How Well Do You Know Tony Abbott?

How much do you really know about Tony Abbott? Take our quiz and find out! Answers at the end — no peeking!

1. Tony Abbott has identified three priorities for an Abbott government, should he win office.

Specifically they are:

(a) Addressing Indigenous disadvantage, increasing pensions and processing asylum seekers humanely onshore
(b) Repealing the carbon tax, instructing the navy to turn around refugee boats and starting a commission of audit
(c) Getting the budget into surplus, repealing the carbon tax, and strengthening offshore asylum seeker processing
(d) Cutting government spending, increasing productivity and implementing paid parental leave
(e) Inviting Fairfax and Murdoch to draft future media legislation, asking James Packer to revise gambling laws, and appointing Gina, Twiggy and Clive to the mining tax review panel

2. Tony Abbott outlined his Indigenous philosophy in March.

“Only Aboriginal people can determine what Aboriginal culture is and how it might evolve,” he said. “but it’s a responsibility of an Australian government to give them every reasonable opportunity to do so.”

Abbott specified that Aboriginal kids should be taught their culture in their own language:

(a) As a compulsory part of the school curriculum
(b) For the equivalent of one day a week
(c) As an option after school hours only
(d) As an elective subject through to year 10

3. One impressive achievement of the Gillard Government over the last 18 months is the extraordinary rise in labour productivity.

According to Datastream International, Australia’s productivity has boomed — rising for six consecutive quarters to an all-time high of 164.82 points.

Which of these observations appears on Tony Abbott’s website (no cheating!):

(a) In just five years, Labor has overseen a marked fall in Australia’s productivity performance.
(b) Australia’s worsening infrastructure inadequacies … have been a fundamental element in Australia’s recent productivity decline.
(c) Since then [2007], real household wealth has declined, productivity has stagnated …
(d) All of the above

4. For the 2011 Pollie Pedal bike ride from Gold Coast to Sydney, Tony Abbott claimed from the taxpayer as expenses for “official business” on top of his salary:

(a) No reimbursement. It was a tour to raise funds for Indigenous programs and for personal self-promotion
(b) $3.45 each day for eight days
(c) $34.50 each day for eight days
(d) $345.00 each day for eight days

5. Which of these views has Tony Abbott articulated?

(a) Climate change is absolute crap
(b) Climate change is an important issue but it is not the only big environmental problem we face
(c) Let me make it crystal clear. The Government and the Opposition are both committed to a five per cent reduction in emissions by 2020
(d) If you want to put a price on carbon, why not just do it with a simple tax ..? It would be burdensome. All taxes are burdensome. But it would certainly change the price of carbon, raise the price of carbon, without increasing in any way the overall tax burden
(e) No one should be fooled by Labor’s carbon tax which is socialism masquerading as environmentalism
(f)  All of the above

6. In June 2011, Tony Abbott said:

“Julia Gillard's carbon tax will seriously undermine the profitability of the BlueScope plant, threaten its long-term viability …”

In the eight months since the carbon tax was introduced has the value of Bluescope Steel shares:

(a) Dropped 20 per cent from $1.80 to $1.44
(b) Stayed the same at $1.80
(c) Increased 20 per cent to $2.16
(d) Increased 178 per cent to $5.01

7. Which former Australian Prime Minister made this observation:

“Tony Abbott is capable of changing his mind on important elements of policy. The climate change policy was one of them. If he has changed it once he can presumably change it again. Indeed, he did tell us that he doesn’t always say what he means … I would like to see somebody with a deep conviction as to where Australia will go and who will have some constants in terms of important policy.”

(a) Gough Whitlam
(b) Malcolm Fraser
(c) Bob Hawke
(d) Paul Keating
(e) John Howard

8. In his address to an economics conference in November Tony Abbott said the mining tax must go because it “denies our economy the comparative advantage of access to abundant fossil fuel”.

The Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics has just released the current data on fossil fuel exports for 2012-13.

This shows that export volumes of thermal coal and liquid natural gas this year — the first full year with the carbon tax — will:

(a) Both drop about 5 per cent on last year as a result of the tax
(b) Stay at the same level as last year
(c) Rise 5.3 per cent and 6.8 per cent respectively
(d) Rise 18 per cent and 26 per cent respectively

9. In his current e-book Tony Abbott quotes Ben Chifley’s famous “light on the hill” speech.

“The purpose of public life is to work for the betterment of mankind, not just here but wherever we can lend a helping hand.”

In pursuit of this, Tony Abbott has pledged to:

(a) Increase Australia’s humanitarian refugee intake
(b) Adopt a presumption of refugee status for boat arrivals without papers
(c) Increase Australia’s overseas aid
(d) Raise pensions and benefits in Australia
(e) All of the above
(f)  None of the above

10. Tony Abbott was famously challenged by ABC Radio’s Jon Faine on his misuse of the term "illegal" to describe arriving boats.

It is not against any Australian or international law to seek asylum.

In his current e-book, Abbott uses the expression "illegal" with regard to boats, arrivals or entry vessels:

(a) Twice
(b) Four times
(c) Eight times
(d) 16 times
(e) When dog whistling to racists the more frequently the better

11. During a federal election campaign Tony Abbott met Catholic Cardinal George Pell at the presbytery in Sydney.

Part A. Two weeks later, when asked by Tony Jones on ABC television if he had met with the Cardinal, Abbott replied without hesitation:

(a) Yes. We met two weeks ago at the presbytery in Sydney
(b) Not that I can recall

Part B. If you answered (b) to Part A, why did Abbott lie?

(a) To avoid questions on the topics discussed
(b) Pell had instructed Abbott to keep the meeting a secret
(c) Abbott is a compulsive liar
(d) Don’t know

12. Tony Abbott said this last May: “With a growing economy, it is possible to have lower taxes, better services and a stronger budget bottom line — as Australians discovered during the Howard era. That now seems like a lost golden age of prosperity.”

On how many of these 20 measurable criteria was the Howard Government performing better when it lost office in November 2007 than the Gillard Government is performing now (during the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression)?

1. Income per person
2. Wage levels
3. Income disparity
4. Inflation
5. Interest rates
6. Household savings
7. Personal tax rate
8. Company tax rate
9. Labour productivity
10. Pension levels
11. Superannuation
12. Economic freedom
13. International credit ratings
14. Value of the Aussie dollar
15. Industrial production growth
16. Foreign exchange reserves
17. Balance of trade
18. Current account as a  percentage of GDP
19. Government 10 year bond rate
20. Overall quality of life

(a) all 20
(b) 10 out of the 20
(c) five
(d) two
(e) none

Answers

1. (b) Refer speeches.
2. (c) After normal school hours.
3. (d) All.
4. (d) The trip was nine days. For eight Abbott claimed $345 per day for "official business". On the rest day he claimed $115.
5. (f) All.
6. (d) Increased 178 per cent. This allows for the November 6 for 1 consolidation.
7. (b) Malcolm Fraser.
8. (d) Rise 18 per cent and 26 per cent respectively.
9. (f) None of the above.
10. (d) 16 times.
11. (b) Satirised here.
12. (e) None.