CANBERRA, ACT, June 2 -- The Treasurer of Australia issued the following transcript:
Note
Subjects: wages, Budget legislation, fuel excise
Emma Rebellato:
But first, millions of Australians will find out later today what sort of pay rise they're going to get as the Fair Work Commission hands down its newest decision on wages.
Now this all comes as the government continues to pursue its major changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing in a bid to tackle housing affordability.
Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, joins us now from Canberra. Treasurer, thanks for joining us.
Jim Chalmers:
Thanks very much, Emma.
Rebellato:
So unions are asking for an increase of 6percent for lowest paid workers. Do you think that's a fair amount?
Chalmers:
Well, this is a really important week in our economy, Emma. This week is all about higher wages and lower taxes for workers and a fair go for first‑home buyers, and a really important part of that will be the decision that the Fair Work Commission takes today.
They will take that decision, and they will announce it, but the Albanese Labor government has made its views very, very clear. Workers on the minimum wage and on awards need and deserve a decent real wage increase today.
We've made that very clear. The minimum wage has already gone up $9,000 under this Labor government, but we want to see it go up further today, and that's because we recognise that higher wages and lower taxes are the best way to help working people with the cost of living by making sure that people are earning more and keeping more of what they earn.
Rebellato:
So what would be sustainable though in your view, because businesses are saying if it's more than 3.9percent that's going to be really hard to deal with, especially at the moment when the economy is quite tricky?
Chalmers:
Well, governments for good reason don't nominate a specific number, but we've made our view extremely clear on this occasion as we have on other occasions. We need to see a sustainable real wage increase for millions of workers on awards and on the minimum wage.
This is a really important way to help people with the cost of living, and when you combine it with the tax cuts which are before the parliament this week, this is all about making sure that workers can have higher wages and lower taxes at the same time as we make the housing market fairer for first‑home buyers.
Rebellato:
Treasurer, since the Budget we've heard that the government is consulting on the tax changes. Have you decided, will there be any carve‑outs?
Chalmers:
Well, first of all, it's not unusual for governments when they're making important tax reforms like we are to consult on the implementation details of the main legislation; that's happened on other occasions too when other governments have implemented broad‑ranging ambitious tax reforms like we are.
So we are consulting, that consultation is real, it's genuine, I've been doing a bit of that myself, and the Treasury department and others have been doing it too.
And because it's real and meaningful consultation, I don't want to pre‑empt the outcomes of that. The most important thing when it comes to these tax reforms is that they are before the parliament this week. We call on the Coalition not to vote against tax cuts and to vote against housing again, like they did in the first term. This is their opportunity to show that they've learned and that they've changed.
All indications are that the Coalition is limbering up to once again vote against tax cuts for workers and to vote against housing for first‑home buyers. That would be a very bad outcome. This government is all about lower taxes for workers, higher wages for workers and a fair go for people who are trying to establish a toehold in the housing market.
Rebellato:
Treasurer, to be fair, they have said they would support the tax cuts, but you've bundled everything all together. So let's talk about those, these carve‑outs. You're consulting, but when will you make a decision on this? When will businesses find out?
Chalmers:
Well, first of all, Emma, the reason that this legislation is presented together is because one part of it pays for the other, that's the responsible way to go about it. The money which is raised over the forward estimates from negative gearing and capital gains tax changes fund these tax cuts for workers and for businesses in a revenue neutral way. So that's a really important point.
Now on the other part of your question, when it comes to consultation, we're engaged in that right now. We will finalise that consultation as soon as we can, but making sure that we get it right, making sure that people's voices are heard.
But once again, if you look at the other episodes in this country where there's been major tax reform there have been multiple bills, there has been consultation on the implementation details. That is not unusual at all, and that's what we're engaged in right now.
Rebellato:
Treasurer, the fuel tax excise, the cut is due to end in a few weeks, not long at all. When are we going to find out for sure if it will be extended or not?
Chalmers:
Well, we're not expecting to extend it, we're not anticipating that, but as I've said on a number of occasions now, we review this more or less on a week‑to‑week basis to make sure that we're doing the right and responsible thing, and one of the reasons why this fuel tax cut is so important is because we have been able to take the edge off higher prices from the war in the Middle East, but it's responsible because it's temporary.
So we'll continue to review it on a weekly basis between now and the end of the month, but our current expectation is that we're not anticipating extending it beyond June.
Rebellato:
I want to take you to another story we're covering today, and this is that Australia now has its highest number of billionaires on record at 178, and the 20 richest Australians now hold more wealth than the bottom 3million households. What's your reaction to that?
Chalmers:
Well, one of the reasons for our tax reforms is we want more people doing well in this country. We don't make judgments about people who have done well under the existing arrangements; we want more people doing well, and we're prepared to take decisive and difficult steps to make that a reality.
And so if you look at the way that the tax system has interacted with the housing market, for example, it's been very generous to people who are already doing really well, less generous for people who are trying to establish themselves in the housing market. So that's one of the motivations for the changes that we're making.
Rebellato:
Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, thanks for your time.
Chalmers:
Thanks so much, Emma.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
