Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

My question is to the Leader of the Government in the Senate, representing the Prime Minister, in respect of the ABC cuts. Can the minister acknowledge that the latest cuts to South Australia are a continuation of the drift of staff numbers, editorial control and content production to Sydney in the past decade, as has been widely reported, with the sharpest cut in South Australia from eight per cent to 6.9 per cent of staff numbers? What will the government do to reverse this trend not only in South Australia but in Western Australia, Tasmania and Queensland, as well as the regions? Will the government consider quarantining ABC funding cuts for a regional programming initiative as initiated by the Howard government in 2001?