Kristina Keneally (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Prime Minister, Senator Birmingham. Why is the Prime Minister cutting JobKeeper, cutting JobSeeker and cutting wages when his government has spent almost a billion dollars in advertising?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is disappointing to start the new parliamentary year with a question that is so full of misleading elements and the Labor Party trying so much to run a consistent approach to a scare campaign yet again, even on matters of advertising. It is important for Australians to understand the support that's been available to them through the COVID-19 pandemic, to have the health advice they need through the COVID-19 pandemic and to have the information they deserve through the COVID-19 pandemic. There are a range of very sound, good reasons as to why the Australian public need and deserve information through this pandemic.

Further, the policy measures that our government has put in place, always set out against the principles of being proportionate, targeted and temporary, have served Australia to put it in a position to achieve economic outcomes that are the envy of much of the rest of the world. In our country we have seen 800,000 jobs come back during the course of the pandemic, from the initial collapse. In Australia we should be proud of the fact that we have seen the effective unemployment rate, which peaked around 15 per cent, come back to a position where it is on par with the overall unemployment rate of around 6.6 per cent. These are the achievements from having put in place not only policy responses that are effective but also policy responses that are true to the principles we set out—that they would be temporary and targeted to the circumstances, and that we will continue to adapt and adjust to those circumstances as we have successfully done at every stage of this global crisis.

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Keneally, a supplementary question?

Kristina Keneally (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The latest figures show that there are more than eight people on unemployment payments for every job vacancy. Why won't the Prime Minister rule out cutting JobSeeker back to $40 a day?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The support through the JobKeeper and JobSeeker supplements has been an important element of our response to date, but they're not the only elements of support to continue to create more jobs and get more Australians back into work. We now see record levels of participation in the Australian employment market. It is a remarkable situation, having faced a recession and a global pandemic, to now have a circumstance where the participation rate is at a record level, demonstrating the high levels of confidence that have been established across the Australian economy both in consumers and businesses. There is still a job to be done; we don't deny that there is still very clearly a job to be done to continue to grow employment. That is why we continue support, be it programs like JobTrainer, be it programs like HomeBuilder, be it subsidies for apprenticeships and traineeships. These are all important initiatives— (Time expired)

Scott Ryan (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Keneally, a final supplementary question?

Kristina Keneally (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How many of the 2.3 million small and family businesses in Australia and the 4.7 million jobs that they support are acceptable casualties of this government's decision to cut JobKeeper in March?

Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here we see the scare tactics from those opposite. I note the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Albanese, was out there today somehow suggesting that spending was too much and yet we have others who come in here suggesting there should be more spending. The inconsistency from those opposite, of course, knows few boundaries. These are incredibly trying times for many Australian businesses, as they are for businesses right around the world.

In Australia last year we saw a decline in terms of business insolvencies relative to previous years. That was a function of the extraordinary levels of support and changes government had put in place. We have always acknowledged that not every job and not every business could survive through a global pandemic but the success of this country in helping them survive stands out from the rest of the world. (Time expired)