E&OE

LUKE BRADNAM: To break it all down, happy to say that we have Angus Taylor, the Shadow Treasurer and Member for Hume in the west of Sydney joining us right now. Good morning to you, Shadow Treasurer.

ANGUS TAYLOR: Great to be with you. Thanks for having me.

LUKE BRADNAM: I'm just seeing you’re from the west of Sydney. Who's your footy team? Before we get into the important stuff.

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Look, I'm an old Canberra Raiders fan but I've got a lot of sympathy for the West Tigers which has got a big presence in my electorate as well. So, two great teams.

LUKE BRADNAM:

They both had a good weekend as well. Let's get into the big announcements yesterday. The tax cuts first up, 1200 bucks a year, sounds pretty good to voters compared to Labor's $5 a week. But how do you feel it's been received?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Well, I mean what matters is how it's received from hard working Australians who have seen the biggest hit to their standard of living in history, bigger than any other country around the world, peer country around the world. This is over 85% of all taxpayers will get a benefit up to $1,200 in tax cuts starting from next financial year. And this is recognising that those cost of living pressures, that homegrown inflation that we've seen over the last three years under Labor, are really hurting families. They're struggling to put food on the table, they're having to take on an extra hour at work, second jobs, digging deep into their savings. We've got to get this economy back on track. We know over time we've got to get the economy delivering but this allows us, this tax cut allows hard working Australians some reprieve as we do exactly that.

LUKE BRADNAM:

The big announcement with regards to the Coalition yesterday, with regards to homeowners, that being able to take a part of your mortgage and make it tax deductible, can you explain that to us? And exactly how much dough that is going to save the average first home buyer?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Yeah. So, what this is essentially doing is making it easier for first home buyers to get into a home. And the focus here is on new homes so we get more new homes built. It’s incredibly important. This is not just helping first home buyers, it's helping to get more houses into the market. So to give an example, a first home buyer with a taxable income of say $120,000 with a $650,000 mortgage, if they're paying 6% or just over 6%, they'll get a benefit of around $12,000 a year by being able to deduct that interest payment, that 6%, they'll be able to deduct that against their income. That'll make it easier for them to buy the home. It's restricted to new homes. So, the important point here is it will help developers get these new homes into the market. This has been a huge issue where developers say, look, I haven’t got a buyer at the end of the pipeline. There's not someone there who can buy this house. This will enable those first home buyers to be those buyers. We know it'll get more houses into the market and we know it will help first home buyers to get going. And you know, we have to reestablish home ownership at the center of the Australian dream. Restore the Australian dream of home ownership. It's been declining and for young Australians, I think this is a desperate situation where many are giving up on the hope of owning a home.

LUKE BRADNAM:

But where we live here in South East Queensland, we're seeing more and more first home buyers not be able to afford their first property, as in a block of land. We're seeing more and more go into units. So for example, if you're going into a unit because it's more affordable and it's a brand new complex, would you qualify?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Yes. It's any home, apartment or freestanding house, it doesn't matter. What matters is it's new. So, we're getting new houses brought into the marketplace and that will take pressure off the market and we'll ensure that we've got the supply we need, not just for new home buyers, but for all home buyers. So, it's incredibly important that it be new homes, but it's all types of new homes.

LUKE BRADNAM:

So, one thing I haven't noticed from either one of the parties in regards to the cost of living has been the weak Australian dollar. And that does filter through to us with regards to pretty much everything we buy. Even Australian made tomato sauce has imported products. And the fact that our dollar is so weak at the moment, that surely is having a major impact on the cost of living. Is there anything that you're looking at with regards to strengthening the Australian dollar?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Yeah, strengthen the economy and you'll strengthen the Australian dollar. The fundamental thing we've got to do here is get our economy moving again. We've had 21 months where our economy hasn't grown on a per person basis. So, that's an extraordinary situation. It's a record by the way, it's the worst we've seen alongside the biggest reduction in our standard of living in history. We've seen no growth on a per person basis in our economy for 21 months. So, we've got to get the economy moving. That will strengthen the economy for all Australians and ensure that foreign goods that we import are more affordable. And of course, you're absolutely right that a low dollar can create inflationary pressures, but the overall answer to all of this is get our economy moving again so that Australians are in a stronger position not just in the domestic economy, but when we buy goods from overseas.

LUKE BRADNAM:

So, yesterday Labor announced a $2.5 billion policy to create a new standard tax deduction on work-related expenses of $1,000. And as I understand it, you don't have to show receipts, so you can just say, I spent a thousand bucks on X, Y and Z, you don't have to show receipts. It's going to result in a couple of hundred dollars back in your pocket. Do you think that's an easier sell to the community than your initiative yesterday, which is only for first home buyers moving into brand new dwellings?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Well, 85% of taxpayers will get our $1,200 tax offset, so that's in the next financial year. So, I think that is very clear. It's very simple. In terms of the workers, the tax deduction, it's an expensive initiative. It's going to cost the budget a lot. We're conscious of getting the balance right here. And it's an expensive way for Australians to claim things they're already entitled to under the law. I should also say the last time Labor said they were going to introduce this, they scrapped it later when they ran out of money. So, we'll see. But at the end of the day, it is an expensive way for Australians to claim things they're already entitled to. We think going forward with the offset, the $1200 offset, as well as encouraging young homeowners into the market to buy new houses, not only will deal with the immediate cost of living challenges that Australians have got, but will restore the dream of home ownership, which I know many Australians who I speak to all the time are desperately worried is dying in front of our eyes if we don't fix it.

LUKE BRADNAM: I really appreciate your time this morning. Before I let you go, it does seem like you guys are obviously putting in the hard yards at the moment. Are you going to have any time off over Easter at all?

ANGUS TAYLOR:

ell, I'll hope to get a bit of time on Easter Sunday. We have a family get together, which we've been doing for over 25 years now. And hopefully I'll get a bit of time with family. There hasn't been enough of that. There'll be lots of opportunities in the future, I'm sure. So, we'll try to get a bit of time on Easter Sunday. Thanks for asking.

LUKE BRADNAM:

I appreciate your time this morning. Go the Mighty Raiders and West Tigers. And yeah, thanks for your time.

ANGUS TAYLOR:

Good man. Thank you.