KARL STEFANOVIC:
Treasurer good morning to you. A lot to get through this morning, including the opening of that travel bubble with New Zealand which is fantastic news. First up though, that news out of Europe with serious concerns about AstraZeneca and blood clots. The UK, as you would know this morning, has halted injections to the young. Would it be prudent for us to do the same here?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Not at this point in time. Obviously our health authorities continue to monitor international and domestic developments very closely. But all the advice to the Government is that the rollout should continue. More than 850,000 people have received the jab here in Australia. The manufacturing capability, it's a sovereign capability that we have with CSL making the AstraZeneca vaccine under licence is a real advantage for us. And that supply is ramping up and that means more people will get the jab in coming weeks and months.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
800,000 have been administered. They have actually produced 2.5 million. You do the math, it's pathetic, isn't it?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
No, what actually has to happen is that the vaccines, once they have been produced, have to be tested. You have to test the quality of the batches and that's what you would expect us to do, to put a premium on safety. And that's what we have done in the past. That's what we will do into the future. And you have to also understand that our situation with respect to the virus is quite different, Karl, to where the UK and the US is. We have been very successful in suppressing the virus. We have taken a very measured, considered approach, we have followed the medical advice and obviously the TGA, which Australians have a great deal of respect for, has provided that approval and now we are rolling out the vaccine.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Okay, I get that, but you’re still only a third have been administered. It's not good enough.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
We had 79,000 in one day just before Easter. We will be ramping up to 3,000 GPs in the coming period. They are obviously well placed to distribute the vaccine as quickly as possible and to a large number of their patients. I'm confident that the rollout of the vaccine will really gain pace in coming weeks and months.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Okay. The Federal Government has been blaming the slow vaccine rollout on some international issues, as you'd know, saying the EU cut us short by more than three million doses. Overnight the EU has denied that, saying it only blocked something in the order of 250,000 doses. I mean, how do you explain that? Does the Government stand by the claims the EU stopped 3.1 million doses getting here?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well the Prime Minister was absolutely right, those 3.1 million doses didn't arrive. I can tell you we have got a request in for a million doses of AstraZeneca to come from Europe to Papua New Guinea which has….
KARL STEFANOVIC:
The EU is denying it.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well no, they are not denying that. Let's be very clear. If they are not giving approval that's the same as blocking. And that's the point of distinction here Karl. We have a request for a million doses of AstraZeneca that were destined for Australia to go to Papua New Guinea in a humanitarian mission where there has been an outbreak. We are waiting on the Europeans to give us the approval for that. With respect to that 250,000, they did block that. Initially we wanted to put in a request for 500,000. They told us to down size it to 250,000 and then they blocked it.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
They obviously don't care what you think?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, they obviously want to prioritise their own constituents. Now that’s their position. Our view is that there is a real humanitarian need in Papua New Guinea and we would appreciate if they gave that approval.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Okay. The travel bubble, if Scott and Jacinda got on better would this have happened better?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
This is a function of the successful management of the virus both here in Australia but also in New Zealand. The trans-Tasman route is our busiest route. More than seven million passengers a year. This will pour billions of dollars into our two economies. It will support the tourism sector at a time when they need it most. And you've heard from Qantas that they will be ramping up to more than 120 flights a week. That’s good news for people on both sides of the ditch.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
This is a bit of a one-way street though Josh, I mean it’s more Australians who…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Why?
KARL STEFANOVIC:
…are going to be going there, than Kiwis coming here. We all know that. Plus when they come here they don't spend as much.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well maybe you should hop on New Zealand TV and sell Australia and bring it over here Karl. Because, you know, there are plenty of New Zealanders who want to come to Australia. But you’re right, 40 per cent of the New Zealand international arrivals have been from Australia. So Australians are very dominant when it comes to New Zealand's tourism industry, but New Zealanders also play a key role in Australia's tourism industry and we would welcome their visitation in large numbers.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
What's next? Which other country are we going to open up to?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well we are not about to announce another bubble, but what the PM indicated yesterday was Japan, Singapore, other nations are prospective, and we will continue, obviously, to monitor those countries' success in supressing the virus. And if it can be done safely, based on the medical advice, then that's something we will do in the future.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Good on you Josh, really good to talk to you. Thanks again for you time, appreciate it.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Very good to talk to you. Thank you.