Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. How much shorter would unemployment queues be today if the government had implemented the JobKeeper wage subsidy earlier and included more groups, including casuals?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's a joke getting a question about jobs from the member who was going to saddle Australians with the highest tax-to-GDP ratio in the history of the Commonwealth.

Dr Chalmers interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will resume his seat. The member for Rankin will come to the dispatch box and withdraw.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And the member for Rankin is warned. The Treasurer has the call.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As the member for Rankin is well aware, we announced the most generous and most significant wage subsidy program in the history of this country, with some six million Australian workers covered by the 860,000 businesses that have formally enrolled in this program. Now, as the member for Rankin is aware, the eligibility for this program was set out very clearly: full-time workers, part-time workers, long-term casuals, sole traders and those in the not-for-profit sector. And, as the member for Rankin is aware, Treasury has forecast that unemployment is expected to reach around 10 per cent. But for the JobKeeper program, it would have been 15 per cent. So the JobKeeper program and the financial commitments from this government have helped save lives and save livelihoods.