Jason Clare (Blaxland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. The night before the election the Prime Minister said that there would be no cuts to the ABC. This morning the Minister for Communications said, 'Look, we are making cuts to the ABC and SBS, that is true.' Prime Minister, who is right, the Prime Minister or the wannabe Prime Minister?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is more than possible for us both to be right, because we are cutting the rate of growth in funding. That is all we are doing. There is a one per cent one-off efficiency dividend being applied to the ABC and the SBS, which means that the rate of growth of ABC funding has been a little bit less this year than last year. It is a very, very reasonable change. Surely members opposite are not saying that the only part of government that should never have an efficiency dividend applied to it is the ABC. Surely, they are not saying that. I said that there would be no cuts to the ABC, and ABC funding is more this year than last year. And I want to say how pleased and proud I am to see the great work that the Minister for Communications is doing not just with the NBN but also with the national broadcaster as well.