PETER STEFANOVIC:
Treasurer, good to see you.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Nice to see you.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
We will touch base with the OECD in a second, but first of all can I get your thoughts on those claims from Mark McGowan that he’s going to shut off South Australia if South Australia, in turn, opens up to Victoria and New South Wales?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
That’s regrettable. I think it’s important that Western Australia’s borders open in accordance with the plan, that obviously more people in Western Australia get vaccinated, as they are in the rest of the country. Unfortunately, both Queensland and Western Australia have seen the lowest numbers of people getting vaccinated as a proportion of their population. The good news, though, today is that you’re hitting 80 per cent single dose in New South Wales – a remarkable achievement in a relatively short period of time. So, overall, the vaccine rollout is gaining pace. This should give Australians confidence that we are sticking to the plan and that we’ll open up according to it.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Okay. On to the OECD report. It’s quite the warning that’s come from the OECD, Treasurer. It says that risks and uncertainties remain large in Australia, and it even goes on to recommend increasing the GST or some other options as well. Have you got any plans to do that?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Firstly, this is an important report, Pete, and from the OECD, they have reconfirmed the fundamentals of the Australian economy are sound; that the Australian economy itself is strong; and, in their words, that our economic response has been appropriate, swift and well-coordinated, and that’s helped see the Australian economy bounce back pretty strongly after the depths of the pandemic last year – the fact that the employment rate as recently as July was 4.6 per cent, a 12‑year low, and in the back half of last year we saw the strongest growth in 50 years. That being said, we have now faced the Delta variant and we have seen lockdowns in our two largest states, and that has been a hit to the economy. It’s undercut investments and, obviously, it’s dented confidence, and that’s also reflected in this OECD report. With respect to tax reform, they make the important point that we need to continue to tackle bracket creep, and that’s why we took to the last election a proposal to cut income tax and we’ve subsequently delivered that and legislated that over the cries of the opposition who have been brought kicking and screaming to the table on tax relief for hardworking Australian households and families. So, that is an important vindication of our policy there, focus on reducing income tax.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Okay. But any plans to increase the GST?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
No plans to increase the GST, and I note that the states who are the biggest beneficiaries, Pete, can’t even agree themselves about the GST.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
So, you’re ruling that out? You’re ruling that out.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
No plans to increase the GST. What we do have plans for is obviously to cut taxes at every opportunity that we find, and we’ve done that on income tax. We’ve done it on company tax for businesses with a turnover of less than $50 million. We’ve brought in the biggest investment incentives using the tax system ever with the immediate expensing and the loss carryback, and new innovations, like the Patent Box, which are designed to drive new technologies, new patents in Australia, more research and development in medical and biotech.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Okay. Treasurer, the RBA has missed its economic target since 2015. There hasn’t been a review in some 40 years. Is it time for a review?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, there have been a lot of reviews of the financial system, you know, the Murray review being one.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
The RBA.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Look, that is a real issue and it’s something that I will give consideration to in terms of looking at the RBA, looking at the monetary policy settings and learning from the experience through the pandemic. We are at a time of historically low interest rates, the cash rate at just 10 basis points. I think the RBA has performed very well through this crisis. Their policy response has been in sync and coordinated with the Government’s fiscal response. They’ve been very active on‑buying in the secondary market as well as providing more liquidity to the system and a term funding facility for the banks. So, I think the RBA and the Government work very effectively together, but there is always a need to address the settings and to look at what lessons can be learned particularly, after this once‑in‑a‑century pandemic.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Treasurer, just finally, should Christian Porter disclose who helped him with his legal fees?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, Christian Porter has disclosed in accordance with the requirements of parliamentarians on their register of interest, and he has done so in a way that’s consistent with what other parliamentarians have done. The point about Christian Porter’s legal defence is that he did not use taxpayers’ money, and that is very important. So, Labor will continue with their vicious personal smears in campaigns. I don’t think Australians have got time for it.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Is it acceptable for a Minister of the Crown – Mark Butler makes this point; he made the point to Sky yesterday – is it acceptable for a Minister of the Crown to take a donation without explaining precisely where it’s come from?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, again, he’s disclosed it in accordance with the rules and the parliamentary register, and that is the same rules, the same parliamentary register, that the Labor Party is required to adhere to.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
It seems strange, though. I mean, would you take money from someone – would you take money without knowing where it’s come from?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, again you’re asking me to deal in hypotheticals. I know that Christian Porter launched a staunch defence and he did so through the courts, and he did so reveal, you know, in accordance with the register of interests, as he was required to do. The Labor Party again, they’ll play the man. They’ll use fear, innuendo and personal attacks. We’ll get on with governing the country and driving more people into work and helping to strengthen the economy after what has been the greatest economic shock since the Great Depression.
PETER STEFANOVIC:
Treasurer, thanks for your time. Talk to you soon.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
My pleasure.