JIM CHALMERS:
Inflation is moderating and wages are growing and that's welcome news on both fronts. A central part of the Albanese government's plan to help alleviate these cost‑of‑living pressures is to get wages moving again and all indications show that they are. What we're seeing in our economy is much stronger wages growth than people were accustomed to during a decade of deliberate wage stagnation under our predecessors. Average annualised wages growth under the Albanese government is 3.6, under our predecessors it was 2.1 per cent. When we came to office, the real wages number for the March quarter of 2022 was negative one and a half, now we're seeing real wages growth of around zero which is substantial progress on what we inherited. This is the first time in three years that real wages haven't gone backwards and what we're seeing here is substantial progress when it comes to our plan to get wages moving again in this country. If we want to tackle the cost‑of‑living pressures that people are facing right around the country, then a very good place to start is to get wages moving again so that more people can work more if they want to, earn more and provide for their loved ones. This is a very welcome outcome today – it shows that the Albanese government has been able to get wages moving again. It's the first time in three years that real wages haven't gone backwards, it's a substantial improvement on what we inherited. We're seeing inflation moderate at the same time as wages are growing and on both fronts that's a good thing.
TONY BURKE:
Thanks very much, Jim. We've now had three quarters in a row where the growth figure for wages is point eight. To give you context – under the previous government from the 2014 Budget on, every wages figure they had was lower and it was lower because low wage growth was a deliberate design feature of their policies. What we said on coming to office about getting real wages to shift was we needed to be putting downward pressure on inflation, upward pressure on wages and looked forward to the moment when those lines would cross – well, that moment is today. We need to remember with the wages figures that we've got today – this is before the 5.75 increase in award wages for 2.7 million workers, this is before the aged care increase on top of that of a further 15 per cent for more than 200,000 workers. So there's continued work from the government that is having an impact on wages but this is the first quarter after 11 consecutive quarters where wages went backwards. For the first time now we're seeing those lines meet and where real wages for the first time are steady. This is part of a deliberate design feature of this government to get wages moving. So we said we’d get wages moving, the next job in terms of wages for the government is to close the loopholes that can undercut the wages growth that we're seeing and we'll be doing more of that later this year.
CHALMERS:
The Albanese government's number one priority is dealing with these cost‑of‑living pressures that people face – getting wages moving again and rolling out billions of dollars of cost‑of‑living assistance for people who are doing it tough because of the cost‑of‑living pressures that they face. But what we have demonstrated is that we can focus on the highest priority in the here and now – cost‑of‑living pressures that people face – at the same time as we keep an eye on the big picture and the future. And in that context, next Thursday, the 24th of August, I'll be releasing the Albanese government's first Intergenerational Report. The Intergenerational Report will shine a light on the big trends and transitions and shifts which are impacting our economy, our budget and our society. Australia can own the future if we manage and maximise the big shifts that are under way in our economy. Our objective is to make sure that more Australians in more parts of Australia are beneficiaries rather than victims of some of these big trends and transitions that we will see play out in the course of the coming decades. The Intergenerational Report will build on the big shifts that we are seeing in the economy – from globalisation to fragmentation, from IT to AI, from hydrocarbons to renewables, from a younger population to an older population, and then everything that that means for the composition of our industrial base, and particularly the care economy.
We have a big opportunity in this country – if we understand and respond effectively to the big changes underway in our economy and in our society, Australians can be the big winners of these shifts that we are observing which will be a central feature of the Intergenerational Report. The Intergenerational Report will give Australians a snapshot of the future and I'm looking forward to releasing it at the National Press Club on the 24th of August, alongside a sense of what we are doing to position Australians to be major beneficiaries rather than victims of these changes underway in our economy. Whether it's de‑risking our supply chains, a broader and deeper industrial base, investments in the energy transformation, getting better at adapting and adopting technology, and investing in the capabilities and capacities of our people so that we can make our economy more productive – these are the sorts of things which will become clear and pressing from the Intergenerational Report that I release next week.
We are capable of focusing on the cost‑of‑living pressures in the here and now, and getting wages moving again at the same time as we understand and calibrate our policies to the big trends and transitions and shifts which are underway. We want Australians to be beneficiaries not victims of that, and that's what the IGR will be all about.
JOURNALIST:
On cost‑of‑living pressures, National Cabinet meets tomorrow, do you want to see all states and territories limit rent increases to once a year?
CHALMERS:
National Cabinet is an opportunity for the Prime Minister to work with the states and territories and not against them, on our most pressing economic challenges. There's no bigger economic challenge right now than pressure on our housing market and what that means for the cost of living. We have a broad and ambitious and multibillion dollar housing agenda, which is all about building more homes, building more supply, at the same time as we give the biggest increase in Commonwealth Rent Assistance in 30 years. The Prime Minister will convene his colleagues tomorrow here in Brisbane, and there will be a number of issues on the agenda. We've demonstrated what our priorities are – big investments in supply. The Prime Minister has also shown leadership and will continue to show leadership when it comes to renters rights. We've got a set of priorities but we want to calibrate them with the plans of the states and territories as well, and we also want to factor in the important role that local government has to play in building more homes. We won't take the pressure off rents in an enduring way unless or until we build more homes in this country. The Budget has provided billions of dollars to that end, and the National Cabinet is the perfect forum for us to calibrate our policies and plans on housing with what the states and territories and local governments are doing. And if we can agree a way to do more, to move forward together, to try and address this massive economic challenge which is putting pressure on the cost of living, then obviously we'll consider that.
JOURNALIST:
With respect, you've done a great job of not quite answering the question. The question is – do you support having once a year rent increases for all states and territories? WA and the NT are the only jurisdictions not to have it? Does it make sense for them to come on board?
CHALMERS:
Well, that's fundamentally an issue for the states and territories, and I don't want to pre‑empt or front run the conversations that the Prime Minister will have with his colleagues tomorrow. We have shown – my answer to your first question and my answer to your second question is – we've shown that there are other ways that we can invest in building more homes and take some of the pressure off renters, at the same time as we provide this historic increase to Commonwealth Rent Assistance. Those issues no doubt will be discussed. The Prime Minister has shown a willingness to be collaborative and consultative with his colleagues and counterparts from around Australia. But we have demonstrated in two Budgets now that we have other priorities that we're investing billions of dollars in. We've got an open mind when it comes to the various things that are brought to us, but we have shown our capacity to invest. We've also pointed out where there are areas that are legitimately the responsibility of states and territories – and that's one of them.
JOURNALIST:
In light of the success of the Matildas, Peter Dutton says a Coalition government would commit $250 million over four years to increase sporting infrastructure and boost female participation in sport. Will the government also commit to boosting investment in women's sport? And if so, what would the funding deliver?
CHALMERS:
A couple of things about that. First of all, Peter Dutton can't help himself. He sees this big unifying national moment – the whole country gets behind the remarkable grit and determination of the Matildas – and Peter Dutton in the usual angry and combative way, tries to turn it into some kind of political barney. He can't help himself, this is what it means to be – Peter Dutton's style of pathologically negative. What we want to see, is we want to see more women and girls participating in sport. And one of the most inspiring things about the Matildas’ success and the character and calibre that they bring to the field, is the way that they are inspiring a whole generation of women and girls to participate in sport. We are always on the lookout for ways to invest in that and to back that in. And the suggestions from the Opposition – I think, he's looking for a fight – we're generally looking for solutions when it comes to encouraging women and girls in sport. The last thing I'd say about this is the Coalition doesn't have a great record of delivering sports funding. This is the party of sports rorts, they haven't demonstrated a willingness or an ability to deliver this sort of funding effectively. We will consult with all the relevant bodies, we will do what we can, we'll do it in a methodical and considered and responsible way. And that stands in contrast to how the Liberals and Nationals did it when they were in office.
JOURNALIST:
Just on wages growth, I take your point about – there have been wages increases, wage growth increases – but it has slowed since the previous quarter. It's back by, from 3.7 to 3.6 per cent. Doesn't that raise some concern?
CHALMERS:
We're seeing the kinds of wages growth in our economy that we committed to. We said one of our key objectives in our economic plan was to get wages moving again, and they are. This is the first time that real wages haven't gone backwards in a quarterly sense, for three years, and so that is progress. Wages are growing much more strongly under this Labor government which has made wages growth a priority, than under our predecessors who – as Tony said – saw wage stagnation and suppression as a deliberate design feature of their economic policy. We take a different approach. That's why the wages outcomes under this Labor government have been so much better and so much stronger than under our predecessors. Great, thanks very much.