Rex Patrick (SA, Centre Alliance) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Minister. I wasn't intending to say anything bad about the banks; I was just trying to understand what the government had put in place, so I thank you for that answer. I have one question that flows from that answer. Again, it's based on another constituent who is in a pretty good position but has noted that the margin between the official interest rate set by the RBA and the credit that is being offered to them in support of their business during the crisis is quite high. It's quite a large margin. You mentioned that there were reports going back, I presume, to the regulator in relation to interest rates. Does the government have any sort of expectation—and I appreciate it does depend on risk profiles—as to what is reasonable in respect of the difference between the RBA interest rates and what banks should be setting as interest rates in relation to these coronavirus payments?