WEBVTT - Budget special: TDA speaks to the PM 0:00:05.480 --> 0:00:08.119 Hello, and welcome to the Daily OS. It's Wednesday, the 0:00:08.160 --> 0:00:11.760 twenty sixth of March, and I'm Billy. Now. Usually in 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:15.440 the afternoon we would be publishing our afternoon headlines, but 0:00:15.640 --> 0:00:19.560 today we have a very special edition for you. As 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:21.560 you would have been able to tell from the title. 0:00:21.720 --> 0:00:24.799 On this episode, you will hear an interview with Prime 0:00:24.800 --> 0:00:29.280 Minister Anthony Albanesi. Last night, the Labor government delivered its 0:00:29.320 --> 0:00:32.320 pre election budget, where it committed to tax cuts and 0:00:32.440 --> 0:00:36.239 energy bill relief, but the documents also show Australia is 0:00:36.320 --> 0:00:39.599 plunging further into deficit, which is likely to be shouldered 0:00:39.640 --> 0:00:44.360 by future generations. This morning, TDA political journalist Harry Sekulich 0:00:44.479 --> 0:00:47.479 caught up with Prime Minister Anthony Albanesi in his Parliamentary 0:00:47.479 --> 0:00:50.800 office courtyard to ask him about how the budget will 0:00:50.840 --> 0:00:56.920 address issues that matter to young people. Here is that interview, 0:00:58.680 --> 0:01:00.400 Prime Minister, Thank you so much for time. 0:01:00.800 --> 0:01:04.720 So the Daily Oss audience tell us consistently that mental health, 0:01:04.760 --> 0:01:08.320 supports and renting are the top concerns for them. But 0:01:08.360 --> 0:01:11.039 based on this budget, not much appears to be changing 0:01:11.160 --> 0:01:13.959 in those areas. So what is in the budget for 0:01:14.040 --> 0:01:14.640 young people? 0:01:15.040 --> 0:01:18.520 Well, there's an enormous amount in the budget for young people. Firstly, 0:01:18.600 --> 0:01:22.560 of course the cutting of further cutting of hex decks 0:01:22.959 --> 0:01:26.960 twenty percent wiped out if we're elected to office and 0:01:27.000 --> 0:01:28.600 that will kick in in July. 0:01:29.120 --> 0:01:31.399 It comes on top of the three billion. 0:01:31.080 --> 0:01:35.200 Dollars we've already reduced Shouldn't debt by on mental health. 0:01:35.240 --> 0:01:38.840 We have increased support as well. What we're doing is 0:01:38.880 --> 0:01:43.520 having these Medicare mental health centers where people can go 0:01:43.640 --> 0:01:47.560 in get that mental health support that they need for free. 0:01:47.680 --> 0:01:49.320 They just need their Medicare card. 0:01:50.200 --> 0:01:54.080 We're funded in excess of sixty there's more than thirty 0:01:54.080 --> 0:01:58.320 of those centers are open right around Australia as well, 0:01:58.360 --> 0:02:01.680 providing that support. And in addition to that, of course, 0:02:02.000 --> 0:02:05.160 we've had a forty five percent increase in rental assistance. 0:02:05.320 --> 0:02:10.560 That has made a substantial difference and for young Australians 0:02:10.720 --> 0:02:14.600 who are at school and the future young Australians to come. 0:02:14.760 --> 0:02:18.080 I think the agreement that was signed right here in 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:22.640 this space this week with Couensine, which now brings every 0:02:22.760 --> 0:02:27.120 state and territory into the better and Fairer schools funding 0:02:27.160 --> 0:02:30.880 agreement that was identified more than a decade ago. But 0:02:31.040 --> 0:02:33.280 what this will do is an additional sixteen and a 0:02:33.320 --> 0:02:36.760 half billion dollars from the Comwealth, as well as additional 0:02:36.760 --> 0:02:41.120 funding from state and territory governments to make sure that 0:02:41.440 --> 0:02:44.880 every student in every public school gets the funding that 0:02:44.919 --> 0:02:46.160 they deserve and they need. 0:02:46.600 --> 0:02:48.239 I just want to focus on some of the other 0:02:48.360 --> 0:02:51.560 cost of living measures that was in this budget. So 0:02:51.720 --> 0:02:55.520 that includes the tax cuts for all taxpayers, and also 0:02:55.560 --> 0:02:58.760 the energy bill relief which will be for all households, 0:02:58.960 --> 0:03:02.680 including those who might be on hir incomes. Do you 0:03:02.680 --> 0:03:07.160 think you should have focused on prioritizing those who are 0:03:07.200 --> 0:03:10.520 doing it toughest at the moment, Well, that's and targeting 0:03:10.560 --> 0:03:12.000 that support of cost living. 0:03:12.040 --> 0:03:15.200 Well, that's precisely what you do when you have universality. 0:03:15.840 --> 0:03:18.640 So that if you look at the tax cuts they 0:03:18.760 --> 0:03:23.440 aimed at, people on that lower rate in particular will 0:03:23.440 --> 0:03:26.680 benefit in terms of the proportion the average tax that 0:03:26.720 --> 0:03:30.400 they pay by lowering that first rate that kicks in 0:03:30.720 --> 0:03:33.320 once you get past the tax free threshold up to 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:37.720 forty five thousand dollars from sixteen cents to fifteen and 0:03:37.800 --> 0:03:41.920 then to fourteen. That will particularly benefit low income earners. 0:03:41.960 --> 0:03:45.160 It will benefit part time workers, people who are students 0:03:45.560 --> 0:03:50.200 working their way through university or TAFE. It will make 0:03:50.240 --> 0:03:54.000 a difference for them. You can't when you're changing the 0:03:54.080 --> 0:03:59.400 tax scales. You can't change the first marginal tax rate 0:04:00.120 --> 0:04:04.000 and then change it at the top end or not 0:04:04.120 --> 0:04:08.640 see that flow through. But we deliberately have targeted those 0:04:08.720 --> 0:04:12.160 lower middle income earners, which will mean that for average 0:04:12.160 --> 0:04:15.480 Australians will benefit because it's a top up from the 0:04:15.520 --> 0:04:18.479 tax cuts that began this year to the tune of 0:04:18.560 --> 0:04:22.440 two and a half thousand dollars extra dollars in people's pockets. 0:04:22.520 --> 0:04:25.040 You could change those tax brackets though, so they could 0:04:25.080 --> 0:04:28.400 increase according to a measure like inflation or the wage 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:32.680 price index. Would you consider adjusting the tax brackets. 0:04:32.279 --> 0:04:35.520 Well, we are adjusting in the weedge, we're adjust We're 0:04:35.520 --> 0:04:38.599 adjusting them down, is what we're doing. What we did 0:04:39.200 --> 0:04:42.360 through our tax changes was take four and a half 0:04:42.480 --> 0:04:46.440 thousand dollars of legislative tax cuts that I was going 0:04:46.480 --> 0:04:53.799 to receive less and redistributed that to low middle income earners. 0:04:54.279 --> 0:04:57.719 And they're the changes that we put through. The opposition 0:04:58.279 --> 0:05:02.960 screen blue murder those changes, said that they'd oppose them, 0:05:03.000 --> 0:05:05.560 said they'd roll them back. Then they said we should 0:05:05.600 --> 0:05:10.720 have an election well, they did what they said they 0:05:10.720 --> 0:05:14.520 wouldn't do, and eventually they passed the parliament because they 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:20.400 had support from the crossbenches as well, and in the 0:05:20.560 --> 0:05:22.240 end they went through unanimously. 0:05:22.839 --> 0:05:25.320 I just want to zoom out on the budget more broadly. 0:05:25.440 --> 0:05:28.240 We're heading into a twenty seven billion dollar deficit this 0:05:28.320 --> 0:05:32.120 year and the deficits are growing, and compared to last 0:05:32.160 --> 0:05:35.599 year's budget, they're actually estimated to be even deeper down 0:05:35.640 --> 0:05:38.720 the track. Who's going to be paying off this government debt? 0:05:38.920 --> 0:05:41.720 Well, what we have done is produced, of course, two 0:05:41.760 --> 0:05:46.200 budget surpass, the first time that that has happened in decades. 0:05:46.800 --> 0:05:50.640 We inherited a seventy eight billion dollar deficit when we 0:05:50.680 --> 0:05:53.000 came to office. We turned that into a twenty two 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:55.560 billion dollar surpace and then followed it up with another 0:05:55.600 --> 0:06:01.039 fifteen billion dollar surpas. The deficit which we announced last night, 0:06:01.279 --> 0:06:06.359 twenty seven billion, is half of what was anticipated just 0:06:06.480 --> 0:06:09.479 three years ago under the coalition. So what we have 0:06:09.680 --> 0:06:14.359 done is we've made over almost one hundred billion dollars 0:06:14.440 --> 0:06:18.040 of savings, we have reduced debt by around about one 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:21.600 hundred and eighty billion dollars, and going forward, the budget 0:06:21.640 --> 0:06:25.800 bottom line is two hundred and seven billion dollars better 0:06:26.240 --> 0:06:28.279 than the one that we inherited. 0:06:27.960 --> 0:06:31.360 But compared to last year's predictions, last year's predictions were 0:06:31.360 --> 0:06:33.600 actually a lot rosier than what we saw last night. 0:06:33.640 --> 0:06:34.360 Prime and stuff. 0:06:34.680 --> 0:06:38.280 Well, if you look at the midyear economic forecast, they've 0:06:38.320 --> 0:06:43.000 actually shown an improvement and that was just in December. 0:06:43.640 --> 0:06:46.840 What we've managed to do as to get inflation down 0:06:47.240 --> 0:06:51.400 to two point four percent, and unlike unlike what a 0:06:51.440 --> 0:06:54.680 whole lot of economists would say, which was to get 0:06:54.720 --> 0:06:58.799 inflation down, you've got to have unemployment rising, You've got 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:02.159 to really put the brakes on and leave people behind. 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:05.440 Now that's not the labor way, that's not a way 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:08.680 that I support. So we've managed to get inflation down 0:07:09.240 --> 0:07:13.120 whilst we're provided cost of living relief, not just tax cuts, 0:07:13.200 --> 0:07:16.560 not just energy bill relief, but cheaper medicines that have 0:07:16.680 --> 0:07:20.960 benefited Australians as well, free tape, all of these measures 0:07:21.000 --> 0:07:24.640 making a difference, cheaper childcare, two thousand and seven hundred 0:07:24.680 --> 0:07:28.680 dollars saved on childcare, whilst we've created. 0:07:28.480 --> 0:07:30.119 One point one million jobs. 0:07:30.200 --> 0:07:33.679 More jobs have been created since I've been Prime Minister 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:38.000 than at any term in Australian history. Over the last 0:07:38.040 --> 0:07:41.800 one hundred and twenty five years, and our unemployment rate 0:07:42.400 --> 0:07:45.960 on average is lower than it has been. All of 0:07:46.000 --> 0:07:50.720 these measures are combining so that real wages are increasing 0:07:50.800 --> 0:07:53.800 and that has particularly benefited young Australians. 0:07:54.480 --> 0:07:57.960 So, just on climate change, the budget showed us last 0:07:58.040 --> 0:08:01.480 night that after X tropical cyclic and OURFRED, Australia is 0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:05.080 expected to pay thirteen point five billion dollars in natural 0:08:05.120 --> 0:08:09.480 disaster repair. But we didn't see any significant investments into 0:08:09.600 --> 0:08:13.520 cutting emissions or any major climate announcements. Is there a 0:08:13.640 --> 0:08:18.280 disconnect between the government's climate priorities and spending measures. 0:08:17.800 --> 0:08:18.360 Not at all. 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:21.880 We've got in place the safeguard mechanism, the capacity investment 0:08:21.920 --> 0:08:25.880 skin that a driving investment in renewables. What we are 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:29.080 seeing with the investment that we have in renewables, and 0:08:29.120 --> 0:08:32.040 to take one measure that we had in last night's budget, 0:08:32.360 --> 0:08:36.080 three billion dollars for green metals. If we can produce 0:08:36.160 --> 0:08:40.080 green alu medium and green steel in Australia driven by 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:44.840 green hydrogen powered by solar and renewables, providing the green 0:08:44.920 --> 0:08:50.760 hydrogen that replaces coal in that system, then you have 0:08:50.920 --> 0:08:56.480 an enormous benefit going forward for reducing our emissions as 0:08:56.520 --> 0:08:59.080 well as supporting Australian jobs. 0:08:59.160 --> 0:09:01.800 But those products and tax credits are going to continue 0:09:01.880 --> 0:09:05.840 into twenty thirty six. Based on the government's own official figures, 0:09:06.400 --> 0:09:08.400 you're not on track to meet the forty three percent 0:09:08.559 --> 0:09:12.360 reduction target on two thousand and five levels by twenty thirty. 0:09:12.080 --> 0:09:14.600 You bet we are. You bet we're twenty two six, 0:09:15.520 --> 0:09:16.720 You bet we're on track. 0:09:17.320 --> 0:09:20.480 We are very confident that what the measures that we 0:09:20.559 --> 0:09:23.720 have in place already have at forty two point six. 0:09:24.080 --> 0:09:26.520 But what you are seeing is technology increasing. 0:09:26.880 --> 0:09:28.880 One of the things that we will hit forty three 0:09:28.920 --> 0:09:33.400 percent by absolutely. The development of new industries like green 0:09:33.480 --> 0:09:37.360 or hydrogen mean that if we seize the opportunities which 0:09:37.400 --> 0:09:40.000 are there, not only can we drive our missions down, 0:09:40.320 --> 0:09:44.240 we can support jobs. We can support industries, including new 0:09:44.320 --> 0:09:46.240 industries which will open up. 0:09:46.559 --> 0:09:48.360 What do you say to those people who want to 0:09:48.360 --> 0:09:52.440 see the government going further and faster on cutting emission. 0:09:52.320 --> 0:09:57.280 That we're going as fast as we can whilst being responsible. 0:09:57.320 --> 0:09:59.960 We want to make sure that we continue to build 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:01.240 community support. 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:03.720 We want to make sure we have energy security. 0:10:03.960 --> 0:10:09.880 I see climate change as something that must go through 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:15.080 all of our policies that we put forward and we have, 0:10:15.280 --> 0:10:20.400 of course the motor vehicle emission standards, that fuel standards 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:22.319 that we're talked about for a long period of time. 0:10:22.360 --> 0:10:26.520 It's taken my government to get those fuel standards in place. 0:10:26.840 --> 0:10:29.480 Just finally Prime mintersta just want you to picture a 0:10:29.520 --> 0:10:32.480 student that's heading to class today, maybe nineteen or twenty 0:10:32.600 --> 0:10:35.760 years old. He's not feeling too optimistic about the future 0:10:35.800 --> 0:10:37.720 of this country. What do you want them to know? 0:10:38.120 --> 0:10:40.320 I want them to know that Australia has a great 0:10:40.400 --> 0:10:43.520 future if we seize the opportunities. There's no country in 0:10:43.559 --> 0:10:47.160 the world you'd rather be than Australia. Where we're located 0:10:47.320 --> 0:10:50.160 in the fastest growing region of the world in human history. 0:10:50.559 --> 0:10:53.280 That presents the opportunity for us to be a renewable 0:10:53.400 --> 0:10:54.439 energy superpower. 0:10:54.760 --> 0:10:56.560 We need to compete in. 0:10:56.440 --> 0:10:59.000 That region by how smart we are, which is why 0:10:59.280 --> 0:11:01.760 it's good if they're going to university or doing a 0:11:01.800 --> 0:11:02.480 TAFE course. 0:11:03.200 --> 0:11:03.839 We need to. 0:11:03.760 --> 0:11:07.480 Make sure that we value that our industrial relations policies 0:11:07.480 --> 0:11:10.160 are making sure that they'll be properly paid. We want 0:11:10.160 --> 0:11:13.400 an economy that works for people, not the other way around, 0:11:13.440 --> 0:11:14.040 and that was a. 0:11:14.000 --> 0:11:16.680 Focus of our budget last night. 0:11:17.000 --> 0:11:20.280 It's a focus of my government in our first term 0:11:20.360 --> 0:11:23.439 and it will be an even stronger focus in our 0:11:23.480 --> 0:11:24.240 second term. 0:11:24.480 --> 0:11:27.040 Prome Minister Anthony Albineasy, thank you so much for joining 0:11:27.040 --> 0:11:28.559 the Daily Os in your courtyard. 0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:30.040 Yeah, thanks very much. 0:11:32.960 --> 0:11:35.240 My name is Lily Maddon and I'm a proud Arunda 0:11:35.480 --> 0:11:38.040 Bunjelung Cargotin woman from Gadigl country. 0:11:38.880 --> 0:11:42.040 The Daily Os acknowledges that this podcast is recorded on 0:11:42.040 --> 0:11:44.560 the lands of the Gatighl people and pays respect to 0:11:44.600 --> 0:11:47.920 all Aboriginal and Torres Straight Island and nations. We pay 0:11:47.960 --> 0:11:50.880 our respects to the first peoples of these countries, both 0:11:50.920 --> 0:11:51.840 past and present,