TRANSCRIPT: INTERVIEW WITH SAM COSTIN, 7NEWS RIVERINA, 14 JANUARY 2025

Subjects: Sheik Abulghani Albaf, electorate boundary changes, election, Australia Day

E&OE

SAM COSTIN:

Your name and role, please.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Michael McCormack, Federal Member for Riverina, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific.

SAM COSTIN:

Excellent. All right, Michael. So, we do have some concerning information coming out of Young. What are you aware of this Sheikh that has moved from Sydney to this area?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Abdulghani Albaf has been appointed as the new principal of New Medinah College, the New Medinah School at Young. He has made a lot of commentary, a lot of comments that are very antisemitic. Some of his comments are beyond the pale. He has many followers on his various social media platforms. And it is concerning. What we need most of all at the moment is social cohesion. We need harmony. We need unity, particularly in a town the size of Young. Population, 10,000. It’s a wonderful town in the South West Slopes in the Riverina. Young does not need to have a sheikh coming to town to head up New Medinah School and to be making the sort of anti-Zionist, antisemitic comments that he has been making in mosques, on social media, and in society. What we need is for people to lower the temperature. What we need is for everybody to try to get along. And what we don’t need is a sheikh, a very controversial one at that, influencing our children with extremist ideas, radicalising children who are our future, who are Young’s future, to the point where social cohesion is not something that will be in the future for that community. It’s a wonderful community. It’s a vibrant community. I’ve spoken to Mayor Brian Ingram this morning from Hilltops Council. I’ve spoken to the Member for Cootamundra, Steph Cooke, about this situation. And they, like me, are very worried about it.

SAM COSTIN:

And is there any action, I guess, that can be taken in these situations? Obviously, he has been appointed as the leader of this school, of this mosque. What can we actually do to get the messaging out that this is inappropriate, or potentially move him on? Is there anything that you can do about it?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Well, the mosque in Young and the actual school are different entities. So, the mosque needs to come out and say what they think about this appointment. The mosque leaders need to very much step up and say exactly what they think about this situation. And certainly, if he steps just one toe, one toenail out of line, then the appointment can’t last, can’t stand. I mean, even the (New South Wales) Education Minister today has come out and criticised his latest rants, his latest ramblings. And these are divisive. These are calling for Jews and Zionists to be sent to the lowest hellfire pits in ... you know, it’s beyond bizarre. And Australia doesn’t need this. This is not Australia and it is certainly not regional Australia.

SAM COSTIN:

Will you be continuing to follow this up and keep an eye on this one?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

I won’t let it rest. If it gets out of hand, rest assured, I will not let it rest. I have made comments over and over about the windows in Advision, in Fitzmaurice Street, that Michael Agzarian sees fit to put up, which are totally unwarranted, unnecessary. And every day I have people come into my office complaining about what he is putting in his window. And there are not so many community leaders coming out and saying it’s wrong. But the standard you walk past is the standard you accept. I won’t accept it. I won’t accept it whether it’s Young. I won’t accept it whether it’s Wagga Wagga. And I will continue to speak up. What we need is a situation where people can live in harmony, in unity. We don’t need these sorts of people coming to our communities in the case of the sheikh from Sydney and upsetting everybody. And quite frankly, it leads to a level of raised violence. It leads to a level of tension. And we don’t need that in our communities.

SAM COSTIN:

And I imagine it probably creates an environment of a lack of safety for people and people like that who are living in this area now or region.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

And for good reason. And for good reason. And I think really, we need to look at Police numbers. We do need to look at all those things. It’s not just a new principal of a school. This raises questions as to community safety. Now at the moment, everything is fine. But he’s just been appointed, so let’s just see how it goes. Let’s just all take a big, deep breath. See how it goes. But if he does come out with anti-semite comments, if he does continue with his rantings on social media, then I think something needs to be done. Whether it’s the Education Ministry of New South Wales, Home Affairs Federally, whatever the case might be, I’ll be making sure that he won’t step out of line.

SAM COSTIN:

So now we’re talking Federal election. It hasn’t been called yet. You’re running again and you, as always, have that strong majority. How are you feeling with all these candidates that are coming in? You got Richard Foley coming in. Mark Jeffreson’s announced. You’ve got a whole bunch of independents and I guess they all have one mission to take down McCormack. How are you feeling, though, as the standing Member with that majority, do you still feel confident?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

I’ve spent 14 years delivering for the community in which I’ve grown up. I’ve spent 14 years making sure that people’s views are taken to Canberra in a loud and proud way. I’ve done that, even in this parliamentary term I’ve spoken more than any other MP on the floor of the House of Representatives and I’ve done that for and on behalf of the people of Riverina who sent me to Canberra to do a job for them.

You look at the delivery just around Wagga Wagga, the new PCYC, the levee bank – fought for so many years, delivered during the time I’ve been in Parliament. You look at, on the hill, the Botanic Gardens Museum, that’s just come about just in recent years. The Riverside Precinct for children, there’s been so much delivery for infrastructure and amenity, services and I’ll continue to fight for (better) cost of living to make it easier for people when they do go to the supermarket. The Nationals have a plan in place to put a commissioner in place for supermarkets to make sure that the pricing is right and fair and justified whilst, at the same time, as people are getting that value at the cash register, farmers are getting value when they sell their products. I’ll make sure that I continue to fight for irrigation farmers who grow the food and fibre that keeps these areas strong but indeed puts food on the table and clothes on our backs. I’ll make sure that I continue to fight for better conditions for Veterans. Indeed, I’m a patron of Pro Patria and it’s a great organisation and that with RSL’s Veterans’ Wellbeing Centre here in the main street is providing for our Veterans but we need to do more. If we send them to war, we need to make sure that when they finish their service that there are job opportunities, that there are health prospects for them, that it’s going to enable them to have a healthy, happy life. I’ll continue to fight for families, to fight for everybody who is in the Riverina, whether they vote for me or not. I’ve always done that. My doors are always open. I’ve always made sure that people are listened to. I’ve always made sure that I listen to people and take action on what they request me to do. And I’ll continue to do that. Yes, we’ll have any number of people who will put their hands up. That’s democracy. But I’ll make sure that people continue to know that I will listen to them, and I will fight very much for them. I am always in their corner and always willing to do what is necessary to make this place more liveable, more loveable. Riverina is the best place in all of the country in which to live, and I’ll make sure that it continues to be that.

SAM COSTIN:

Now, obviously you’ve spent the last three years in opposition under the Albanese Government, how confident are you that Peter Dutton will succeed and that you will end up back in the majority power?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Well, you never take anything for granted. I mean, anything can happen in an election campaign. That 33 days of the actual election campaign, anything can happen that will sway votes one way or the other. But if everybody does their job and everybody turns up from the Coalition point of view and we are united, as we are, look, I think we’ll give a very good account of ourselves. The Albanese Government has been a big disappointment. It started with the Voice, the referendum that we didn’t need, the referendum that divided the nation, the referendum that cost $450 million. And it’s gone downhill since then. We’ve seen housing become unaffordable; rent become unattainable. We’ve seen grocery prices go through the roof, petrol prices. I mean, it’s very tough for people out there to make ends meet. And Labor talks about real wages increasing. Well, take-home pay has gone very much down. People are struggling and you only have to look at the number of homeless people. Even in Wagga Wagga, when we had that food van, and the trucks arrived with fresh food down at the river and it wasn’t that long ago, it was only a couple of years ago. The queues of people lining up to get free food was extraordinary. And people, if they ask St Vinnie’s and the Salvos and other care organisations, CareVan, they are run over by the amount of customers, the number of clients that they’ve got, because people simply can’t afford to pay the bills. And speaking of bills, electricity is just through the roof. People can’t afford to pay their power bills. So, we’ve got a plan and policies in place as a Coalition that I think people will warm to. I think people will say, well, there’s a credible alternative to what we have now. And in Peter Dutton and David Littleproud as the Leader of the Liberal and the National parties, respectively, I think you’ve got two people there who can take this nation forward, who will take this nation forward and who have the nation’s future as their vision.

SAM COSTIN:

One thing Peter Dutton did say with Australia Day coming up is that he does plan to mandate citizenship ceremonies to be held on Australia Day. What’s your take on that? Is that something you want to see? Most councils do it anyway. But is that something that we should be mandating? Obviously, you know, you do have the Australia Day controversy of people wanting to change the date and all of that. What’s your take on that?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

The date is the date. Australia Day is January 26. And I know that 40 people are lining up to be citizens here in Wagga Wagga and that’s fantastic. I can’t wait for the day to help those people become naturalised. Elsewhere in the Riverina, I know there are many councils who also celebrate Australia Day by having citizenship ceremonies and that’s great. Citizenship ceremonies should be taking place on Australia Day. Let’s not be too woke and too cute about this. Australia Day is January 26. I appreciate that the nation has made mistakes in the past and probably will make mistakes in the future. But it’s the best nation in all of the world. We’re not racist here in Australia, we are a nation. And you look at our history, you look at the present, and you look at the future, it’s very bright. There’s so much to look forward to. But there’s so much that we should also reflect about our nation and about what we’ve actually been able to achieve in the time since European settlement. Indeed, even before that. And we’ve got a proud Indigenous history in as much as the Aboriginal people were here tens of thousands of years before the white settlers came. And they’ve got a proud history. And I appreciate and I acknowledge that. I acknowledge the work that people like Hewitt and Dorothy Whyman have been doing. And I’m really pleased that they are up for a nomination at the Australia Day Awards this year for the street Walk of Honour. That’s very appropriate. I know that Zita Denholm is also up for that award, too. But, you know, we need to be able to live as one; cohesive, united. I mean, it’s no great surprise that Wagga Wagga has as one of its major festivals outside the Wagga Wagga Gold Cup horse race, as the Fusion Festival. A festival celebrating our multicultural history, our multicultural future. And you walk down the main street of Wagga Wagga now, you’ll be in a community where we’ve got the second largest Yazidi population outside of Iraq and Syria. You’ve got many Sudanese and Somalians living in Wagga Wagga. You’ve got Pacific Islanders. It’s a great community. You’ve got people from all nations on the Earth who come to Wagga Wagga to make it home. To call it home because they’re proud of the city. And they’re proud of the multiculturalism that this city represents. And that comes with a proud Indigenous history, too. But also, a proud Indigenous future.

SAM COSTIN:

And what about for you personally, Michael? You obviously, you haven’t started your campaign yet.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

I haven’t stopped campaigning. And look, and if you ever think that this job is easy or if you ever think that you’ll take it easy for a day or a week; well, the people of the Riverina will certainly see through that. You know, this job is 24-7 and even if you go into the supermarket, there are people who come up to you and want their potholes fixed and want this, want that, and that’s fine. They send you to Canberra to do a job. They elect you, they vote for you, some of them don’t and that’s fine, too. I will always represent people irrespective of how they voted and I never, ever take a day lightly, I never take this job complacently and I never will. And I work all year round. It’s not as if you just try and fatten the pig on the market day in the last few weeks before an election process. Any MP who does that will lose their seat and deservedly so. You have to turn up, you have to turn up every day, every week, every month, every year that you are elected because it’s a great privilege and an honour to walk into that House of Representatives in one of the greatest buildings in the Southern Hemisphere, if not the world, democracy, to represent the people of the Riverina who are the best people in the best region in the country.

SAM COSTIN:

Say you are re-elected again or, you know, as you are hoping to be re-elected. What sort of things are you looking to deliver in your next term? You know, we’ve got things like the airport was something I know you mentioned once you get back into power with the Coalition, to deliver that funding for the airport. Is that something you want to pursue? Or is there anything else you are wanting to aim for should you be elected next term?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Well, the electorate boundaries have vastly changed. So, we’ve picked up Upper Lachlan, which is Crookwell and surrounds. We’ve picked up Yass Valley, which is obviously Yass and other areas in that Shire. We’ve picked up Snowy Valleys; Tumbarumba, Tumut, Talbingo, Batlow and also the Boorowa end of Hilltops Council so it’s a vastly different electorate than what it was. We’ve lost Bland, which is West Wyalong, Forbes and Parkes Shires. And those people will all go into Parkes electorate. So, the electorate boundaries are different that brings different challenges, different opportunities. Yes, the airport terminal is something that I will continue to fight for and I will continue to work with Wagga Wagga City Council to bring about funding for a badly needed terminal. The terminal is almost becoming not fit for purpose and we do need a new airport terminal and I had $24 million on the table at the last election; we weren’t elected. I’ve worked with Council over the years as far as their plans, their vision for the Wagga Wagga Airport. The leasing arrangements for the airport also very, very important. Given the fact that we’ve now got until June 30, 2026 to make sure that Council can negotiate that long-term lease arrangements. Initially, anything over 20 years as far as leasing was concerned, then made it go into the public tender situation and so anybody could bid for the ownership of Wagga Wagga Airport. I want to see the airport as a long-term lease arrangement with the council. It is the gateway for the Riverina. It’s so vital. A link for people going for health reasons, tourism, either to or from Wagga Wagga. We need to get the leasing arrangements sorted and given the fact that I’ve been able to secure that extension through the Deputy Prime Minister, Richard Marles, council now has enough time to be able to do that and I’ll be making sure that those arrangements are done in a satisfactory way, that hopefully we can get the best outcome possible. But not only is it the airport terminal and the airport leasing arrangements that are important, there are so many things. The roads infrastructure I think has been left by this Government, by this Labor Government. I think the regions have been left behind when it comes to not just the road funding but the way they do regional funding. You only have to look right across the Riverina, at the saleyards, the main-street upgrades in so many towns that I represent. But also, the sports stadiums that I’ve been able to bring as an investment for these areas. We haven’t seen that sort of level of investment by this Labor Government. And the roads are in a terrible state and need fixing. And of course, cost of living. The three main issues in this election will be cost of living, cost of living, cost of living. You go and you talk to anybody in any main street, any business, indeed and that’s what they’ll raise with you. It is cost of living and businesses are suffering, small businesses are suffering because people aren’t spending as much because they can’t afford to.

SAM COSTIN:

Anything else you want to add?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

No, I think that’ll do.

Shane Manning