DANICA DE GIORGIO:
Thank you very much for joining us. Let's start with retail spending - it of course surged over Christmas according to the latest figures. What does that mean for inflation and ultimately interest rates?
JIM CHALMERS:
Good morning, Danica. Obviously we have an inflation problem in our economy. It's been developing for the best part of 2022 because of the volatility and uncertainty created by the war in Ukraine and some of the other global pressures mixed in with what natural disasters mean for our fresh fruit and vegetables as well. I think people understand and appreciate in Australia that we do have a cost‑of‑living challenge. It's why the Government is so focused on providing some cost‑of‑living relief in a responsible way that doesn't add to that inflationary pressure in our economy.
DE GIORGIO:
All right, let's talk about natural disasters. You will visit communities in northern New South Wales today to assess the rebuilding effort. What will your message be to locals?
CHALMERS:
I think it's really important that Murray Watt and I spend time in northern New South Wales today, even as a lot of communities out west and in South Australia as well are going through the worst of the immediate pressures from natural disasters. What we want to be saying to the people of Lismore and the surrounding areas is government will be there for you when the flood waters are rising, but also after the flood waters subside. We've got a great culture in Australia of being there for each other in difficult times and the Government is there for people too in these flood‑affected communities. It's quite a stunning fact that something like seven in every ten Australians lived in a flood‑affected or natural disaster-affected area in 2022. These disasters are becoming more and more frequent. We're focused on the cost, the human cost, and the cost to communities, but there's also an economic and budget cost as well. And we are prepared to play our part as the Albanese Government in making sure that these communities, which have been absolutely smashed by natural disasters can rebuild and rebuild the right way.
DE GIORGIO:
That's an astonishing figure that seven out of ten Australians are living in an area that's subject to a natural disaster declaration. We're talking about prevention here and what more can be done to future-proof these areas. Are we living in the wrong places in Australia? Are our cities and towns poorly located?
CHALMERS:
I think that was one of the big shifts that happened when the government changed hands last year. We recognise that there is an important, crucial role for government to be there when disasters hit, and we will be there for people, but we also want to do a much better job of making our communities more resilient. We want to do a much better job of getting in when it comes to natural disaster mitigation. It's a priority of the whole government, particularly Murray Watt, the responsible Minister, and that's one of the things we'll be talking about today in Lismore. If you think about where all this fits in our broader economic plan, we want to make our economy more resilient, we want to make our budget more responsible. And a really important way to do both of those things is to make sure we do a much better job, not just responding to natural disasters, but doing what we can to mitigate them as well. Part of that is making sure that we're building in the right areas. And a big part of the support package that we've got for Lismore and the surrounding areas is to give people that choice when they're rebuilding about whether or not they rebuild in some of these particularly flood-prone areas.
DE GIORGIO:
Dominic Perrottet has admitted to wearing a Nazi uniform to his 21st birthday party. Should he step down?
CHALMERS:
I think ultimately that will be a matter for the people of New South Wales to decide. I think a lot of people were shocked and saddened with those revelations yesterday. For all of the rest of us who want our communities to be more tolerant and more inclusive, not less tolerant and less inclusive. I think this will be a factor that people will weigh up as we get closer to the New South Wales election in March. If you think about it, nationally, people had an opportunity in May last year to vote for a government which did care about being more inclusive and more tolerant, particularly of different groups in our community. The people of New South Wales will have a similar opportunity in March, and they will determine whether or not the Premier's apology, which was important, whether or not that's enough.
DE GIORGIO:
Just finally, should the Prime Minister have flown to a billionaire's barbecue at a Portsea mansion ahead of going to the flood zones in Western Australia? Surely the flood zone should have been his priority?
CHALMERS:
He was in the flood-affected areas in WA that very same day, and in between a visit to Geelong and a visit to the flood-affected communities in Western Australia, he spent time with Lindsay Fox, who's a very prominent, important Australian with a lot to contribute. I think the Liberal Party has got to decide do they want the Labor Party to engage more with business leaders or less with business leaders. This trip will be declared in the usual way, on the usual time frame. The Prime Minister was in flood-affected communities the very same day in Western Australia and I think for that reason, people will dismiss these politics that are being played by the Liberals and others.
DE GIORGIO:
Jim Chalmers, we’ll leave it there. Thank you for joining us.