KARL STEFANOVIC:
Josh, good morning to you.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning Karl, nice to be with you.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Are we heading into a recession, or not?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, the June quarter numbers are out on Wednesday. The median market expectation is for a slight increase in economic growth. But it will be line ball. But it doesn't change the fact, Karl, that our economy faces some very challenging days ahead. The lockdowns in our two biggest states are not only costing jobs, seeing businesses close, they are increasing our debt burden as well and having a toll on people's mental health. So, it's important that the country, that means all the states and all the territories, recommit and follow through on the National Plan that they agreed to at National Cabinet.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
You're in a bitter battle obviously with Mark McGowan over this, Dan Andrews wants COVID numbers back to zero, Annastacia wants to take you to court so she is keep her borders closed. Are you living in some kind of alternate universe, Josh, that Australia is going to open up?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well my job is to ensure that our economy stays strong, that more jobs are created and that we rebound as an economy out of this crisis. And the states and the territories are often ringing up, asking for Federal Government economic support. We have been forthcoming. We're providing already now more than a billion dollars a week into the states and the territories that are in lockdown, but also business support packages across all the other state and the territories. I can see that the economy will continue to suffer if we do not open up in accordance with that plan. And then you could have the ridiculous situation, Karl…
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Yes.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
…where somebody in New South Wales could travel to Canada before they could go to Cairns or someone in Victoria could go to Singapore or Bali before they could go to Perth. That is ridiculous. We need to ensure we open up as one country.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
You can bang on as much as you want, but they are not going to budge.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, that's why it's so important that the public and that is why it is so important than the business community keep making the case. I mean, it's not just the economic case that is important, because businesses need that certainty to know that they can reopen once restrictions are eased, but it's also the shadow pandemic that Patrick McGorry, former Australian of the Year, has talked about. We are seeing a record number of teenagers turn up at hospital with mental health issues as a result of the anxiety, the depression and indeed the suicidal tendencies and thoughts that are occurring as a result of these lockdowns.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
But Josh, I get that…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
In Victoria. It’s more than 340 teenagers a week
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Josh, I get all of that, I get all of that. It is horrible. You can say all that and you can use as many reasons as possible in order to encourage them to open up…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
I can.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
But they are just not going to do it. They have drawn a line in the sand and they have said we're not going to do it, no matter what you say.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, again, you have got pretty influential people in Western Australia, like Kerry Stokes, like Rob Scott, who have made the case, the economic case, for their state opening up. And as vaccination rates increase we know we can open up in a COVID‑safe way. The plan that was agreed, Karl, by National Cabinet was based on the best medical advice in the world through the Doherty Institute. And it has shown that once you get to those 70 to 80 per cent vaccination rates, the transmissibility of the virus reduces, the number of people who get seriously sick reduces…
KARL STEFANOVIC:
I know…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
So there is a real imperative here. And I do think, the more you talk about it, the more I talk about it, the more business leaders talk about it, the more that reality will sink in, that Australians, whether they are in Brisbane or Perth or Melbourne or Sydney or Adelaide or Launceston and Hobart, it doesn't matter. Wherever you are in Australia, you have to learn to live with COVID.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Why don't you just, instead of threatening, why don't you just pull the plug on some funding? Why don’t you go straight to it instead of faffing about?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Because right now we don't have the 70 and 80 per cent vaccination targets that was set out by National Cabinet…
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Okay.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
What we do have in New South Wales is a record number of people rolling up their sleeves and getting the jab. You have got 66 per cent first dose in New South Wales. Now in Victoria, it's around 55 per cent. In Queensland and Western Australia it's just under 50 per cent. So, there's a real need for those states to put a greater focus on getting more people vaccinated every single day, so we can reach that target earlier…
KARL STEFANOVIC:
And then…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
...so we can see our kids go back to school and we can see businesses reopening.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
Okay. I can see what you ever planning on the horizon. Just quickly, $13 billion in JobKeeper payments to companies that didn't need it. Labor is calling it the biggest budget waste in Australia’s history. JobKeeper, company bonuses and dividends I mean, what is a wrong with a public register of companies who received JobKeeper so we can keep tabs on it? I mean, it is going to rile a lot of people because, people that paid bonuses as a result of JobKeeper.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well I‘m really glad you asked me that question because JobKeeper has helped save the economy and helped save the nation. According to the Reserve Bank, it's saved more than 700,000 jobs. According to the Governor of the Reserve Bank, it was a remarkable program. And we do know that it helped see the very strong economic rebound where our unemployment rate today is at 4.6 per cent. Now, if you're a public company, you need to disclose the amount of money that you got for JobKeeper. But if you're a private company, your tax information is actually that. It's private. And what the Labor Party is seeking to do is to expose every small business across the country with their private tax details and you have heard from the Tax Commissioner that that would be a very, very bad development, and it would be a very, very bad precedent. With respect to businesses that didn’t have a turnover that was down by more than 30 per cent, Treasury have done their own assessment and found that the program was very targeted , that it did focus on companies that had a large reduction in turnover. I put it to you Karl, if you're running a business and you had a 28 or 29 per cent or 25 per cent reduction in turnover, you’d be cutting your staff. And they didn't because of JobKeeper. So, this is the Labor Party playing very dangerous politics with a very successful program and all those people watching your show today know how successful JobKeeper was in helping them stay in a job.
KARL STEFANOVIC:
I have no problem with JobKeeper. Treasurer, good to talk to you. Thank you.