Interview with Peter Stefanovic, First Edition, Sky News

Subjects: superannuation, Liberal Party rebrand, One Nation preferences Peter Stefanovic: Joining us live this morning, Assistant Treasurer Dan Mulino, Shadow Home Affairs Minister Jono Duniam. Good morning to you both. Already spoken to the boss this morning, Dan, but good to have you on the show as well.

So, I mean, is this something that you’re going to have to come around to to win the Greens support in your next tranche of tax changes? Daniel Mulino: Well, look thanks for having me on, Pete, and can I just start by saying this is the first time I’ve been on air since Jono made his announcement. I just wanted to say he’s always been a very difficult opponent, but one with a lot of rigour and one who’s brought the right spirit to all the debates we’ve had – Stefanovic: First time for me too actually – And I just want to say congratulations on a decade and, you know, well done, Jono, and I’m sure we’ll have many more interactions.

I just wanted to say that. Stefanovic: Yeah, was it us, Jono? for the first time we’ve come online? Jonathon Duniam: Yeah.

You did drive me to the brink. Stefanovic: Was it us? Better come Dan Mulino and questioning, et cetera.

Yep, guilty as charged. It’s a brutal environment. Stefanovic: Yeah.

Ok, Dan, so back to look. Yeah, ok, go. Yeah.

On that issue, Pete, can I just say that, look, tomorrow is a big day in superannuation and it’s long overdue in that the government is bringing in Payday Super, and this is something in the order of $6 billion a year that is not going into people’s accounts that should be. A really significant change, taking the whole economy to a place where it needs to be and as the Treasurer indicated, we’ve also legislated changes to the low income superannuation tax offset, LISTO.

Now, you are right to point to superannuation for under 18s as something that is a further issue for the government to consider. But our priority at the moment is to bed down these Payday Super changes. Look, I met with a delegation of young people last week, as did the Treasurer, and I’m very aware of some of the issues in this space.

And as the Treasurer said, the Greens did not discover this issue. This is something which I’ve engaged with young people on for a long period of time. But, you know, we’ve been bedding down a series of changes to super over the last 12 to 18 months.

Let’s get through Payday Super. A big whole‑of‑economy change. Stefanovic: Yeah, but I mean, if.

Well, let’s get to you, Jono, for your reaction to this. Some companies already do it. I mean, I remember getting it as a kid when I worked at Domino’s, but should it be broadened?

Well, I think just on whether the government, the people who control whether this happens or not, are going to do it. I think you can bet your bottom dollar they will. We’ve got a range of legislation that the government have said is forthcoming.

The things they need to fix up in their tax bills. There’ll probably be other elements of this Green‑Labour deal that enabled these laws to pass. I reckon, based on what I’ve just heard, and what I heard the Treasurer say to you before, is they are going to do it.

Obviously, there are implications for employers and we want to understand all of this. You can’t just do these things on the fly. There are costs to employers, particularly when you’ve got a huge casual and young workforce.

Let’s understand what impact that would have on the economy before we rush off into another dirty, dodgy deal with the Greens. And I bet you there is no modelling. Stefanovic: Well I mean Dan, one more on this.

I mean, it’s another cost, you know, small businesses just under the pump at the moment. This would be another cost for them, would it not? But look, I can only reiterate what the Treasurer said, which is that our priority is to bed down these Payday Super reforms, which are really significant and structural.

And as I said, we shouldn’t forget that this is over $6 billion on some measures that is not going into people’s accounts. A really significant change. That’s the focus and that’s been something that has been in the works in terms of legislation and regulations for some time.

It’s a really significant achievement. Stefanovic: Not a no on the Greens push, though, but we’re running out of time. So, Jono, Melissa McIntosh, she reckons a Liberal rebrand is needed.

Tony Abbott didn’t like that very much. What do you think? Well, I think people are less concerned about the packaging or the box and what it looks like on the outside, and more worried about what is on the inside, which is, frankly, where we’ve got to be focused.

We’ve got to actually get our policy work done, we’ve got to announce it, we’ve got to get out and communicate or sell it. That’s when we’ll start seeing the dial shift or people return to us having abandoned us. That’s the focus I’ve got.

And I don’t think talking about ourselves and our brand is going to help us win the next election. Stefanovic: Was talk of changing the brand a brain fart? Look, there are lots of ideas and I love it that my colleagues and I all think about how best we can do what we need to, to get back to the Treasury benches.

But look, I honestly don’t think rebranding is going to help us get there. Stefanovic: Hey, just another one, Jono. I mean, it’s on One Nation.

Andrew Hastie, he’s not going to give an inch on One Nation. He’s, you know, so to speak, dying on the hill on this matter. Doesn’t want to work with them in any way, but other members of your party do in the form of preferences.

Where do you stand in all of this? Look, I’ve said a number of times now that I think it is ridiculous for us in 2026 to be talking about preferences for a 2028 election. Even more ridiculous to be talking about carving up seats with that party, or any other party, for that matter.

If there’s a Liberal member out there that isn’t saying I want you to put a number one next to my name on the ballot paper or the Nationals candidate in that seat, who aren’t advocating for votes for Coalition candidates across the country, then there’s something wrong with us. Every member of every political party wants their party to win, not someone else. And I think that’s what we should be focused on.

And of course, preferences are something that is discussed and decided upon right on the very eve of the election, not now, not before. And we’ve got to focus on winning back votes for ourselves. Stefanovic: We will leave it there.

Jono, Daniel, thank you so much. We’ll talk to you next week.