Kenny Heatley:
The Australian jobs market continues to defy expectations of a looming economic slowdown, decreasing the chance of the February interest rate cut. It leaves April as the only option of a potential rate cut for struggling homeowners before the federal election.
Joining me live now is Treasurer Jim Chalmers. Treasurer, good to see you. Thanks for joining us.
First of all, Anthony Albanese says he hopes the ceasefire deal will lower the temperature, and we will see a reduction in anti-Semitic incidents, but just this morning, news that another anti-Semitic attack has occurred in Sydney’s east, including cars fire‑bombed and homes vandalised. What’s your reaction to that?
Jim Chalmers:
It’s absolutely disgraceful, completely unacceptable in a country like ours, to see this kind of unacceptable behaviour. We condemn it unreservedly. Unfortunately there has been a rise in these sorts of incidents – there has been a rise in anti-Semitism – which is unacceptable to us in a country like ours.
Heatley:
The latest labour market data would be bittersweet for you, Treasurer, on the one hand employment remains strong, but it also reduces your chance of seeing a rate cut before the election.
Chalmers:
That remains to be seen. I mean that’s in the hands of the independent Reserve Bank. They’ll weigh up the jobs figures, but they’ll also weigh up the inflation data and what’s happening around the world, and they’ll come to a decision in a methodical way when they meet towards the middle of February. I’m not going to give them free advice about that.
What we have been able to demonstrate in Australia, and really the heartening thing, the most heartening thing about those strong jobs numbers that we got yesterday is that Australia has shown that we can have low unemployment at the same time as we get inflation down in a very substantial and in a very sustained way.
That’s the story of the Australian economy right now, inflation down, wages up, unemployment low, 1.1 million jobs created in the life of this Albanese Labor government, that’s a record, unemployment at 4.0 per cent.
We see that overwhelmingly as a good outcome, because it means more people are working, more people are earning more and more people are keeping more of what they earn because of their tax cuts. All of those things are good developments.
Heatley:
The data shows that there are thousands more looking for part‑time work. The Coalition says this is because Australians are trying to find second jobs because they can’t afford the cost of living. Do you think that that has at least played a part in the figures?
Chalmers:
First of all, our political opponents will always try to diminish what Australians have achieved together, workers and employers and governments and the community more broadly. It’s been a remarkable combination of positive economic data, when it comes to inflation down and wages up and unemployment low. They’ll always try to diminish that.
Of course there is an element of people working multiple jobs, that does reflect the pressure that people are under, the pressure that we don’t just acknowledge, but we’re actually responding to with our cost‑of‑living help, including our tax cuts and our electricity bill relief.
If our opponents really cared about the cost of living, they would have supported our efforts to provide cost‑of‑living help to people. If they cared about the cost of living, they wouldn’t be pursuing this nuclear insanity which will push electricity prices up and make it harder for people, not easier.
This really boils down to a very simple question in this election year, under Anthony Albanese and Labor, inflation down, wages up, unemployment low, providing that cost‑of‑living relief, building Australia’s future. Peter Dutton and the Coalition would make people worse off and take Australia backwards, when we know that they’re a risk, because we know their record on Medicare and wages, on electricity prices, on cost‑of‑living help and the like.
Heatley:
We understand you have to jet off in just a moment, so I just want to ask you this one last one. Last month you promised spending restraint in the lead‑up to the election because you didn’t want to add any fuel to inflation, but it seems the Prime Minister has his cheque book out again on the campaign trail. Does this added spending we’ve seen concern you at all?
Chalmers:
No, it doesn’t, and the vast bulk of the announcements that we’ve been making in recent times were already accounted for in the mid‑year Budget update, for example that very important investment we’re making on the Bruce Highway here in Queensland, the vast bulk of that was already accounted for in the mid‑year Budget update with the little bit extra reflecting the deliberations that have happened since then.
That money will flow from this year, and it’s a really important investment accounted for and entirely consistent with the responsible economic management which has been a feature of this Albanese Labor government, with those 2 surpluses for the first time in 2 decades, getting the debt down, getting the debt interest down, so that we can make room in the budget for important investments like that, but also the cost‑of‑living help, and all of the ways that we are building a better future for this country and its economy and its people.
Heatley:
Treasurer, thank you, have a great weekend. Hopefully talk to you again soon.