Paul Murray:
Joining us now, two blokes who definitely know what they’re talking about. Daniel Wild from the IPA joining us from Adelaide, Carlos Quaremba also in South Australia where he is now part of the Upper House member for One Nation there.
Congratulations, Carlos. And again, congratulations on the whole team. Those first speeches in parliament have been pretty amazing. What’s it like to actually stand in the parliament now?
Carlos Quaremba:
It’s actually good. And thanks very much. And I think last time I spoke to you I was actually campaigning and I was in a motel room. And guess what, Paul? I’m in a motel room again.
Paul Murray:
It never stops, mate.
Carlos Quaremba:
You can tell by the beautiful brickwork. But no, look, it’s been really interesting this week. We’ve had a few things fired at us and we just haven’t backed down. We’re having a good time and we’re going to start firing on all cylinders now that we’ve got our offices up and running. It took me a couple of days to get a key to my own office, which is kind of funny, but I guess that’s how the government rolled.
Paul Murray:
That’s how they’ll play it, mate. They’ll pretend that the paper’s always out of the copy machine, whatever. You’re not there for them, you know that.
All right. Now Daniel, let’s respond to… I’ll get your response to this poll again, Cors explain the methodology, all the rest of it here. It would show a complete destruction of the National Party down to a dozen for the coalition. What does it say to you and all of the other things that Cors just had to say about how set some of these voters are now about ever being able to be brought back to the liberal tent?
Daniel Wild:
Well, yeah. I mean, there’s clearly a lot of Australians that just want change. They’re not happy with the political system. They’re unhappy with the major parties. And I think a lot of people are pretty set that they want to vote for One Nation or at least vote for something that’s very different. As we’ve talked about a lot on this programme, over the last few months, Australia’s political system is becoming a lot more like Europe’s where we are seeing four or five, maybe six political parties that’ll get 10 to 30% of the vote and coalitions cobbled together on an ad hoc basis. That’s where it seems to be going.
We know that the vote for One Nation is real. You just mentioned South Australia where Labour lost a tonne of votes to One Nation as well as the liberals. I mean, you look at some of the outer suburban seats, they were 70-30 Labour-Liberal. They went to 55-45, Labour-One Nation. We know about Farah. So this vote is real and it’s there and Australians want some change. So the reason we have such a fragmented political system is because we have such a fragmented society.
Paul Murray:
Yeah. Very good point.
Daniel Wild:
Fragmented societies will produce these systems. That’s what’s happened in Europe. You’re one of the most astute analysts of what’s happening in the UK with Nigel Farage and reform. That’s exactly what’s happening here as well. So we are in for, I think, at least a few election cycles of pretty significant disruption.
Paul Murray:
Daniel, flattery get through everywhere. Assume yourself booked for the remainder of time on a Sunday night. I appreciate it.
Now, Carlos, of course, you’re a tradie, but you still are a tradie, right, of course, before going into the parliament. But you’ve seen inside the machine. And no doubt there’s 11 herbs and spices that will only be known by those on the inside. But that area of going into Labour areas, certainly Elizabeth, the place that used to be the Holden Factory was a place you got incredibly competitive in. How does One Nation market itself differently in a Labour seat to a place that might want to talk about a whole bunch of other more traditional talking points and failures of the Libs?
Carlos Quaremba:
Look, I think the thing is, Paul, with those sort of areas, they’re sort of what we call up and coming One Nation areas is that they’re living the experiences of all these failed policies, whether it’s net-zero, whether it’s the housing crisis, whether it’s mass migration, they are actually at the coalface of these poor decisions. And so they’re now saying, “You know what? We don’t believe in the two party system that’s got us here. We want a new vehicle.” And I say to these people, “Change comes from within. You want change? Look in the mirror.” And that’s where you start. And that’s what I’m seeing from the people that are now joining the party that are now saying, “You know what? We want to take ownership. We want real people back in a parliament. And you’re only going to look at our members. You’re not going to get more real than what we have down here in South Australia.”
Paul Murray:
Absolutely. Some reporting which has been advanced this evening in the Channel 9 newspapers is that the Teals are going to drop the pretence and it looks like they might be headed towards forming a political party. Somebody obviously had some insight on this today when David Pocock, I think, was on the Insider’s programme, and David Spears was asking about all of this. Well, I mean, they’ve always been a political party, right? Same colour, same money, same platform, same playbook, right?
But obviously in a scenario where there is a chance of Labour being hurt after the hurt that’s existed for the coalition, certainly places like Fremantle, I remember it was one of the few places where the Teals went after Labour at the last election. They actually got pretty damn close. They got pretty damn close in one of the lower house seats in the ACT as well.
Daniel, if they form a party, then great. Finally, they’ll be held to the same account as every other political party, but is this the next and obvious step? And don’t we want to work out who’s going to be the leader because they all think they should be the boss.
Daniel Wild:
I can’t wait for that party room. That’s going to be a cracker. Look, at least they’re being honest now. It shows the whole idea of the independence was a total fraud, which we’ve known about. I think they’re doing this because they want to be able to partner with Labour after the next election. If Labour ends up on 80 seats, or sorry, if Labour ends up on 70 or 75 seats-
Paul Murray:
Absolutely.
Daniel Wild:
… they want to be able to present themselves to Labour as a party to negotiate with. I think that’s what is behind this because you can’t just go one individual at a time and start negotiating. You need a party infrastructure to do it.
I also think a couple of the Teals are probably going to lose the way things are going at the moment. I sort of think their time in the sun has largely come to an end. So they’re probably seeing the writing on the wall and they want to form a party to present themselves to the community a bit differently because how much change can you have as an individual? Some of them do, sure. Some of them do, but by and large, if you’re one of just a large number you can’t do much, you can do more inside a party. And I reckon that’s what’s behind this.
Paul Murray:
Well, also one of the things that’s changing is July 1, I thought it was this year, it’s been pushed out by another year, is all of these spending caps that are going to kick in. And it’s different for an individual candidate and an individual seat as opposed to a party that is able to have a party spend and a candidate spend as well as a lot of that money that previously might have been hidden and went through to the MPs. It’ll all be able to be there through a third party and independent group. So that’s how you get multiple bites at the same cherry.
Again, Carlos, in state politics, it is a lot different, but again, it’d be good to see the Teals drop this pretence of everyone is running their own race when they all do exactly the same thing.
Carlos Quaremba:
Yeah, Paul. And I actually would push back a little bit on Daniel. I don’t think the Teals are getting ready to align themselves with the Labour Party. I actually think they’re about to create a safe haven for all those liberals that won’t have a party once the Liberal Party disintegrates. All those lefties and all those ones that believe in climate change, I think they’re going to end up with the Teals. They’ll form this soft left sort of, I don’t know what. And then those conservatives that are left in the Liberal Party, they might have a come to Jesus moment and actually realise that One Nation is the true Conservative Party and always has been and they might join our ranks. And that’s kind of what I’m predicting.
Paul Murray:
Now, Daniel, I love Tony Abbott. I have, when he was a minister, when he was the opposition leader, when he was the prime minister. And I honestly believe this in my bones, the moment where the Liberal Party broke, died, or whatever, the fundamental problem was when the Liberal Party became the Labour Party, when Turnbull took over and we all know the rest to be history. I love that also Tony Abbott does not give up on this party, does not sit in the background, and wants to work as hard as he can for them. And also he knows that one of the weakest parts over the years has been the organisation. It’s not as flashy. You don’t do the same type of interviews, but the behind the scenes work that’s got to be done, well, there is no better person. He used to be able to run the country to be able to put the machine in place. I think this is the best possible thing behind the scenes for the Liberal Party.
Daniel Wild:
I agree. I think that this is a very good decision. If anyone can save the Liberal Party, it’s Tony Abbot. And I agree with your assessment. I won’t surprise you that things started to go downhill after he was rolled by Malcolm Turnbull.
And yes, it is true that one of the biggest challenges facing the Liberal Party is its infrastructure, its administrative infrastructure. And its campaign capabilities have been very poor over the last few cycles. So good on Tony Abbott for keeping on fighting. And like I say, if anyone can fix up the joint, it’s going to be Tony Abbott. It’s certainly going to liven things up, I think. So he’s copped a lot of criticism and I think the reason for that criticism is exactly because people know that he is going to make a difference. He’s not just going to sit there and twiddle his thumbs while the party goes down the drain.
Paul Murray:
All right. Away from all of this, let’s talk about the budget because of course all of those problems and failures and lies and BS and all the rest of it starts to make its way through the parliament becomes law and the prime minister thinks once it is, everyone will forget. Well, of course there’ll be the giant ramp up ’till July 1, 2027, and then there’s the consequences from 2027. So the noise only gets louder from here.
I’d imagine that there’d be some sort of a tweak as a way of trying to pull some of those people back. But Carlos, what about the prime minister? He’s becoming now visibly emotional because this is all about aspiration. Didn’t you know? It’s all about aspiration? And of course, if you disagree, well, let’s go through the excuses. You’re part of the right wing cult, it’s sexism, or somehow he’s already in on the joke. I don’t think that they have any idea how much damage they’ve done to themselves here.
Carlos Quaremba:
Yeah, no, the whole aspirational thing, it just seems like crocodile tears to me. Everything they’ve done in this budget is hurting Middle Australia and the young workforce that’s coming through. All the young apprentices that I’ve spoken to are absolutely livid. They have shares, they have things that are outside of a property, and now they’re going to get taxed. And they’ve just had a gut fall and they’re like, “What do we do?” We say, “Well, you got to stand up and take back your state, your country, join One Nation, join the party and this is the way to change things.”
This whole budget has just been a disaster from whoa to go and he will not back down. And you know what? I’m not going to stop him from making mistakes because it’s making our case so much stronger.
Paul Murray:
Yeah, correct. I mean, again, Daniel, the many different things, “Oh, it never was a lie. Tech bros are the only ones that are whinging about it,” again, this stuff, they are so used to this crap working as it unfairly has worked previously, but they’re starting to come up against it.
Now again, the media’s so desperate to somehow show that either the prime minister is not who we all know him to be. The headlines around this was visibly emotional.
Can we run the grab again?
Visibly emotional? This is just, okay, maybe a little bit but hardly visibly emotional. Rolling tape.
Anthony Albanese:
Labour is the party of aspiration. And we will not allow Australia to become a country where aspiration is only for some.
Paul Murray:
What? Daniel, did I miss it? Am I too hardhearted? Am I so closed to my EQ has gone through the floor? What do you see here in the way they’ve sold it and tried to label anyone who disagrees with them?
Daniel Wild:
Yeah, he’s just grudgingly getting out the lines he has to get out to try and save himself at the moment. What I found so funny about this budget politically speaking is if you talk to someone from the government on a Monday, they’ll say, “This is a big budget. This is a big ambitious reform budget. We’re going to fix intergenerational equality.” Then on Tuesday they’ll say, “Oh no, it’s not that big. Nothing to see here. Just a few tweaks around the edges.”
And if you look at the government’s own budget papers, it’s always good to look at what the government’s actual figures say. So even on the best case scenario, the government’s own budget says there’s only going to be seven and a half thousand extra Australians in a home per year. There’s 13 million households. And seven and a half thousand, we’re supposed to believe, is ambitious?So is it a big deal as Jim Chalmers is saying, or are these just some tweaks around the edges? They’ve never got their story straight on this.
And I think you’re right. They thought they could just slide this through, no one would be looking. Maybe some people would get angry, then they’d just make a few tweaks and changes and slip it through the lower house and then get a deal with the Greens and get it done in the Senate. Well, that ain’t going to happen.
Paul Murray:
Yeah, exactly. All right. And again, I’m sure you’d be more than happy with Hughesy joining One Nation, Carlos, but I don’t think he’s going to end up there. He will end up in lots of other places. But the people who previously have come to battle in the argument, I think certainly the gas decision meant a lot of them weren’t going to stump up for this one, let alone the reality, because everyone of course has, certainly younger people now, a lot more aspiration to having their own business, all the rest of it here.
Lads, give me the bumper sticker prediction for the week ahead. Carlos Quaremba, member of the Upper House from One Nation in South Australia, what’s definitely happening this week?
Carlos Quaremba:
This week we’ve got our members that’ll be firing up in the lower house and we’ve got a few important votes coming through that we’ll be pushing back on. I’m sure Coorey will have a lot to say after his big matum speech, but yeah, it’s going to be some exciting times coming in essay parliament in the next couple of weeks and we’ll keep it posted, mate.
Paul Murray:
[inaudible 00:13:33]. All right, Daniel, what’s happening?
Daniel Wild:
Well, I’ve got a good one for all the political nerds, which is it’s basically Christmastime. It’s Senate estimates.
Paul Murray:
Boy, yeah.
Daniel Wild:
I love it. So keep an eye out on Wednesday. We’ve got the E-Karen, sorry, E-Safety Commissioner who’s up. So I’ve got an inside word that there’s going to be some good questions there, so keep an eye out on Wednesday.
Paul Murray:
Oh, ripper. Ripper. Thank you guys. Do appreciate it. Have a wonderful week ahead.
Carlos Quaremba:
Thanks a lot.
This transcript of Daniel Wild on Daniel Wild on Paul Murray Live Sky News Australia 23 May 2026 has been edited for clarity.
