Jim Chalmers:
Given the deteriorating and concerning situation in the Middle East, it’s not surprising that President Trump has left the G7 early. It’s understandable given the situation in the Middle East.
Obviously, this was always a chance of happening given what we’re seeing in the Middle East. This is a perilous moment for the Middle East and a perilous moment for the global economy as well. It’s understandable and not especially surprising that President Trump is headed back to the White House.
Journalist:
But not being given a heads up on it – is it rude in a way for us to find out on social media?
Chalmers:
I’m obviously not going to comment on that. I’ve made my views really clear.
This is not especially surprising. It’s understandable given the deteriorating situation in the Middle East.
We have a number of opportunities to engage our American counterparts. Prime Minister Albanese has already had I think 3 conversations with President Trump.
There will be other opportunities to engage. But in this instance, where we see the very concerning security situation in the Middle East, it’s understandable and not especially surprising that President Trump’s headed back to the White House.
Journalist:
Just on productivity tomorrow, your Press Club address, there’s been a bit of talk this morning about work from home and different views between unions and employer groups. How do you see work from home as a productivity issue, and will it be a feature of your roundtable in August?
Chalmers:
No doubt work from home will be one of the things that people will raise with us.
I’m a supporter of work from home. I think it’s an important way to provide the kind of flexibility, which is key to a modern economy and a modern labour market.
Obviously, it needs to be within reason. It needs to work for employees and employers and the best place for that to be worked out is at the workplace level.
But work from home is a really important part of ensuring that more people can participate in our world beating labour market.
One of the things I’m proudest of over the course of the last few years is that we’ve been able to maintain very low unemployment, very high labour force participation, get real wages growing again at a time that we’re getting inflation down as well.
Work from home has role to play in our economy. I think we saw in the course of the last election campaign what the Australian people think about the work from home opportunity. It needs to make sense. It needs to be within reason.
This is a good example, I think, of where the union movement and employers can work together to make sure that we are creative and nourishing the kind of labour market which is so important to a dynamic, modern economy like ours.
Journalist:
What about holistic tax reform Treasurer? Is that part of what’s on the table for this productivity roundtable? And is this an opportunity, do you think, to get the taxing side more in line with the spending side?
Chalmers:
We’ve made it really clear already that productivity is the primary focus of the roundtable, but not the sole focus. We have 3 related challenges, primarily productivity, but also budget sustainability and making our economy more resilient in the face of all of this global economic volatility.
So I expect, I anticipate, I welcome tax being an important part of the conversation.
The ideas that people raise at the roundtable in the second half of August, I think it would be hard to come at these sorts of issues, sustainability, resilience and productivity without people raising their ideas when it comes to tax.
Thanks very much.