The majority of Australians would support restoring funding to the ABC, according to a new poll, after new figures showed funding has been cut by $526m since the Coalition’s first budget.
The poll of 1,000 voters conducted by the Australia Institute found that 52% want the $84m cut from the ABC in the last three years to be restored, more than double those who oppose it (25%).
Despite being elected after promising no cuts to the ABC and SBS, the Abbott government reduced funding to the ABC in the 2014 budget, with a further pause in the indexation of funding imposed in 2018 under Malcolm Turnbull.
There have been $526m in cuts to the ABC budget since 2014, with an ongoing reduction to base funding of $106m per year by 2021-22, the ABC has told Senate estimates in reply to questions on notice.
In that time, the ABC has slashed 640 jobs, from 4,704 staff to 4,064.
In addition to staff cuts, the ABC’s savings have come from discontinuing the 7.45am radio news bulletin, reducing spending on independent production and discontinuing ABC Life.
The poll shows despite a majority of voters backing increased ABC funding, the issue is polarised along party lines.
Coalition voters narrowly favoured increased funding, with 43% in favour and 36% opposed, whereas Labor and Greens voters had solid majorities of 65% and 63% in favour and just 17% an 16% opposed.
Support for more ABC funding is highest in Victoria (57% in favour) and New South Wales (54%), whereas in Queensland 44% wanted increased funding and 29% were opposed.
The Australia Institute poll found that 61% of respondents agreed that “a strong, independent ABC is critical to a healthy democracy” with only 19% disagreeing.
In the 2021 budget the Morrison government gave an extra $30m to SBS, but the ABC copped a $10m reduction in its operational funding from $880.56m in 2021-22 to $870.34m in 2022-23.
In 2020 the independent thinktank Per Capita did a report for progressive lobby group GetUp estimating that total funding cuts to the ABC totalled $783m since 2014.
Labor has pledged to protect the ABC and SBS against “arbitrary ideological cuts and political interference” by granting the public broadcasters funding in five-year cycles.
Australia Institute senior research, Bill Browne, said “Australians depend on the ABC for quality news reporting, emergency broadcasting and documentaries, drama and comedy that tell Australian stories”.
“Cuts to the ABC undermine its truth-telling mission, cost hundreds of people their jobs and mean Australians miss out on quality broadcasting,” he said.
“The ABC is an essential part of Australia’s democracy and accountability infrastructure.
“The government could start by restoring and increasing ABC funding for its next three-year funding cycle, coming in July.”
