NATALIE BARR:
Treasurer and Acting Foreign Minister, Jim Chalmers. Good morning to you. Will this assassination attempt have any impact on security protocol right here in Australia?
JIM CHALMERS:
Oh, look, I’m sure that security agencies right around the world are learning what they can from these extraordinary events and extraordinary scenes in Pennsylvania yesterday. We’re relieved that former president Trump is okay.
Our hearts go out to the family of the man whose life was lost in the crowd. And we can’t see this sort of ongoing normalisation of violence and extremism in our politics, and we should see the events yesterday, the tragic events yesterday in that light.
BARR:
He could be the next president. Does our government put a call into him?
CHALMERS:
I’m sure that we reach out to the Americans in one way or another. I think the most important thing that we recognise when it comes to American politics is we work with whoever the American people choose to lead them. Obviously, there’s a very willing contest right now in terms of the presidential election, and we have ways to reach out to both candidates of both of the major parties with an eye to working closely with them, whoever the Americans pick in November.
BARR:
Ok, moving on. Thousands of Aussies will receive their new revamped tax cuts this morning. How many people are going to benefit from today?
CHALMERS:
Well, the tax office tells us that about 750,000 Australians will get a tax cut today, and that’s because a lot of people who get paid monthly get paid on the 15th of the month. We know that around 9 million Australians have already got a tax cut.
We know that about 2 million Australians will get a tax cut in the next fortnight or so. The average tax cut is about $36 a week. The average household with kids, about $63 a week. And this is all about ensuring that Australians earn more and keep more of what they earn. It’s cost‑of‑living relief rolling out from this month to every Australian taxpayer. Millions of Australians have got it already and millions are about to. So, my advice to all of your viewers, Nat, is to check your pay slip and to see how much you’ll benefit.
BARR:
Look, sounds good to me, but if people spend that money, if they choose to spend it, will that put more money into the economy and push up inflation and therefore interest rates?
CHALMERS:
Well, people will make different decisions based on their own family and financial circumstances, and it’s not for me to give them advice about how they use that. I think a lot of people desperately need this help, which is being provided through the tax system, and so they’ll make their own decisions. It won’t put additional pressure on inflation beyond what was already factored into the forecast of the Reserve Bank and the Treasury.
And that’s because when we change the tax cuts, we used the same amount of tax cuts, but we made sure that every Australian taxpayer got a tax cut, not just some Australian taxpayers. And that’s because we recognise that people are under pressure and we’re doing something about it. And that’s what the tax cuts for every taxpayer this month, the energy bill relief for every household, and all of the other cost‑of‑living relief that we’re providing is all about.
BARR:
Treasurer, thanks for your time today.
CHALMERS:
Thanks, Nat.