Interview with Natalie Barr, Sunrise

11 December 2024

NATALIE BARR: A Toyota Corolla went up in flames, and vile messages of hate speech were sprayed on several properties in the area. It comes just days after a synagogue in Melbourne was firebombed in what's now been declared a terror attack. Let's bring in Housing Minister Clare O'Neil and Shadow Finance Minister Jane Hume. Good morning. Clare, what is your message to those trying to incite hate and division?

CLARE O'NEIL: Look, Jane and I have got lots of differences, but I think we can stand really strong and united on this. This behavior is abhorrent and disgusting, absolutely rejected, and the Australian people absolutely reject it. This is not our country, and I want the people who did this to know that state and federal police are going to come after them. We are not going to tolerate this kind of conduct in our safe, beautiful country.

NATALIE BARR: Yeah, it feels like this type of thing is escalating. We also saw an Islamic school bus set on fire in South Australia, Jane this place, this type of thing has no place in Australia.

JANE HUME: It has no place in Australia. Anti-Semitism has no place in Australia and our Jewish community should be able to live free and without fear for their personal safety. Leaving the conflicts of other countries and other times behind but that doesn't seem to be the case at the moment. Unfortunately, you're right. This is yet another anti semitic attack on the back of the Adass Israel Synagogue being firebombed last week. It was only a month ago that we saw similar attacks in Woollahra. We saw a protest outside a synagogue in Sydney that saw worshippers cowering inside, waiting for the protest to disperse. This is becoming a pattern that is all too common. What the Jewish community, indeed, all of Australia, are looking for is leadership on this issue. But sadly, the equivocation of the government of the Prime Minister has emboldened and enabled those that are committing these horrific crimes that are unfair on a really important and important section of our society and our community, in our Jewish community,

NATALIE BARR: You're shaking your head. Clare, at that accusation on the Prime Minister

CLARE O'NEIL: I find it a bit, a bit disappointing. I just don't think this is a time for political parties to be playing point scoring. It's just not about that. This is about who we are as a country and the way that we treat each other and the respect and the beautiful safety that we provide. You know, so many people in my community and around our country came to our country because of that safety and because of that ability that Australians have shown to see those conflicts overseas, but to know that here we are all one and united and Australian first. And I think the most important thing that politicians can do at a time like this is not stoke division and not try to play political parties off against each other, but actually stay on the same page. We've got to work together here to make sure that we stand strong united as Australians and that’s the work I am doing.

JANE HUME: I agree Clare, but the Jewish community are asking for more. They're asking for more because they feel unsafe. They've been looking to leadership that hasn't been there, and Anthony Albanese needs to step up and provide more security to the Jewish community. He has prevaricated in the past. It has emboldened people to commit these heinous crimes that have no place in Australia.

CLARE O'NEIL: Again, you know, you do you, Jane. I'm just going to say, this is not my community. This is not Australia. We're going to stand strong here together. We're going to work with people who want to support us to build and strengthen our social cohesion in this country. That's the work that I see the Prime Minister doing. That's the work that I see Josh Burns, the absolutely remarkable Jewish Australian who leads the community in South East Melbourne. And I think they're doing fantastic work. I really stand with them. And this is really important. I hope that we can do it together.

NATALIE BARR: Okay, let's look at the response he got. The Prime Minister got yesterday, when he went to the firebombed synagogue in Melbourne, he was surrounded by people. People were yelling things like, ‘you're late’. ‘Nice day for tennis’, of course, referring to him those shots of him playing tennis at Cottesloe in Perth on the weekend. ‘You let this happen’. Clare, it was, it seemed like he was surrounded. He was even saying to people, get out of the way. How do you respond to things like that, also the security situation of having a Prime Minister surrounded like that?

CLARE O'NEIL: Well, Nat, firstly, I'd just say I saw some of the reporting of that. I think, you know, some of those people weren't even from that local community. I was actually at the Adass synagogue a little bit later that afternoon, speaking to members of the community. People were grateful that the Prime Minister was there. They were pleased to have him there, and, of course, to see him make that commitment to help rebuild the synagogue there and to invest in trying to rescue those sacred Torahs that have been damaged in the fire. I'm sure there were angry and upset people there, but I just say I just say I don't think that was the universal experience of having the PM there. Look, my view is the PM has shown real leadership here. He's come to the synagogue. He's done the things that you would want the Prime Minister to do. He's made that commitment to support the synagogue. He's also stood up this big task force to try to make sure that we're cracking down on any illegal behavior, to make it clear that you know that the government won't tolerate this sort of thing…

JANE HUME: Clare he was four days late.

CLARE O’NEIL: … I think other people there who were really pleased to see him.

NATALIE BARR: I think we've covered this topic. Let's get on to nuts and bolts. Hope is finally on the horizon for homeowners with the RBA leaving the door open to a February rate cut. Michele Bullock, the governor of the RBA, revealing fresh confidence on the future of inflation. Jane, should homeowners be positive expecting relief early in the year?

JANE HUME: Well, I think it's cold comfort to those that have a mortgage now and were hoping for a rate cut before Christmas. We know that rate cuts could have come sooner in Australia, as they have in other countries, had the Government taken more responsibility with its fiscal management, not kept spending and propping up public sector spending, which has kept inflation higher for longer. That's kept interest rates higher for longer. Indeed, the RBA have specifically said that public sector spending has been one of the reasons why they haven't been able to lower interest rates sooner. They're not expecting inflation to come back to band until 2026. That's one of the real reasons why we've seen such a decline in our living standards, at 8.7% over the last two and a half years, because of inflation, because of interest rates and because of higher taxes. So it's not just that Australians are feeling poorer. They, in fact, are poorer.

NATALIE BARR: Yeah, Clare, I know our interest rates are lower than a lot of other countries, but government spending is one of the reasons people are putting forward.

CLARE O'NEIL: Well, let me make a couple of points there. Nat, firstly, when Jane and her colleagues were in office, they left and inflation had a six in front of it. Now inflation has a two in front of it, after Jane and her colleagues said that they would deliver a budget surplus each and every year, they failed to deliver a single one. We've been in government for two years, and we've delivered back to back budget surpluses…

JANE HUME (interrupts): And twelve interest rate rises.

CLARE O’NEIL: …Now, there is no question this has been a really tough year, a really tough year for Aussies around the country just trying to make those family budgets stack up. One silver lining here is that it was pretty clear from the RBA Board Minutes that there is a little bit of a change of tone. And I can tell you, no one wants a rate cut more than the Australian people, and we're doing everything we can to help those budget surpluses, and then that support we're giving to families to try to just give that assistance that we can. $300 energy supplements, a tax cut for every Australian taxpayer, the support for bulk billing and making sure that we're providing cheaper medicines. I'll just make one final point. Now, most of that support that I just mentioned there, Jane and her colleagues have actually actively opposed. So I know people have had it tough. They would have had it a lot tougher if Peter Dutton had been Prime Minister.

NATALIE BARR: Okay, we'll leave it there. Thank you very much, both of you for this year. It's my last week, so I thank you, and we'll see you next week, next year, in the lead up to the election. Have a great Christmas.

JANE HUME: Merry Christmas to you both.

CLARE O'NEIL: Thanks guys.