Treasurer says Coalition playing ‘footsie with the monoculture language’ after Liberal leader sidesteps questions at press conference
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Angus Taylor has repeatedly refused to say whether he supports multiculturalism in Australia, sidestepping five questions at a press conference about his views and claiming “there’s all these vague words running around”.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, accused the opposition leader of “playing footsie” with One Nation and Pauline Hanson’s call for a “monoculture” in Australia, as Labor ministers committed to backing multiculturalism.
“One of the reasons why the Liberal party is dying in [Taylor’s] arms is because his efforts to out–One Nation One Nation are becoming increasingly pathetic,” Chalmers said in question time.
Hanson’s demands for a “monoculture”, from her speech at the National Press Club last week, have been met with opposition from other members of the Liberal party. The shadow minister, Jonno Duniam, on Monday called it a “bizarre concept” and spoke of the “success of multiculturalism”.
Hanson, in her National Press Club speech, claimed multiculturalism was a “failed policy” that gave all cultures the “equivalence to ours”.
“Surely opposing that is not racist, it’s common sense,” she said.
Hanson has not expanded on exactly what she meant by “monoculture”, but on Channel Seven’s Sunrise on Tuesday, she claimed her idea was “about being united as strong under the one culture”.
“I’m not saying forget where you came from or your cultural background, by no means,” Hanson said.
Hanson – who, in her first speech to parliament in 1996, infamously claimed Australia would be “swamped by Asians” – pointed to Japan, an historically ethnically homogenous country, as an example for Australia to follow.
“Japan has a monoculture, so what’s wrong with Australia having a monoculture?” she said.
Asked on Tuesday whether he supported the idea of a monoculture, Taylor did not confirm or deny, saying “the culture I want to see in this country is people in this country who believe in and support Australian standards… commitment to our parliamentary democracy, a commitment to the rule of law, a commitment to our basic freedoms, a commitment to equal respect and dignity with all Australians”.
Asked whether he thought multiculturalism was an integral principle of Australian society, Taylor did not directly answer. Pressed further on whether he believed the set of values he outlined could coexist with multiculturalism, he answered: “I don’t quite know what you mean by that question.
“I don’t think this is complicated, and I’ve said it many times, and I’ll keep saying it because that’s what we believe, we will discriminate based on values. We won’t discriminate on race.”
Asked again whether he thought Australia should be a “monoculture”, Taylor replied: “Explain to me what you mean by this. There’s all these vague words running around.”
Asked in further questions about multiculturalism, Taylor again pointedly declined to endorse the policy, asking: “Do you want to define it for me?”
“We can have people from all over the world, of all races and religions in this country, but they must share those core values,” he said.
Despite his requests for a definition of multiculturalism, Taylor has appointed a shadow assistant minister for multicultural affairs – senator Dave Sharma – in his frontbench team, a position which also existed under predecessor Sussan Ley. Former Liberal leaders John Howard, Malcolm Turnbull, Scott Morrison and Malcolm Fraser also named multicultural affairs ministers.
Taylor’s office was contacted for comment on whether he supports the policy of multiculturalism.
When asked about Hanson’s remarks, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, told a press conference: “Modern Australia is not a monoculture and it never has been.
“Yesterday, I was at an Assyrian function, it was a wonderful function in south-western Sydney. Should that be allowed to happen?” he said.
“I’ll be meeting next week with… members of the Jewish Orthodox community who are here. Is that OK in Australia?
“We have had a rich culture, and when we look at the Socceroos, we see examples of that rich culture … It’s who we are. So, it’s really a nonsense argument to go back to something that was actually never there. And I think that it’s an example of policies and a vision for the country that isn’t thought through, that doesn’t represent who we are in 2026.”
Chalmers, speaking in question time soon after Taylor’s press conference, criticised the opposition leader’s remarks.
“This side of the house recognises in Australian values, the vast and important contribution made by multicultural Australia. Not for this side of the house, this rubbish, playing footsie with the monoculture language being pushed around by the One Nation party.”
Albanese claimed the press conference questions to Taylor were “not a complex question, because we’ve never been a monoculture”.
One Nation MP David Farley said he saw “monoculturalism” as being “Australian first”, regardless of a person’s ethnicity or the language they speak.
“You’ve come to this country … and been adopted by this country – from the generous gift we’re giving – to become an Australian. So, you’re an Australian first, so blend in,” he told ABC’s Afternoon Briefing on Tuesday.
“It’s just amazing that we are building the nation faster than we can breed the nation with migration, and it’s worked, and it has worked well to date, but we do have some problems, and those problems need to be addressed, stood on, and rectified.”
At the press club, when asked whether it was possible to become a monocultural society after generations have celebrated Australia’s multicultural history, Hanson claimed it “hasn’t worked”.
Source: Guardian - World News
