3 March 2013

Interview with Damien Johnson, 96.5FM Brisbane Radio

SUBJECT: Cycling, financial literacy and leadership

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

This is where your family is number 1, it is Brisbane's 96.5. Good afternoon it is Damien with you and g'day to all of our listeners out in Oxley. Bernie Ripoll is the Federal Member out there and is also a keen cyclist. Mr Ripoll, how did you get in to cycling and why do you enjoy it so much?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

For a whole heap of good reasons. G'day and g'day to all your listeners. Look, cycling is just a great sport. It's also a great pastime and it's something that I've been doing pretty all of my life, but I decided when I was in this job to make it part of my community work and use it as a base for helping out the community and fundraising and getting people active and involved and I've been running a charity bike ride for the past twelve years called the Brisbane to Ipswich and we raise money. We get people together and raise money for the Ipswich hospital foundation, for the Heart Foundation and also for the 24/7 Cycle Safety Fund out of Ipswich.

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Do you remember you first bike? What was your first bike?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

Oh, here we go. First bike…I would have been just an old dragster. You know those three speed dragsters with the banana seat?

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Yep, yep.

BERNIE RIPOLL:

I don't think they even had brakes that worked (inaudible)

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Well, you didn't need them did you, back then?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

No, I don't think we did back them. Somehow just thongs were the brakes. Much safer times it must have been because we seemed to ride around on those things all day and never get hurt.

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Let's talk about some of your other passions. You're also very passionate about finance. Let's say you've got a young mum with a couple of kids. She's looking at either buying  her first home or she's just trying to, you know, pay the mortgage and survive. If she was to come to you and say, look, how can you help me to better manage my finances, what would be the top tip that you would give that young mum?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

Well, I'd say to her, go to different places to get advice. Don't just go one place, don't just go to one bank. Shop around. See what people are offering, how much the interest rates are, and sit down and work it out. Work out how much you can afford, do your own budgeting. We've got a fantastic website called moneysmart.gov.au and it's got a whole heap of tools, really easy to use and I'd say, go on to that website, use those tools, make some comparisons, plug in the numbers you're given by the banks or by your finance broker, mortgage broker and see how they work out for you personally so that you know how much money you've got left over. Sometimes the amount that you're told you can afford is a lot more than you're comfortable with if you still want the lifestyle, if you still want to be able to go out once a week or do extra things. So my advice would just be simply, shop around, use the free tools that are available and ask people for advice, ask people what they think or how they did it when they first started.

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Yeah, sounds like some good advice. Let's just talk leadership for a second, because obviously Julia Gillard's behind in the polls and there's been all this talk about whether or not Kevin Rudd's going to challenge and all of that sort of stuff. Just out of curiosity, what do you see as Julia Gillard's weaknesses as a leader?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

Well, I certainly know what her strengths are and I've focussed more on those than I have on her weaknesses and certainly we've all got weaknesses, there's no question of that. Look, as a Party what we need to do is just focus on our core strengths which is really good solid policy. We've got very family friendly policy; policies that actually help people. So, whether it's the School Kids Bonus, which is $2.1 billion, whether it's childcare rebates whether it's making a case for more female students at university, whether it's an increase in the age pension or paid parental leave, all of those things that we've done as a Government. What's my boss' strength? Julia Gillard as Prime Minister? What's her strength? It is that she is focussed and determined on delivering things for families. That's her strength. The weakness is, perhaps, is that not everyone likes her style. Not everyone likes the way that she might appear on television or the style of presenting or things like that. But I think, for me personally, I think that's not as important. I know we live in a world that's based on images and what we see and people comment on what the other person is wearing and I wish that wasn't the case, but I know it is the case. But I'd rather think and believe and hope that people focus on what's actually delivered; if it's paid parental leave, if it's dad and partner pay, if it's household assistance, if it's School Kids Bonus, the childcare rebate. Things like that, things that actually make a real difference for families. I'd like to think that that's what we're focusing on.

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Yeah, cause I've just found it really interesting how, outside of the Labor Party and just within the media, it really seems as if people just don't like Julia Gillard or if Kevin Rudd would be a better leader and yet inside the Party and from all sources that I've spoken to, they've got a lot of respect for her and she seems to be a woman that gets the job done and I'm just curious as to why there seems to be this either a misunderstanding in the general public or just miscommunication. Why do you think that is?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

Look, I wish I had the answer and I could just give it to you in one sentence. It would certainly be helpful. It would be helpful for me as well. But, look, I can't understand why that is the case. Certainly, she is a very hard worker, she is a very capable person, she's a very strong leader. She certainly is an inclusive leader and she certainly gets a fantastic reception when she goes out in to the community and meets people. I'm more than happy to have her in my electorate any day of the week. I find it really uplifting and exciting to have her here and she's come many times to my electorate including during the 2011 floods and people found her very warm and very easy to talk to. But again, I think perceptions through the media lens and perceptions through what's happened in the past, particularly with the leadership change I think have clouded some of that and perhaps that's one of the things that detract from the most important issues about what we're actually helping to get done for families.

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

Speaking of families, let's get back to you then. You're a father of three yourself, how does it go as a politician you need to juggle your social responsibility and try to look after a broader community, when that comes back to your own family, that's when the rubber really hits the road. What are some of the issues as a parent that you find most difficult to deal with?

BERNIE RIPOLL:

I think just finding enough time to be there for them. Just simply that. I've got a job which requires me to be actively participating in the community seven days a week and I love doing that, I love being part of my community but it is a very full time job and it also requires me to be away from home quite a bit. I think just that time away, not always being there for them, for my three kids, when they need me, it's sometimes hard. We've always got the phone but it's not quite the same, as I'm sure people would understand. But my life is no different to many others. I know friends of mine, interstate truck drivers who spend a week or more on the road. I know other people who work shift work who have similar issues, I know there's lots of different jobs and professions where people find it difficult to strike that balance between work and home and I think that's one of the challenges we all face in the modern world where we're all trying to do the best we can for our families and provide for them on a range of levels.   

DAMIEN JOHNSON:

I am speaking with the Federal Member for Oxley, Bernie Ripoll. Bernie, thanks so much for your time today.

BERNIE RIPOLL:

My pleasure, thanks Damien.