‘You don’t know my backstory, mate’: Bridget McKenzie fires up at journalist

A minister has berated a journalist by saying “you don’t know my backstory, mate” during a tense exchange broadcast on live TV.

Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie has fired up at a journalist during a nationally televised speech after being quizzed about so-called “elites”.

The fiery clash took place when Senator McKenzie addressed the National Press Club in Canberra on Wednesday.

Senator McKenzie said regional Australians who worked in industries that “political elites and cultural elites” did not like shouldn’t pay the cost for Australia’s move to net zero emissions.

However, she insisted the Coalition was committed to the target.

Senator McKenzie used the phrase “lower emissions economy by 2050” rather than net zero in her speech, amid an apparent split within the Liberals and Nationals on the issue.

After her Nationals colleague Matt Canavan described the net zero targets as “dead” and the party’s candidate for Flynn saying there was “wriggle room”, Senator McKenzie was asked a multiple choice question.

“If we’re talking about Australia’s approach to net zero, is it (a) dead, (b) does it have wriggle room or (c) does Matt Canavan need to pull his head in?”

The Emergency Management Minister didn’t choose any of the options, instead speaking about “elites” being out of touch with regional Australia.

“It’s about who pays the cost,” she said.

Bridget McKenzie speaking at the National Press Club.

“For rural and regional Australia, because we are out of sight, out of mind and we’re in industries that political elites and cultural elites don’t like, places of power don’t like, it’s very easy for them to make sure that we pay the cost.

“As a party, we stood up in that moment and said not a problem, but we’re going to make sure that we can care for our communities, make sure that our national economy is not going to take the hit and make sure that regions are not decimated as a result.”

She said the science was settled on climate change existing and “both parties of government in the Coalition are absolutely committed to moving to net zero by 2050”.

But later when the topic of elites came up again, things became tense, with Senator McKenzie firing back at a journalist, “You don’t know my backstory, mate.”

Nic Stuart from the Canberra Times asked whether she would consider wind power over carbon capture and storage, which he said “didn’t stack up”.

He also asked whether the Nationals would commit to net zero by 2050 or “speak out of both sides of (your mouth)?”

Nick Stuart from the Canberra Times at the National Press Club.

“Carbon capture and storage, I think that we’ll have a different opinion,” Senator McKenzie responded.

“You have businesses and researchers who say that it doesn’t work. I have some that do.”

She said services people in Canberra took for granted weren’t able to be accessed in rural and regional areas.

“There’s not a conceptualisation of political and cultural elites of the realities of living out in regional and rural Australia, that’s why the National Party exists 100 years later,” she said.

Mr Stuart then asked her: “Sorry, am I an elite?”

“That’s for you to answer,” Senator McKenzie shot back.

“Well I’m saying I’m not, are you saying I am?” Mr Stuart asked.

“Did you want to be?” Senator McKenzie responded.

Mr Stuart said: “Yeah I’d like to be like you. A perfect retirement plan there.”

Senator McKenzie then fired up: “You don’t know my backstory, mate.”

Earlier, she was asked why the government didn’t legislate on net zero by 2050, so there couldn’t be discussions about “wriggle room”.

“We had the debates last year as you’ll recall. We aren’t legislating it. We put our plan to Glasgow. We’re committed to it. We can’t be clearer,” Senator McKenzie said.

Originally published as ‘You don’t know my backstory, mate’: Bridget McKenzie fires up at journalist