Transcript | Sky News Credlin | 15 October 2025

Wednesday, 15 October, 2025 

Topics: Tom Hughes Oration, future of the Liberal Party, Palestinian prisoners

E&OE………………………………………………………………………………………… 

PETA CREDLIN: But first he was the defiant campaign spokesman for what would prove to be the Coalition's unsuccessful election bid. And now as the party faces up to the enormity of the result and sets about the task of reviewing and rebuilding, James Paterson's spoken out about the ongoing navel-gazing introspection that he says has obsessed some in the party since the devastating May result. In a keynote speech, the Tom Hughes Oration last night Senator Paterson said the pity party must end and he urged his party to refocus. James Paterson joins me now. I'm delighted that we could talk because I think there's one thing between a thoughtful speech, which I've read the speech, you gave a very thoughtful speech last night, and I guess how some of that has been reported this morning. Let's start with allegations or claims that you singled out colleagues for criticism. And the names mentioned are Andrew Hastie and Jacinta Price. Were they in your sights?

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: No, not at all. Peta, as you know, they are two of my closest friends in the Federal Parliament. I've been trying to recruit Jacinta to the Federal Parliament and to the Liberal Party for the best part of a decade, and I'm delighted that she is now a Liberal Senator. And Andrew and I have been in the political trenches together on big questions facing our country for almost a decade as well. I've always had his back, he has always had my back, and that has not changed, and there is no issue between us.

PETA CREDLIN: I read those reports, then I said, as I just said then, I read your speech. And in your speech, you make the point, we cannot walk away from the culture war. There was some sense, as the factions on the left and the factions on the right-wing in the party war it out at the moment, that we're all of one thing or all of the other. You know we've gotta basically be the Teals, if you believe some moderates, the Teals just with a better economic story, or we've got to be right out there on the fringe of Donald Trump or Nigel Farage. Now, you reject populism, but you say there are things that are really important about our culture that we must fight for.

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: Exactly right. Culture and identity and sovereignty are the big questions that are being decided in the 21st century for Australia. Things like, do we have rallying national symbols that are unifying, like the flag or the anthem or the constitution or Australia Day or our ANZAC tradition? And if the Liberal Party won't defend those, then who will and what would happen to our country if we did? So we cannot surrender in those culture wars. Equally, though, I am concerned about economic populism. You know, I understand why a lot of people are sympathetic to Nigel Farage on immigration or freedom of speech or the European Union. But his economic policy includes a big increase in government spending, principally on welfare. He proposes to nationalise private companies in the steelmaking industry and utilities. The Liberal Party doesn't stand for those things. We stand for smaller government and free markets. I think we must hold on to that tradition.

PETA CREDLIN: Isn't part of the problem that you're going to spend 12 months, right up until May next year, asking yourself what your policy should be and what you should do before we're going to see anything, meaning you've got nothing to talk about other than yourselves. Isn't that a problem?

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: It's very clear to me from our supporters particularly, but not only, that there is a hunger to hear more from us about what we want to do, about what the direction is that we're going to take, and, yes, the policies that we are going to get there with. And so I think there is demand on the whole parliamentary party to fill that void, to fill that vacuum and provide that. And you will see that over the coming weeks and months. From the leader down, we'll be putting more meat on the bones that are consistent with Liberal values and those time-honoured traditions.

PETA CREDLIN: I have to be honest, you know, I've been there in opposition. You've got nothing else to do but to get out of opposition. So the idea that you need 12 months, you're not running the country, you're not doing anything else, this idea that, you need, 12 months to work out what you think on something like taxation is crazy, on immigration is crazy.

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: I don't think it should take you that long, and I don't think it will take that long and I think we'll have to do more before then and watch this space over the coming weeks and months. And one of the things I said last night that's resonated the most with people today is we must prevent the Victorianisation of Australia. Everyone knows the horror show that is this state, our home state, and everyone knows that's partly the responsibility of the Liberal Party and we can't allow the same to happen in our country. Anthony Albanese and Daniel Andrews are like this. They are very close, they've been comparing notes. Let's not let what has happened here happen in Canberra.

PETA CREDLIN: Well, they're 12 months out from an election, as you know, and we've not seen any substantive policies other than good policies on crime, but economic policies. We still haven't seen them from the Victorian Liberals, so I underscore that point. Something like net zero, I think there is a trap to see that as purely an environmental issue or some, you know an ideological calling card because energy security underpins our national security, our economic security. If the Libs can rule out the target set by Chris Bowen for 2035, then surely you can wrap your head around the position in relation to the targets for 2040 and 2050?

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: I'm proud of the way in which we've come out so quickly and so clearly on the absurd short-term targets that Chris Bowen and the government has proposed. They won't achieve them, and if they could achieve them imagine the damage they would do to the economy in order to achieve them. You're right, this is an economic issue principally. Of course the environmental aspects are important, but I care about having affordable energy so that our country can compete on the international stage. I don't want to have to bail out smelters every second week in this country because their energy has become so unaffordable that they can't compete internationally.

PETA CREDLIN: Yeah we did the numbers as a report today to say it's one million dollars per blue collar job right at the moment. Just quickly, Home Affairs, I know it's your old portfolio, but should we be concerned that when pushed Tony Burke is not giving a guarantee that any of these released Palestinian prisoners will end up in Australia.

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: Absolutely we should because this is someone who we cannot trust when it comes to these issues. He's been slippery and fishy every step of the way. I knew my colleague Jonno Duniam would do a good job in this portfolio and he's off to a very strong start by making a very reasonable demand of the government that Tony Burke should be able to say yes to in a heartbeat. Will any of the prisoners captured who are clearly fighting for Hamas or associated with Hamas be allowed to enter our country? Any Home Affairs Minister worth their salt should not have to think about that for a second.

PETA CREDLIN: Alright, well the silence as I say speaks volumes. Thank you, James Paterson.

SENATOR JAMES PATERSON: Thanks, Peta.

ENDS

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