Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Has the government modelled how many Australians will have to join the unemployment queues when the JobKeeper wage subsidy is suddenly withdrawn under the Prime Minister's hard snapback in September?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As the secretary of the Treasury said to the COVID committee recently, he expects unemployment in the September quarter to reach about eight per cent. We know that people are doing it tough at the moment. We've gone through a one-in-100-year event. But we also know that we're starting to see confidence pick up across the Australian economy and we have seen consumer confidence pick up around 90 per cent from its low—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will resume his seat. I say to the member for Rankin, before he raises his point of order, that the Treasurer is only 30 seconds in. The Treasurer has the call.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We've seen consumer confidence pick up around 90 per cent from its lows and business confidence pick up around 70 per cent from its lows. So Treasury—in relation to the question that was asked by the member for Rankin—will continue to assess the economic situation. We are undertaking a review into JobKeeper and we will make decisions about the future of that program and we will announce those decisions on 23 July. But I tell you what helps create jobs. It's lower taxes.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, we've had the preamble now. On direct relevance: the question goes specifically to whether the government has done modelling on this issue or whether it hasn't.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I hear the Manager of Opposition Business. On the face of it, he makes a reasonable point. The difficulty I've got is that the question had the assertion about 'hard snapback in September' and all the rest of it, which does open it up for the preamble that's occurred. I think the Treasurer now has to bring himself to the question. Where he was going just as the Manager of Opposition Business approached the dispatch box was onto the topic of tax, and that is not relevant to the question either directly or indirectly, I've got to say.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Treasury and the government continue to assess the situation. Decisions will be taken about the future of the JobKeeper program, and announcements will be made accordingly.