TREASURER:
Perhaps I should start by saying something about Malcolm Fraser. You know, as a child growing up, I got my first impressions of politics under the Whitlam and Fraser Governments. Both Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser were towering figures in Australian history. Malcolm Fraser was a towering figure in more ways than one. He had an overwhelming presence, but also he was a man with robust principles. He was a very strong character who was never afraid to stand up for what he believed to be right. I think the Liberal Party will be mourning his passing. I think many Australians will be mourning his passing because he provided stability and reassurance at a time when Australia had gone through incredible upheaval, and I think history will be much kinder to Malcolm Fraser than many of his critics have been over the years. In the eight years that he was Prime Minister, the economy grew by nearly one-fifth. But also, importantly, we started to rebuild trust in institutions, and for that I think our nation will be eternally grateful.
REPORTER:
[Inaudible] The end of an era with Mr Whitlam and Mr Fraser now passing?
TREASURER:
It is the end of an era. It is the end of an era. Two towering figures and they created a huge impression on many generations of Australians. Each had their own sense of priorities, but I must say, I actually enjoyed the company of both. It was a great honour for me to meet both Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser on a number of occasions. In the case of Malcolm Fraser, he was a man of great principle. His leadership particularly in areas like, you know, South Africa and fighting against apartheid left a positive global impression about the values of modern Australia.
REPORTER:
There has been a lot of talk about Malcolm Fraser's [inaudible] relationship with the Liberal Party since he left politics. Do you think he will be embraced by the Liberal Party with his passing?
TREASURER:
Yes, he will. He will be embraced by the Liberal Party. He has always been embraced by the Liberal Party. From time to time, Mr Fraser had his differences with our Party. He had his own way of expressing them. As did Robert Menzies, I must say, after he left active politics but Malcolm Fraser will always have a very significant place in the heart of the Liberal Party and of Liberals and of people who believe in freedom and believe in equality, and believe in opportunity.
REPORTER:
Moving on to tax talk. The Prime Minister was quoted as saying the other day said he expected this to be a dull Budget?
TREASURER:
The Budget is not going to be what it was last year, and why? Because last year we tried to fix 40 years of problems that we inherited in one year. Now, clearly we bit off too much in trying to [inaudible] but the task is still there. As the Prime Minister said, we are halfway there. We are halfway to meeting the challenge over the longer-term that was left to us by our predecessors but there’s still more work to be done, and the Prime Minister said that. It was left out of some of the commentary but the Prime Minister actually pointed out we’ve come a long way but we still have much work to do. Now, obviously, the global economy has deteriorated in the last 12 months. That will have an impact on our thinking in the lead up to this Budget. Iron ore prices are well below what they were at the last Budget. Last Budget, we thought they’d be $90 a tonne. Now, they’re closer to $50 a tonne. It’s our biggest export and that has an impact on our Budget, and obviously the Reserve Bank has eased monetary policy and would be counterproductive in one sense to have dramatic fiscal consolidation – that is cut the deficit dramatically and at the same time, you’ve got the Reserve Bank doing what it can to strengthen the economy. So, we’re taking all of those competing pressures into account.
REPORTER:
How can you call the Budget dull though if there’s an $80 billion black hole?
TREASURER:
It’s dull in comparison to last year - I think that’ll be the case but it’ll be a reasonable and fair Budget. It will be a Budget that is focused on how can we do more for families and small business, but importantly, will make the savings necessary to pay for new initiatives. And obviously, we will be doing what we can to build a stronger economy. So, please do not hyperventilate about any individual word. Deal with the overall goal, which is to ensure that we build a stronger Budget that helps to create jobs.
REPORTER:
[Inaudible] The Prime Minister has said that the Budget has gone from being out of control to manageable [inaudible]
TREASURER:
In the last 12 months, we’ve got three quarters of our 400 Budget initiatives through the Parliament. So, in case anyone wasn’t watching, we actually got 75 per cent of the 400 initiatives through the Parliament. We’ve still got to introduce some initiatives into Parliament, which are longer-term. It is also the case that we still have a credible trajectory towards a surplus. We’ll get to surplus as soon as possible but since Wayne Swan delivered the last Labor Budget, I’ve had to write off $100 billion of expected revenue because of the massive fall in iron ore prices and yet the Australian economy is growing at nearly twice the speed it was under Labor. So, frankly, there has been a lot done but there’s still more to be done.
REPORTER:
What message did you take from inside there on superannuation [inaudible]?
TREASURER:
Look, I mean it was good to get a question, but that was one question out of 600 people. Look, what pleases me most is that the community is engaging in this discussion about how we are going to be able to pay for the [inaudible] how we can live within our means. This is very important. It’s very important. The Australian people are not going to always embrace the Government in Canberra, be it Liberal or Labor, telling them what is right for the future. Australians want more control over their own future. They want to be a part of the conversation. I have been doing community forums, I’ve been to these sort of meetings and these sort of discussions ever since I launched the Intergenerational Report I have been doing virtually something every day in one form or another. It is vitally important we stimulate the conversation across the nation.
REPORTER:
Is it pure coincidence that the Taxation Discussion Paper is coming out two days after the NSW election [inaudible]?
TREASURER:
No, because we’ve got the Intergenerational Report and the Intergenerational Report actually is the basis for the Taxation Discussion Paper. So, people need to know what the challenges are going forward. The Taxation Discussion Paper isn’t laying down any options. It’s not making any specific recommendations in relation to tax. So, there’s nothing to fear. There’s no games in that regard. It is a factual document that looks at the various pressures on individual taxes and asks the question: how are we going to raise the money to pay for the future of the nation.
REPORTER:
Treasurer, you said in the speech that even though the Intergenerational Report says that [inaudible]?
TREASURER:
Well, so much depends on the Senate. If the Senate continues to reject reductions in spending, then inevitably it means higher taxes for Australians – it means higher taxes. So, every day that the Senate rejects a Government saving initiative, they’re actually voting for higher taxes. They’re voting for higher taxes on families and they’re voting for higher taxes on lower-income Australians because it’s lower-income Australians that suffer the greatest pain associated with bracket creep. So, let me be very, very blunt: every day the Senate rejects initiatives from the Government to reduce government spending, the taxes of Australians increase. And why? Because ultimately, someone’s going to have to pay for the government services and the people that end up paying the most out of bracket creep are lower and middle-income Australians who are least able to afford higher taxes.
REPORTER:
Mr Hockey, just on one more issue. Has the National Security Committee agreed for Australia to invest in the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank?
TREASURER:
No, we’ve had discussions about it but no decision has been made.