Topics: Treasurer’s politicisation of the public service

 

E&OE

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: Joining us live now in Canberra is the Shadow Treasurer, Angus Taylor. Angus, thanks for your time today. So, are these numbers accurate?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR: Oh, they're absolute nonsense. We always hear nonsense from this Treasurer and this is complete nonsense, as we've said before. We've had this policy costed by the Parliamentary Budget office. It's under $250 million. We'll put out the detailed costings in advance of the next election, but it's nothing like what he's talking about. But can I say here, Pete, this is an egregious politicisation of the public service to get the Treasury to do this analysis. It is absolutely at odds, in our view, with the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct. I'll be writing to Stephen Kennedy today, the Secretary of Treasury, asking for a full explanation as to why he has done this. And it is clear that Labor's 36,000 additional public servants is at least partly about the politicisation of the public service and using them to attack, in pure political terms, the opposition. This is not what a public service is for. But this is how the public service is being used by a bad Labor government that is more focused on politics than it is on beating the cost of living crisis, the standard of living crisis that has been engineered by this Treasurer who is out of his depth and out of touch. This is a modest tax cut for small businesses where we're seeing record levels of insolvencies. We have a Treasurer here who has never run a business and he doesn't want to see any businesses existing in this country.

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: Just to back things up a bit, Angus. Did you mention the cost of your policy is $250 million?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR: I said it was under $250 million. We've said before we've had it costed, we've worked closely with the Parliamentary Budget Office. It's nothing like what the Treasurer is saying. We'll be putting out the detailed costings in advance of the next election. Let's be clear, Pete. The public service is not there to make political attacks on your opponents. The Code of Conduct is on this. This is an egregious politicisation of a public service which Labor is bloating for its own purposes.

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: Alright, so this is according to Treasury though. The $1.6 billion figure which is at their low end is based on your parameters. And that's on an assumption that all businesses claim what they're entitled to. So, might they be right?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR: No, they're not right. The PBO has done these costings. We've worked very closely with them and it's very, very clear what they are. There's no ambiguity about the work we've been doing with the PBO.

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: That's a pretty big discrepancy, though. $250 million to several billion.

 

ANGUS TAYLOR: Well, it is, absolutely. You have to ask the Labor Party why they're politicising the public service, Pete. That's the question you need to ask this Treasurer who is out of his depth, who is out of touch and he is so desperate now, so desperate that he has resorted to politicisation of the public service. Stephen Kennedy will need to answer why he has done this and how this is not a breach of the Australian Public Service Code of Conduct.

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: Is it politicisation though if they've come up with the costs that you haven't announced yet?

 

ANGUS TAYLOR: We've worked very closely with the Parliamentary Budget Office and Treasury is able to see that. So, there's no ambiguity about this, Pete. We've got a Treasurer here who is politicising the public service. That's why he needs to add 36,000 public servants because he, frankly, is on a mission to turn the public service into an arm of the Labor Party. I mean, this is absolutely outrageous stuff from the Treasurer. He is losing the economic debate because Australians have said Labor has not delivered what they promised they were going to deliver. They promised cheaper electricity, they promised lower cost of mortgages, they promised a lower cost of living and they've seen the exact opposite. He's out of his depth, he's out of touch, he's never run a business and quite frankly, he won't stop until there's no small businesses left in this country.

 

PETER STEFANOVIC: Alright, we'll have to leave it there. Angus Taylor, the Shadow Treasurer, there. Coming on quickly to respond to the Federal Treasurer, Jim Chalmers, who was on the program last hour. Appreciate your time, Angus. Thank you.

 

ENDS