ALLISON LANGDON:
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg joins us now live from Melbourne. Good morning to you Treasurer.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning Al.
ALLISON LANGDON:
So how closely are you watching New South Wales now because I mean can we afford our two biggest states both shutting down?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well look, obviously in New South Wales their medical experts are watching it all very carefully. We don't want to see a repeat of what we've seen in Victoria with the outbreak there. But these are challenging times for the nation. We're not out of the woods yet. We're in a once in a century pandemic. The Government has responded accordingly with massive health and economic packages and obviously in Victoria it's particularly tough for people right now.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Even if we contain the outbreaks in New South Wales how do you kick start the economy when Victoria is a dead weight?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, as a country we're one country now and two stages. We’ve got Victoria which has been closing down and we’ve got the other States like New South Wales and Queensland that are opening up. What we don't want to see is the events in Victoria derail the broader progress that we’ve made as a nation. In fact what we've seen in recent weeks was consumer and business confidence starting to come back. We saw strong retail
sales, we saw manufacturing activity get back to where it was in this the pre-COVID time. And obviously we've also seen some better wages and job numbers. Now, that was just before what happened in Victoria with the second wave of cases. So, we don't want those events to derail the broader progress we have seen across the country.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Business leaders this morning are saying that we can't afford more hard lockdowns, that a clear national strategy is needed and we're not getting it from the Government. Your thoughts?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well we've been working very closely with the business community. When it comes to a second wave of cases in Victoria, the medical advice was to go the pathway that the Victorian Government did. It's much more deadly, much more dangerous, much more costly to have a second wave of cases that spreads more broadly than what we've seen to date. That's what we're trying to contain with testing, with tracing, with effective quarantine measures, with the practicing of social distancing and where people are starting to use masks where they can't effectively socially distance. That's what is required at this time. We have to learn to live with this pandemic for the foreseeable future. And that's the harsh reality of what we're going through.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Is it upsetting that we've ended up where we are right now?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well Australia is a much better placed than any other nation to get through this crisis. I mean, look at the United States, 45 million jobless claims 130,000 deaths. If you look at the economic impacts we have seen in China, what we've seen in Europe, we haven't seen those sort of falls here in Australia. So, we're better placed than any other nation to get through this crisis, but we always knew the recovery was going to be tough. We always knew it was a hard road ahead and we're seeing that right now.
ALLISON LANGDON:
The $750 cash boost to be paid from today, do you think people will actually spend it?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
We hope so. People are going to use the money as they best see fit. That's how it should be. I mean $750 cash payments going to five million Australians on income support. Pensioners, veterans, those on carers payments, as well as other eligible concession card holders, that is appropriate for the time. It's our second $750 payment and this payment will cost around $4 billion but it will go to people who need it and whether they spend it on their day-to-day items or they pay down some of their debts, that's a matter for them.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Do you fear that people will save it? And not spend?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Some will save it. What the data shows to date is older people do save more than younger people. But again, it's got maybe a reflection of their individual circumstances and it's not for me as the Government to be telling people how to spend their money. It's up to them because they know best.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Businesses particularly those in Victoria, as we know, are really hurting right now and they're calling for greater payroll tax relief. Is that something you are considering?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, payroll tax is within the remit of the states, whether it's Victoria, New South Wales or the other states and I know that some of them have provided some payroll tax relief to date. What more they do, will be up to them. Of course we would like to see more taxes cut, more relief provided, the Commonwealth has provided the bulk of support across the country. The states are doing their part and if they do more that will be welcome.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Was it a bad look for the Prime Minister at the football over the weekend? He's been criticised for not social distancing and no mask. Should he be setting a better example?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, good on him for being passionate about the footy. Good on him for being passionate about his country. I would like to go to the footy myself except if I went to watch the Storm or the Carlton Football Club I would have to travel interstate to do so. I mean the reality is we have one country in two stages. New South Wales has been opening up where you can go to footy or Queensland, whereas Victoria has been closing down. That's the harsh reality of what we're living through right now. I noticed that even the opposition leader didn't criticise the Prime Minister. If he thought there was an ounce of political capital in it I'm sure he would have. But he knows where the public sentiment is right now.
ALLISON LANGDON:
We are all on board. We were happy to see him at the football at the weekend. He's worked so hard this year as you have. Just wish that his Sharks got up. They didn’t win. But Treasurer thanks for your time this morning.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well the Storm did. The Storm did.
ALLISON LANGDON:
See at least one of you is happy. Thanks for joining us.