Interview on Sky News with Kieran Gilbert and Laura Jayes

Subjects: Labor’s 45 per cent emissions reduction target; Labor’s $387 billion tax hit; George Christensen

EO&E…………………………………………………………

KIERAN GILBERT:

Simon Birmingham, the Minister for Trade. Thanks so much for your time. Can you explain for our viewers what’s the difference in terms of the cost of your climate and energy plan, Vis a vie Labor’s? 

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

It’s very hard to explain on what the cost of Labor’s plan is because the Labor Party won’t give any detailed answers in that sense. We’ve been very careful in outlining a climate plan around emissions reductions in the order of 26 to 28 per cent and we believe that is manageable in terms of being responsible globally, in fact per capita terms, per GDP terms, it’s amongst the highest figures in the world and yet Labor is saying they virtually want to double that and go to 45 per cent in terms of GDP, and they’re relying on this idea that the difference is they’ll allow the gap to be fueled by international permits, and what Mr Shorten is saying though is that he will somehow use old modelling, modelling around four years or so older than that which is completely out of date in terms of the pricing of those international figures, modelling is relying upon for international permits, a price around $5 or $10 the permit yet it’s actually more likely to be closer to $50 even on conservative projections at present, so that is a real concern in terms of what it means, the cost of Labor’s policy and projections put that potentially in the order of $25 billion and, that’s $25 billion of money that Australian businesses would be sending offshore to buy international permits that they could not otherwise spend by employing more Australians growing their businesses paying their employees more.

LAURA JAYES:

So Labor says the cost of its plan is pretty much on par with the Coalition’s because that gap in the emissions target will be made up by international permits, do you have a problem with, I accept the argument you’ve just put forward about where businesses invest their money. But this is a practice used by many nations right around the world?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

But it doesn’t stack up Laura, in terms of the idea that you can have Australian businesses sending $25 billion or whatever the figure is, it’d be nice if Bill Shorten put an estimate on it, offshore each year without or offshore over a period of time, you can’t be sending that sum of money offshore without it being a lost opportunity to Australian business to invest in their businesses, to invest in reducing emissions within Australia or investing employing more Australians or to invest in paying their employees more, in the end the cost for the Labor Party’s policy has to be more because you’ve got even on what they’re saying, billions of dollars going offshore even though they won’t tell us how many permits they expect will be purchased, or the actual price.

KIERAN GILBERT:

Most developed countries use permits, this is something that’s baffled a lot of observers in this debate. Why doesn’t the Government do it? Because it would reduce the cost on companies and the economy if you were to use credible international permits. What’s the reason you don’t do that?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM: Well the Government’s approach has been to make sure that we support Australian businesses transition in Australia, our emissions reduction fund is invested in changes in Australian businesses for more energy efficiency for Australian businesses, in better land use practice…

KIERAN GILBERT:

Why don’t you do it? You could do it?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM: …making a transition in relation to climate change, we should spend that money on successfully supporting Australian businesses to do so, not be forcing Australian businesses to simply go offshore and spend money offshore, and in doing so the opportunity cost is a real one in terms of those Australian businesses not being able to spend on investments in their businesses on their employees on changing their businesses.

LAURA JAYES:  

Labor says it’s going to have bigger surpluses then the Government, this is prudent given the international headwinds that the IMF warns are ahead?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

It’s also just not believable, I mean the last time the Labor Party handed down a surplus was of course way back in 1989, so you just can’t believe that in the end if in office, they won’t yield to every spending priority, or spending commitment or spending request that comes along because the track record is there indeed every day in this election campaign so far, Bill Shorten is promising hundreds of millions of dollars of extra spending and that just keeps adding up and adding up, you know full well that the extra tax is $387 billion of extra taxes over the longer term, will have a dampening effect on the economy, Labor will no doubt claim that their projections for economic growth are exactly the same as the Liberal-National parties but they’re going to apply three $387 billion of extra taxes, you can’t assume that won’t have a dampening impact on economic growth, so in fact the longer term you’ll see revenue suffer because growth will be weaker, today Bill Shorten is up in the Northern Territory, and what we’ve seen happen in the Northern Territory under a Labor Government there in the last few years, we’ve seen an enormous decline in their budget position, huge deficits recorded and a Labor Government now making around $11 billion worth of cuts because they can’t afford to invest in the services, that the risk that comes from a high taxing high spending Labor Government.

KIERAN GILBERT:

Why doesn’t the Government embrace you know the whole of your tax reduction plan? It seems you’re just a bit concerned about putting a dollar figure on how much is going to higher income earners, because I mean the Liberal Party is meant to be the party of aspiration, why not say ok, yes this is the figure for those earning over a $180,000 of tax relief over 10 years because the Government hasn’t done that this week, We asked repeatedly on Sunday by David Speers. We asked Josh Frydenberg about it, Prime Minister’s been asked about it. No one has given a number.

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

What’s relevant Kieran, is that we are keeping the progressive nature of the tax system in terms of those high income earners in place. That if you are in the top 20 per cent of Australian income earners, you’re currently contributing around 60 per cent of the income tax take in Australia and under our reforms you’ll still be contributing around 60 per cent of the income tax take in Australia, so not changing the fact that high income earners pay the vast majority of income tax in Australia currently and they still will under our changes, but what our changes do, is they say if your ordinary income earner in Australia, if you’re a middle income earner you’re going to take on an extra shift, work a second job, get a promotion, you’re not going to be pushed up into a higher tax bracket, because for those people they’re not looking at the $180,000 plus or $200,000 plus tax bracket they’re working within the range where the risk is you get pushed into that 37c the dollar tax bracket that we are abolishing, but Bill Shorten will keep and the fundamental difference in terms of where Australians start to pay more tax under Labor’s policies compared with ours is for income earners starting at $45,000.

KIERAN GILBERT:

But you know what the number is to know what the figure is? You’re just not sharing it?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Well Kieran what’s important is we don’t want to buy into Labor’s scare campaigns that they will run in this space, to make sure that people understand high income earners in Australia, We still continue to carry the overall heavy burden of paying income tax, top 20 per cent of income earners today pay around 60 per cent.

KIERAN GILBERT:

So the Government knows it but just not sharing a number?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

The opportunity that Australians need to focus on here, is for those who are going to have bracket creep eliminated under our policies, and if you’re an Australian who’s earning around $80,000 a year, you’re a real risk under the Labor Party under their policies of being pushed up into higher tax brackets whereas under us we’re going to eliminate that 37c in the dollar tax bracket for those middle income earners, so that is an incentive to be able to work an extra shift work an extra day be able to actually go out and keep more of your hard earned earnings and to be able to spend on the things that matter to pay down your mortgage faster, to invest in your superannuation something which Bill Shorten will tax to the tune of an extra $34 billion, even though he pretended earlier this week and that wasn’t the case, and in the end we want to make sure that Australians have that incentive to work and to invest and to save for their future.

LAURA JAYES:

George Christensen has been in the headlines again this week. He spent 168 days in Manila. He has apparently neglected some of his parliamentary committee duties. Why is it okay for him to skip work and be paid for it? It’s not alright for every other Australian?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

I don’t think anybody would say that George Christensen doesn’t stand up for his community, he is a very vocal advocate for the people of Central and Northern Queensland and he does that in many different ways I can say as trade minister, that George is in touch with me regularly in relation to matters affecting the sugar industry as well as his tourism minister in relation to matters affecting the tourism industry there.

LAURA JAYES:

We would all like to work from Holidays, Senator why is it okay for him but not okay for the rest of us?

SIMON BIRMINGHAM:

Well all I’m doing is, is relaying my personal experience that George Christensen is somebody who is frequently calling, messaging, communicating me, arguing for his community on issues that are important in terms of the jobs that entral and North Queensland rely upon, the tourism industry, the sugar industry and those agricultural sectors as well as of course his positions in relation to mining industries.

KIERAN GILBERT:

Mr Birmingham thanks very much.

 

[ends]

Media Contact: Coalition Campaign Headquarters: T: (07) 3557 7533 / E: media@cchq.org.au