TRANSCRIPT: Doorstop – Wagga Wagga Electorate Office – 1 August 2018
Subjects: Dr Mark’s Hygenie, Entrepreneurs’ Programme Accelerating Commercialisation Grant, Corporate Tax Cuts, Drought, Wagga Wagga by-election candidate
E&OE
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Really fantastic today, Dr Mark Wotherspoon a Wagga Wagga dentist has a little invention called Dr Mark’s Hygenie and what it does – it protects, it sterilises, it cleans dentures, dental equipment – the sorts of things that a lot of Australians have, whether they are dentures, whether they are mouth guards he has come up with this great idea in his back yard shed and what the Federal Government is doing, with an accelerated commercialisation grant, is providing him and his company with $566,715 to make that invention that is perhaps potentially going to go worldwide so we want to, as a Government, back our small businesses, we want to back innovation, we want to back commercialisation.
That’s what this entrepreneurial fund is doing, that’s what we are doing with Dr Mark’s Hygenie – it is a great little invention and this particular innovation, this particular entrepreneurial idea is just one of many, many right across the nation which is receiving one of these grants to promote it on the world stage and I know that he is already in talks with people who are going to make this on a commercial scale in South Korea – that builds on our Free Trade Agreement with that particular nation.
This is really good stuff, this is going to make sure that a Wagga Wagga company, a Wagga Wagga idea, gets on the world stage. I’m really behind these sorts of innovation ideas, certainly as the Small Business Minister in a previous life prior to becoming Deputy Prime Minister.
I saw these sorts of ideas right across Australia, but particularly in regional Australia. The mother of invention sometimes comes from back yard sheds in regional Australia. So I am right behind this idea, I’m really excited about it and very, very excited at the fact that Dr Mark Wotherspoon – a Wagga Wagga dentist – has come up with an idea that is potentially going to make it so much easier for people to clean their dentures, they put them in this little device, I’ll get him to explain it a bit more but it is a great idea, it is a Wagga Wagga idea and it is getting on the world stage so well done, Dr Mark.
Any questions?
JOURNALIST:
What funding initiative is the Federal Government supporting this under?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, it’s the accelerated commercialisation entrepreneurial fund, so it is a fund out of the Small Business budget, it is a fund that we use to invest in, as a Federal Government, small businesses which come up with ideas, small business people who have an innovative idea that they want to put on a large scale, commercial scale and so, you know, I am really behind this, this is a great Wagga Wagga invention.
It’s going to create jobs, not just here but also across the nation and indeed in partnership with one of our free trading nation partners.
So, look, it is a good idea and now I’ll get Dr Mark to explain a little bit more about how he came up with the idea, how he is going to try to market it and what potential he believes it has.
JOURNALIST:
How did you first come across it?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, when I rang Dr Mark to explain to him that he has got the funding and he explained to me what the whole idea behind it is and, you know, as the Member for Riverina – I’m still a local member even though I am the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia. I still love these ideas which come out of the Riverina. It is a fantastic area; we have got some of the most inventive minds around the Riverina.
Dr Mark Wotherspoon of course is very, very well known here in the area and he has been a dentist for many, many families over the years and he has had this spark of an idea, he’s now exploring it with the help of the Federal Government. I hope that it becomes an international success.
JOURNALIST:
Is Dr Wotherspoon your dentist, Mr McCormack?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
No he is not, actually. I go to Green Apple Dentistry. There’s a plug for Dr Caroline, but look, he’s certainly looked down my throat on one or two occasions and cleaned the plaque away but he wasn’t my regular dentist, no.
But I do, in fact, go to the dentist regularly, in fact every six months. You need to and anybody out there, make sure that you have your oral health intact because, you know, if you have got your oral health intact, everything else takes care of itself. And smile a lot.
I’ll get Dr Mark to explain Hygenie a bit more.
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
Thank you very much, Mr McCormack and the company is extremely grateful for Mr McCormack’s encouragement and the Federal Government’s financial support. It will make an enormous difference.
I’d also like to take the opportunity to thank our local and Sydney investors. Seed investors who have been on board for over 12 months for their support because without them we would not have got to this stage.
Removable Oral Appliances such as mouth guards, orthodontic retainers, occlusal splints and dentures are an essential part of modern dentistry.
The profession has known for a long time the importance of cleaning these thoroughly with a soft brush and a liquid sanitising gel, not toothpaste. Failure to do this thoroughly every time will see an accumulation of plaque, germs and food scraps. Patients are not happy with the smell, they are not happy with the fact that it is not hygienic and they are not happy with the fact that they can go on to cause numerous oral diseases. Oral diseases are linked closely with general body ailments as well.
For many years I’ve watched my patients struggle and, in fact, family members struggle to maintain their oral appliances, dental appliances and with that in mind we went on to invent Dr Mark’s Hygenie.
Dr Mark’s Hygenie is a handheld, purpose-built device that will clean, store and protect removable dental appliances faster, better and safer than all existing commercial options.
JOURNALIST:
What will half a million dollars allow you to do? Are you working on prototypes or patents?
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
Well, we are well past that point. What the AC grant will allow us to do is, as it says, will accelerate the process so we have just run through second base but the extra money will allow us to get to third base a lot quicker. We would have gotten there, but this is certainly going to accelerate the process and we are very grateful.
JOURNALIST:
When is the commercial release of the product?
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
We are commencing clinical trials and market testing in September. We hope to be into the Australian market early 2019 and we go on to the rest of the world from there.
We are already in talks with markets in the US, South Korea, Japan, Germany and the UK.
JOURNALIST:
Do you plan to manufacture the Genie here in Wagga?
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
Look, the commercial reality is that cost is a big factor and we can’t have it made, it is quite complex to have it made in plastics, so it will be made in Gwangju, South Korea. Plus, we do have a world vision and proximity to market is an important factor and 80 per cent of the potential market is in the northern hemisphere so it will be made in South Korea.
JOURNALIST:
When did you first come up with this idea? How long has it been to get to this point?
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
Look, we are in our fourth year. It did start with a couple of dishwashing brushes and a glue gun in my back shed and a number of, you know, is this a silly idea or not but we have now got to the point where it is all happening. It’s very exciting.
JOURNALIST:
Are any local jobs expected to be created as a result of, I guess, moving forward?
DR MARK WOTHERSPOON:
It is hard to tell. We are still, as I said, we’ve just run past second base and it is hard to know whether there will be local jobs involved. Certainly the product will sell. How we go forward with that I will leave that to our managing director and CEO.
JOURNALIST:
Michael, if the government can’t get the corporate tax cuts through the Senate will it still be taking this to the next election?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, it is the Government’s intention to take it to the next election and, certainly, we will be trying to get the corporate tax cuts through the Senate. Negotiations will continue with cross benchers and I’ve got every faith Senator Mathias Cormann to do just that.
JOURNALIST:
They have seemed quite unpopular with (inaudible) we’ve seen in Longman as well that seemed to play a bit of a contribution but are they particularly unpopular in the bush?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, look, I know when I go around and talk to business and I go around and talk to people. They want their businesses to be paying a competitive tax rate on the global scale. We are a globalised economy, we need to be able to compete with our international partners and whether they are our free trade partners or whether, indeed, our competitors, we need to be able to make sure that we have got a corporate tax rate which is competitive on the international scale and when we have businesses which are paying 27.5 per cent and, you know, we want to get that down to 25 per cent. It is still a little bit above what other countries are charging their corporations. So we need to make sure we have got a very competitive economy – we do that by lowering the taxes, we do that by lowering taxes whether they are personal income tax cuts or whether they are indeed corporate tax cuts, so, you know, and we are working towards that. We are trying to make our economy even more competitive. What Labor stands for is higher taxes, whether it is personal or business and at the end of the day you will pay more under Labor.
JOURNALIST:
But as rural Australia toughs it out and is going through a bloody hard time, is it bad politics to be handing out tax cuts to corporate Australia?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, you know, the banks also have played a major part in helping rural Australia and I know of so many people who have applied for jobs with me who are, you know, are in the business field now and are in the workforce now – their first job was with a bank. Banks have provided many, many jobs for many, many people. They have provided them with a start in life and at the end of the day we need to make sure that we support all organisations and that is what we are trying to do.
It is not just the big banks, it is all corporations which we are trying to get down to a level playing field and a lower tax rate as far as corporate tax is concerned. We need to be globally competitive and we are doing just that and, you know, it is all well and good for Labor to go out and talk about health cuts and education cuts. The fact is we are putting more money into health than ever before. The fact is with a needs-based funding model with schools, we are putting more money into education than ever before. And these Labor lies won’t wash when it comes to the general election. Labor are telling far too many lies but when you look at the hard, stark reality of the facts and figures – we, the Liberal Nationals’ Government is putting more money into schools, more money into hospitals, more money into the pockets of business people and personal income taxpayers than Labor ever did or ever will.
JOURNALIST:
Just sticking with this kind of rural aspect, do you think that after the New South Wales Government came out with its relief package, Barnaby said that the Federal Government probably needs to a little bit more. Do you think that the Federal Government needs to do more to help rural Australia?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Oh certainly, I’m talking to the Prime Minister and making sure that the farmers’ plight is well listened to and Malcolm Turnbull and I and along with a number of other ministers, including the Agriculture Minister David Littleproud, went on a drought tour quite a few weeks ago now. We came up with a package of measures that have certainly helped and certainly played a large role.
Now the State Government has always been responsible for animals and the landscape and the Federal Government by and large has looked after the people. We’ve certainly done that with millions of dollars poured into rural financial counsellors so that farmers and their partners can get a rural financial expert around their kitchen table to talk about how they can better drought-proof their farm, about how they can utilise, already, the advantages and the programs that are in there for them at the moment and I would urge and encourage farmers not to self-assess but to seek help where they need it. And we’ve also put money on the table for rural mental health programs, so that’s important too, because not every farmer is doing it easy at the moment and certainly the strain on them is far greater for some than others, both financially and emotionally.
But what we have also done is extended the eligibility for the farm household assistance from three years to four years and we have tweaked the criteria to make it easy, make it simpler for farmers and their partners to fill out their forms.
JOURNALIST:
Barnaby Joyce has suggested abolishing that criteria for that allowance. What is your reaction to that?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, we are looking at everything at the moment and we are looking to see how we can, on the back of what the State Government has done, and look, what we can’t do is make it rain but what we can do is make some provision for more help for farmers and that is exactly what we are doing. I’ve certainly been in discussions with the Prime Minister and we will see what we can further do as far as assistance going forward and, you know, it’s very tough. Coming from a generational farming family I know how tough it is. My two brothers-in-law are on the land and I know around the Riverina it is probably a little bit better than what it is across the Central West and north-west of New South Wales and certainly south-west Queensland.
We are doing it very tough here, but in other parts of New South Wales and Queensland they are now in their third and, in some cases, seventh year of prolonged drought and that is just awful. I understand that. We are as a Federal Government doing all that we can – we can’t make it rain and we can have empathy, we can have sympathy, we can certainly provide the programs that we have done and we can do more and we will.
JOURNALIST:
What about infrastructure grants to help with things like water reticulation which would obviously have a flow-on effect not only for farming communities but regional towns as well?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well after the millennial drought we certainly put in programs in place for write-offs, instant write-offs for tanks, for fencing, for fodder storage as in sheds. All those benefits and assets are already there as far as farmers are concerned and we are really trying to get farmers to make sure that they do drought-proof for the tough times.
Australia is, as Dorothea Mackellar said a land of droughts and flooding rain. It is so true and, you know, in recent decades we’ve seen floods then we’ve seen dry times, we’ve seen floods and we’ve seen droughts again and that pattern will continue. This is Australia – unfortunately we have harshest of climates.
We also have the very best farmers and I would urge farmers, as the very best environmentalists of the land, as the very best custodians of land and, certainly, as people who put animal welfare front and centre – I would urge and encourage them not to self-assess when it comes to their own finances, to seek help where they should and where they can. Help is available. The State Government has come on board with a $500 million package. We are looking into what we can further do as well.
I am starting up a series of drought forums in Tamworth next week where we will be going around and about with social services experts with the Australian Taxation Office to help farmers through this plight, but again I encourage farmers – don’t self-assess, seek help where you need to and, certainly, the Government has your back.
JOURNALIST:
What do you make of The Nationals not running in the State election?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, it was a decision taken by the State Leader as well as the State Executive. I understand that, I was in on those discussions.
I’m disappointed that we are not running but I fully acknowledge and accept the reasons why we are not.
We are in partnership with the Liberal Party, we are in a Coalition. The Liberal Party has held Wagga Wagga since 1957 and I understand that, you know, that it is essentially a Liberal Party State seat.
That said, I know the Liberals will come up with a candidate, you know, and a very good candidate who will continue what good regional Liberals do and that is fight hard for even better infrastructure and even better services.
Daryl Maguire has done a very, very good job and make no mistake, he has done an outstanding job providing the sort of outcomes for Wagga Wagga; new police station, helped with me to get funding for a new Wagga Wagga Base Hospital, new ambulance station, new fire station – all those sorts of things that the legacy that Daryl Maguire can be very proud of and I’m certain that the Liberal Party will come up with a candidate who will continue to provide a good voice in Government, in a Coalition Government working very hard with The National Party.
The fact that the Snowy Mountains Scheme money, when the Federal Government bought the Snowy Mountains Scheme for Snowy Hydro 2.0 – $4.6 billion – is all quarantined, all dedicated to regional areas. That would not have happened without the strong work and advocacy of The National Party in strong Coalition with the Liberals in the New South Wales Government and the people of Wagga Wagga should know that by voting for a Liberal candidate they will get a strong voice in Government.
If they choose to elect somebody else, well they will have somebody who won’t be in Government, who won’t have that strong advocacy around the Ministerial table or the ear of the ministers who do make the decisions for funding for seats such as Wagga Wagga, for shires such as Lockhart and Tumut, and making sure that local people get the local outcomes that they need and deserve.
JOURNALIST:
So you say that you are disappointed. Do you think that The Nats would have had a shot at winning?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Well, yeah look, we would have and certainly we would have put up a good candidate with a strong voice but it has been our decision not to run this time and I accept that.
JOURNALIST:
With the Premier in town today are you in discussions about local leadership options or just leaving it to Liberals now Nats are out?
MICHAEL McCORMACK:
Oh no, look I have got a very good relationship with Gladys Berejiklian, I always have had and, look, she has been an outstanding Premier, not just for Sydney but for regional New South Wales. All too often when we had 16 years of Labor Government, New South Wales was all about Newcastle, Sydney and Wollongong. That certainly has not happened since Coalition took office in 2011. Gladys Berejiklian has delivered outstanding results for regional New South Wales in conjunction with her Nationals colleagues. In conjunction with Andrew Stoner and Troy Grant and now John Barilaro.
They have delivered great outcomes for regional people and will continue to deliver great outcomes for regional people, country people both now, up to the next election and certainly, hopefully beyond that.
Thank you very much.