DAVID KOCH:
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg joins us live from Adelaide. Treasurer, you're there for the State election campaign.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning.
DAVID KOCH:
To get Liberal Steven Marshall over the line again. Economy top of everyone's agenda. Will you continue targeted support for industries still battling from COVID?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
The good news is, here in South Australia, the economy is rebounding strongly, Kochie. The unemployment rate is at 4.9, 4.8 per cent. There's a record number of South Australians who are in work, in fact more than at the start of the pandemic. Steven Marshall as a Premier has really led his State very strongly. And he's already announced, without Commonwealth support, additional economic packages for businesses across the State. This morning I'm addressing the Chamber of Commerce here in Adelaide. I'll be meeting with local businesses with the Premier later today. The Prime Minister was here just last week making an infrastructure announcement worth over $2 billion. But we've been with the people of South Australia, indeed the people right across the country every step of the way during this pandemic.
DAVID KOCH:
Yep. And relations with China, are you worried the really aggressive rhetoric between the two countries, and particularly from your Government, may be alienating Chinese Australian voters?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Our issue is not with the Australian Chinese community, more than a million strong and very valuable members of our community. Indeed, in my own electorate I've got a large Australian Chinese community and they make a wonderful contribution. But we'll consistently defend the national interests when it comes to our national security. It might be on issues of critical infrastructure, it might be issues of cyber security. It's certainly speaking up about human rights abuses wherever they occur.
DAVID KOCH:
Yeah.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
When it comes to Australia's most recent actions in relation to China, we make no apologies for that. When they take pretty reckless, you know, reckless actions in shining a laser on one of our Defence Force planes we've got to call that out because that's completely wrong and dangerous.
DAVID KOCH:
Okay. And just finally on COVID, because the opening up of the economy is really important, the UK has announced overnight COVID restrictions will be scrapped all together, no need for COVID cases to isolate, nothing. Just treat it like the flu. Are we falling behind, or do we need to quickly follow the UK standard?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
We're continuing to monitor the health situation here in Australia and it's certainly improved. We've seen a peak in Omicron cases. We've seen a reduction in ICU and hospitalisation numbers, and as you know people are getting back to work and some of those workforce shortages, particularly the high levels of absenteeism are starting to abate and that's what I heard firsthand yesterday in Tasmania when I was visiting some major distribution centres. I think this is the next step in the road, reducing the restrictions even further, and of course we'll continue to monitor the situation here in Australia. But we've already made some changes and we'll continue to make more as the medical advice comes in, Kochie.
DAVID KOCH:
Okay. Treasurer, appreciate your time, thank you. Here's Nat.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Always a pleasure.