Topics: Labor’s cost of living crisis, Labor’s housing crisis, Coalition’s commitment to back to basics economic agenda, Pollie Pedal raising money for Wandering Warriors 

E&OE   

GREG JENNETT: 

Okay, we want to turn to the state of the Australian economy now. By some international comparisons, we're in reasonable shape, with growth still positive, unemployment still relatively low, but on inflation, the International Monetary Fund's got Australia on a path towards inflation that's above three and a half percent at the end of next year, quite a bit higher than the budget's own forecasts. Shadow Treasurer Angus Taylor is in Tamworth, or more precisely, passing through Tamworth today. We spoke to him from there. Angus Taylor, we've got the Treasurer Jim Chalmers heading to the IMF, and you are riding a bike through or into Tamworth, the city of the Golden Guitar. I think after a very long ride today, we appreciate it, and maybe that explains the attire, you are dressed quite informally today. Welcome back. Now, why don't we talk about the IMF Angus. Forecasts for next year are out, and Australia's inflation is held to be at 3.6 per cent, second only to the Slovak Republic. But just because the IMF is reporting a surge back up again on inflation, it doesn't mean, does it, that the budget forecast of 2.75 per cent can't be reached?  

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well it's just another indicator that we're at the back of the pack in dealing with inflation. But we don't need reports to know that, even though they are telling us that Greg. What we know is that Australians are feeling enormous pain, whether it's at the checkout, when they pay their energy bills, when they pay their rent, when they pay their insurance. There's huge pain out there, and this report tells us that we are at the back of the pack in dealing with it. And we also know that interest rates are coming down in the US, in the UK, in Canada, in New Zealand and elsewhere in the world, Europe, but not in Australia, not in Australia, and that's because our homegrown inflation is raging. This government has failed to deal with it. It's out of its depth and it's out of touch. The Treasurer has made all the wrong moves, and our inflation situation is at the wrong end of where we want it to be.  

GREG JENNETT: 

Doesn't the IMF forecast though, assume an end to energy bill relief and other household supports that have been plugged in by the states and territories? These could well be extended, couldn't they, thus lowering inflation expectations?  

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well that's not the plan of the government. And clearly the plan of the government hasn't worked Greg, this is the important point. Their plan has failed. We've had three failed budgets from this Treasurer. He thinks the answer to an inflation problem is to throw money at it, but we know from history, if you throw money at it, you make it worse. That's exactly what's happened. 16% growth in spending in two years, red tape being wrapped around all of our businesses around Australia, a government that's had its energy policies wrong, and all of these things in combination, are putting us in a situation where our home grown inflation is amongst the very worst in the world. We're at the back of the pack, and as I say, Australians know that because they see it every time they buy anything right now. 

GREG JENNETT: 

Aren't our employment conditions far better though, and there is always a bit of a trade off in this. Aren't our employment conditions better than most in the pack? 

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well, let's talk about the trade off Greg. We've seen a reduction in real disposable incomes the standard of living of Australian households of almost 10%. Almost 10% since Labor came to power, their household standard of living has been slashed. The reality is Australians are poorer under Labor, and the reality is that there is no end in sight, as we see from this IMF report. This government has had its settings wrong. It's out of its depth. It's out of touch, this Treasurer simply hasn't got a clue, and we're seeing the results of that in this report, and we're seeing the results of it at the checkout with our energy bills and everything else we're buying right now. 

GREG JENNETT: 

Are you suggesting here, Angus, that the RBA board might in some way be shocked by these IMF figures? That's unlikely, isn't it?  

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well, I think the RBA board is worried about a government that, or a situation in our economy, where we've seen a collapse in labour productivity, where inflation isn't coming back to where it should be. We're at the back of the pack in dealing with that inflation. Of course, they're worried. They should be worried, but every Australian is worried, and that's the bigger issue. We're seeing households and small businesses all suffering immeasurable pain right now, Greg, this is a government that hasn't got a clue. It hasn't got a clue, and the result is Australians are paying a high price for a Prime Minister that's weak and a Treasurer that hasn't got a clue. 

GREG JENNETT: 

Can I take you to housing policy Angus, the Business Council of Australia, I'm sure you've had a chance, even between your Pollie Pedalling to familiarise yourself with their report. They do suggest a fund to incentivise lowering, or even the abolition, of state stamp duties. Clare O'Neil, the Housing Minister, reckons in design, that's just a bad tax any day of the week. Are you up for an examination of a federally led project to lower or abolish those state taxes? 

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well, it's a state tax as you rightly say. But I tell you what, we've already announced a very important policy on the supply side, Greg and this is about getting more houses into the market. If you want to get the cost of housing down for Australians, you need more supply. It's pretty simple. And the way to get more supply is to break those bottlenecks, whether it's transport infrastructure, roads, water, other utilities. We know that that's what's holding back housing supply in so many parts of Australia, including in my own electorate, we're seeing that every single day. More supply will mean lower cost of housing for Australians, and we desperately need that right now. That's what we're proposing. I know the Business Council agree with that. I know they agree with that, and that's the way you do it, and that's why we announced that fund over the weekend, which is all about getting more supply into the market.  

GREG JENNETT: 

Yeah we're still digesting elements of it, and it was a multi pronged policy that you did announce at the weekend. But in principle, are you ambitious to try, or would you be ambitious maybe I should say, if you became Treasurer of this country, to try to shepherd the states towards dropping or abolishing tax rates on stamp duty?  

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Well, as I said, Greg, our first and highest priority with housing is to get more supply into the marketplace, and that gets prices down. It's not complicated. It's economics 101, but we're seeing absolute dismal failure from this government. I mean, it set itself a housing target of 1.2 million. It's not even going to go close to that. It'll be something like 400,000 short. So this government has absolutely failed to get the housing into the market that's going to deliver affordable housing for Australians. We need to fix that. That is the first and highest priority, and that's what I am absolutely focused on, and that's why we made the announcement we did on the weekend.  

GREG JENNETT: 

All right, just a final one, of course, as we contemplate election timing for next year, if you won government, if you became Treasurer, you've constantly flagged, including here with us, Angus Taylor, the need for big cuts and fiscal correction. Would you hand down a quick fire budget soon after the parliament returns to achieve this?  

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Greg we've already opposed $92 billion of funding in the parliament, and this is not something oppositions have done in the past. It's all completely public. People can see what we've opposed, and that's a very significant amount of spending this government is committing, which is adding to inflation, which is making the situation worse for Australians. That's our top priority. We've, as I say, opposed very, very significant funding from the Labor Party that we think is not appropriate right now. We'll announce further policies between now and the election, but the one thing we're not going to do is spend money where it's not going to get very high positive impact for Australians, because right now, every bit of government spending adds fuel to the inflation fire. The truth is, if households can manage their budgets as tightly as they're having to right now, so too should governments, and we're seeing a complete failure on that from this Labor government as well as state governments around the nation.  

GREG JENNETT: 

All right, well, I'm sure we'll return to timing options and policy options for you when you're next back on the program Angus Taylor. Which means I can now say something in the nicest possible way, get on your bike! 

ANGUS TAYLOR: 

Thank you very much. And anyone who wants to support the great cause we're out supporting right now, Wandering Warriors, you can do that on the wanderingwarriors.org website and go to Pollie Pedal. But a great cause and a great event. 

 

ENDS.