Ross Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer please update the House on the Morrison government's JobKeeper program and, in particular, how this unprecedented economic lifeline has helped millions of Australian families and businesses to get through the COVID-19 pandemic?

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

I thank the member for Bonner for his question and acknowledge his background in small business. As he reminds me, he has been voted by his colleagues as the nicest guy in Parliament House—with apologies to the Speaker!

The JobKeeper program has been a remarkable program. When Australia was staring into the abyss in the early stages of this pandemic and Treasury were warning that the unemployment rate could reach as high as 15 per cent and there could be a double-digit fall in economic growth, the JobKeeper program came to the rescue. The JobKeeper program, at its peak, was supporting 3.6 million Australian workers and around one million Australian businesses. That's nearly one-third of all Australian workers and nearly one-half of all Australian businesses.

Dr Chalmers interjecting—

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

The member for Rankin won't interject again.

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

The JobKeeper program, which has been a rescue package for the Australian community at a time of need, has helped, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia, save around 700,000 jobs at a cost of an expected $90 billion.

As the economy has strengthened, we have seen thousands and thousands of our fellow Australians graduate off the JobKeeper program. Preliminary data from the ATO for the month of January has shown that there were around 600,000 fewer Australian workers on JobKeeper in the month of January compared to the December quarter, and around 140,000 fewer Australian businesses on JobKeeper in the month of January compared to the December quarter. That means that around 2.7 million Australian workers have graduated off JobKeeper. That is a sign of an economic recovery that is well underway, and it follows the unemployment rate falling to 6.4 per cent. The underemployment rate is at its lowest level in many years. Up to 94 per cent of the 1.3 million Australians who either lost their jobs or saw their working hours reduced to zero at the start of this pandemic are now back at work.

There is a long way to go. There are sectors and regions across the economy that are still doing it tough, and the Morrison government has their back. There's continued economic support that continues to roll out across the economy, and our focus is on creating jobs. That is what we're seeing right now in the Australian economy.