JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Angus Taylor has given a full statement and, obviously, he denies the Labor Party's…
QUESTION:
You're a numbers man, you know the difference between $16 million and $200,000.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Can I just make it very clear as the Prime Minister said to the Parliament yesterday, he takes Ministerial standards very seriously. He said he would make contact with the New South Wales police which he did. Following that contact and based on the information that was provided to him, he believes there is no need to take further action.
QUESTION:
But how do you have such a stark difference between $16 million to $200,000?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
As I've said, the Prime Minister has given a full statement to the Parliament and so has Angus Taylor.
QUESTION:
Treasurer, Andrew Leigh is calling for Brian Hartzer and Lindsay Maxsted to appear before a special Parliamentary hearing to explain the money laundering scandal. Do you think that Coalition MP's on that Economics Committee should facilitate that hearing?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Look, obviously we support that committee and the work that it's doing and the issue as to who they call is a matter for them. As for having banking executives and regulators and others come before a Parliamentary committee, we see no problem with that.
QUESTION:
And big business. This big business fund that you're going to be announcing next week. What more can you tell us about that?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Actually announcing it tonight at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. This is a really important initiative by the Morrison Government. $520 million is the initial amount, that's being contributed both from the Federal Government as well as from other banks. It's going to be patient and passive capital that can be used to support small and medium sized businesses across the country. It's based on a model in both the United Kingdom and Canada. What it will see is if you're a business, a family run business for example, that has a turnover between $2 million and $100 million and you want to expand and you want to grow and you want to buy new machinery, you don't want to go and extend your debt levels, you actually want capital injection and you'd rather have equity than debt. This offers the opportunity to do that. Decisions will be taken by an independent board and it builds on the many other initiatives that we have undertaken to support small business, namely cutting taxes for small business, cutting red tape for small business, ensuring they're being paid-on-time, boosting liquidity in the lending market for small business, $2 billion for a securitisation fund as well as other initiatives.
QUESTION:
Treasurer, will Westpac be excluded from the First Home Loan Scheme?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Issues in relation to the choice of participants in that First Home Loan Deposit Scheme is a matter for NHFIC and, obviously, and we choose two of the big four banks, NAB is going to be one of them and the other will be a matter for them.
QUESTION:
Do you think Westpac should be chosen as one?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Again, that's a decision not for me or Michael Sukkar, that is a decision…
QUESTION:
Just back on Angus Taylor, should the Prime Minister have spoken to the police commissioner regarding the investigation that they're doing given that the investigation is already underway?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Absolutely appropriate and as he said to the Parliament, they'll continue with their enquiry but the substance of these enquiries is based on the allegations by the Labor Party and we know the tricks of the Labor Party, we know what motivates the Labor Party when they make these allegations.