Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Like many Australians, I grew up with the ABC. I remember when we got our first television set—that'll be giving my age away a bit! It was a black-and-white Pye television set. I remember sitting with great excitement with my sisters and brothers as our mother turned on the television set for the very first time. We sat mesmerised in front of the TV as we watched Noddy. I have never forgotten that point in time in my life. This was the very first television program that I ever watched. I was in primary school, and it was on the ABC.

My children all grew up watching Play School and Sesame Street. These were great educational programs. I remember shows such as The D-Generation, Brides of Christ, G.P., Countdown and many, many other quality programs. The ABC has been the training ground for so many Australian actors, producers, writers and other craftsmen and women.

To this day, I have my ABC routine. Given my busy lifestyle now, I'm very selective in how I use my free time, and I now only really watch the ABC. The week starts with Insiders on Sunday morning. Monday night is my biggest ABC viewing time, with shows like Four Corners, Q&A and others. I also watch the news and 7.30 whenever I can. I actually don't have a list of all my favourite shows because I don't have time to read them out.

It is a reality is say that the ABC is the most trusted news broadcaster in this country. Seventeen million Australians watch some form of ABC content every week. In regional Australia in particular, the ABC plays a vital role in keeping regional communities connected with local news and emergency information.

The ABC has been created by Australians for Australians. That is why this LNP government's cuts to the ABC are dismaying and disgusting. The LNP is cutting $83.7 million to our ABC. This is on top of the previous cuts to the ABC, which included $254 million in 2014 and $28 million in 2016. These cuts have already resulted in 800 ABC staff walking out the door. Services like short-wave radio shut down, and there was a drop in Australian content. In Townsville, we have experienced the slashing of our very popular local Drive content.

Now we are facing more cuts to jobs, content and services. The ABC has said that these latest cuts are the equivalent of cutting into the meat of the broadcaster and, if we give those opposite another term, we can expect they will do more than just cut the funding, because we all know that what they really want to do is to privatise the ABC. The Liberal Party's peak council voted almost two to one to privatise the ABC. If the LNP sell the ABC, which is one of our greatest assets, it would be the end of independent media in the country. This will result in the growth of Rupert Murdoch's ideologies throughout all major media outlets. That is what the LNP government truly wants to do. We have already seen the dirty deals done with the LNP, One Nation and Centre Alliance. That delivered the votes needed to breathe life into the government's deal with One Nation to attack the ABC.

The only way to save the ABC is to change the government. A Labor government will reverse Turnbull's $83.7 million unfair cut to the ABC as well as guarantee funding certainty over the next ABC budget cycle. The ABC is funded on a three-yearly, or triennial, basis with the next cycle to begin next year, so it is critical that we fight against the LNP government's unfair cuts to the ABC now. Labor's commitment will ensure our public broadcaster will have the funding stability it needs to meet its charter requirements, safeguard the jobs of people at the ABC, adapt to the digital media environment and maintain content and services that Australians trust and rely upon.

I support my ABC. I do not support the LNP government taking more of a slashing knife to the ABC. I do support the fact that we need to boot out this government—out of the arched window in fact. Enough is enough. The difference between Labor and Liberal could not be more clear. Labor will put people and services first, whereas the Liberals will cut, cut, cut while supporting banks and big business.

Now is the time to save the ABC. Please sign our petition to protect and save the ABC. Labor will reverse the LNP's $3.7 million of cuts, guarantee funding directly and give them certainty over the next budget cycle. Labor is committed to an independent media market for Australia and not tearing Big Ted, Bananas in Pyjamas and our ABC to shreds. (Time expired)

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