Helen Coonan (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Fierravanti-Wells for the question and for her keen interest in this matter, which is of great interest to many Australians. As many senators are no doubt aware, there are a number of very positive measures in the budget for film and television producers, which is of course very good news for Australian viewers. The government has demonstrated its commitment to quality national broadcasting by providing the ABC with significant new funding in the 2006-09 triennium. In addition to its triennial base funding of more than $2.5 billion, the ABC will receive $88.2 million in additional funding. This funding will help produce significant new Australian content and further strengthen the ABC’s regional and local programming.

We have committed $30 million over three years for the ABC to establish an independent commissioning arm to invest in high-quality drama and documentaries from the Australian independent production sector. The government expects the fund will operate in a similar manner to the successful SBS Independent, that is, the SBSI, commissioning fund and will attract significant external investment to boost the size of the commissioning fund. The figures in the ABC’s triennial funding submission suggest this funding of $10 million a year will enable the ABC to leverage additional investment of around $15 million a year. This will allow for the production of around an extra 30 hours of high-quality Australian drama, documentary and arts programming each year.

The funding will meet twin objectives: helping to address the reduction in Australian content on ABC TV over recent years and also providing a significant boost to the local production sector. Funding for regional and local programming will also be increased by $13.2 million over the next three years, bringing total funding for the regional and local programming initiative to $68.7 million over the triennium. In total, the ABC will receive more than $2.5 billion in government funding over the next triennium—significant investment in public broadcasting by anyone’s measure. In fact, the ABC chairman has described it as the best budget result for the corporation in 20 years.

In the budget the government also announced a review of the full range of government support measures for funding films in Australia. I commend Minister Kemp for his commitment to achieving this review. The 2006-07 review will be broad ranging and will examine the effectiveness of current programs. I note the government’s measures have been welcomed by both the screen industry and the ABC. Of course, we always hear from the other side some mouthing of support for the creative industries, but it is only the coalition that can deliver a strong economy and the real commitment that Australia needs to support a healthy and a creative screen industry.