LISA MILLAR:
I’m joined by the Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. Good morning, Treasurer. Welcome to News Breakfast.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good morning. Thank you, Lisa. Nice to be with you.
LISA MILLAR:
Yeah, look, I want to start with comments that you made in your speech last night in regards to the cost of living. The Coalition Government has been big on promises that only it can keep the cost of living down. Now you seem to be preparing Australians to have some hard times ahead?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, we have been making policies that have been driving down the cost of living, for example around electricity prices, which are down by 8 per cent in the last two years, they doubled under our political opponents. But what I was referring to last night is the international events in the Ukraine have seen a spike in oil prices and that is flowing through to the bowser, with some people paying more than $2 a litre. Now, it's the expectation that oil prices will remain elevated for some time as those tensions remain across Europe, but it is a reflection of the more dangerous and the uncertain geopolitical environment in which we find ourselves in.
LISA MILLAR:
I know, but your Government has continued promising that you'd keep costs down, but they've been rising. Now you've got this situation where people are saying, "Cut the fuel excise to make a difference here." Is that something you'd consider?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, I'm not going get into the rule in, rule out game just a few weeks out from the Budget. I've seen a lot of speculation in that respect. As you know, the fuel excise, it's the equivalent of 44 cents in a litre, that money goes towards transport infrastructure, and that is important in all our cities and all our regional towns. And the Government has a $110 billion infrastructure pipeline over the decade. So, that is money directly coming from fuel excise which goes back into regional roads, into major urban transport projects.
LISA MILLAR:
So, Treasurer, I know you're saying you don't want to rule in, rule out, but the front of the newspapers today, certainly here in Melbourne, say that petrol could get to $2.50 a litre. Australians are looking to you now to see whether you're going to try and alleviate some of that pain.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, again, it's Budget speculation. There's groups that have asked for that excise to be cut, there's others that recognise the money needs to be spent on our transport infrastructure. I don't think it pays for me, just two weeks out, to speculate on that. What I can say, though, is in the areas where we can directly impact the cost of living, like in child care we've taken steps, including $1.8 billion in last year's Budget, which is helping families save more than $3,000. What we are seeking to do here is impact those areas where we can and, when it comes to fuel prices, Australia is a price‑taker of the global price per barrel of oil, which has dramatically increased by around a third since the invasion by Russia of Ukraine less than two weeks ago.
LISA MILLAR:
Treasurer, turning to what's going on in the flood zone area, do you believe, having seen what you've seen and heard the reports, that the Federal Government could have, and should have, done more sooner?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, we're doing everything that we possibly can to support those communities. And the payments the Prime Minister announced yesterday, Lisa, were not the first, nor the last economic contributions we're going make to help those communities rebuild. What the Prime Minister announced yesterday were another couple of weeks of that Disaster Recovery Payment of $1,000, non‑taxable, to adults and $400 to children. He also announced significant support for childcare centres, for mental health support, for legal assistance, as well as for business assistance.
LISA MILLAR:
Yeah, but I'm asking if you could have, and should have, done more earlier?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, we're doing everything possible that we can...
LISA MILLAR:
So, that's a no.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
When it comes to the Defence Force... well, when it comes to the Defence Force personnel, I know that there was a request to, you know, "Could we get more Defence Force personnel on the ground sooner?" What we tried to do is get as many as we could, as quickly as we could. And that has now seen more than 4,000 Australian Defence Force personnel on the ground, helping those communities in need. But there's going to be a massive rebuilding task and we'll be there with the people of Queensland, with the people of NSW. And we've already announced very significant payments to primary producers, for small businesses. Yesterday, the Prime Minister talked about Norco, which is a cooperative with around 200 dairy farmers in Lismore. It's a foundation business in that town, and we're going to partner with the NSW Government to help Norco get back on its feet. Because when you've got businesses like that, that are alive and well, even after a disaster such as this flood, then the community can survive and go forward with confidence.
LISA MILLAR:
Look, I just want to ask you about the scenes we're seeing out of Ukraine and the reports of the attack on the hospital. Is Australia going to have to keep rethinking its level of support, its action here, as these scenes become more horrific, Treasurer?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, you're absolutely right, Lisa. These are horrific scenes, and this is the price of war. Vladimir Putin's naked aggression into Russia is having a huge humanitarian cost and we've seen more than a million people now flee Ukraine across the border. So, our response has been multifaceted, it's been about support for the humanitarian agencies that are helping on the ground. We've been sending defence equipment into Ukraine through third parties, which is going to help keep those Russian forces at bay, although that's a very difficult task. And then, of course, we've been part of an international global effort to turn the screws on the Russian economy and keep that pressure on Vladimir Putin, the oligarchs, and his other cronies. Earlier this morning, Lisa, I had a phone hook‑up, a video hook‑up, with my counterparts from the United States, including Secretary Yellen, the United Kingdom, Canada, and New Zealand, and we all agreed to continue to keep that pressure on, to coordinate our efforts, which has seen Australia put sanctions on more than 400 individuals and commercial entities, and it's working. The Russian currency, the ruble, is in free‑fall, the stock market has closed. We have now seen runs on Russian banks as people can't access their money. And Apple and Google have pulled out their services, Boeing and Airbus, as well as the major oil companies. So, this is having a real impact on the Russian economy, and it sends a much broader message to countries right around the world, "Do not breach, do not violate, that international rules‑based order as Russia has done, because if you do so the cost will be very heavy."
LISA MILLAR:
Treasurer, thanks for your time this morning.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
My pleasure.