Topics: Labor’s home deposit scheme, China’s ban on BHP iron ore, Gaza proposed ceasefire plan, Pete Hegseth address, Pollie Pedal, special forces veterans

 

E&OE

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Let's return now to federal politics and joining me live in the studio is the Shadow Defence Minister, Angus Taylor. Thanks for your time. The 5 % - this expanded deposit scheme with, well, it's not means-tested. The government says that's not going to see subsidies for billionaires or millionaires because they won't be wanting to buy the sort of properties, because there is a cap on the price that you can pay for a first home. Do you accept that?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Absolutely not. Look, the starting point here is we want to make it easier for young Australians to get into a home. That means getting the fundamentals right, Kieran. That means having supply expanding, which it hasn't been over recent years, and it means getting housing supply in line with immigration and that clearly hasn't been in recent years. So, getting those fundamentals right is the key. Look, Labor wants to eliminate the means test, or is doing so, and the question is why? Why? If the best answer they've got is, well, they're not going to use it, well, why don't I just leave it in place? I mean, it's a bizarre answer. We do want to make it easier for people to get into homes. Allowing children of billionaires to access a government subsidy to do it is not the answer.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

The BHP negotiations, I know before you entered Parliament you were involved in that space in iron ore. Tell me, should we be worried about this? Because it's a massive part of our budget and exports. 

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

We absolutely should be, and we should be calling it out. We've clearly got a consortium of Chinese buyers now and we want to have a good relationship with our Chinese trading partners but when they're working together to suppress the price, that is a big deal. It's going back to the bad old days of 15 years ago when this was happening. They're trying it again. It has a huge impact on us. We want to have a good trading relationship with China, but it's got to be played by the rules, and this is not playing by the rules. I think it's completely the opposite of that, and we need to get through it and get to the other side of it. I don't think we need a reversion back to those bad old days.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Does the Prime Minister need to be cautious, though, in terms of any government intervention, given this is a corporate negotiation?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Well, it's a consortium working together to hold the price down. I mean, that's what's going on here, and I think that's not playing by the rules. But more broadly, look, the government is not prepared to call out the Chinese Communist Party when it does the wrong thing and not prepared to intervene where they need to. When Daniel Andrews was in a family photograph with dictators from all around the world, including the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, the Prime Minister wasn't prepared to call him out and you've got to ask whose side of the table does the Prime Minister sit on when it comes to these issues? It seems to me he's not sitting on our side of the table when it comes to issues like this one.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

On the Gaza peace deal, should we hold out hope that there might be some agreement here? Relying on Hamas to do anything is a fraught exercise.

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Sure, and I accept that, but this is the best prospect we have seen for a peace deal in the Middle East for a long while. I think we should strongly back it. I think it is a pathway that can work. Yes, it's true, Hamas needs to come to the table, but they should, and their sympathisers should ensure that they do. This is by far our best prospect. Labor put the cart before the horse when they recognised Palestine before this agreement was in place and successful. We have to do everything we can to ensure it succeeds. If it doesn't, it's well within the rights of Israel to continue to defend itself, but we should be doing everything we can to give this every prospect of success.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

As Shadow Defence Minister, I'm sure you would have seen the speech by the Secretary of War to the Generals, President Trump there as well, arguing against wokeism and so on in the military ranks. What did you make of that? A quite extraordinary vision, seeing all of the top military brass in the room being told, this is what needs to happen. 

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

You know, people should read this speech from the beginning because Hegseth makes the crucial point that the point of a military – a defence force – is to be able to win wars because that is our best chance of getting securing peace. That was the point he was making and that, to me, is the crucial point. The purpose of a defence force is to fight and win wars if called on to do so and that gives us the deterrence we need to have our best prospect of peace in our region and across the world into the future and that is a point that I think is important in this country...

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Not to be distracted, basically?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Well, you know...

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Is that the point?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

If you're asking our Defence Force to focus on a whole lot of other things, then the number one job it has, which is to put itself in a position to win wars if called on to do so, with the purpose being peace, then they're not going to be focused on that main game. And distractions, I think, are a bad thing for a defence force in delivering on its core role. 

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Angus Taylor, I know that last week, if we finish on a lighter note and a positive note, that you were continuing that tradition of politicians, Pollie Pedal, it's known. I think Tony Abbott was out with you last week as well, and it was something that was very close to his heart in raising funds for worthy causes. We've got some pictures there. Looks like some cracking weather you had there in South Australia. But can you tell our viewers what this was supporting and why that initiative is important right now?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Yeah, it was the best part of 1,000 kilometres of riding through beautiful country in South Australia, supporting the Wandering Warriors who help our Special Forces veterans, SAS and commandos, as they move into civilian life. It can be pretty tough, and our SAS, in particular, has copped some bad press in recent years. I think much of it unjustified, and so we were there supporting them, supporting this initiative, which helps them move into civilian life when the time comes for them to do that. And we were riding with a number of our Special Forces veterans, and I tell you what, some of these boys and girls, actually, they are damn good riders. They're pretty tough and so it was a wonderful week.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Hard to keep up with. It's interesting when you look at Special Forces and those that transition out of the military, it seems to me that they either fly and do incredibly well or they struggle. It's that middle...is that fair to say? A lot of people do struggle with that transition.

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

The thing I would say about most of our veterans, whether they're Special Forces or others, is they've got extraordinary skills and if we can tap into those skills and help them to tap into those skills, they become incredible contributors to our communities and the organisations they join. That's been my experience. It's true that there's a portion who struggle with this, and we've got to help them to make the most of what they have, and we certainly shouldn't be demonising them. We've got a generation of Special Forces veterans where there's a risk, they become the same as the Vietnam veterans of the 1970s, Kieran, and that's something that's bad for them and for all of us.

 

KIERAN GILBERT:

 

Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor, thanks for your time. Appreciate it.

 

ANGUS TAYLOR:

 

Good to be with you.

 

 

ENDS.