Former PM engages in lively exchange of views with his independent rival for the seat of Warringah. This blog has now closed<doc-sep>Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has faced off against newcomer Zali Steggall in Warringah debate. Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott has faced off against newcomer Zali Steggall in Warringah debate.... The hotly anticipated debate between former prime minister Tony Abbott and the woman who wants to kick him out of his seat, Zali Steggall, turned fiery yesterday afternoon. Audience members barely kept quiet throughout the live televised debate on Sky News held at the Queenscliff Life Saving Club, at several points booing Mr Abbott’s answers. But there was one response from Mr Abbott on electric cars that had audience members grasping their heads in disbelief. It was Mr Abbott’s criticism of Labor’s electric car policy that drew the most incredulous response from the unruly crowd. While Ms Steggall declined to back Labor’s target for 50 per cent of new cars to be electric by 2030, she does support measures to make it easier to buy them in Australia and also supports tougher emissions standards on new cars. She said Australia imported all its cars from overseas and risked being left behind as other countries shifted to electric vehicles, asking “what will we be driving?”. The crowd erupted in disbelief when Mr Abbott suggested: “Well we may very well recreate our own car industry”. “If we need them, we will make them,” Mr Abbott said to the crowd’s laughter. Australia no longer has a car manufacturing industry — the last plant closed a few years ago under the Coalition’s watch — and government subsidies would likely be needed to restart it. When asked whether he thought Australia should restart its car industry, he said “I’m not because I think the world will give us what we need”. Mr Abbott is not supportive of providing subsidies to the car industry and said he did not regret not doing more to help keep the industry alive in Australia The Party Games newsletter Get your political briefing from news.com.au's political editor Samantha Maiden. Sign up The Party Games newsletter Success! Check your inbox for details. See all newsletters “The government gave up subsidising Australia-made cars that the ordinary people drove ... and now people like Zali and Bill Shorten want us to subsidise expensive imported cars that only rich people will drive,” he said. “I think that’s absolutely crazy.” FEISTY CROWD REACTS TO DEBATE Host David Speers had to keep asking the feisty crowd to let the candidates respond as the debate unfolded in the crucial Sydney seat of Warringah, held by the Liberal party on a margin of 11.1 per cent. A crowd of Liberal Party supporters turned up outside the club with people holding “We love Tony” signs, butting heads with those holding signs that read “vote dinosaurs out” and “Stop Adani”. One of Ms Steggall's supporters even turned up in a dinosaur suit. Zali Steggall supporters are outside Queenscliff surf club where the Warringah debate is about to go on air at 4.30pm. @ManlyDaily #warringahdebate #abbottvsteggall @TonyAbbottMHR @zalisteggall pic.twitter.com/1b1k2qUEu3 — julie cross (@juliejourno) May 2, 2019 There was applause as Mr Abbott entered the room where the two were due to address an audience of Manly Daily readers. But there was an even bigger cheer for Ms Steggall, completely overwhelming Mr Abbott’s reception. There were chants of “Zali, Zali” as the debate was about to get under way, and again when it wrapped up. VOTERS BOO ABBOTT’S OPENER The crowd reacted with boos after Mr Abbott warned those considering a protest vote in his opening remarks to “just remember this, a protest vote will give you a Labor government”. Questions were taken from the audience, with one of the first, about climate change, proving to be the most divisive. “We need to invest in renewables and transition in an orderly way,” Ms Steggall said. “I believe we need ambitious targets because that’s the only way we can achieve big things, by being ambitious. “We need to take action.” Climate change is a central issue for Ms Steggall's campaign. Mr Abbott was laughed at by the crowd when he attempted a response, saying Australia outsources things to experts too much. “Do we want experts to tell us how big our cattle herd can be because cattle are a major contributor to emissions?,” he said. He also ridiculed Ms Steggall’s support for a climate change commission to get the issue out of the hands of politicians who “allegedly stuff things up”. Ms Steggall asked him whether he trusted the Reserve Bank and while Mr Abbott acknowledged it made important decisions, he said he did not want to subcontract out energy policy to “unelected bureaucrats”. In contrast, Ms Steggall got strong support when she said she wanted to take it out of the hands of the majority parties and their “hidden agendas”. “I would suggest that is because it would take it out of the control of the hidden agenda of the major parties and the coal lobby,” she said. “That is what you fear.” DEBATE GETS TENSE Host David Speers has had trouble keeping the crowd under control, asking them several times not to cheer and allow candidates to speak. Many on Twitter are sharing their dismay at the audience for heckling while the candidates attempt to respond. My heart goes out to @David_Speers trying to keep this audience under control #warringahdebate — James Morrow (@pwafork) May 2, 2019 The debate became tense again when the topic of electric cars and solar panels came up. Social media users were outraged Ms Steggall's didn’t have solar panels installed yet, but she said she was in the process of doing so. “I would like to drive an electric vehicle but I have to carry five kids around … There are many people like me who want to be able to do more but our government needs policies that facilitate that,” she said. @TonyAbbottMHR had better turn this around pretty soon... #WarringahDebate — Todd Hodkinson (@todd_hodkinson9) May 2, 2019 Not a lot of friends for Abbott in the room. #AusVotes19 #WarringahVotes #WarringahDebate — Kevin Perry (@kevinperry) May 2, 2019 A WOMEN PROBLEM? Mr Abbott once designated himself the minister for women and he was asked how he would support working women. His answer may suprise some. “We do need to ensure that we have more women in positions of authority,” he said. “I’ve got to say that if two candidates were equal, I would say give the woman a go. “But what I don’t want to see is people being, as it were, penalised just on the basis of their gender.” ABBOTT’S SAME-SEX MARRIAGE STANCE Mr Abbott was asked why he walked out of the parliament rather than voting for same-sex marriage. He said: “I respected the electorate’s views by not voting against it”. “It’s disrespectful whether you can accept that or not,” Ms Ms Steggall's responded. “The electorate felt very abandoned by Mr Abbott.” Mr Abbott was the architect of the idea of a plebiscite for same-sex marriage, proposing it back in 2015 rather than a parliamentary vote. The people of Warringah delivered one of the most emphatic displays of support for gay marriage when they returned their postal votes. An overwhelming 75 per cent of voters in his electorate voted Yes. But Mr Abbott left the room when it came time for parliament to vote. During the debate, Mr Abbott said there was a plebiscite on the issue and it did bring about change in the “best possible way”. He said now that the law was changed, he accepted that it was the law of the land and would remain so. RELATED: History won’t forget Tony Abbott’s cowardly act Abbott's hopeless in this format. Too conscious of making a mistake. He just can't relax. #WarringahDebate — Anthony Leach (@ahleach) May 2, 2019 As the candidates were asked to make their closing statements, Speers asked the crowd to “save the cheering, booing to the end”. Mr Abbott got off his stool and the small stage he and Zali were seated on, to deliver his closing speech. He was met with applause when he said a Labor government was the last thing the people of Warringah needed.<doc-sep>Former prime minister Tony Abbott says that in Australia "we sub-contract too much out to experts already", and that we should not "save our planet at the expense of our neighbour", in comments made in a debate with his independent rival for his seat of Warringah, Zali Steggall. "Do we want experts to tell us what kind of cars to drive?" he asked the crowd gathered at the Queenscliff Surf Club. Warringah candidates Zali Steggall and Tony Abbott shake hands ahead of their debate. Credit:AAP "Do we want experts to tell us how big our cattle herds should be?" The audience, which was selected by local newspaper Manly Daily and seemed to skew towards Steggall in its sympathy, responded with chants of "Yes! Yes! ".<doc-sep>
Climate change, GetUp! and the Northern Beaches Tunnel dominated Tony Abbott’s heated election debate with Zali Steggall, his top challenger for the NSW seat of Warringah. The former Liberal prime minister went head-to-head with the independent candidate at Queenscliff Surf Life Saving Club in Sydney tonight in a battle moderated by Sky News’ David Speers. Ms Steggall, an Olympian-turned-barrister, opened the debate with her pitch on climate change and her plan as an independent. Warringah candidates Zali Steggal and Tony Abbott are seen during their debate at Queenscliff Surf Club in Sydney. (AAP) “I’ve raised my kids and I care about our future. I know our environment is so precious and need to do everything we can to safeguard for the next generation,” she said. “I know what it’s like to commute, to balance your work/life family commitments. That’s why I am committed to making sure your concerns are represented in Parliament.” But Mr Abbott, who has held the blue-riband seat for 25 years, turned the focus from policy to politics, saying the May 18 Federal election was a “national election that could be decided here in Warringah”. Zali Steggall made her pitch to voters in a debate against Tony Abbott in Sydney. (Sky News) When asked by an audience member what else he had left to do after 25 years in the seat, Mr Abbott replied: “I want to build on a great legacy”. “The (Northern Beaches) Tunnel needs a champion and I am 120 per cent in favour of it and no one else running in this seat is,” he said about the NSW state-government project. Ms Steggall, however, said she did support the tunnel but would push for it to have filtered smoke stacks. “You cannot put a price on their (children’s) health,” she said. Tony Abbott left the stage and stood in front of the audience to deliver his closing remarks during a debate against Zali Steggall in Sydney. (Sky News) Ms Steggall said she disagreed with the Coalition’s climate policy but also said Labor's 45 per cent emissions reduction target was the "very minimum" needed. Mr Abbott fiercely rejected Ms Steggall's idea of an independent climate commission as sub-contracting decision-making to "unelected bureaucrats". “I think we subcontract too much to experts already,” he said. "Do we want experts to tell us what kind of cars to drive? "Do we want experts to tell us how big our cattle herds should be? “Our elected representatives should make these decisions.” The scene outside the Queenscliff Surf Life Saving Club in Sydney where Tony Abbott and Zali Steggall faced off. (AAP) However Ms Steggall argued a climate commission would essentially operate like the Reserve Bank. She said the introduction of a commission would take climate change issues “out of the hands of the major parties”, accusing them of having “hidden agendas” and being beholden to lobby groups. In the case of a hung Parliament, Ms Steggall revealed she would support a Coalition government. Labor continues to lead the coalition in published opinion polls but the gap has narrowed over the campaign to 51-49 in two-party terms. Asked about a possible minority government after the election, Ms Steggall said her "preference" was to give supply and confidence to the Coalition. However, she disagreed with certain Coalition policies, including climate change, and would not support Labor's tax reforms, including changes to franking credits. The discussion soon turned to GetUp!, with Ms Steggall emphatically denying Liberal accusations that the left-wing activist group has funded her campaign. “I have nothing to do with GetUp! It came to Warringah because it supports a climate change agenda and Tony Abbott is a climate change denier,” she said. But Mr Abbott hit back: “GetUp! has 600 members and I reckon every single one of them is wearing a Zali T-shirt.” Warringah candidates Zali Steggall and Tony Abbott shake hands ahead of their debate at Queenscliff Surf Club in Sydney. (AAP) Mr Abbott described the election as "very close" and, in his closing remarks, warned a protest vote in Warringah would deliver a Labor government. Ms Steggall, who called herself a "classic Northern Beaches tragic", described the election as a “referendum for Warringah". "Do you want to turn towards the past or the future?” she asked.