E&OE
SUBJECTS: Reserve Bank; interest rates; Lidia Thorpe resignation from the Greens; Voice Referendum
PETER STEFANOVIC, HOST: Well, joining us live now from Canberra, the NDIS and Government Services Minister Bill Shorten. Bill, good to see you. Thanks for your time as always. We'll start off with the economy. There is going to be a shock today, it seems likely, with the RBA again to raise interest rates. Is that a sign your policies are not working?
BILL SHORTEN, MINISTER FOR THE NDIS AND GOVERNMENT SERVICES: No, It's a sign that the Reserve Bank is trying to do what it thinks should be dealt with inflation. The reality is if the Reserve Bank, which is independent, makes this decision, that is going to be incredibly painful for millions of Australians who are paying their mortgages off. I understand the Reserve Bank's motivated to try and reduce inflation, but you know, I see a lot of commentators sort of paying for more and more increases to the cash rate. I think some of the people who are calling for more and more increases to the cash rate, some of the commentators really don't understand the harm they're causing. The mortgage holders aren't the people driving inflation. And anyway, I'm just I can see life's getting tougher. In terms of our economic policies. We can't affect, we can't drive, make the decision on the mortgage rate, but we can attempt to relieve pressure on cost of living. That's why wages, the wages reform is what we've been in the business of, and that's seeing modest increases in wages, childcare support, so easing the cost of childcare, some energy relief to try and dampen some of the inflationary pressures there. Labor is doing what it can. Of course, some of the problems that we're trying to tackle didn't start yesterday. They've been ten years in the making.
STEFANOVIC: I'm getting a sense that it would be your wish that the RBA does not increase interest rates today, am I right?
SHORTEN: I think there's millions of people who have that wish, don't they Peter?
STEFANOVIC: Yeah. I mean, the problem is the RBA's got to stop people from spending because inflation does more damage in the long run, doesn't it? So that needs to be brought under control.
SHORTEN: Yeah, yeah. That's the RBA's remit. And again, they're independent. Just sometimes economic history shows that inflation is a lagging indicator. So, in other words, last quarter was big, but some of the signs are that inflation is easing this quarter. So, if the Reserve Bank increases mortgage rates in the future to deal with something which is already coming down in the past, it could cause pain. I mean, it's a tough question, but mortgage holders, you know, they go to work, they pay their taxes, they're delivering the productive part of the economy and eight increases is massive already. When people borrow money and they apply for a loan from the bank, the bank has APRA guidelines where they look at not only what a person can pay at the time of the loan, but if there's an increase of 2 to 3% above what it is at the moment that people are getting loans, so they look at their capacity to pay an extra 3%. If we have more increases this year, as some of the commentators are predicting, it moves beyond the zone in which people were able to borrow money. It moves above that 3%. And so, we're going to have a lot of really good people caught up in economic decisions for issues that they can't control. And so I am mindful of the pain. But Labor's doing what it can with the levers that we have, and that's why modest wage rises, childcare support, dampening the pressure of energy price increases, cheaper medicine, they're all things which do assist the economy and assist, most importantly, people's wallets and their bank accounts.
STEFANOVIC: Okay, something out of your control. Lidia Thorpe, she's out of the Greens now. Now independent. But how much of a problem could she be for your government?
SHORTEN: Well, the Senate's the Senate. Australians have elected a large crossbench already, so we'll deal with who we've got to deal with to pass our laws and to act in the best interest of Australians. So, you know, she's an issue for the Greens. They're split. We're not commenting on that, not getting into all the individual personalities up in the Senate. I work in the House of Reps. I find the Senate not easy to understand on a good day.
STEFANOVIC: Could she derail your Yes campaign for The Voice though?
SHORTEN: No, I sincerely hope not. That's about including, recognising First Australians in our Constitution. Everyone's entitled to an opinion, but I'm optimistic that Australians, as we get closer to the election, as more information becomes available, as people turn their mind to it, they'll say that recognition and a commitment to consult people about decisions affecting them before you make them is just basic good manners and long overdue in Australia.
STEFANOVIC: Okay, we just heard from Peter Dutton. The Liberal Party's still working out its position on The Voice, but it's urging the Prime Minister to be less tricky and more informative. Does the Prime Minister and by extension your party need to be more up front with more information?
SHORTEN: There's plenty of information out there already, and more information will be provided as we get closer to the referendum. But I think that - haven't we all been in a sort of a negotiation with someone who always has another question, always, no matter what information you provide, the person who you’re negotiating with says, I need a bit more time, I need a bit more information. I do wonder if Mr. Dutton's just putting up a sort of a wall of noise about more questions, more questions. I don't know if he's fair dinkum about ever supporting the Voice, and so I hope he is. He's attending the meetings of the Referendum Working group. I hope that this constant request for more information is not just an excuse to run down the clock and sew dissension. We'll have to wait and see.
STEFANOVIC: All right, Bill Shorten, appreciate it. We'll talk to you again next week.
