SABRA LANE:
Treasurer, the IMF has revised up its growth forecast for Australia. What's your reaction?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, this is a very positive development. They've upgraded their growth to 4.5 per cent in 2021. That's a full percentage point increase and this report confirms that Australia has outperformed all major advanced economies in the world. It comes off the back of a lower unemployment rate at 5.8 per cent. And we saw at 88,700 new jobs being created, all full time jobs Sabra, in the month of February. As well as Australia maintaining its AAA credit rating and seeing a boost to business investment and consumer confidence.
SABRA LANE:
The Reserve Bank says it's keeping an eye on surging house prices, how worried are you that first time buyers are borrowing too much and getting in over their heads?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, it's good news that first home buyers are coming into the market in such a strong fashion. In fact, first homebuyers, their numbers are now the highest in 12 years. Owner occupied…
SABRA LANE:
…and house, sorry, house prices are rising at the fastest rate in 32 years.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, there's a couple of points here. Firstly, if people's value of their home is going up, they have more confidence to spend. That's good news for the economy. And we are living in a period of historically low interest rates. And that's fuelling rising house prices, not just in Australia, but in other comparable countries like New Zealand, Canada, the United States. And when you've got low interest rates, you've also got lower mortgage repayments and that's important to recognise. But APRA and the Reserve Bank are watching this very closely.
SABRA LANE:
And the point of the question was, how worried are you that first home buyers are borrowing too much?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well right now, when I spoke to the head of APRA and the Reserve Bank Governor, they have monitored it closely and they're comfortable where it's at. But at the same time, they have in the past, demonstrated that they have the tools to put speed limits on banks lending and to ensure that the lending standards are upheld and we’ll continue to maintain a watching brief. But right now we've seen a dramatic increase in first home buyers coming into the market, as well as owner occupiers and that's a good thing.
SABRA LANE:
Women's safety groups are seeking an extra $150 million to help them deal with an increase in demand from women fleeing violence. They were given a boost of that amount, during the pandemic last year, and they say that demand just hasn't gone away. Can you give them that assurance?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, I can absolutely understand why demand has not gone away. Because one in four Australian women have experienced physical violence at the hands of an existing partner or a former partner. That's why we're investing $1 billion in the Fourth National Action Plan as well as our other initiatives. And yesterday, we met with the new taskforce led by the Prime Minister and Senator Payne and we discussed these very issues. So we will continue to make more money available for this obvious area of need.
SABRA LANE:
And $150 million that they're seeking to keep dealing with these women and children fleeing violence?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well in terms of these particular applications, obviously, they will go through the normal processes, but I can be unequivocal in saying we're putting a record amount of money into ensuring women's safety and trying to reduce the incidence of domestic violence which is at an unacceptably high level.
SABRA LANE:
As you mentioned, that new Women's Cabinet Taskforce met for the first time yesterday. You're identifying existing gaps in programs. If the Government is prioritising policies for women, can you, are you going to take a whatever it takes attitude to fill those gaps?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well we discussed the number of important issues yesterday starting with the recommendations of the Respect@Work report. So that that will be the first cab off the rank and the Prime Minister has indicated that he'll be making clear the Government's response later this week. In terms of other initiatives, we discussed female workforce participation, which is now back at around a record high and at a level and that was even higher than it was going into the pandemic. We discussed the gender pay gap, which has narrowed under our Government by around four percentage points, which is equivalent to about $1,000 a year…
SABRA LANE:
Sorry…
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
…for a woman who is on full average time earnings. So there are other issues that we're looking at Sabra, which are going to enhance women's economic security as well as women's safety as well.
SABRA LANE:
The European Union has slapped down claims from the Government that it stopped three million doses of AstraZeneca vaccine coming to Australia. What do you say?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, the European Union rejected our quarter of a million AstraZeneca vaccine request. I mean, initially, we’d asked for 500,000 to be sent, they asked us to reduce that request to 250,000, then knocked it back…
SABRA LANE:
And, sorry, the Prime Minister yesterday said that a further three million doses had been stopped and the EU has called it out and says that's not correct.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, to be very clear, we have before them an application for a million AstraZeneca to go to Papua New Guinea, which, as you know, is undergoing and seeing a significant outbreak there and it would be a humanitarian request. That request is standing, it's in with the European authorities and they haven't approved that. And the Europeans have made absolutely clear in both their public and their private statements that no further doses of AstraZeneca will be flowing until they've met their own orders domestically. So this is the problem we have is that we have AstraZeneca vaccines that have been designated for Australia that we want to come here and Europeans haven't been giving that approval.
SABRA LANE:
So who's fibbing?
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, it, like I said, there's a request in for a million and they haven't approved it.
SABRA LANE:
Christine Holgate lost her job at Australia Post last year for buying watches for rewards, and she now says the Chairman has lied to Parliament and she was bullied out. Has the Government asked the Chairman of Australia Post for a ‘please explain?’
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Well, there is a Senate inquiry at the moment and I'm not going to get in the middle of those differences between the Chair and Christine Holgate. But I will say that Christine Holgate is a very good person. I respect her. I've known her for some time. But subsequent to those initial issues being raised through the Senate estimates process, she did issue a resignation statement and the Australia Post board is now undertaking an executive search for a new CEO and nearly concluding that search.
SABRA LANE:
Treasurer, thanks for your time this morning.
JOSH FRYDENBERG:
Good to be with you.