ALLISON LANGDON:
Josh Frydenberg joins us now from Canberra. Josh, nice to see you. But, look, we just need to hold up for a tic and celebrate the moment, don’t we?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Absolutely. Congratulations, Victoria. This is their moment. Morning margaritas all round. And Melbourne is finally free. This has been a long time coming. As you know, Melbourne has had a hard slog, the longest locked down city in the world. And there’s so much relief among my fellow Victorians. I just want to say thank you – thank you today to all those small business owners who have supported their staff. Thank you to those teachers who have supported their students. Thank you to every mum and dad who have supported their kids. And, of course, the biggest thank you to our health professionals on the frontline who’ve kept our community safe. Today is a day for celebration. Today is the day that all Victorians, all Melbournians have been waiting for.
ALLISON LANGDON:
And how many margaritas have you had this morning?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Just a couple of coffees and nothing in between.
ALLISON LANGDON:
What was in the coffee? What was in the coffee? Hey, look, that’s exactly it. It is a day to celebrate. But, you know, you want Dan Andrews to go harder. What’s your gripe there?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I’ve just asked the question as health professionals have. You saw the former Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth, you saw Professor Bennett from Deakin University, an epidemiologist and an expert in the field, ask the very same question that I did, which is why doesn’t Victoria have the same freedoms that people of New South Wales have had. And I saw earlier on your program this morning the Australian Industry Group repeat those very same questions. Because the freedoms that have been given in Victoria is a cause for celebration but we don’t want to look back. We want to look forward. We want to stay open. We want retailers to go about their business. We obviously want hospitality to be booming. We want people to go to the gym or for a swim. We want people to go for a meal or to the cinema. And, of course, we want to be done with these masks outdoors as people in New South Wales have done. So, look, this is what we’ve got to look forward to. But today is a very positive day. Today is a day to celebrate, and today is a day to say thank you to all Victorians for getting the jab in those record numbers. And by getting the jab they’ve provided themselves and their community with a defence against the virus.
ALLISON LANGDON:
So I mean, Josh, you know better than most how your home city has done it so tough through this. Plenty of businesses didn’t make it. You’ve got so many empty shopfronts now. How long does it take Melbourne to bounce back?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, we saw 120,000 jobs being lost in Victoria last month alone. And that was about 90 per cent of the national total. The damage has been very significant. That being said, we have seen once restrictions are eased people start to go back to work, businesses reopen. And, of course, consumers spend. That is what we’re hoping to see in Victoria. But we need to provide that level of confidence and that level of certainty to business that their doors will remain open. We can’t have stop‑start lockdowns. I mean, that is just going to be a recipe for more jobs being lost. It’s really important that once we reopen we don’t turn back. We’re only going forward. And that is my message to the government of Victoria and, indeed, that is the same message I would provide to any state government across the country.
ALLISON LANGDON:
It is tough, too, though, Josh when no‑one can find workers. You’ve got tourism, hospitality, retail, farmers. The workers just aren’t there.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Yeah.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Dominic Perrottet tried to bring them in before Christmas from overseas but you guys put a stop to that. What are you going to do? These businesses are ready to go. People want to come back to restaurants, but if they don’t have the workers, they can’t open.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, firstly, we closed our borders last year, and that was the right call, Ally, because the virus was spreading and that was needed to keep our community safe. But, you’re right – the impact of closing those borders has been significant because we saw labour force shortages that were particularly acute before the Delta variant hit. We did introduce a number of programs to bring agricultural workers in from the Pacific Islands and other country in the region, and that has been helpful for our agricultural sector. But there is more to be done. And, of course, our priority is to bring Australians home. And that’s why we welcome the announcement in New South Wales that they’ve moved away from quarantine for double‑dose vaccinated Australians who test negative. And I see that in Victoria they’re on the cusp of making a similar announcement. And that’s really, really welcome. And then the next step is to bring those skilled workers, to bring those international students, and then ultimately to bring more tourists to our country. Because the world has opened up, and now Australia needs to open up. We have to learn to live with the virus. We can’t eliminate it.
ALLISON LANGDON:
But if people are double vaxxed, what’s the problem with bringing those workers and tourists back, Treasurer, before Christmas?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, I think you’ll see that before long. That’s the plan that we’re working on. The first step is with Australians. And, of course, the next step is then with students and with skilled workers and then with tourists. And that is obviously what we’re working on internally. And today’s announcement by Qantas is also a very practical signal, a very tangible sign, that our airlines are getting ready for takeoff. They’re bringing their staff back – more than 5,000 – earlier than expected. They’re bringing in more planes out of the deserts of America. And they’re, of course, introducing and announcing new flight routes, including to India. This is great news, and this is a sign of a very bright summer ahead for the entire population.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Yeah, all of that returning to work by early December. So does that mean, you know, in regards to what we were talking about there before with international workers and with tourists, that that’s when we might see that ramp up?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, we’re working on a plan. And, of course, Christmas is a date that we want everyone to celebrate. And we want them to celebrate with their family. We want them to be able to travel more freely, domestically as well as internationally. We are working on those plans. We’ll have more to say about that in due course, Ally.
ALLISON LANGDON:
All right. Josh, you’ve just got a little explaining to do. I saw a picture of you the other day in your office. You want to talk me through – hang on, is that Tony Abbott? Oh, no, that’s Josh. There we go. Look at you. You’ll be able to ride outdoors again.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I was about to confess, I am a humble MAMIL – middle‑aged man in lycra. But I was announcing and releasing a report into what cycling has contributed to the national economy. I mean, millions of Australians are jumping on the bike every day and, you know, my message is, if we’re going to get to net‑zero, Ally, we have to get more people on the bike and fewer people in cars. That’s the message.
ALLISON LANGDON:
Good stuff. Nice to talk to you this morning, Treasurer. Enjoy freedom day from Canberra.