THE HON TANYA PLIBERSEK MP
MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER
E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2GB DRIVE WITH CHRIS O’KEEFE
WEDNESDAY, 28 FEBRUARY 2024
SUBJECTS: Mardi Gras; Family and domestic violence funding; Bigger tax cuts for more Australians.
CHRIS O'KEEFE: Now if you missed this, the Mardi Gras board has reached an agreement with the NSW Police allowing police officers to march in this year's parade, but there is a big but. Police have agreed not to march in uniform. Now, the Police Minister, Yasmin Catley, was on the program earlier and she said there will be no NSW Police insignia, no flags, nothing to identify this group of people as current serving NSW police officers and, to be honest, I find that very, very sad. Now, the Environment Minister, Tanya Plibersek, is on the line. She's also the Member for Sydney. Obviously Mardi Gras parade goes smack bang through the middle of her electorate. Minister, thanks for your time.
TANYA PLIBERSEK, MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER: It's great to be with you, Chris.
O'KEEFE: It's - I don't know what to make of it. I just feel a little bit upset and distressed for the police officers. Gay and lesbian police officers have been marching for 20 years, they're not allowed to wear their police uniform and, really, what have they done wrong?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, I agree. I mean, there are a lot of gay and lesbian police officers and they're proud of the policing work they do and, of course, they're proud members of the LGBTIQ+ community and they should be able to be both. And, you know, Mardi Gras is a time when we celebrate diversity and inclusion and that should be, I think, you know, a time when we're celebrating everyone instead of seeing this division. But I'm pleased that they've come to a resolution and I'm really pleased that police will be able to march on the night.
O'KEEFE: Have you spoken to the Mardi Gras Board when they did uninvite the NSW Police?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Look, I've made a number of phone calls today, but I don't want to go into too much of the detail there.
O'KEEFE: And you're advocating on behalf of the police?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yes, I was. I mean, Alex Greenwich and I are both members, he is in the State Parliament, and I in the Federal Parliament, for the same area- the area where the Mardi Gras route goes through, and I've been marching myself for probably three decades now. So, I have loved to see more police involved over the years. I think it's been a really good sign of, you know, the improving relationship between the gay and lesbian community and the police.
The truth is, Mardi Gras started at a time, 1978, where police were regularly bashing gay men, lesbians, other people who were involved in those first marches in particular. It was a very, very bad time for relationships between the community and the police. But so many people over so many years have worked hard to improve those relationships. And I guess one of the things that's really important here is we want members of the LGBTQIA+ community to be able to approach police if they're worried about their personal safety, if they've got issues like domestic violence, we want them to be approaching the police and that's why it's important for police to have a presence at things like this.
O'KEEFE: Is that then not a regressive step for the Mardi Gras board to uninvite them and then invite them but out of uniform?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: I think we just need to focus on the positive now that it looks like the issue's resolved and I'll look forward to marching again this year and I will look forward to seeing the Commissioner there and, you know, the representatives of NSW Police who will be there. I'll make sure I say hello to them on the night.
O'KEEFE: I don't know if you've been kept abreast of this, but there's a domestic violence organisation in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney called Lokahi. They're getting some funding from the Federal Government but they're looking like they're going to have to close their doors on Friday. There are 35 women and children under their care at the moment, that they're helping out getting from really dreadful situations at home. They are desperate for $150,000 just so they can stay operating until the end of the financial year. They're having no luck with Minister Rishworth at all. Given you are a colleague of Minister Rishworth, can you please just, on behalf of Lokahi, try to keep them up and operating?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Look, I will certainly pass the message along to Minister Rishworth, but I also know that so far the Commonwealth Government has invested an extra $48 million to NSW frontline services including services in that same area of Sydney, like the Junction Neighbourhood Centre and St Vincent de Paul Delores Refuge. So there's been a very substantial additional investment from our Government. It's the biggest investment in domestic violence and sexual assault services in Australian history. I can't answer for every individual service in Australia, obviously, it's not my portfolio. But I'll pass the message along.
O'KEEFE: It's $150,000, it's not a lot of money. Now can we talk about tax cuts?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yes, please. Let's talk about tax cuts. Yes, please.
O'KEEFE: It’s Passed the Senate, it's in law now. Are you worried? You've got a by-election looking pretty tight. People might not be buying what you're selling?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Oh, look, I think it's fantastic news that we got our plans through the Senate last night and every single Australian taxpayer, 13.6 million Australian taxpayers, will get a tax cut and a bunch of them that weren't going to get a single dollar under Scott Morrison's old tax plan are now going to be better off. So, a nurse on $76,000 will get a tax cut of about $1,576. If you're a police officer, we were talking about earlier, $110,000 a year will get a tax cut of $2,429.
O'KEEFE: Can I just pull you up something?
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yes.
O'KEEFE: Scott Morrison's old plan, a plan that you vote - you supported twice.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, and we tried to amend it to make it fairer, but we had the choice -
O'KEEFE: A plan that Australians voted for twice.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: We had a choice of - we tried to amend it to make it fairer. We had a choice of blocking the plan all together, so everybody missed out or letting it goes through and it is five years ago. Like a lot's changed in the world and I think most Australians understand that a lot's changed in the world. The cost of living is a real pressure on Australian families. They're telling us they need more help, and we want to give them more help. So people on high incomes will still get a big tax cut. They will get more than $4,500 a year, but the people -
O'KEEFE: Just not what they voted for.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: On lower and middle incomes, yeah, I don't think people on low incomes voted for themselves to get zero dollars either. I mean-
O'KEEFE: Australians voted for it, twice, 2019 and 2022.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, and if we could have changed it and made it fairer at the time we would have.
O'KEEFE: You could have said you were going to change it.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, we did try and change it and then -
O'KEEFE: Then you said you wouldn't.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, we've got a fairer plan now and that's the good news.
O'KEEFE: I don't know what to tell you that's what happened.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: And the good news is 13.6 million people, every single taxpayer will get a tax cut and a bunch of people who are going to miss out this time around, will now get a tax cut and a bunch of people in the middle will get a lot more.
O'KEEFE: Tanya Plibersek, appreciate your time.
MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Always a pleasure. Thank you.
O'KEEFE: That's Tanya Plibersek, the Environment Minister.
END
