August 8, 2024
PETER STEFANOVIC: Joining us live now. Shadow Home Affairs Minister James Paterson. James, good to see you. So this is quite a public squabble that's going on. Is it fair to say that the loser in all this is the mortgage holder?
JAMES PATERSON: That's absolutely fair to say, and good on you Pete for persisting with the Prime Minister this morning and just trying to get a straight answer with him. I mean, there's really only two possibilities here. One is that the Prime Minister doesn't understand what he's talking about, and that is a possibility because this is a bloke that's often not across the detail. Or he was trying to willfully mislead you and your viewers. The RBA has been crystal clear here on multiple occasions now. The Reserve Bank Governor has said, Michele Bullock, that inflation is “homegrown” and now she has also said that state and federal governments are adding to public demand and making their task harder. And what that means is that interest rates have to be higher for longer than they would otherwise be, and households have to bear more of the brunt of the pain of getting inflation under control because the Albanese government isn't willing to do their part and can't keep spending under control.
STEFANOVIC: Well, on that note, more spending today. And I certainly don't begrudge anyone working in the childcare sector for earning another 100 bucks a week because they work very hard for it and deserve it. The Prime Minister said this announcement today won't be inflationary. What are your thoughts on it?
PATERSON: You're right Pete, childcare workers do outstanding work, and they deserve to be paid well for what they do. And we will carefully consider the details of this announcement. As you say, it's only been briefed to the media this morning. We don't have the full details, and we want to carefully consider a range of consequences from this, including on inflation, the potential inflationary impact and the impact on the budget. Because setting this decision aside, over the three budgets now, the government has added $315 billion of new spending or $30,000 for every household. They completely let go of the purse strings in their most recent budget. And as the Reserve Bank is now calling them out on, it is driving inflationary pressures worse in this country. I mean, around the world, countries like Canada and New Zealand are lowering their interest rates. The Reserve Bank Governor said it's possible that interest rates will remain high in Australia for another six months and even rise. Australians shouldn't have to bear the brunt of that pain, but they are because this government can't manage the economy.
STEFANOVIC: Okay, still with the Prime Minister, he did say this morning when I asked him about the Iranian ambassador, that the Ambassador will be staying in the country. That's despite those highly, highly inflammatory tweets. Should he stay or go in your view?
PATERSON: Well, the Prime Minister has said what the Iranian ambassador said is anti-Semitic. The Foreign Minister has said that they are repugnant. And yet what are they actually doing about it, other than the most mild rhetorical rebuke from a DFAT bureaucrat? There have been no consequences for the ambassador. And this is not his first offence. He's been saying things like this for months. As my colleague, Senator Claire Chandler has pointed out, including to DFAT officials in Senate estimates. But they have done nothing about it. There has to be meaningful consequences, otherwise it will continue. And Pete, let's not forget, we also have a aspiring candidate of the Prime Minister's for the Labor Party palling around with this Ambassador, hanging out with him and frankly showing very poor judgement. And what will the Prime Minister do about that?
STEFANOVIC: Yeah, I think we might have the answer. All right, James, thank you. We'll talk to you again soon.
ENDS
