Transcript - ABC News Breakfast - Michael Rowland

MICHAEL ROWLAND: The Federal Member for Ballarat, Catherine King, joins us now. Catherine King, very good morning to you.

CATHERINE KING: Good morning, Michael.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: I want to start by asking, Ballarat is sadly an epicentre of what is a true national crisis. How is the community there holding up?

CATHERINE KING: Well, the deaths of Samantha, Rebecca and Hannah really shocked the community, but I think it’s also galvanised us. We had a lovely young woman, Sissy Austin, organised very quickly a march in the streets. We had over 1,000 people who came and talked, and I think that was a really important thing for us to do and also a real charge to action across our community. And I think that’s been really important. I think, like any community, you like to think that everyone’s safe here and that women are safe in our community. And I think the deaths of Samantha, Rebecca and Hannah just really brought home hard and sharp that domestic violence, violence against women by intimate partners, by strangers, is at crisis point. And it happens in our community, and it happens in every community. Ballarat is a really resilient city. You won’t probably have seen on the news, but we also had a big marathon on the weekend, which I think also was a really joyous occasion. We saw dads running with their little daughters, mums running with their sons. That really was an important part in our community to also just say, we are safe, but we want to do everything we can to make sure everybody is safe.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: Ok, let’s turn to the National Cabinet meeting today involving the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, and Premiers. What concrete solutions can we expect to emerge from that to tackle this scourge?

CATHERINE KING: Well, I think there is a real appetite for change. I think that there’s also frustration and there is a lot of money and I think my home state of Victoria, there’s been a Royal Commission, a lot of money was put into domestic violence services. At the federal level, we’ve got over $2.3 billion into the National Action Plan right the way from prevention into working with the states on services. But the cabinet meeting, the National Cabinet meeting today really is to look at what more can government do, what more catalyst can government be for communities, because we know that governments alone can’t change culture and can’t change behaviour. We can provide a catalyst for that and a catalyst for services that do that. The funding, for example, of Our Watch, of which the CEO is actually is a local here in Ballarat. That’s been a really important thing for prevention, and I’d really encourage any of your listeners who are part of sporting clubs, businesses, any setting, to get onto that Our Watch website. It’s got great tools for how you can start conversations on the ground in your community with boys about how we actually respect women and how we’re equal and what that means and what that looks like in every single setting in our community. 

MICHAEL ROWLAND: There are concrete measures governments can take, as your government did about one and a half years ago, and that is providing funding for these 500 new, additional frontline domestic violence workers. As you’d know, Minister, only a handful have actually taken up those jobs. Certainly, the government can do more in that front.

CATHERINE KING: Well, certainly in terms of frontline services, that is one of the vectors. Like, we have to be able to have services for women and for women escaping violence to go to. That’s why I was so proud that we are part of a government that is investing with our state and territory counterparts in those frontline services. As I said, it’s important to start where this begins. We want to prevent this, we don’t want this to happen, but we have to recognise it is happening and happening in too many numbers. So, part of that is also the service delivery, I’m sure what National Cabinet – there’s a big debate actually occurring at the moment about what social media our boys are seeing. I’ve got a 15-year-old; I see some of the material that is coming across from his gaming and I catch some of that and I’m able to talk to him about it. There’s a lot that I don’t see, and I think there are a lot of parents out there who are very worried about what it is their kids are being exposed to without any filtering or any capacity to actually talk about that. Schools obviously have a role to play, also helping, particularly with boys, but also making sure that boys feel confident to be able to actually say to their mates, this is something not okay, or that view is really a bit strange. Do you need to go and talk to someone about that? So, you know, there’s a lot that we all have to do. Governments have a role, but every single person in the community has a role here to play as well, and particularly men.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: Everyone has a role, as you say, particularly. Particularly men. And I know attempts to cut down on misogynistic and violent porn seen online is front and centre in the discussion today too. Hey, before you go, a couple of other questions. You are also the Transport Minister. Were you taken by surprise, as everyone was at Bonza airline going so quickly, so suddenly into administration yesterday?

CATHERINE KING: Look, yes, certainly the first we’re aware that there were flights being cancelled was when it was reported about 7:00 am in the media yesterday. I think Bonza obviously had heard overnight that they were not able to fly their planes. The leaseholder of those planes wanted to call those back in. They’ve now gone into voluntary administration, and I think they were scrambling yesterday to get information out to their customers. It’s important that Bonza does that. I was concerned that people weren’t able to get a person to talk to, so I stood up my department, a hotline, which is still operating this morning at 1800 069 244. I’ve got public servants in my department, just so people have someone to talk so that they can get information about how to get on a Virgin, Qantas or Jetstar flight. Virgin, Qantas, and Jetstar have, frankly been magnificent. The fact they offered free flights to stranded passengers yesterday. So, if you’re a Bonza passenger and you’re stranded, you’re mid-travel, then Virgin, Qantas and Jetstar will be able to help you. If you’re in a regional centre, you may need to get to a hub where they fly out of. But certainly, certainly that hotline is available today. The administrators, we’ve been speaking to them overnight, they’re trying to get the airline back up and running. I think they’ve got to look at the books a fair bit. It’s unlikely that will happen. I think planes are certainly cancelled until 2 May at the very, at the least, and then customers will need to get onto the Bonza website or onto the administrators to find out what the next steps are.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: So, it’s unlikely at this stage. Realistically, what likelihood is there of Bonza planes taking to the skies again, given, as you say, those challenges you outlined?

CATHERINE KING: Well, look, that’s really for the administrators to say. I obviously don’t have access to all of the debts and liabilities of the airline. Obviously, by going into voluntary administration, those planes are still available here in Australia. I think it would be Bonza’s preference that they get up and flying quickly. But that, again, is going to be absolutely a matter for the administrator. Our concern has been about how do we get people home, particularly at the tail end of school holidays.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: Ok, and finally, Catherine King, as the member for Ballarat, I’ve got to ask you, have you seen this big black cat apparently roaming through grasslands in and around Ballarat?

CATHERINE KING: Can I tell you, as long as I have been alive, this rumour of a black panther or a jaguar around Daylesford, around central Victoria, has been. It pops up every now and again as a story, and there’s pictures. Some of the pictures I’ve seen look a bit similar to some I might have seen 20 years ago as well. A little bit sharper. I suspect AI might have a bit of a hand at that. I think it has. Rightly, as you’ve done, well done, started a conversation about feral cats and the importance to our wildlife. But I think that the black panther, central Victorian black panther’s, been a myth that I have long, long heard about.

MICHAEL ROWLAND: Okay. Mythical status indeed. Catherine King, appreciate your time this morning. Thank you.

CATHERINE KING: Really good to be with you, Michael. Thank you.