ABC 891

SUBJECTS: Labor leadership; carbon tax

Penny Wong:  The Prime Minister will resolve the ministerial reshuffle as she said and she’ll do that on the basis of who she thinks should get which position on merit.  And she’ll I’m sure make the right decision.

David Bevan:  And also talking to us from Canberra but on a phone line, Christopher Pyne, Liberal MP for Sturt and Manager of Opposition Business in the House.  Good morning.

Christopher Pyne:  Good morning gentlemen.  Good morning Penny.

Wong:  Good morning.  Miss you up here in the studio.

Pyne:  I know I was running late out of a meeting.  So if I’d tried to get to the studio I would’ve been another five or six minutes late so I apologise.

Matthew Abraham:  We understand.  We understand.We wouldn’t want you to give Penny Wong clear air for five of six minutes.

Pyne:  That was my thinking too.

Wong:  I would quite happy to go through without you and talk about what happened in your party room yesterday.

Pyne:  You don’t want any competition.  I know that.

Abraham:  Senator Wong there’s this interesting story.  One of the I think turning points in the Rudd-Gillard challenge, and I know you were expecting us to ask you about it and we won’t disappoint you, was Kate Ellis…

Wong:  I thought you’d moved to the future by now.

Abraham:  Well it may be about the future.  Was Kate Eliis, Labor MP, who on this program last week raised statements that she says Kevin Rudd had made at the Stag Hotel where he was guest with former Premier Mike Rann who is a close friend of Kevin Rudd.  Where he made disparaging remarks according to Kate Ellis about the Prime Minister Julia Gillard.  Now Mike Rann and Kevin Rudd deny that according to Micahel Owen they have described those claims as ‘lies and a stitch-up.’  Who do you believe?  Do you believe Kate Ellis or do you believe Kevin Rudd and Mike Rann?

Wong:  Well I was at the, it was the Fringe Festival Opening as you probably recall last year, and I was there but being as I am I went home early.  So I couldn’t comment on what might or might not have occurred after I left.  You’d have to ask the people that were there.

Abraham: Would you regard that as dirty poor?  Even raising something that went on at a hotel when someone had their guard down or whatever.  Do you regard that as a step too far in the demonisation of Kevin Rudd that was run by the Gillard camp?

Wong:  What I’d say is if it was said that would have been completely inappropriate but I can’t comment on whether or not it was said because I wasn’t there.

Bevan:  So you didn’t hear any of that when you were there that night?  Because apparently it was spoken widely.

Wong:  I left pretty early.  I’m not know for my…

Bevan:  So that’s a no you didn’t?

Wong:  Well I wasn’t there at the time it’s alleged to have occurred.  I left pretty early that night.

Abraham: No, but I suppose the question, if you don’t mind me labouring this point, is should Kate Ellis have said that?  In other words was this part of a campaign of demonising Kevin Rudd ahead of a leadership vote?

Wong:  Well you’d really have to put that to Kate.  I mean she’s made her views known about what occurred that night.  I can’t comment on whether or not it occurred.   All I can say is if it was said It was inappropriate.

Abraham: You may have misunderstood my question, Minister…

Wong:  No I don’t think I did actually.

Pyne: Well answer it then.

Abraham: Well do you think its appropriate for Kate Ellis to reveal what she said took place that night at the Stag.  Irrespective or whether it took place or not, was it appropriate for her to say that?

Wong:  Well if the comment was made I don’t think the comment was appropriate.

Abraham: The comment was made by whom sorry?

Wong: Alright, if what Kate says, was said by Mr. Rudd, that’s inappropriate.

Journalist: Well that’s not my question.

Wong: Well I think people make their own judgments about what they put into the public sphere. And really I think that’s a question that you should address to Kate.

Pyne: What he is really asking is do you think Kate should be revealing private conversations?

Wong: Well we can have a long talk about this and I think that is an issue that you should put to Kate. What I’m really interested in now, is the future now.  I think we have had a very difficult period inside the Labor party, that’s no secret. We have had a long discussion about this, I think previously, but I’m focussed on the future. We’ve got a Budget surplus to deliver.  We want to roll out the minerals tax, again opposed by Tony Abbot, we want to roll out the tax cuts which that funds, the increases in pensions, the increases in the family tax benefit, all of these things opposed by the Opposition, but that’s what I’m focussed on.

Bevan: Ok, Christopher Pyne the Coalition have made much of the fact that one in three members of the caucus do not support the Prime Minister, but that’s much more support than when Tony Abbott got when he challenged, he had a majority of just one.

Pyne: Well Tony Abbott was elected unanimously following the last election so in fact he got 100% of the Liberal caucus following the 2010 election.

Bevan: But his original ascension to the leadership was a vote of just one, you’d agree that Julia Gillard is in a much better position than he was when he was elected?

Pyne: Well if Julia Gillard thinks she is in a better position than the Coalition I’d be very surprised. We are in opposition, it is a very very different situation when a Prime Minister is challenged by their Foreign Minister, and no Prime Minister who has ever been challenged in their term of office, has ever gone on to win the next election. So obviously being challenged by Kevin Rudd is a very dramatic event, as we all know and the newly assertive Julia Gillard seen in the last 24 hours, because within 24 hours she was offering the foreign ministry to Bob Car, because she decided that there was nobody in her own caucus who was good enough to do the job.

Abraham: Well how do you know that? You’re just relying on the newspaper for that.

Pyne: Well Bob Carr confirmed he was offered the foreign ministry and then within 24 hours she was offering the Foreign Ministry to somebody else because there was no one good enough in her caucus and then she was rolled by the faceless men who said: “No, we want the job for ourselves because he’s an outsider.”

Abraham: (inaudible) that Bob Carr was an outsider?

Pyne: That’s what the Labor party members said, apparently, they said we won’t have him Steve Smith wants the job, so the pantomime...

Abraham: But you’re weaving statements and rumours and reports, are you not?

Wong: Not that Christopher would ever do that.

Pyne: They are in the newspapers this morning, unfortunately the government is continuing to be internally focussed, not focussed on the things the public care about like job security or border security...

Bevan:  Moving onto something that people care about, that is the cost of carbon, Penny Wong what’s wrong with Kevin Rudd’s idea of moving sooner to a floating price for carbon?

Wong: Well that’s not the Government’s decision. The Government has negotiated through this minority government a package, which delivers more support to pensioners, more support to families...

Bevan: (inaudible)

Wong:  It is not the Government’s position. We have budgeted for a very good package that delivers a lot of support to Australian families and to aged pensioners and disability...

Pyne: I don’t think you answered the question.   (inaudible)

Wong: ... support that Christopher wants to take away.  I mean the bizarre thing about this carbon discussion is that Tony Abbott and Christopher want to reduce pensions, reduce family taxes….

Pyne: You were asked about Kevin Rudd. 

Wong: They want to give a tax break to wealthy miners.  These are the priorities of the Coalition.  We’ve negotiated a package through; a package which includes a significant amount of support.  I think a fixed carbon price period is a sensible thing.  It gives certainty for a period of time before we move to a floating price and the Government has announced that we will move to that some time ago. 

Bevan: And the compensation rests on a fixed price doesn’t it because that’s what’s paying for your compensation? 

Wong:  The compensation is part of a whole package and the bottom line of the budget reflects the decisions we’ve made and we have fully funded it, which is unlike Tony Abbott. 

Abraham: Doesn’t that show the risk that you’re going to face in 2015?  What if the price of carbon collapses?  How will you afford to continue the compensation after 2015? 

Wong: We will update our figures in this budget to include the 15/16 year.  I’m very happy to have a discussion after that, but can I say this stands in stark contrast to Tony Abbott who even in his own Shadow Cabinet…

Pyne: (inaudible)

Wong: it is true.  You have a paid parental leave scheme that is practically friendless in the shadow cabinet, which is extremely expensive and not properly funded. 

Abraham: Chris Pyne, how do you answer that? 

Pyne: Well, I don’t have to answer Penny Wong’s questions. 

Abraham: I think it’s a valid point. 

Pyne: We have a policy for a paid parental leave scheme which is more generous than the Government’s….

Abraham: Which is not supported by the party room. 

Pyne: Which is fully costed, which is absolutely supported by the cabinet and the party room. 

Wong: That’s not what the papers say. 

Pyne: Martin Ferguson, who is the Minister for Resources, said on Monday that the carbon tax was set too high.  Penny Wong has just said they’re going to keep that high price on carbon, pushing up electricity prices.  This morning the electricity industry says that the carbon price will go up because the electricity prices will go up. 

Abraham:  And you’ll take back the tax cuts.  Is that your policy?

Pyne: Our policy is direct action to reduce emissions; planting more trees, improving technology and making sure that farming practices put carbon back into the soil.  That will achieve the same emissions cut that Labor is promising without a carbon tax. 

Wong: (inaudible) Australian families. 

Pyne: Without a carbon tax.  Without high electricity prices. 

Wong: And high costs to Australian families. 

Pyne: Without high electricity prices. 

Abraham: Ok, I think we have the positions clearly defined.  Senator Penny Wong, thank you for joining us. 

Wong: it’s good to be with you all again. 

Abraham: It’s nice to have you on the line from Canberra.  Labor Senator from South Australia and Finance Minister, senior player from South Australia and the Gillard Cabinet.  And senior player in the Liberal Abbott team from South Australia Christopher Pyne, thank you. 

Pyne: Pleasure. 

ENDS