Topics: Superannuation; ministry; Party Room meeting; representation of women in the Liberal Party.
E&OE…
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
My guest this morning, just before he enters the Liberal Party Room is Victorian Senator and Vocational Education Minister Scott Ryan. Scott Ryan, welcome.
SCOTT RYAN:
Good morning Patricia.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Firstly, just on a breaking story. The Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says that the former prime minister Kevin Rudd has asked the Federal Government to nominate him for the United Nations Secretary General election. Now, she says that Cabinet will discuss this. I know you are not in Cabinet, but you are a Minister, what do you make of this? Do you think the Government should support the former Prime Minister?
SCOTT RYAN:
I saw the newspaper coverage this morning, but I haven’t seen the breaking news that you refer to. Look, that is a matter for the Cabinet to look at. It is not something I would provide public advice on.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
But he is a former prime minister, isn’t it sort of logical that we would support former prime ministers in their endeavours around the world?
SCOTT RYAN:
I actually haven’t seen what the Foreign Minister, what Julie Bishop just said. If she said that it is going to be discussed at Cabinet then that is the appropriate forum for it to be deliberated upon within the Government.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Scott Ryan, always a diplomat. Alright, let’s get to something else. Last week Malcolm Turnbull said the Government will deliver all of the policies you took to the election. He previously said the super changes are absolutely ironclad. But now we are hearing about back downs, particularly on the $500,000 cap. Why back downs now? You have just declared an election victory a week ago?
SCOTT RYAN:
That is the terminology you use Patricia. What the Prime Minister said yesterday was the reforms are important, but obviously in the implementation and the transition there is work to be done. When tax changes are put up…and I might say in a particularly complex area like superannuation, there is always a process of considering unintended consequences or disproportionate consequences on some groups in the community. And so all the Prime Minister has said is that normal process will take place with respect to the superannuation policy we announced in the Budget.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Okay, so you just think this is just tinkering around the edges these changes? Because it seems to me that, for example, if you support the idea of exemptions for one-off transfers, that’s bigger than just a little tinkering.
SCOTT RYAN:
I don’t think so, to be fair and without commenting on specific things that have been in the media, the word back down is a word you are using Patricia, whereas I actually consider it to be genuine consultation. When you have laws in complex tax areas, you can easily get disproportionate impacts on some in the community. Now, some of the policies we announced take account of that. For example, the catch- up provisions that allow those who have spent time outside of the workforce to make catch-up contributions in a concessional manner. And that is an example of an unintended consequence of the existing arrangements. So, what I think this is a signal about is that the Prime Minister and the Treasurer are willing to consult around the operation of these changes.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
With respect Senator Scott Ryan, the Prime Minister said it was an ironclad election policy, he argued for it strongly throughout the election campaign. Because this dissent isn’t new. We knew that a number of Coalition MPs were upset about these changes throughout the election campaign, but he kept saying ‘this is the policy’. You have now won a slim majority based on this policy, and now you are talking about making changes to it. What are the public to think that a week after an election victory you are willing to look at changes?
SCOTT RYAN:
I think, again, you are describing them as changes whereas the Prime Minister talked about implementation and transition. To be fair one of my colleagues was on radio this morning, Christian Porter, and said there are always exceptions to every broad rule. I think it is a sign of the fact that in the Prime Minister we have someone who will listen, that he is willing to talk about these matters. And while the policy stands, and the commitment to it stands, if there are unintended consequences or if there are impacts in part of the community that might be disproportionate then we are willing to look at transition and implementation arrangements. I don’t think that represents in anyway a diminution of our commitment to the policy.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
On 774 ABC Melbourne my guest is Senator Scott Ryan, he is the Vocational Education Minister, he is about to go into the first Party Room meeting of the Liberal Party Room and then the Coalition Joint Party Room since the election. Our number here, I am taking your calls, is 1300 222 774 you can also text me 0437 774 774. Eric Abetz says there should have been changes to this policy before it went to the election.
Is the Prime Minister being bullied by people like Eric Abetz, Kevin Andrews, people on his backbench who are former ministers because of the tight numbers, is that what we are seeing here?
SCOTT RYAN:
No, again, I think the policies that were announced in the Budget went through the normal Budget process – detailed deliberation by the ERC and then obviously by the Cabinet before the Budget was announced. I don’t think it is fair to characterise it that way. The alternative is that the Prime Minister wouldn’t be listening to those with concerns around implementation and transition arrangements. I actually think it is a strength of the way that we are dealing with this very complex tax area that our commitment to the policy as announced in the Budget stands, but we are willing to look at where there might be impacts that are unforeseen or unintended consequences or to make their operation more smooth. I want a Prime Minister and Treasurer and executive that listens to the Party Room as well as those in the community. And the Prime Minister has made clear that is exactly what he wants to do.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
I am just wondering why he didn’t say it last week then. Or during the election campaign. Because it is a definite change in tone, a definite change in language.
SCOTT RYAN:
We are now through an election campaign, I don’t think the Prime Minister has walked away from the policies that we announced through the Budget and in the campaign at all. I think this is actually the next phase of that, which is now they need legislation. And all he did yesterday was outline that there is a legislative process that goes through the Party Room, the Cabinet and then of course the Parliament. So, I think this is being realistic and it is also a sign that we are not belligerent and what we are doing is saying ‘we are committed to the policies, we want to make them work as fairly and as effectively as possible’.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Do you think this Party Room meeting is going to get ugly?
SCOTT RYAN:
No, not at all. We have a Liberal Party Room meeting first, which normally happens and technically we re-endorse the leadership of the Party at that meeting. Then we have a Joint Party Room with our Coalition colleagues. I like the fact that the Liberal Party is one that allows full and frank debate. And so, when we have debate on everything from policy or when people raise issues or questions around the campaign, sometimes that is portrayed in the media as division, I actually think it is a strength. I have never heard the public through the last election campaign, or any of the others I have been involved in, complain that politicians express their views too much. In fact, more often than not the complaint is politicians being too robotic. So, the diversity of opinion, the fact we are willing to talk about it, in my view has always been a strength of the Liberal Party and the Coalition.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
I have got a text message here which I think speaks to some of the concerns around the new language around superannuation, which is: will the LNP consult over welfare changes as well as super changes?
Because you have taken a number of policies to the election, one of them is a welfare crackdown, yet there is no consultation on that. It looks like you are favouring one group of people over others.
SCOTT RYAN:
I don’t think that is fair. The issues around the welfare measures that were announced are administrative in nature and they are about better influencing the existing laws. Ensuring that there aren’t inappropriate payments being made – which can, as we know lead some people with debts they need to pay causing difficulty. The changes we have announced on superannuation require legislation, and they are going through the normal process of consultation with people in the community, with the Party Room, and with other stakeholders in the sector. I think to be fair, that is comparting an apple to an orange.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
An apple to an orange (laughter) I don’t want to compare the wrong fruits! On 774 ABC Melbourne I am Patricia Karvelas filling in for Jon Faine, and my guest is Senator Scott Ryan he is the Vocational Education Minister. Our number here is 1300 222 774 you can also SMS 0437 774 774. What do you make of this discussion back down or tinkering – it depends who you believe – on the superannuation changes that have been taken to the election? A big Party Room meeting today that will discuss a number of issues.
Scott Ryan, one of the other issues that will be discussed is the election campaign itself. I understand Mark Textor, your pollster, and also Tony Nutt the Federal Director will be addressing the meeting, a lot of people angry with the strategy they took to the campaign. Saying that the campaign was not negative enough, that it didn’t go after Bill Shorten and his union baggage, is the language people have used. How do you expect the Prime Minister to respond to some of that criticism?
SCOTT RYAN:
Let’s see what discussion happens in the Party Room. After every election we have one of these discussions, I have been involved in elections where we have won and elections and where we haven’t won. And, again, I don’t think it is fair to characterise it that there might be division. I think it is actually that there is frank conversation. And there should be frank conversation amongst colleagues about these matters. There are different challenges in different parts of the country, there are different policy issues that resonated in different parts of the country. And so, having the Federal Director in and having a frank discussion amongst my Liberal and National colleagues, that is what I hope we would do after any election.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Now, the number of women that have been elected to Parliament is woeful, do you agree with that?
SCOTT RYAN:
I think we have a lot of work to do. I actually saw the –
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
(interrupts) you wouldn’t use the word woeful?
SCOTT RYAN:
I don’t think it is good enough –
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
(interrupts) it is embarrassing, come on. Level with me, it is embarrassing.
SCOTT RYAN:
I think we need to do a lot better. I am not going to use value-laden terms that judge my colleagues, because in the end every election in the House of Representatives is an election of Labor vs Coalition, and occasionally independent or Green, and the local community makes a collective judgement. It is a result of millions of individual decisions. What we in the Liberal Party need to do, and having been involved in the Party for more than a quarter of a century, is ensure we have a stronger field of candidates. Particularly where we have underrepresentation, and quite frankly that is particularly acute with women.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
How else do you do it? One of the suggestions by Julie Bishop is that she supports plebiscites that allow ordinary Liberal members to vote in preselections. I know that already happens in Victoria and you are probably about to say that, am I right?
SCOTT RYAN:
Yeah, we do. I was very involved in the drafting of those rules that put that in place. In my view, what I have noticed over the last 15 years or so is that we generally have smaller fields for preselections. I remember, I think when Petro Georgiou won the seat of Kooyong after Andrew Peacock retired, there were well over a dozen candidates. Now, we don’t tend to have preselections with that number of candidates anymore. Where I have noticed a substantial drop-off in the number of candidates there has not been as many strong women candidates. I might also say, I think it is particularly acute amongst women of my age, I am 43, and so what we need to look at as a Liberal Party is: how do we support stronger fields of candidates, how do we support people who want to come into the political Party who then want to put themselves forward for office? Because then where we are missing out, I think, is in the number of women who are able to put themselves forward, or feel able to put themselves forward before a plebiscite. Because these are very demanding processes, when Josh Frydenberg won the preselection in Kooyong there were 500 people. When Kelly O’Dwyer won in Higgins there were 400 people. They are quite a demanding process, and I think we need to do more to support, particularly women candidates, putting themselves up.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Last night you were at the Lodge I understand. The Prime Minister held a function, what the mood like at the function?
SCOTT RYAN:
It was a very pleasant mood. I hadn’t seen a lot of my colleagues since the election, I had spoken to many of them on the phone. It was good to catch up face-to-face. We had a conversation about everything from the campaign to what people had been focussed on individually at their local level during the campaign, also catching up with some people that you are good friends with to find out what else had been happening in their lives. Generally it wasn’t very much given we had an 8 week election campaign.
PATRICIA KARVELAS:
Not very much at all. I will let you get to the Liberal Party Room. I would love to be a fly on the wall but instead I am filling in for Jon Faine for the next couple of hours, so maybe you can come back on and tell us exactly what happened in there. Thank you so much Senator.
SCOTT RYAN:
(laughter) thanks Patricia, cheers.
(ENDS)