Danica De Giorgio:
For more on this now, let’s bring in Sky News contributor Louise Roberts, and chief economist at The Institute of Public Affairs Adam Creighton. Great to have you both on the show. Thank you so much for joining me.
Adam, look, Australia, obviously, relies almost completely on imported fuel. We had the energy minister Chris Bowen telling Parliament yesterday we’ve only got about 34 days’ worth of petrol supplies onshore. How did it get to this that we don’t actually have any backup?
Adam Creighton:
Yeah. Certainly. It’s pretty disappointing. This is something that I’ve been reporting on in Australia many, many years ago. That 34 days has always been about 30 days. The minimum is meant to be 90 days. That’s what the IIA says most countries should have. And for some reason, I guess reasons of cost, we’ve just never complied with that. I guess we’ve just had a blasé attitude to having 35 days, but it’s times like this when you realise that’s quite foolish, and those small extra costs would be worth it.
The reality is we import some 90% of our oil. So, we’re extremely dependent on our barrels of oil coming on ships. And, indeed, that 35 days actually includes some oil that is already on ships. So, it’s even worse than the 35 days would suggest. Hopefully, this is a wake-up call.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yeah. Look, absolutely. And the warnings are there, Louise, from the RBA governor. But the other thing is if it does have an impact on inflation, I can guarantee, all but guarantee, Labour is going to now start using this as an excuse for anything and everything just to slither away from their own economic mishaps.
Louise Rogers:
That’s right. “Well, we can’t control this. There’s a war in the Middle East.”
Danica De Giorgio:
Exactly.
Louise Rogers:
It’s not being fought on Australian soil, but we’re, obviously, impacted by it. But I know Shane Oliver has been talking about this 40 cent per litre increase, which is mind-blowing. And would be devastating for so many small businesses and trades as well who don’t have the luxury of not travelling, and not buying petrol, and not fueling their businesses.
So, I think, overall, if Labour are going to leverage this as some sort of, “Well, we can’t help this,” and up goes inflation, and up goes the cost of groceries, and everything else, we’ll be absolutely smashed.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yeah. It is quite concerning. But, yeah. No doubt Jim Chalmers is ready to launch as he always does. Now, look, this really angers me. A number of mosques in Australia have invited people to honour and mourn the death of the Iranian dictator Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, including, at least, four Shi’ite mosques in Sydney, alone, one mosque in Arncliffe advertised three days of mourning to, “Honour the martyrdom,” would you believe, “Of his eminence, the guardian jurist and supreme leader of the Islamic Revolution.”
The mosque mourning events have sparked backlash from the PM. He had this to say on the ABC.
Anthony Albanese:
Well, I don’t think they’re appropriate, and, certainly, I think that overwhelmingly people won’t be participating.
Danica De Giorgio:
Well, Adam, it’s all well and good for the prime minister to come out and criticise this, but how about actually maybe taking some action? Why don’t you deport some of these people who are supporting this murderous regime?
Adam Creighton:
Well, look, he, certainly, could, and that would be a good thing to do perhaps. But they didn’t do anything in the wake of Bondi. So, I think it’s unlikely that they will now.
But I find it curious that the Labour Party gets upset about this. They have created this extreme multicultural philosophy. In Australia, we have a very, very large Muslim population, which they celebrate and encourage. And so, of course, their views on foreign policy are going to differ from the majority. So, this is not a surprise to me. It’s disappointing. It’s not something that I like, but it’s hardly a surprise in a multicultural country that you have pockets of society that have extremely different views on foreign policy than the government.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yeah. Look, and you’re right. And I think that the whole concept of multiculturalism, Louise, has failed, particularly, in the last two years, and Labour has let in people, some who hate us, some who hate our values, and some who have no interest in assimilating. So, when you see these sorts of stories, as Adam said, you can’t be surprised. But this is un-Australian.
Louise Rogers:
It is un-Australian as well. And I think the overwhelming majority of Muslim Australians are law-abiding and patriotic.
Danica De Giorgio:
Absolutely.
Louise Rogers:
And don’t want to borrow this at all. This is the fringe element, who are, obviously, getting a lot of noise, and a lot of hate for what they are doing. But it just beggars belief that we’d have a situation where terrorists would be adulated and celebrated on Australian soil when nobody wants this-
Danica De Giorgio:
No.
Louise Rogers:
… least of all the Muslim population who don’t want to borrow as I’ve said. It’s not as though this man was a misunderstood cleric. He was a murderous individual, who presided over misery for many, many decent people. So, I can’t believe with these protests, and these eulogies to this person are actually thriving in Sydney. It’s appalling.
Danica De Giorgio:
It is appalling. This is not the Sydney that we know, and not the Sydney that we love. That’s for sure. I just think it’s absolutely appalling. Let’s move on now to the scenes that we saw in the Senate. One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, she’s doubled down after calling Lydia Thorpe the B-word during what really was an explosive Senate spat saying Thorpe was the one who behaved badly first. Here’s how it went down.
Pauline Hanson:
… my heart to hear about these young children being raped, because no one wants to interfere or say anything, because it’s cultural.
Lydia Thorpe:
Is that what you’re trying to tell your audience?
Steph Hodgins-May:
Senator Thorpe.
Lydia Thorpe:
*yelling*
Pauline Hanson:
You’re immature. You are. You have no-
Dave Sharma:
Senator Hanson.
Lydia Thorpe:
Absolute disgrace.
Pauline Hanson:
Immature. I wish you would actually start fighting for the Australian people. They’re here listening to you.
Dave Sharma:
Senator Hanson.
Pauline Hanson:
They want some representation here.
Lydia Thorpe:
She just called me a bitch.
Dave Sharma:
Senator Thorpe, do you have a point of order?
Lydia Thorpe:
I do. I just got called a bitch by the racist.
Dave Sharma:
I remind senators to use respectful language at all times in the chamber, including when they’re not speaking.
Danica De Giorgio:
Ah, good grief. The One Nation Leader Senator’s statement, “I apologise if the public heard me call Senator Thorpe a B-I-T-C-H. However, I don’t take back what I said. If the weak Liberal chair won’t pull her head up screaming like a banshee, I will.”
Well, Adam, I’ll tell you what, the Senate’s not that exciting ever, but I thought that yesterday it was actually one to watch. What do you make about how it all went down?
Adam Creighton:
That’s true. Well, look, I think many Australians would have been disappointed with that waste of time. But I think Pauline Hanson was in the right there. She wasn’t raising her voice. She wasn’t being abusive. It was the Green senator who was. And I can completely understand why Senator Hanson was triggered by that.
But I think, overall, it’s just an embarrassing exchange for our senator. I think it just goes to show there’s a lot of name-calling and politics. But, actually, I think it’s good for One Nation actually, that exchange. I think when Pauline Hanson is called a racist by the Greens, or some people in the Labour Party, that it actually increases support for One Nation. So, I’m sure she’s quite happy about it.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yes. I absolutely agree. I think you raise a good point, Adam, and just to that, because every time, Louise, she’s called a racist or a bigot, it actually emboldens the base, and it emboldens a lot of Australians who are the quiet Australians, who actually agree with the policies and agree with what she’s saying. So, it doesn’t do her any bad. That’s for sure.
Louise Rogers:
No. That’s right. And they feel heard by her, and the things that she raises, and they’re very real concerns, which get dismissed by Labour and the Greens. And so, Lydia Thorpe, for example, has this whole political brand based on confrontation.
And I often wonder when I see her let rip with yet another insult, or another performance in the Senate, in her day-to-day job what’s she actually contributing? Or what’s she doing effectively for people?
Danica De Giorgio:
Great question.
Louise Rogers:
I just don’t know, because every time I see her, or a story about her it’s her yelling or insulting someone, or making a spectacle of herself, particularly, like, King Charles was a perfect example-
Danica De Giorgio:
Oh, gosh. Yeah. Well, that’s it. She loves a headline.
Louise Rogers:
Yeah.
Danica De Giorgio:
She loves to be in the headline more than actually she does putting forward some ideal suggestions to make this a better country. That’s a great point.
Louise Rogers:
No chance.
Danica De Giorgio:
No chance. Exactly. Let’s go to Victoria where the Premier Jacinta Allan she’s revealed more details about her government’s work from home laws, which have now come into effect. So, every business will be forced to let their employees work from home, at least, two days a week provided the job allows for it with no exemptions for small businesses. This is her this morning.
Jacinta Allan:
If you can do your job from home, we are going to protect your right to do so no matter the size of the workplace.
Danica De Giorgio:
Adam, I don’t agree with this at all, because in the end, work from home policies should be up to the employee and the employer.
Adam Creighton:
Absolutely.
Danica De Giorgio:
It should not be up to a government to then dictate, “This is what you should be doing.” What do you think?
Adam Creighton:
Yeah. Look, I think that’s completely right. It’s an outrageous intervention into the workings of businesses, including small businesses, which are all going to have a lot more paperwork now, a lot more costs because of this, but I suspect the take-up rate won’t be very high. Firstly, I don’t think it’s constitutional. I think it’s going to be challenged. And Victoria has given up all its industrial relations powers many, many years ago to the federal government. So, I don’t even think it’s legal.
But also from an economic point of view, if you choose to work at home for two days, then you’ll probably put yourself on a list that you’d be first to be sacked, or first to be laid off if there was a downturn, or a recession, or the business didn’t go so well. So, I don’t think that you’d be volunteering for that necessarily.
Also, with AI, if you can do your job from home, then probably your job can be done by AI too.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yeah.
Adam Creighton:
So, I don’t know if I’d be self-selecting for that list actually.
Danica De Giorgio:
Yeah. No. You’re absolutely right. But, look, the COVID days are over, Louise. And I don’t … Look, there are exemptions for people who want to work from home. I’m not saying that. But the thing is when you’ve got a government putting their finger in every single pie, as it is, and now work from home, no wonder there’s a number of insolvencies across the country as it is.
Louise Rogers:
That’s right. It’s really smashing small businesses, Adam says, as well. And I think the breathtaking government overreach here is that they haven’t even tested whether it’ll hurt or help productivity. I think it’ll hurt productivity. But it’s gone full-steam ahead anyway. It’s just been her absolute passion to enforce this crazy work from home legislation when businesses who can do the flexibility are already doing it. They don’t need the government overreach telling them how to run their businesses. So, to your point, insolvencies will go up. The small businesses who are already on their knees with land tax, and everything else in Victoria, thinking, “Why doesn’t the state government support us? Why are we being punished for being a small business?”
Danica De Giorgio:
Yup. Land tax, IR legislation, energy bills through the roof, and now work from home mandates.
Louise Rogers:
Yeah. What’s next? Yeah.
Danica De Giorgio:
Where does it end for small businesses? It’s just ridiculous. Louise Roberts, Adam Creighton, great to have you both on the show.
Louise Rogers:
Good to see you.
Danica De Giorgio:
Thank you so much for joining me. Appreciate it.
This transcript of Adam Creighton on The Rita Panahi Show Sky News Australia from 3 March 2026 has been edited for clarity.
