NATALIE BARR:
Thanks for your time Treasurer, now...
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning Nat, good morning Kochie.
NATALIE BARR:
Given the success of these measures so far, how difficult is it going be to wind them back when the time comes?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well they have been very successful to date in doing what we intended, namely to stimulate investment, we saw machinery and equipment sales up very significantly, as businesses are feeling more confident now to invest, that is helping to create jobs and families are getting that tax relief but what we are focused on with the tax system is permanent structural reform and as you know we have legislated stage three of our tax cuts through the Parliament, which will see one big tax bracket Nat, between $45,000 and $200,000 where people pay a marginal rate of no more than 30 cents in the dollar and it’s that big structural tax reform that is being debated now within the Labor Party because you were seeing different voices say different things about whether or not they support that policy. We do, we have legislated it and it is going to be delivered to Australians.
DAVID KOCH:
Speaking of structural reform though, you're also looking to help sole traders and small businesses employ more staff, with a $7 million online guide to navigating a pretty complex workplace relations process. Have you got plans for structural reform there, to simplify industrial relations?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well it is like tax isn’t, they are complex issues and indeed I have a wife who works in employment law and the Acts are quite long and no doubt there are many businesses who…
DAVID KOCH:
So you want to keep her in employment?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well that’s not my job as the Treasurer, I’ll leave that to other businesses. But what I can say Kochie is that we’re always looking for opportunities to simplify, whether it is the industrial relations system or the tax system, because more simple laws to understand often leads to better compliance as well.
DAVID KOCH:
Yes.
NATALIE BARR:
Okay, let's go to the story of the day really, a Tamil family, in detention on Christmas Island, they’re going to be reunited in Perth today, their youngest daughter undergoes treatment in hospital, Immigration Minister, Alex Hawke, will soon make the announcement on their future, can you give us an indication about what that might be?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well the Minister will make a statement, but I can confirm that the reports are true that the family will be reunited on Australian soil. This is a case that has been protracted for some time, it has gone through many legal hearings and as you know, it has been a very difficult one, and some of those images are pretty confronting of the family being separated. But we put in place our border policies because back between 2008 and 2013, we saw more than 50,000 unauthorised boat arrivals, we saw tens of thousands of people go into detention Kochie and we saw more than 1,200 lives lost.
DAVID KOCH:
Yes, to be honest, this case will not spark another flood of people smugglers bringing boat people to Australia. You can’t honestly be telling us that?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I’m not saying that, in fact I say the contrary, the decision that the Minister will make today...
DAVID KOCH:
And they will stay, permanently?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I’ll leave the details of that decision to him to make as you would expect but the decision he will make today will not undermine the integrity of our border policies.
DAVID KOCH:
Right.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Our settings remain strong, our settings remain effective and they have helped save lives that would have otherwise been lost because we did see more than 1,200 lives lost at sea. When we are talking about people smugglers we are talking about people of the very worst kind who prey on the most vulnerable people.
DAVID KOCH:
Agree.
NATALIE BARR:
'Four Corners' last night broke down the relationship between the PM and a high-profile follower of this conspiracy theory group. Should we be worried about this relationship with QAnon?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I think its rubbish and I didn’t watch the show but I can say that the Prime Minister...
DAVID KOCH:
So they are not friends?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I'm not going into the details about that because I am not privy to that but what I can tell you is this notion that the Prime Minister is linked to QAnon is absolute rubbish and he has actually made very strong comments to that effect and provided a statement that I think you can find on the ABC website.
DAVID KOCH:
But this bloke stayed at his house?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well again…
DAVID KOCH:
...and there’s photos of him.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well you obviously did not have anything better to do last night Kochie than watch that show, I did and I am not going to give those sort of accusations credence because the main issue at play is if they are trying to link the Prime Minister to QAnon that is absolute rubbish.
DAVID KOCH:
Okay. I'm just asking. I have to ask you, are you going to be part of Carlton…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Did you watch it?
DAVID KOCH:
Are you going to be part of Carlton’ independent football review?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I’ll leave that to Matthew Pavlich who is a better choice than me, I’m too partisan.
DAVID KOCH:
I’d agree with that. Alright, thank you Treasurer.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
All the best.