Interview with James Glenday, ABC News Breakfast

28 April 2025

JAMES GLENDAY: We spoke with Education Minister Jason Clare last hour, and the Liberal Senator and the Shadow Finance Minister Jane Hume joins us now from Sydney. Jane, good morning.

JANE HUME: Good morning James.

JAMES GLENDAY: The debate last night focused on a lot of different issues, including Welcome to Country ceremonies. Peter Dutton says he thinks they are overdone. Is this going to be the issue that becomes a political football in the final days of this election campaign?

JANE HUME: James, I think the real issue that Australians are talking about is the cost of living and the fact that their standard of living has gone backwards so far in the last three years, backwards by about 8%. So it's not as if you're it's all in your head. You know, you're not just feeling poorer. You, in fact, are poorer, and that's what's playing out at the polling booths that I've been going to in the last week. People know that they need cost of living relief right now. That's why we've offered a 25% sorry, 25 cent cut in fuel excise for the next 12 months that will kick in immediately that a Dutton Coalition Government is elected, and at the end of that 12 month, there will be $1,200 in tax back for around 85% of workers. In the meantime, we get the Budget under control, sustain inflation at a lower rate and then, of course, make sure that we bring down the cost of energy. That's how you manage an economy effectively, manage it so that a cost of living is not an ongoing issue. It shouldn't be part of a feature of every government as it has been under Anthony Albanese.

JAMES GLENDAY: I was going to ask you about your plans, but you've skillfully avoided my question and spoken about them anyway, so I'll just bring you back to my original one. Do you personally think that Welcome to Country ceremonies are overdone?

JANE HUME: I've been to events where the Welcome to Country ceremony has been beautiful and extremely moving, and they are very important at official ceremonies. However, I think we've all been at meetings where you sit around a table with a dozen people, and each person has to do an acknowledgment to country before the meeting begins. When it becomes performative, I think it loses its meaning, but a Welcome to Country ceremony at an appropriate event is entirely appropriate and extremely, extremely respectful.

JAMES GLENDAY: On policy, can you confirm that you would look at introducing road user charges for electric vehicle drivers if you win the election?

JANE HUME: No, that is not our position. Our position, of course, is that at the moment, emissions standards should remain, but the problem is the penalties that are being placed on, on retailers of of all vehicles, and that's going to push up the price of electric vehicles and indeed, other vehicles for, sorry, it'll push up the price of non electric vehicles and we know that Australians, there are so many Australians that simply can't have electric vehicles, whether they because they're too expensive or whether because they're inappropriate for their lifestyle. We don't think that that's fair.

JAMES GLENDAY: Okay, just road user charges. Yes or No? Definitely not something you're looking at?

JANE HUME: No, that's not something we're looking at.

JAMES GLENDAY: Okay, just on a different issue. Would you call the ABC the hate media?

JANE HUME: I've appeared on the ABC so many times. I doubt that you were to hear that from me. However, I think you can safely say that that was a tongue in cheek comment by Peter Dutton yesterday.

JAMES GLENDAY: Mr. Dutton has spent a lot of time trying to distance himself from Donald Trump. That has more than an echo of the U.S President, doesn't it?

JANE HUME: I don't think so. No, look, that is entirely irrelevant. I think that this is, quite frankly, a Labor beat up. This idea that you could somehow align Peter Dutton with Donald Trump is a nonsense, and Peter Dutton will always stand up in the national interest and you saw that in the debate last night, though.

JAMES GLENDAY (TALKS OVER): I mean, those words about the hate media. I mean, he said them in public. They're recorded on camera. Everyone can go and find them.

JANE HUME: Labor we know have tried to dish the dirt on Peter Dutton from the very beginning of this campaign. They've questioned his integrity, they've questioned his appearance, they've questioned his background, they've questioned his attitude and yet what we really want in Australia right now is a strong leader that will step up and stand up for Australia's national interest, that will step up and stand up for those Australians that have been left behind by this bad Labor Government.

JAMES GLENDAY: Let's go to the economy, your area. You're claiming that Labor is engaged in a spendathon. That's your words, of more than $2.1 billion a week, roughly since December. When are you going to release your costings?

JANE HUME: This week, we will release our costings, and we will demonstrate not only that we are more responsible economic managers, but we will deliver savings as well.

JAMES GLENDAY (TALKS OVER): Is it responsible to release your costings a day or two before the election? Surely you give us a bit of time to have a look at them, Senator?

JANE HUME: While Labor are still announcing more and more spending, well, we need to understand exactly what the difference between a Coalition offering and a Labor offering will be, which is why it always happens at the end of an election campaign. But let's face it, just since MYEFO, since, sorry, just since the last time we saw Labor's books, just since the budget, Labor have spent an eye watering ten million dollars an hour, ten million an hour of taxpayers money in an effort to buy votes. We don't think that that's appropriate. It's more important now, more important than ever, to manage the economy more effectively, to rein in that wasteful spending. Because the IMF have put it out there, that they think that inflation is due to go back up again. That growth is expected to slow. The most important thing we can do right now is manage the economy more responsibly, rein in that wasteful spending and to keep inflation low.

JAMES GLENDAY: And just to point out, Labor rejects your claims about the costings, says it will release its own soon enough. But anyway, just before I let you go, there's been an issue in Western Sydney, in the seat of Fowler. The Liberal candidate there has appeared to have made some offensive comments on social media. Should he be disendorsed?

JANE HUME: James, I haven't seen any reporting of that whatsoever, so I don't feel like I can comment on that. What I can say, though, is that I have been travelling around the country in the last two or three weeks, spending time with our candidates, and I have never seen such an extraordinary bunch of people. For instance, Ro Knox in Wentworth, or Amelia Hamer in Kooyong, Simmone Cottom down in Hawke. These are incredible candidates. Katie Allen in Chisholm, Manny Cicchiello in Aston. This is the most high quality, high calibre candidates that I have worked with in any election, and the response that they're getting on the ground from voters has been extremely encouraging at pre-poll, I'm looking forward to Saturday night.

JAMES GLENDAY: Yeah, we do not have too long to wait. We appreciate your time, Senator, as always, thank you for joining News Breakfast.