‘Game on’: Kim Williams welcomes Dutton’s ABC funding review

A defiant Kim Williams said he was under no illusions and expected a funding review and potential cuts to the ABC under a Coalition government, saying he was ready to defend the broadcaster’s efficiency, declaring it was “game on”.

The ABC chair responded to Peter Dutton’s comments on Wednesday about potential cuts, saying it is “important to indicate that this is not a fresh observation” from the Liberal Party leader.

Kim Williams, pictured at a Melbourne Press Club event on Thursday, where he gave a keynote speech on his first year as chair.Credit: Christopher Hopkins

“I don’t think there’s any doubt that in the event of Mr Dutton acceding to office, that there will be a very early call for an efficiency and apparently an excellence review on what the ABC does. Game on,” Williams said at an address at a Melbourne Press Club event on Thursday.

“The ABC is an accountable institution, and I have no doubt it will perform well.”

There have been numerous inquiries on the efficiency and quality of the ABC going back to the John Howard government, Williams said, many of which have recommended an increase to its funding.

In total, there have been 15 reviews of the ABC’s efficiency since 2001.

Williams’ keynote speech was wide-ranging, emphasising the need to “flood the zone with truth”, while pushing back on threats to media freedom, such as billionaire Jeff Bezos’ “appalling behaviour” as owner of The Washington Post.

Reflecting on his first year as ABC chair, he said there are some areas where the broadcaster had significantly “lost the plot” and drifted.

“I think its underperforming in documentaries is deeply alarming, and it needs to be corrected and redirected as a matter of urgency,” Williams said.

Williams gives his Melbourne Press Club address.Credit: Christopher Hopkins

Williams also broke down in tears twice, while reflecting on the positive messages he has received from its audience on the impact of its work, in particular the service it provided during Cyclone Alfred in Queensland last month.

Dutton foreshadowed cuts to the public broadcaster on Wednesday while speaking to ABC Radio Melbourne, saying the Coalition would “reward excellence” when asked by host Raf Epstein if the broadcaster would be part of his wider plans for cuts.

“I think there’s very good work that the ABC does, and if it’s being run efficiently then [we’ll] ... keep funding in place,” he said. “If it’s not being run efficiently ... taxpayers pay for it, who work harder than ever just to get ahead, [they] would expect us to not ... support the waste.”

Labor quickly pounced on Dutton’s comments, to which he added during several media appearances that day, with the party warning voters that Dutton had shown his hand, and asking for donations to help “fight for” a properly funded ABC.

“Peter Dutton has confirmed his cuts to the ABC. The Liberals won’t stop cutting until B1 and B2 are reading the news,” a message from the Labor Party said.

Williams on Thursday declined to confirm or deny reports that Dutton had rejected several opportunities to meet with him.

“On efficiency, I have no doubt whatsoever that there is always some room for improvement in some aspect of the life and work of any institution,” Williams said. “Our institutions are complicated beasts.”

The ABC received $1.137 billion from the federal government in 2023–24. The Albanese government has also promised the broadcaster an additional $83 million over two years from July 2026 on top of its base funding.

But Williams said funding remained “extremely low by historical standards”, now just 0.12 per cent of the federal budget, compared with 0.31 per cent in 2000.

Improved funding for public service media was an “investment for democracy” and essential amid the degradation of journalistic standards around the world, Williams warned, as he highlighted Bezos’ decision to prevent The Washington Post from publishing a presidential election editorial.

“If the newspaper that uncovered the Watergate scandal and published the Pentagon Papers can be forced by its proprietor, against the will of its journalists, to toe the line, like this, who is safe?”

While streaming, podcasting and substacks have increased in popularity and shown that people are willing to pay for great content, Williams said those mediums “free-ride” on those doing the actual news-gathering, like the ABC.

“In other words, they get free use of the really expensive stuff,” he said.

“This is not just about commercial interests. It is about the future health of democracy. And ultimately about national sovereignty. One direct way of supporting Australian democracy is before our very nose – to properly invest in the ABC.”

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