they may well have been in fear 0:14:56.020 --> 0:14:57.340 of him, which led to. 0:14:57.260 --> 0:14:58.420 This absolute cover-up. 0:14:58.820 --> 0:15:00.960 And the people that are, you know, that are paying 0:15:01.000 --> 0:15:04.220 for it are the Victorian taxpayers because, as you've said, 0:15:04.260 --> 0:15:07.700 a quarter of these businesses in Victoria were not eligible 0:15:08.700 --> 0:15:10.760 and 9,000 of them were not eligible for these payments. 0:15:11.160 --> 0:15:13.950 But it also shows that no one's taking any responsibility. 0:15:14.300 --> 0:15:17.630 This is just disgraceful because you cannot have a government 0:15:17.690 --> 0:15:22.110 being run with bureaucrats in fear of a ministerial backlash. 0:15:24.310 --> 0:15:26.760 Yep, and you wonder why there's potholes all over Melbourne, 0:15:26.860 --> 0:15:30.870 all over Victoria. And the debt is skyrocketing and it's 0:15:30.910 --> 0:15:33.010 all borrowed money. This is the thing that really gets 0:15:33.070 --> 0:15:36.000 to me, Steph. We're in the middle of an election campaign. 0:15:36.040 --> 0:15:39.160 We'll talk about some other really disturbing issues out of 0:15:39.200 --> 0:15:43.420 Victoria today. But in the end, governments can only do 0:15:43.520 --> 0:15:46.060 what they've got the money to do. And when money 0:15:46.160 --> 0:15:50.180 is wasted, you get crazy outcomes like these land tax 0:15:50.230 --> 0:15:51.790 hikes in Victoria and more. 0:15:53.470 --> 0:15:54.000 Absolutely. 0:15:54.070 --> 0:15:57.110 I mean, businesses have been slogged with COVID levies to 0:15:57.270 --> 0:16:00.310 refill the debt. I mean, it's been appalling. This government 0:16:00.330 --> 0:16:04.230 spends like there's no tomorrow. There's very little accountability. And 0:16:04.350 --> 0:16:06.390 you look at the election coming up, they're now just 0:16:06.410 --> 0:16:09.050 doing one big spend after another to try and buy votes. 0:16:09.130 --> 0:16:13.440 It's absolutely ridiculous. There should be accountability. The people responsible 0:16:13.480 --> 0:16:16.670 for the cover-up should be made to face the consequences, 0:16:16.710 --> 0:16:20.410 face the tribunal and face consequences for what they've done. 0:16:20.450 --> 0:16:22.770 This is simply not good enough. And I think the 0:16:22.790 --> 0:16:24.820 Australian public, the Victorian public have had enough. 0:16:26.660 --> 0:16:31.360 Let's go to some fire in the belly today from 0:16:31.420 --> 0:16:34.180 Angus Taylor in the chamber. I think he's really finding 0:16:34.720 --> 0:16:37.020 his line and length in the parliament at the moment. 0:16:37.040 --> 0:16:39.630 You remember that the PM took all the credit for 0:16:39.690 --> 0:16:44.350 suspending that ATO credit card ban. It's not gone. Some 0:16:44.370 --> 0:16:46.410 people say it's gone. It's not gone. It's only been suspended. 0:16:46.890 --> 0:16:49.359 The Treasurer said, no, he did it. The PM said, no, no, no, 0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:51.340 it was all about me. Have a look at this 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:52.700 exchange in the Chamber today. 0:16:53.920 --> 0:16:59.370 The Prime Minister overruled and publicly humiliated the Treasurer over 0:16:59.400 --> 0:17:03.390 his widow's tax, his death tax, his super tax, his 0:17:03.470 --> 0:17:06.929 cap on veterans' health care. and his botched ban on 0:17:07.070 --> 0:17:11.430 credit cards. What will the Prime Minister humiliate the Treasurer 0:17:11.750 --> 0:17:12.540 on next? 0:17:14.020 --> 0:17:16.820 Now, I'm not saying, Stephanie, that he's cutting the Treasurer 0:17:16.940 --> 0:17:23.240 loose just yet, but the disquieting Canberra amongst Labor backbenchers 0:17:23.570 --> 0:17:24.450 is pretty strong. 0:17:25.890 --> 0:17:27.889 Well, I think it's very obvious Albo is on the 0:17:27.930 --> 0:17:30.840 nose with the Australian public. And he is now looking 0:17:30.859 --> 0:17:33.480 for a scapegoat. But the reality is the buck stops 0:17:33.540 --> 0:17:37.479 with Anthony Albanese. This is his government. He is fundamentally 0:17:37.530 --> 0:17:40.969 responsible for what goes out. And the fact that he 0:17:41.030 --> 0:17:43.630 had the amount of stress that he has put businesses through, 0:17:43.710 --> 0:17:46.770 first with imposing a ban on being able to pass 0:17:46.850 --> 0:17:50.940 on card charges. Then people using their lifeline to pay 0:17:51.220 --> 0:17:54.220 off their BAS bills, things that they have on credit. 0:17:54.320 --> 0:17:57.480 I mean, the pressure on businesses already is huge and 0:17:57.500 --> 0:17:59.760 it's just made it worse. So for Alba to come 0:17:59.840 --> 0:18:04.260 out and say he's going to save everyone after putting 0:18:04.280 --> 0:18:06.820 this policy in place is a little bit disingenuous, if 0:18:06.859 --> 0:18:07.219 you ask me. 0:18:09.210 --> 0:18:11.090 What about the stuff I spoke about at the top 0:18:11.109 --> 0:18:13.690 of the show, if I can, Carolee? Small business minister 0:18:13.910 --> 0:18:18.100 Anne Arley. She loves to travel. She loves a business 0:18:18.130 --> 0:18:23.840 class seat at the front of the plane. $ 150, 000, nine 0:18:23.920 --> 0:18:28.500 countries in just over a year. She's lecturing everybody in 0:18:28.520 --> 0:18:30.840 the chamber in the last week saying, you know, why 0:18:30.859 --> 0:18:33.260 aren't you out there talking to small businesses? Well, lady, 0:18:33.520 --> 0:18:40.250 you're not even in the country to talk to small business. Yeah, exactly. 0:18:40.430 --> 0:18:42.629 And, you know, meantime, ASIC has said that there are 0:18:42.630 --> 0:18:45.690 30 small businesses going bust in Australia every day. 0:18:46.150 --> 0:18:48.139 It's also important to say that while. 0:18:47.930 --> 0:18:51.460 People are criticising Anne Ali, she was very prickly back 0:18:51.520 --> 0:18:55.179 in 2016 when she was the federal Labor candidate for the. 0:18:55.180 --> 0:18:56.740 West Australian seat of Cowan. 0:18:57.260 --> 0:19:01.859 She wrote a reference for a convicted criminal, Junaid Thorne. 0:19:01.900 --> 0:19:03.240 Now, a little bit of background with him. 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:07.420 He was a self-styled Islamic preacher who called himself a sheikh. 0:19:07.859 --> 0:19:10.080 He was born in WA. He went to Saudi Arabia 0:19:10.100 --> 0:19:12.600 when he was 10. His brother was then jailed for 0:19:12.660 --> 0:19:16.379 terrorism offences. He went out on strike against that. Saudi 0:19:16.420 --> 0:19:20.100 Arabia deported both brothers back to Western Australia. 0:19:20.119 --> 0:19:23.740 At the time, Dr. Anar Lee was a counter-terrorism expert. 0:19:24.290 --> 0:19:27.609 She was accused by the then Federal Justice Minister Michael 0:19:27.650 --> 0:19:31.169 Keenan and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop of actually using the 0:19:31.230 --> 0:19:36.180 taxpayer-funded position she had to write a reference for someone. Now, 0:19:36.520 --> 0:19:39.860 Junaid Thorne was found guilty of using a false name 0:19:40.000 --> 0:19:44.490 on a domestic flight within Australia, but he was jailed 0:19:44.550 --> 0:19:49.890 in 2021 for trafficking massive amounts of cocaine and ecstasy. 0:19:50.359 --> 0:19:53.100 He was due for parole back in December last year 0:19:53.460 --> 0:19:56.230 and he was refused twice by the New South Wales 0:19:56.270 --> 0:19:59.369 government because it found that whilst he was in jail, 0:19:59.710 --> 0:20:04.460 he had extensive contact with convicted terrorists And he also 0:20:04.580 --> 0:20:09.860 pledged support for Islamic State. There's plenty of stuff online 0:20:09.880 --> 0:20:14.340 with him giving sermons with an ISIS flag behind him. Now, 0:20:14.400 --> 0:20:16.480 getting back to Anne Ali, yes, she might be the 0:20:16.520 --> 0:20:19.830 small business minister now, but at the time, it actually 0:20:19.920 --> 0:20:25.350 drew into very sharp focus where, you know, her lack 0:20:25.390 --> 0:20:30.590 of judgment was in writing a reference for Jane Thorne. 0:20:30.990 --> 0:20:31.790 In the same way. 0:20:32.580 --> 0:20:37.540 She's showing a lack of judgment in flying around the world. 0:20:37.660 --> 0:20:38.800 And I note that I think. 0:20:38.869 --> 0:20:42.369 Around about $ 57, 000 was dropped on a trip to Spain 0:20:42.430 --> 0:20:46.670 to sign some gender equity equality program thing. 0:20:47.080 --> 0:20:49.600 That's not helping Australian businesses here whatsoever. 0:20:49.650 --> 0:20:50.260 And you know what? 0:20:50.660 --> 0:20:53.760 In case anyone wants to criticise, yes, it is very 0:20:53.840 --> 0:20:56.580 important that we bring up things that were done 10 0:20:56.580 --> 0:20:59.639 years ago because it's showing a progression of somebody that 0:20:59.700 --> 0:21:02.480 eventually made it into the federal Labor cabinet. 0:21:02.840 --> 0:21:04.359 But at the time, there was. 0:21:04.280 --> 0:21:07.100 A lack of judgment when she actually won the pre-selection. 0:21:07.180 --> 0:21:11.060 And it was a huge thing over Western Australia, absolutely massive. So, 0:21:11.200 --> 0:21:13.840 you know, leopards don't change their spots. And let's see 0:21:13.859 --> 0:21:16.080 what will happen. But that travel is just ridiculous. 0:21:17.780 --> 0:21:19.880 I love a bit of corporate memory. Thank you, Carolee. 0:21:20.400 --> 0:21:22.859 Let's go today to the use of abortion as an 0:21:22.920 --> 0:21:26.899 attempted political wedge in Victoria by Labor and Trades Hall. 0:21:27.560 --> 0:21:29.820 Here's the ad. I mean, it's got a coat hanger 0:21:29.980 --> 0:21:33.439 on the ad. I mean, I think that is absolutely deplorable. 0:21:34.090 --> 0:21:37.630 And this came after Labor announced a $ 30 million election 0:21:37.690 --> 0:21:41.750 pledge to make abortions free if they win in November. 0:21:41.790 --> 0:21:46.870 We're talking here about... later term surgical abortions and some 0:21:46.910 --> 0:21:52.510 medical abortions. And this incredibly weak response today from the minister, 0:21:52.530 --> 0:21:57.270 a Carroll government minister, who was called out by a journalist. 0:21:58.090 --> 0:22:01.860 He's politicising women's reproductive rights because this is a vote grab. 0:22:01.920 --> 0:22:04.060 Why not do it months ago? 0:22:04.080 --> 0:22:07.900 I don't agree with the premise of that question for 0:22:07.920 --> 0:22:12.300 a couple of reasons. Abortion care is health care. We 0:22:12.340 --> 0:22:14.640 are not playing politics with this at all. 0:22:17.000 --> 0:22:18.880 I don't like that term abortion care either. 0:22:18.920 --> 0:22:19.740 It's an abortion. 0:22:20.380 --> 0:22:22.770 One person might get care and the other person gets death. 0:22:22.790 --> 0:22:26.750 But anyway, the Liberals, they had two positions on this today. 0:22:26.810 --> 0:22:28.290 Here's Jess Wilson this morning. 0:22:29.050 --> 0:22:32.169 I think Victorians know where I stand on this issue. 0:22:32.590 --> 0:22:35.629 There will be no changes to abortion laws under a 0:22:35.690 --> 0:22:39.050 government I lead full stop. And I think it's incredibly 0:22:39.130 --> 0:22:44.179 disappointing to see Labor playing politics with women's reproductive rights 0:22:44.580 --> 0:22:46.300 five minutes before an election. 0:22:48.420 --> 0:22:50.780 But then this afternoon, there was a statement from the 0:22:50.820 --> 0:22:54.060 Liberals saying that they would in fact match Labor policy 0:22:54.080 --> 0:22:58.260 with Stephanie, I want your take here, but I tell 0:22:58.280 --> 0:23:00.419 you what, if they're going to make anything free in 0:23:00.510 --> 0:23:04.629 women's health, how about we make contraception free in Victoria 0:23:04.970 --> 0:23:07.070 rather than abortion free? 0:23:08.570 --> 0:23:11.330 Well, Peter, we're having a national conversation about our plummeting 0:23:11.369 --> 0:23:14.129 birth rate. Why not actually support women trying to care 0:23:14.470 --> 0:23:17.450 or have their babies? I mean, this is just funding 0:23:17.710 --> 0:23:20.960 one option. And there are plenty of people across this 0:23:21.020 --> 0:23:23.200 nation who are very unsettled with how far our. 0:23:23.119 --> 0:23:24.040 Abortion laws have gone. 0:23:24.080 --> 0:23:26.100 We have abortion up to birth in Victoria and in 0:23:26.160 --> 0:23:29.760 many states. This has been a wedge issue that other 0:23:29.800 --> 0:23:32.840 minor parties like One Nation have stayed away from or 0:23:32.880 --> 0:23:36.300 have committed for good reason to reduce the abortion rates 0:23:36.340 --> 0:23:39.300 because people are uncomfortable with the fact that it is 0:23:39.380 --> 0:23:43.850 terminating viable, healthy human lives in many situations. And so 0:23:44.150 --> 0:23:46.730 I think it's actually really disappointing that the Liberal Party 0:23:46.790 --> 0:23:49.210 have jumped on this I mean, talk about like a 0:23:49.290 --> 0:23:52.929 fiscal responsibility, $ 30 million to fund abortions. And then on 0:23:52.970 --> 0:23:55.290 top of that, you're doing it in the taxpayer's name 0:23:55.670 --> 0:23:58.429 when many people do not feel comfortable funding this. They 0:23:58.470 --> 0:24:01.750 have a moral objection to it. They don't like it. 0:24:02.210 --> 0:24:05.470 And I think this is why people are leaving both 0:24:05.510 --> 0:24:06.590 major parties in droves. 0:24:08.910 --> 0:24:10.990 Yeah, I think there is no. 0:24:13.010 --> 0:24:15.389 Social licence, if I can call it that, Carolee, at 0:24:15.430 --> 0:24:18.270 the moment for a change to the abortion laws in Australia. 0:24:19.050 --> 0:24:23.370 But there is a huge difference between an early abortion 0:24:23.410 --> 0:24:25.850 in the eyes of a lot of voters and anything 0:24:25.869 --> 0:24:30.570