ALLISON LANGDON:
Treasurer thanks for your time this morning. Some in your own party want to save Virgin Australia and given that you don’t want China taking over distressed Aussie companies, are you more inclined to get involved now?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I think we all want to see Virgin survive. We think that Australia has been well served by having two major airline operators in the domestic market, but there are commercial issues that the company needs to resolve. As you know they have some very big shareholders with deep pockets, namely China-related companies as well as Etihad, Singapore Airlines and of course Virgin International. The first point of call for the company must be its existing shareholders. I’ll let the board, the management, deal with the issues that arise with respect to that company but we do want to see it survive, but we also recognise that there is a proper process to play out.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
So what do you make of the plan from Queensland and New South Wales now competing to bail, or to do their part, in bailing Virgin out. Will you get involved in that?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well of course I’ve seen those comments and those commitments but in terms of what Virgin needs, what they’ve said publicly, is a level of funding that is far greater than there’s been proposed by either state.
ALLISON LANGDON:
So just moving on, because despite, you know, the economic pain that everyone is feeling at the moment, you have leading economists warning not to ease lockdown too early. What’s the danger of going too soon?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well we won’t go ahead of the medical advice, we’ve always been consistently following the medical advice with respect to the coronavirus pandemic and it has served Australia well. As you know we were facing a situation where the number of coronavirus cases were increasing by more than 20 per cent a day just a few weeks ago, now that number is well below 2 percent. We’ve got a high rate of testing, we’ve got a low rate of mortality, and people are following the isolation, the quarantine and the social distancing rules that we’ve put in place. We’re having some success in flattening that curve, but as I’ve said on your program before, complacency is a problem, patience is a virtue when it comes to this issue.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Ok another story we’re following this morning is the big news about news. Tech giants like Google and Facebook will now be forced to pay for content. Now I think that’s a great thing, but how will that work exactly? What’s the model look like, is it per story, is it a set fee, how does it all work?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well there are different methods and that’s to be worked out by the ACCC, Karl, as they prepare this mandatory code and they release it for comment by the end of July. There’s a cost method and there’s a value method; so the cost method takes into account the cost of producing that journalistic content and the value method takes into account the value to those digital platforms of advertising that content and enabling them to get more traffic through their websites as a result. I mean the real issue here is that the rise of these social media giants have raised questions about the adequacy of our regulatory framework and about the long-term viability of our traditional media outlets. What we want to do is create a level playing field, a fair go for companies and proper compensation for original content. Australia will be the first country in the world to successfully require these social media companies to pay for content and it’s a battle that we are prepared to fight.
ALLISON LANGDON:
And you’ve got to think that other countries are going to be watching this very closely.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
They will.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Look, there’s also a lot of controversy around this new coronavirus app. I mean you’ve got members in your own party who are refusing to download it. It’s not an easy sell is it?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Look, this is obviously a complex issue but what we’re trying to do is use every technological advantage to the country’s best interest, and that’s why we’re proposing this app, that’s why we’ve taken very seriously the privacy and security related issues. As you know Singapore has rolled out such an app and we want to see that digital handshake be traced so that lives and livelihoods can be protected. We have had success in flattening the curve but that doesn’t mean we don’t look at new methods, new technologies to secure the safety of Australians.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
I don’t think the take-up in Singapore has been huge. Just quickly on another matter before we go, should Malcolm Turnbull be kicked out of the party for his memoir?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Look I respect the Office of the Prime Minister and Karl, those who hold that position regardless of their political persuasion. I may disagree vehemently with Malcolm about some of those free character assessments that he’s provided on my colleagues and his former colleagues, but in terms of this particular issue I think it’s a distraction. I think the country’s focus must be, and certainly it’s the government’s focus, on saving lives and livelihoods and getting our nation to the other side of the coronavirus crisis.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Were you sent a pirated copy of the book?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I wasn’t.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
And was anyone inside the Prime Minister’s Office responsible for sending it out?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Like you I’ve seen the media speculation, I don’t know the details of that case. But again, I wasn’t sent a copy.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
You sound like you’re fudging a little bit Josh.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I’m not fudging anything. You know, it will be on the shelves today. I think people will no doubt go and buy it, if that’s what so they wish. But for me Karl, it’s very clear. The Government is dealing with a global crisis. Australian lives have been lost. We’ve seen massive economic pain as a result of the health restrictions that we’ve put in place. We’ve got a long way to go in this challenge. The global economy has a long way to go, as you would expect as Treasurer of the nation, that is my focus, and I know that is the Prime Minister’s focus, and all of our parliamentary colleagues.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
And we appreciate that. Good on you Josh. Thank you.