'Oh my goodness': Price stands her ground in tense interview with ABC's Sarah Ferguson after Dutton loses seat to Labor
Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton lost his seat after Labor candidate, Ali France, pulled ahead with a double digit two-party preferred swing away from the Liberals.
The outcome leaves the Coalition without a leader, with shadow treasurer Angus Taylor and shadow defence minister Andrew Hastie seen as possible replacements.
ABC journalist Sarah Ferguson asked Senator Price on Saturday if her now infamous MAGA down under comment at a bowling club in Perth last month was partly to blame for Mr Dutton losing his seat.
"That's a big call don't you think. If you sling enough mud in an election, it sticks. We did see a Prime Minister who absolutely misled the Australian people all the way through and was rarely called out for his conduct. I think it is deceitful," Senator Price said.
However, Ferguson pressed on, imploring Ms Price to "talk about this seriously".
Price responded: "I am talking seriously".
Ferguson said her line of questioning was "not a smear campaign", again telling Senator Price: "I want you to address it seriously".
The Senator said the Labor Party and the media "made it all about Donald Trump".
"We really couldn't care less about the way Donald Trump is governing for America. We were concerned with the way Australia is being governed under an Albanese government," she said.
Ferguson, again, told Senator Price to "talk about this sensibly", prompting a shocked "oh my goodness" from the Coalition Senator.
"There is a whole lot of mud you just slung right there, can I just say, in terms of wanting this country to be great. Donald Trump doesn't own those four words," Senator Price said.
The shadow minister used her remaining airtime to draw attention to significant issues Aboriginal Australians face, choosing to ignore the journalist's jabs.
"Aboriginal people will continue to be marginalised. The gap will continue to get wider because we take an ideological approach to all of these issues and Labor will continue to do that," she said.
"They will invest money in organisations and not listen to the little people on the ground, but I will continue to fight for those people who actually want to be heard."
Peter Dutton's loss in Dickson is one of many defeats for the Coaltion on Saturday, with Labor securing election victory and a majority government.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

ABC News
6 minutes ago
- ABC News
Minister approves Cootamundra-Gundagai council split to undo 'disaster' merger
The New South Wales government will split a local council for the first time since dozens were controversially merged almost a decade ago. The Cootamundra Shire and Gundagai Shire Councils in southern NSW were combined by the then-Coalition government to improve efficiency and reduce administrative costs. The Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council (CGRC) was among 19 new councils created from the amalgamation of 44 existing councils, including Snowy Valleys Council, Armidale Regional Council and Central Coast Council. Announcing the planned split in Gundagai on Thursday, Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig said the forced merger was a "disaster". "Merging councils for merging's sake does not work," he said. Cr Hoenig said the policy of forced council mergers should be "dispensed with in the dustbin of history". "This has been a long fight for Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council and the people of this particular region," he said. The Coalition's planned council mergers were troubled from the outset, with the government making multiple amendments to its plan during its term. In 2017, then premier Gladys Berejiklian allowed 14 other councils, that were fighting the merger push in court, to remain separate. Then in 2022, the Coalition announced it would split CGRC, in a move local media dubbed "Independence Day". In 2024, the new Labor government introduced legislation which provided a new pathway for NSW councils seeking to demerge. Councils are now required to develop a robust business case up-front, undertake community consultation and undergo a review by the NSW Local Government Boundaries Commission. CGRC Mayor Abb McAlister became emotional as news of the demerger was announced and said the road had been challenging. "The journey we've had has been tough, but it's all-inspiring and it's one of those life experiences you have," he said. "We finally got the result we wanted." The council will now establish a transition office as work to formalise the split begins. It will oversee the division of assets, liabilities, funding, staffing, services, and determining the councils' future structure. Meanwhile, the state government will draft the legal paperwork required to re-establish the two separate councils. The Office of Local Government will also assist the council through the process, including by working to identify funding to support the transition. Cr McAlister said it could be another 12 months before the councils were completely demerged, but he expressed faith in the state government in finalising the split. "We now start another journey the minister has given us to demerge, and he will fully support us," he said.

Sky News AU
6 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's China trip faces criticism from opposition over ‘indulgent' optics and lack of serious negotiations
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been criticised for "indulging" in optics as he snapped pictures with pandas and strolled the Great Wall of China on the final days of his diplomatic visit to People's Republic. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has engaged in panda diplomacy on the final day of his trip to China, but faces criticism for indulging in optics rather than serious statesmanship. The final leg of Mr Albanese's trip has been dominated by symbolic gestures as he visited the Chengdu Research Centre for Giant Panda Breeding on Thursday. He posed for cameras in a Hawthorn Hawks jacket and praised the role of panda diplomacy in fostering bilateral ties. 'They're very sensible, smart,' Mr Albanese told his guide after he was informed of how pandas 'get up early' and 'move around outside'. Reflecting on his encounter with Fu Ni—a giant panda that spent 15 years at Adelaide Zoo—Mr Albanese heaped praise on the Australia-China connection. 'It's a really strong connection that is there... And the visit here has been very warmly received,' Mr Albanese told Sky News. — Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) July 17, 2025 However, the diplomatic visit has faced heavy criticism as Mr Albanese avoided broaching serious issues confronting the Australian and Chinese governments. This was despite his government's oft-repeated claim that 'we will disagree where we must and engage in the national interest'. Throughout the trip he avoided clashing with Chinese President Xi Jinping over the Darwin Port, China's support for Russia or recent military drills near Australian waters. Instead, Mr Albanese dined with President Xi, watched a Chinese rendition of Paul Kelly and Midnight Oil songs, and walked the Great Wall of China. The opposition condemned the approach, accusing Mr Albanese of indulging in nostalgia and failing to secure substantive outcomes. Shadow finance minister James Paterson told Sky News on Thursday the 'tangible outcomes' of the trip were 'very hard to identify'. 'I do wonder whether… a visit to Chengdu to pose with some pandas…. is strictly necessary as part of a six-day visit to China,' he said. 'There is so much else at stake in our other international relationships. Frankly, I have to say that some of this is starting to look a little bit indulgent.' He also criticised the prioritisation of symbolism over diplomacy after Mr Albanese traced Gough Whitlam's steps along the Great Wall of China from 1971. 'The appropriate time to do a nostalgic history tour of Labor Party mythology is after you retire, in your own time, at your own expense, not on the taxpayer dime.'


Perth Now
36 minutes ago
- Perth Now
'No doubt' about China concern despite PM's rhetoric
Anthony Albanese's trip to China has been largely welcomed, but there has been as much emphasis on what was left out as on what was said and achieved. The prime minister is wrapping up a six-day trip to China where he met with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang as part of annual leader level talks, this time with a focus on trade and increasing business links. But Mr Albanese largely tempered his public rhetoric on differences with China and Australia's concerns about Beijing's military build-up and aggressive actions in the Pacific during his trip. Foreign affairs expert David Andrews said this was a normal part of diplomacy when leaders travelled abroad as it would be counterproductive to insult the hosts while trying to achieve greater trade ties. "Diplomacy is a fairly subtle and nuanced exercise and there's definitely a time and place for everything," he told AAP. Human rights abuses and Chinese aggression were still important issues that were raised and acknowledged by the prime minister but a balance needed to be struck with public rhetoric, Mr Andrews said. "I don't think the Chinese have any doubt Australia has concerns about their actions in the South China Sea or the Tasman or their military build up," he said. "It's unambiguous we view China to be a big threat to security and destabilisation in the region. "But we can't not have a relationship with China, they're our biggest trading partner ... there isn't an easy way to slice this." The coalition has been trying to balance its own rhetoric over the prime minister's trip. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley welcomed greater trading ties with China. "We wish him well, trade and tourism links should be strong and we want them to be strong," she told reporters in Brisbane on Thursday. But she also criticised Mr Albanese for not more forcefully raising security concerns. "I was disappointed that in his meeting with President Xi he didn't get the assurances that he should about the unacceptable nature of the circumnavigation of Australia by the Chinese Communist Party's navy warships," she said. Mr Albanese said he raised the issue and sought assurances Australia would be better informed of Chinese military drills in the region, noting the live fire exercise didn't break international law as it was in international waters. The opposition also sustained its criticism of Mr Albanese for not securing a meeting with US President Donald Trump face-to-face, saying he hadn't put enough focus on the relationship with Washington.