Warringah MP Tony Abbott grilled by readers across a range of issues in Manly Daily blog
Tony Abbott visited the Manly Daily office yesterday to face questions from you in our live blog. Readers didn’t hold back, probing him on everything from the Beaches Link tunnel to his support for Cardinal Pell and last year’s leadership spill.
Tony Abbott visited the Manly Daily yesterday to face questions from you in our live blog.
You gave him quite the grilling as you probed him on everything from the Beaches Link tunnel to his support for Cardinal Pell and last year’s leadership spill.
His main opponent in Warringah, Zali Steggall, also featured prominently in the questions.
READ THE BLOG QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS HERE
Manly Daily reader Julie was among those to ask why he kept attacking Ms Steggall.
“On her own admission, she’s never voted Liberal in her life at a federal election,” Mr Abbott said. “Howard was too right wing for her. Even Turnbull was too right wing for her!”
On his support for friend Cardinal Pell he told Manly Daily reader Molly he would withhold his final judgment until the appeal is finalised.
Responding to Thomas’ question about last year’s leadership spill, he said he had not been treated with respect by Malcolm Turnbull.
“Just remember that I had MT (Malcolm Turnbull) in my cabinet because he was a former party leader and deserved to be treated with respect,” Mr Abbott wrote.
“That compliment was never returned. As a backbench MP I spoke out on policy issues — but that was my right and arguably my duty.
“My view on the so-called NEG was that we should change the policy — not change the leader. But then Malcolm called a spill on himself and the rest, as they say, is history.”
Following a later question from Maximilian, Mr Abbott conceded the turnover of Prime Ministers did not reflect well on the Liberals but he said the party had learned lessons from the “dreadful mistake”.
Mr Abbott also had plenty to say about the Beaches Link tunnel.
“You lefties can’t help yourselves,” he told Manly Daily reader Nerissa when she suggested it would just lead to increased pollution. “A better road means better public transport because faster flowing traffic will help the B-Line too! Faster flowing traffic also means less total pollution and stacks disperse it in way that traffic crawling on the surface never can. Why do you want to leave people stuck in gridlocked traffic whether it’s a bus or a car?”
TONY ABBOTT LIVE BLOG FULL TRANSCRIPT
TONY ABBOTT
Hi Tony Abbott here. Ready to take your questions for the next 45 minutes or so. Starting now!
MOLLY
Your critics bang on and on and on about climate change. But when it comes to climate change action, the Coalition under your leadership actually has a good story to tell. Australia is one of very few countries in the world that are on track to meet the 2020 Target. Whether we believe in climate change or not, there are many practical things to conserve the environment, which the government has already been doing, especially from you and in your electorate. I reckon your opponents are attacking a caricature or strawman. My question is: can you get your colleagues to get their act together and communicate their achievements? The problem here is not the “lack of climate change action”, but lack of clarity in communication.
TONY ABBOTT
That’s a fair point Molly. I guess part of the problem is that we don’t think that climate change is the only big issue. It’s an issue and it should be addressed but there’s no point trashing the economy just to reduce emissions, especially as — with just 1.3 per cent of the total, and with the big emitters refusing to reduce theirs — nothing we do is going to make much difference. I’m pleased that my government abolished the carbon tax — that was socialism masquerading as environmentalism. I’m also pleased that my government’s Emissions Reduction Fund means that we will meet our Kyoto targets and are on track to meet our Paris commitments too
MOLLY
When you met your constituents face-to-face, did anyone bring up the Pell issue to you? Did they feel prejudiced against you because you stood by a friend?
TONY ABBOTT
One person said that her family had been impacted by abuse at the hands of a priest. I can’t begin to imagine how horrible that would be but can readily grasp the sense of betrayal. Still, I’m going to withhold my final judgment until the appeal is finalised.
ALAN R.M.
Tony, you have been a national leader and a local MP. How have you managed these two roles at the same time? What are some of the big local and national issues you think Warringah voters are concerned about for the FUTURE and how will you deal with them differently from the other candidates, particularly Zali Steggall -- eg does your ministerial and prime ministerial experience really give you any advantage when it comes to local issues?
TONY ABBOTT
Warringah voters, like voters everywhere, have national and local perspectives. On my read, the biggest issues are still the national ones: how do we keep our community safe and our economy strong. Not by Labor’s soft border protection policies and big new taxes to clobber the economy, especially self-funded retirees. Locally, by far the biggest issues is congestion and overdevelopment. That’s why the tunnel is so important. To get it, we have to keep electing Liberal governments.
MARK
Do you have evidence that Get Up planted fake Liberals into the Party?
TONY ABBOTT
There’s a story in the Oz today about a GetUp! organiser arranging a meeting in Balgowlah a year ago (attended by some left-wing Liberals) that was precisely about getting people to join the party and agitate against people who weren’t true believers in climate change.
DIGBY
Without mentioning any opponent — why should i vote for you?
TONY ABBOTT
Because I have a strong record (think protecting forever the last unspoiled headlands of Sydney Harbour) and a strong plan for the future (think the Tunnel — which only the Libs will build). Also, I won’t be a local MP on training wheels!
RICK
Tony, you’ve said that you’re the only candidate supporting the Beaches Tunnel. What has the Federal Government done to support the tunnel, and what can voters do to ensure it (finally!!) gets built?
TONY ABBOTT
The only way to get the tunnel is to keep voting Liberal because Labor have said they’ll scrap it. The state can only afford to build the tunnel because of the funding partnership my government put in place to help with Westconnex, Northconnex, the Western Sydney Airport and the asset recycling fund. Not to mention the money we paid to buy Snowy Hydro. The last thing you want is a local federal MP who’s lukewarm about it or, worse, trying to sabotage it.
NERISSA
Why do you campaign on the project of the Beaches Link tunnel when it is a state project? The only role the federal parliament could have is providing funding, and we know that the business case for it is tenuous, with public transport providing a much better cost-benefit ratio. You say you are now concerned by man-made climate change, so why are cars prioritised over public transport? You also ignore the legitimate concerns of residents who live nearby the tunnel entrances who will be subject to years of construction and increased toxic pollution from unfiltered exhaust stacks when complete. At what point is it OK to damage people’s health (as shown by a cancer cluster near M5 East and increased respiratory problems near Lane Cove tunnel) for a possible saving of 10 minutes drive time?
TONY ABBOTT
You lefties can’t help yourselves! A better road means better public transport because faster flowing traffic will help the B-Line too! Faster flowing traffic also means less total pollution and stacks disperse it in way that traffic crawling on the surface never can. Why do you want to leave people stuck in gridlocked traffic whether it’s a bus or a car?
ERIC
Hi Tony, Why do you think power prices have gone up so much over the last ten years? Also, the ultimate goal of global warming alarmists is to have emissions targets on all of our lives not just electricity generation. This includes cars, cattle for meat etc. Why don’t you and the Libs call that out more clearly?
TONY ABBOTT
There’s no doubt that we have gone from among the lowest power prices to the among the highest because of misguided climate change policies over the past 15 years. The only time power prices have fallen in recent times was by 10 per cent in the quarter after my government abolished the carbon tax. If you read the Carter oration I gave middle of last year, I think you’ll find that Libs — or at least this one — have been calling this out.
DARREN
I hope you smash em tony come Election Day! We need more people like you in parliament not less!
TONY ABBOTT
Thanks Darren!! I’m, just hitting my straps and hope to be there for quite a few years yet!
BARRY
Tony, Please harness the water from North Queensland . Yes a massive project, but someone needs the guts to get it going and that person with guts is you.
TONY ABBOTT
That’s a fair question Barry. My government was super-keen to see more dams in NQ but that needed the co-operation of the state government which was slow coming. To its credit, the Turnbull government managed to get a deal for the Rookwood Weir near Rocky but there’s still so much more to do — like the Nalinga Dam behind Cairns
THOMAS
Do you accept responsibility for the poor polling numbers since your factional colleague Peter Dutton rolled Malcolm Turnbull? The 2pp numbers have not recovered from that time, and it is clear that your faction misread the will of the people — can you make a commitment that, if you are re-elected, you will support the party leader whether or not they are from your faction?
TONY ABBOTT
Just remember that I had MT in my cabinet because he was a former party leader and deserved to be treated with respect. That compliment was never returned. As a backbench MP I spoke out on policy issues — but that was my right and arguably my duty. My view on the so-called NEG was that we should change the policy — not change the leader. But then Malcolm called a spill on himself and the rest, as they say, is history.
LEE
Hi Tony, The anti-tunnel minority are trying to push for a train line in the beaches link tunnel. Do you agree that a train line would lead to serious overdevelopment?
TONY ABBOTT
Quite. The road tunnel enable us to catch up. A rail system would mean much higher population densities.
MOLLY
Do you have a Plan B (for the tunnel and Warringah as a whole) in case both NSW and Federal Liberal lose the election?
TONY ABBOTT
Thanks Molly. There is no alternative to more infrastructure given the population growth we’ve had and will likely continue to get. I support a road tunnel over rail because rail will inevitably mean forests of high rise marching up the peninsula like it has on the North Shore. If, for whatever reason, it falls over (despite the hundreds of millions the state has already spent) I’ll just have to stay in the parliament and keep fighting until it’s finally built!
MAXIMILIAN
Hi Tony, what do you think will be the top 2-3 issues in the next election? And what’s the Coalition’s elevator pitch in addressing those issues?
TONY ABBOTT
My view is that the top issues, as always, will be security, prosperity, and trust. Based on the government’s record — under me, MT and Scott — you can see that we’ll keep the country safe and the economy strong. Yes, the revolving door PMship is not to our credit but I think we’ve finally learned our lesson and can be trusted not to repeat that dreadful mistake
CAPN MCRUMMY
They’ve been on a bit of a rough trot recently but where do you think Manly will finish on the NRL ladder this year?
TONY ABBOTT
Let’s hope. Des’ comeback will help!
JULIE
Hi Tony,
Can you please explain why you keep attacking local community groups and Zali Steggall trying to say she is a Labor Stooge and from Getup when she clearly isn’t?
TONY ABBOTT
Read the piece in the Oz today which talks about GetUp!’s role in Warringah and the piece in The Saturday Paper (last weekend) — no right wing rag — which identifies Zali as the GetUp! candidate. Also, on her own admission, she’s never voted Liberal in her life at a federal election. Howard was too right wing for her. Even Turnbull was too right wing for her!
Exposed: the NSW aged care homes failing residents
More than half of NSW aged care homes are falling short of care targets as providers blame a severe workforce shortage. See the full list.
‘Crucial exposure’: First look at young rugby players touted as future Wallabies
They have been rivals some days, teammates on others and now this close-knit group of young rugby players will share the honour of wearing an Australian uniform for the first time.