Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Mayo for moving the motion and all those who spoke in support of it. All reasonable people agree that the ABC is one of our most important institutions and part of the fabric of our nation. It adds to media diversity and Australian content and it plays a vital role in our regional and remote communities, providing news and, importantly, emergency information. This summer's bushfires have reminded us all once again of the vital role that the ABC plays. It's unfortunate, but it is at times like these when the importance of independent and accountable public broadcasters like the ABC becomes most evident. We need the ABC, to protect not only our democracy but our very lives. That's very apparent to us from time to time up in the Northern Territory.

With the bushfires, the ABC handled 371 emergency broadcast events in the 2018-19 year, an increase of around 120 emergency events compared to 2017-18. During the recent bushfires, the ABC handled more than 100 emergency broadcasts in a single week. It was an extraordinary effort, and everyone at the ABC deservedly received widespread praise, some of which we're hearing today, for the practical and life-saving information they broadcast and for their professionalism and bravery while doing it. No doubt it would have been heartbreaking for the people on the ground that the ABC journalists, camos and soundies were talking with, but it was because of them that we got the word out.

The emergency broadcasts are especially important, as I've said, in the Northern Territory during our cyclone season. On average, there are about eight days a year, though there can be more, where a cyclone has formed off the coast. So, in the days leading up to it, and as the cyclone actually is tearing down on us in the Territory, tens of thousands of Territorians are relying on the ABC to stay up to date on developments and actions that they need to take. In the lead-up to the cyclone season, the ABC reminds us about getting our cyclone kits and plans ready. And the ABC does this without any additional resources.

It is unfortunate that the important work of the ABC is periodically undermined by those opposite. I'm not reflecting on the member for Wentworth here—he probably thinks the ABC is not a bad organisation—but you'd have to agree that many on that side of politics continually undercut it. And it's not helpful. Remember Tony Abbott's promises that there would be no cuts to the ABC? That was back in 2013. Next minute, $631 million was cut from the national broadcaster. If that's what 'no cuts to the ABC' looks like, I'd hate to see what it would look like if the government was honest about its policy in relation to the ABC.

The ABC board is meeting in Darwin in June of this year. We'll be looking after them and we'll also be explaining to them the incredibly important role that the ABC plays not only in our jurisdiction but as we saw over the break. During those cuts, we saw the cut to short-wave radio. That was very unfortunate not only for Indigenous communities throughout the Northern Territory but also for people out in commercial fishing off the coast. And we actually beam Australia's news into the Pacific. So it would be good if that short-wave radio came back—and it was a disgrace that it was ever cut.

In the time I have left, I want to acknowledge the work done by the ABC in the Northern Territory keeping Territorians up-to-date with emergencies that might affect them. In particular, I want to thank the ABC for bringing their board to Darwin. If they were in Darwin right now, they would learn that there is a severe weather warning in the Tanami district. There is a flood watch for the Tanami, Central Desert and MacDonnell Ranges and there is a flood watch for Bonaparte and North West Coastal Rivers. That is vital information for people in the Territory. Whether they be fishing recreationally or commercially, whether they be on a road train getting our cattle to market or whether they be on a station, it is vital information that is incredibly important; and the way it gets to those Territorians out on the ground is via the ABC.

ABC services are vital. I call on the government to put its culture of cuts to the ABC aside and start backing in our national broadcaster. You saw it during the fires. The ABC journos were out there on the fireground when others were not. So backing the ABC is vital for our nation.

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