Pauline Hanson says she would “defund” the ABC and make everything except the radio service subscription only, as staff went on strike in the national broadcaster’s most serious industrial action for 20 years.
ABC staff walked off the job for 24 hours on Wednesday after negotiations over pay, conditions and AI broke down.
“There’s an easy answer to all this,” the One Nation leader told Sky News on Wednesday night.
“Defund it, the $1.2bn a year.
“Then they can have to reapply for the jobs and it’d be subscription only.”
Senator Hanson said she would, however, “keep the ABC Radio going”, saying the regional broadcasters “do a great job”.
“Pay for that, by all means, but the rest of it, shut ‘em down and make them subscription only.
“So, if people want to pay to watch the ABC, so be it. I wouldn’t fund it anymore, I’d shut it down.”
When asked if making the ABC a subscription service for everything except rural and regional radio was One Nation policy, Senator Hanson said: “Correct”.
“It’s lost its ratings. It’s just not getting many people watching it, but costs $1.2bn a year to the taxpayer,” she said.
“I think it’s unrealistic, and let them see if people want to watch their programs.”
Host Chris Kenny said the ABC had “attacked” the One Nation leader “for 30 years”.
In response, Senator Hanson said: “I know”.
Senator Hanson doubled-down in a subsequent social media post, stating: “I won’t be missing the ABC now they’re on strike – in fact I would defund them.
“Keep the services like radio in the regions that do a good job and make the capital city bureaus a subscription only service.”
The comments are not the first time the Queensland senator has lashed the national broadcaster.
In 2017, Senator Hanson said she would boycott the ABC following a Four Corners report on One Nation and an Insiders program on a senator’s planned trip to Iraq and Afghanistan.
“I’ve been a little bit – you know – down lately, and that’s why you haven’t seen much of me doing much of the media,” she said in a Facebook video at the time.
“To tell you the truth, I’ve had a gutful of the media.”
The Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance has refused to rule out further industrial action.
