Turnbull says Abbott wasn't lying about ABC cuts

Watch Turnbull try and defend the indefensible, claiming that Abbott didn't lie about cuts to the ABC.

Leigh Sales, presenter 7.30: "So how come we are having a discussion about a five per cent cut to the ABC when in the election campaign, the government unequivocally said, 'No cuts to the ABC'?" 

Malcolm Turnbull, Communications Minister: "Well, the Prime Minister said that in one interview I think the night before the election. But Joe Hockey and I had made it very clear on a number of ABC programs in fact that we - that if there were going to be cuts across the board, as plainly there would have to be - across the board of government ... then the ABC and SBS couldn't be exempt." 

Sales: "...they shouldn't have taken 'no cuts' as 'no cuts', they should have been parsing Mr Abbott's comments and Mr Hockey's comments and your comments to try to figure out exactly what that meant?" 

Turnbull: "Well, well, look, you know, I mean, I've defended the Prime Minister on this today and earlier in the week. I think you've got to take his comments, which, look, I mean, what he said, he said, and, you know, it's there, it's on the record. But you've got to take that in context. 

"And I can only assume that what Mr Abbott was referring to or was thinking about, anyway, was the proposition that there would be cuts in - with the intent of reducing ABC services and we've ruled that out." 

Sales: "You must understand that for voters, when someone says 'no cuts' you think 'no cuts'." 

Turnbull: "No, look, I understand that. But to accept that Tony Abbott meant the ABC and SBS, out of all the agencies of government, would be exempt from any savings measure, to accept that, you would have to assume that he had decided on the eve of the election to overrule and contradict the very carefully considered statements that Joe Hockey and I had been making. Now, that's a big call too."  more