Interview with Pete Stefanovic, First Edition

19 February 2024

PETE STEFANOVIC: Well, more than 40 asylum seekers have been flown to Nauru to be placed in a detention centre on the island. Joining us live now from Gladstone today, Shadow Finance Minister Jane Hume. Jane, before we get into economic matters, the government says you're playing politics with the boat people. Operation Sovereign Borders remains in place, as we mentioned, all 40 now in Nauru. Is that a system working as it should?

JANE HUME: That sounds like the reaction of a weak prime minister who clearly has overseen not just a weak economy. And I know we'll get on to that, but weak on national security and now weak on border security as well. The fact that 40 illegal maritime arrivals have arrived undetected in Western Australia just demonstrates that the Prime Minister has been distracted elsewhere. Indeed, he even said so himself that he hadn't even been briefed on the matter. This is a genuine concern because the messages that have been going out to those people smugglers is that the government is not committed to Operation Sovereign Borders, that it, its own platform, said that it wanted to weaken or to remove temporary protection visas. And now they've ripped $600 million out of border security, which has left them, in their own words “stretched”. Of course this is going to happen. This is because Anthony Albanese is weak on border security and has been distracted by other priorities, like a $450 million referendum.

PETE STEFANOVIC: Yes, but is he weak if they were picked up and shipped off?

JANE HUME: I think that they were picked up and shipped off only by accident. I mean, this is what Labor does, isn't it? We've seen this before. This is, you know, a repeat of the same movie. You know, Labor make our borders weaker, then they open up offshore detention, then more and more people come, and then it's up to a Coalition government to shut it down, to make our borders strong and to keep Australians safe. And that's something that this government has failed to do. I can't believe they didn't learn the lessons of the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd government because we've seen this show before.

PETE STEFANOVIC: Okay Jane, onto new AFR polling out today. It shows most people support Labor's tax cut rejig although no lift in support for the government. So it basically mirrors Newspoll from a few weeks back. Now a trend is emerging. What's your read on that?

JANE HUME: Well of course when times are really tough people will take and pocket whatever they possibly can. What this poll shows to me, more importantly, is that 30% of people are say that they won't be better off after this tax cut goes through, and more importantly, that Labor have essentially sold their integrity for not a single bump in the polls. It's going to cost $1.4 billion to get this tax cut through over the forward, over the rejigged tax cut, over the forward estimates. Yet they've sold their integrity for what? Absolutely nothing. If I were a Labor backbencher and I was in a marginal seat, that poll would be very worrying.

PETE STEFANOVIC: No, I'm sure they would have been hoping for a bigger bounce by now. Are you any closer to working out what you want to do with your tax reform?

JANE HUME: Well, as you know, hey, you know, we said that we will go to the next election with a complete tax package, one that is true to our principles of lower, simpler and fairer taxes. But unfortunately, stage one, stage two and stage three of the personal income tax plan were very carefully calibrated, and they were very carefully adjusted. What this government has done is essentially junked a reform that was so important. Because without that reform, without addressing bracket creep, what essentially they've said is they're happy to rob your future prosperity, and millions of Australians indeed, one in four Australians will be worse off because of the decision that this government has made.

PETE STEFANOVIC: Okay, let's go to Dunkley early voting opens up today. You’ve been there recently? Jane, can you win it?

JANE HUME: I was down there yesterday and there's certainly a good vibe in the room and Liberals are out in force. We have a terrific candidate Nathan Conroy, who is working particularly hard. But I think we need to be realistic here, this is a margin of 6.3%. Not even in the marginal seat category. You know, any move in the dial, I think would be something that we would be very pleased to see. But it going to be a tough ask, so we'll be out in force. The message we're hearing on the ground is that there is white hot anger against this Prime Minister because he has taken his eye off the ball has been distracted. It's got the wrong priorities is broken promises and expecting bad decisions.

PETE STEFANOVIC: So if you bring that margin to less than 6.3%, you'd see that as a good result.

JANE HUME: I think that Peta Murphy was a very popular local member, and there's an awful lot of good wishes towards her and her family, and that will play out too. That said, we are hearing good things on the ground and we would hope that Nathan Conroy, as a terrific candidate, very well known as a local mayor that's been elected three times, that presence will make a difference. That and the white hot anger that we are hearing from people on the ground towards this government.

PETE STEFANOVIC: Jane Hume, good to have you with us. As always. We'll talk to you soon.