CHARLES CROUCHER:
For more we are joined by Josh Frydenberg, who is in beautiful Lorne in Victoria. Treasurer, good morning. Happy Christmas, happy new year to you.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning, Charles, good morning Sarah.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
We will get to the figures in just a second but right now it seems the biggest threat to that recovery is this Omicron outbreak. There’s people waiting in testing lines for upwards of five hours. Given the books are looking better than expected, isn't now the time to invest in subsidised rapid antigen tests?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Charles, the Commonwealth is already paying the bulk of the testing bill. We pick up the full tab for Medicare‑funded tests. We pick up half the tab with the states through the those tests through their own state clinics. But of course we welcome the move to rapid antigen tests. We think this is quicker, this is cheaper and it prevents the overload of the system. And we do need a common sense and compassionate approach, not one based on panic and fear and that is why we would advise and recommend that rapid antigen tests rather than PCR tests be used ahead of interstate travel.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
Given that circumstance, isn't the time to subsidise them through Medicare or some other system to make them more available to Australians at a more competitive price?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Again, the states can take individual actions. I know they are looking to role out the rapid antigen test more broadly and they are available. I was speaking to the Health Minister just yesterday and he was speaking to the major chemist chains and they can get more rapid antigen tests. It's up to the state governments to order those tests and see them rolled out as opposed to using the PCR tests ahead of interstate travel, Charles.
SARAH ABO:
I guess for a lot of people the rapid antigen tests are the easier option, it's just finding for them and paying for them which becomes the issue. Now finally, as our intrastate borders are starting to reopen, it’s amazing for people to be able to travel but that is also adding to the queues and the Queensland Premier is being partly blamed for those massive queues we are seeing. What would you say? Do you we need to just release the PCR queues and focus completely on RAT testing now?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I think RAT testing is certainly a better option for people who are travelling interstate and I welcome the moves by the Queensland Government that they're considering using the rapid antigen test as opposed to the PCR test. We need to deal with every variant differently because that poses different challenges. In the case of the Omicron variant, it's highly transmissible but it’s arguably less severe. We have to keep a sense of context and perspective on the challenges that we face. Right now, there are just over 50 people who are on ventilators, more than 130 in ICU, tragically one person has died from the Omicron variant, someone in their 80s. But we have 26 million people who want to go about their daily lives and want their freedoms back. No‑one wants to go back to lockdown and the speed and the trajectory of our economic recovery, Sarah, very much depends on our economy and border staying open.
SARAH ABO:
Another 995 people have been impacted by a second testing bungle in Sydney, attributed obviously to the PCR testing. It just goes to show how much pressure the system is under. We have asked you about the Federal Government really playing a part here but this is also about whether we need to weigh up the necessity to travel at the moment. It's impacting the tourism industry, which we know. What would you recommend for the public out there?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Everyone has to make their own individual decisions: I have come down to the beach here in Lorne. My extended family is making some interstate trips as well. People get about their daily lives. They want to catch up with family and friends. The last two years has been particularly difficult, especially in Victoria, which has had the longest lockdown but also the extended lockdown in NSW and the ACT with the Delta outbreak. People are desperate to get about their daily lives and enjoy their time with family and friends. I would obviously encourage people to do that, but that will be an individual decision they will take and they will have to follow the health measures in place and travel in a COVID‑safe way.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
Treasurer, the good news is that Australia is doing better economically than most other developed economies. We have gotten through the pandemic in that way. Talk us through these new figures. Is this put down to Australians following the rules to government intervention or to Australia being an island and taking full advantage of that?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I think there are many factors at play but, Charles, what this new Treasury analysis does is it puts into international context Australia’s economic performance. We have outperformed all major advanced economies when it comes to the level of economic activity that’s been impacted by COVID but also where our employment levels are and how they have recovered. We have out performed the United States, he United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, France and Germany. We have 180,000 more Australians who are in work today than at the start of the pandemic. In the United States, there are 3.6 million fewer Americans who are in work today than compared to the start of the pandemic. Our unemployment rate is 4.6 per cent today when Labor left officer it was 5.7 per cent. That is even after the biggest economic shock since the Great Depression. Our economy has really performed very strongly, it's proven to be remarkably resilient and that is a credit to 26 million Australians because this result belongs to them.
SARAH ABO:
Absolutely, yeah
It it's been a tough couple of years but it's looking good. Especially for you, Treasurer, you've officially been ranked the most popular politician with a whopping net likability rating of 3 per cent.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
Three!
SARAH ABO:
You must be feeling pretty good.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Must be a low bar. They must have interviewed my mum multiple times, I suppose! You know, you go into this business because you want to actually make a difference, not necessarily to be liked but to be respected. I am very proud of how Australians have responded. We go into 2022 with confidence and a lot of hope. We have one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, one of the lowest mortality rates in the world and now one of the strongest economic recoveries in the world. That is something that all Australians can be proud of. It's not a cause for complacency. Far from it. Omicron is a reminder of the challenges we face. But I am confident that next year can be a good year for Australia's economy and the Australian public more generally.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
You made sure that article made its way into a couple of your colleagues' inboxes in the last few hours? Just in case.
SARAH ABO:
Tough world, politics.
CHARLES CROUCHER:
Election year next year? Who knows.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Certainly an election next year and it will be a close one. We start adds the underdog. That's my focus as well.
SARAH ABO:
Thank you so much for your time, Josh. It's stunning down there in Lorne. Enjoy. I was there last week. I hope you get into the water, it's not too cold.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Kids are having fun. Thanks, Sarah