TRANSCRIPT: KURRAJONG RECYCLERS PRESS CONFERENCE, 17 September 2020
12:14PM
E&OE
Subjects: Recycling, Coronavirus, Australia’s Trade Agreements, Employment;
WITH: THE HON. SUSSAN LEY MP, MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, MEMBER FOR FARRER.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, fantastic to be here at Kurrajong Recycling in Chaston Street, Wagga Wagga with my colleague, Sussan Ley, the Environment Minister and Member for Farrer. Sussan and I both know how important recycling is. Kurrajong have been doing it since 1962 and they’ve been onsite here for a number of years. They’ve got 90 employees here, like Paul, who’s worked for 38 years for Kurrajong. It is a fantastic organisation. They get through 23,000 tonnes of recycling material each and every year.
So, they’re employing people, they’re making sure that recycled material, waste material, as much as can be practically possible, they’re turning it into other products, products such as road base. And I know how much the Australian Roads Research Board is doing as far as getting broken glass and turning it into road base and I know how much the New South Wales Government is also investing in road base and recyclable materials.
Just before I hand over to Sussan, I would just like to indicate that it’s really pleasing that the jobs numbers this morning, down 0.7 per cent as far as the unemployment figures are concerned, down to 6.8 per cent. Of course, that’s still too high and we will certainly do whatever we can to re-engage workers with jobs. But when you compare Australia’s economic record through COVID with any other country in the world, we’ve done remarkably well. And the job figures this morning show that our policies are working. Whether it’s JobKeeper, whether it’s HomeBuilder, certainly putting in that JobSeeker payments for those people who’ve found themselves on welfare for the very first time. We are making sure through JobKeeper we are re-engaging with the manufacturing sector, we’re re-engaging with agriculture, making sure that jobs in resources – certainly regional Australia has borne the brunt of COVID-19 as far as restrictions are concerned. But we have led the recovery. We are leading the recovery out here in regional Australia because agriculture – despite COVID, despite the drought, despite the bushfires – grew by $5 billion in the last 12 months, the resources sector, it also grew by 0.2 per cent over July. So, these are encouraging figures. Unemployment down by 0.7 per cent. Agriculture and mining; it’s going up. Regional Australia, leading the way. Sussan Ley is making sure that when it comes to recycling, when it comes to the environment, we’re making every post a winner. I’ll hand over to Sussan.
SUSSAN LEY
Thank you very much, Michael. Thank you for being an important neighbour and friend here in western New South Wales. Waste and recycling is a critical part of the Morrison Government’s approach to environmental protection. Because Australians do want to have confidence that what they put in their recycling bin actually does find its way into a re-manufacturing, re-processing stream. And to come to a materials recovery facility like this in regional Australia underscores the importance of our recycling modernisation fund to regional jobs, to regional Australia and every to single householder and how their waste is being reprocessed as key to all of this is not seeing waste as just problem to be solved but a resource to be used. So when I look around this facility – and thank you to Kurrajong Recycling for the expertise and the knowledge that you bring to the ongoing efforts we’re all going to make to get, you know, the holy grail of waste is clean streams of waste. I’m always told that. If it’s clean it can be re-processed, re-manufactured and this adds value. So, it’s a very exciting initiative. In the last 10 years the Federal Government has spent under $40 million on waste. In the next 10, that will jump to $400 million. This really shows we are taking this seriously. We want to see our waste, our responsibility and more domestic recycling industries in Australia. And as Michael and I both live, work and love regional Australia, we want to see this include facilities like this and regional jobs and manufacturing. So, thank you.
JOURNALIST
I’m just wondering what you’re doing to help wine growers and other growers in the region to – with the tensions with China at the moment?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
We know that the relationship with China is still a strong one. Yes, there are always going to be tensions with any trading partner. But we’ve got 149.6 billion reasons to encourage that trade with China. It’s our largest trading partner and certainly whether it’s wine out of the Murrumbidgee irrigation area, an area that Sussan and I have represented fiercely over the years, we know that some of the best wine in the world is produced at Yenda and Griffith and Leeton and those areas. It’s a fabulous winegrowing area. We know that in these parts some of the best barley is grown right across the world and certainly in South Australia and Western Australia. It’s their barley that often ends up in Chinese mills. So, we want to make sure that our relationship with China is strong. We want to make sure it’s productive. But by the same token, China understands that they need us as much as we need them. And it is a two-way street. We’ve got good relations with China. May those long continue. Of course, what we have done too, is we’ve made sure that we’re opening up other markets. We’ve made sure that we’re opening up markets, whether it’s in Europe, other Asian countries, South America indeed. Our free trade agreements have helped our farmers, our Riverina and Farrer farmers to be their best selves. They’ve opened up those markets that some of those farmers could have only dreamt about just 10 years ago. So that’s provided great opportunities abroad. It’s provided jobs here at home.
JOURNALIST
Have you done any further [indistinct] New South Wales to help with the harvest?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, those negotiations are underway. And I know Marise Payne, the Foreign Affairs Minister and I communicate just about every day about this. We always end up in a situation where we always need more workers, particularly when there’s going to be a bountiful harvest. Farmers tell me whether they’re growing grapes, whether they’re growing cherries or whether they’re in fact growing grain, they tell me this harvest is going to be one of the best on record. You only have to drive around the region to see some of the canola crops. They are magnificent. But of course, with COVID-19, that has led to a strain in making sure that we’ve got the right numbers of people in the right places at the right time. I encourage farmers to go on to that FarmHub website to register their interest, to tell the Government, to tell people how many they’re going to need, when they’re going to need them and where they’re going to need them. That’s most important. Of course, I’m working with the Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud, to ensure that we do have the right numbers of agricultural labour force in the right places. What we don’t want to see is a crop not being able to be stripped or fruit being left on the trees.
JOURNALIST
Do you have any concerns about the relationship with China and how come unis can’t get enough international students?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, look, I have regular discussions with Charles Sturt University. Of course, it is difficult at the moment because a number of our international students aren’t coming. And that’s placing a strain on the economics of our regional universities. Our regional universities are very strong and Dan Tehan is putting in place the right measures to make the graduates who come out of those universities job ready, to make sure that there are jobs for them when they do get their diploma. We are making sure in every endeavour that we do as a government that there is a job at the end of it. We’re making sure that whether you’re a university graduate, somebody who’s come through the TAFE system or somebody’s who’s just gone straight from school, we want you to have a job.
There are 40,000 jobs in regional Australia. The Regional Australia Institute identified 40,000 vacancies in regional Australia, everything from fruit picking right through to office jobs right throughout country areas. And you only have to go to – even when things are going well before the drought really struck – there were a number of businesses advertising for people in main street areas of regional hubs. That has continued. We want people to come out of the cities and to come to our regional areas. As Sussan Ley has just said, great place to live. We love it. We’ve lived here all our lives and we want to continue to make sure that people know there are jobs out here and great investments to be made, too.
JOURNALIST
Deputy Prime Minister. We’ve got the September wind back of JobKeeper. Obviously lots of people are going to have their payments reduced by hundreds of dollars. How does the Government plan to make sure that there is enough jobs or enough work or transition for people to come and get that extra few hundred bucks when they are of the payment?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
There are 40,000 jobs in regional Australia. People will just have to have the mobility, have the capacity to move to a regional area, plenty of jobs. Go onto the Regional Australia Institute website, have a look. Just go down to any town and there’ll be job vacancies in the windows. There are jobs out there. Yes, JobSeeker and we are transitioning the arrangements that were put in place. They were always temporary, they were always targeted. They were put in there to address the COVID issue. The unemployment figures today, down again, showing that 110,000 – in fact, 111,000 people are back in work. These are good figures. Yes, the unemployment rate is still 6.8 per cent. That’s still high compared to pre-COVID levels, but you compare it to any nation anywhere in the world, we have done very well.
We’ve addressed the health issues through Greg Hunt and the measures that he’s put in place, working with the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee, making sure we’ve taken advice from the best health medical experts and kept our case rates low considering it has been a global pandemic. We’ve kept the mortality rate low, you know, relatively speaking. We mourn for those more than 800 families who’ve lost loved ones, but we have done very well. Australians have complied with what they’ve been asked by the best medical advice. We’ll go on doing that. There are jobs in regional Australia. I encourage Australians to look.
JOURNALIST
What do you say to people if they don’t have the resources to drive, to pay for petrol, to pay for accommodation to get there? Is there some sort of support that the government –
MICHAEL McCORMACK
I’m sure if they go on to FarmHub website they’ll see that some of the farmers are offering all sorts of incentives to get them out to pick the fruit, whether it’s cherries, whatever the case might be. There are those incentives there. I’m sure farmers will look to do anything to get young people, old people – doesn’t matter – get them into their orchard, get them into their vineyard and pick that wonderful produce. We grow the best in the world, we want to be sure we can pick it. Go on to the FarmHub website and have a look and see what’s available.
JOURNALIST
New South Wales Health is also investigating community transmission in the [indistinct] region. Is this just something we’re going to have to get used to living with for the next few years?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
We’ll get a vaccine eventually and when we do, we’ll make it freely available to every Australian. We’ve put down those measures. We’ve made sure that we’ve budgeted for it. We’ve made sure that it’s certainly front and foremost of every consideration that we’ve had as a Cabinet. Sussan and I sit in that Cabinet. We want to make sure when that vaccine becomes available that it’s going to be freely available to Australians to be able to – yes, we are going to have to live with the ramifications of COVID. It’s one of these things where we have to exercise social distancing. We’ve been asked to go into quarantine, obey the rules, self-isolation. Just make sure that we download the COVIDSafe app. They’re sensible things. They won’t just help yourselves, they’ll help your friends and neighbours too. We have to look out for one another.
JOURNALIST
When JobKeeper eventually tapers off, will the government consider reviewing the rate or will it go back to the Newstart allowance –
MICHAEL McCORMACK
We’ve been addressing these issues all the way through. We’ve been making sure that Australians are being looked after right throughout this. That’s why we put in place the $1500 per fortnight. That’s why we’ve made sure that the economy was protected from the ravages of COVID. That’s why we’ve made sure that for those people who found themselves on welfare for the first time in their lives that we provided that support for them. But many people tell me, many businesses tell me, that the assistance has to come off because they want their casual workers, they want their workers to get back to do the job, to get back on the tools. And we only just last week had Teys, the abattoir here at Wagga, saying that we need some of the assistance to come off because they can’t get enough workers to do the well-paid jobs that they’ve got out of their Bomen factory. So, we do need to get Australians back to work. That’s why I’m so pleased at the unemployment rate announced today. Unemployment coming down, job prospects going up. We’ve got 40,000 jobs in regional Australia, the best form of welfare is, in fact a job.
JOURNALIST
What about people who have been unemployed for a long time and are long term welfare recipients which are now on JobSeeker, if you don’t have a job to go back to and say that they’ve struggled for a long time to find stable employment?
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Well, you’re always going to have people who fall through the cracks. But, as I say, there are jobs out there. There are people who, yes, they’re always going to be struggling to find employment, but I say again – 40,000 jobs in regional Australia. You look a place the size of this. They employ 90 Australians, like Paul [inaudible]. He’s been working here for 38 years. Now I’m sure he gets out there every morning and looks forward to going to work. He’s got a great boss in Craig Salan and Ray Carroll. They’re providing job opportunities for so many people in Wagga Wagga.
And there are so many businesses in our city that have job opportunities that are looking to grow and expand, just like Kurrajong is with their recycling facilities. There’s many opportunities going to be provided through Inland Rail. I know the Wagga Wagga City Council is making sure that they’re doing everything they can to offer prospects for businesses which want to decentralise. That too, in itself is something that capital city businesses can look to, decentralising to a regional area. They’ll pay far less for rates, they’ll pay far less for others things and their workers won’t have to actually stare in front of a set of brake lights for an hour and a half going to and from work every day.
JOURNALIST
Quickly, what’s your take on the koala [inaudible]?
SUSSAN LEY
Well, those are your words. I see a united New South Wales Government, a united Coalition that is well and truly behind Gladys Berejiklian as Premier and the work that she’s doing to keep our public health system, I would say, the best in Australia. The challenges we’ve had with the cases of COVID that we’ve experienced and the fact that we’re continuing to grow the work through business absolutely demonstrates the power of our New South Wales Government.
So, as Environment Minister, of course, koalas and other species that were affected in the bushfires matter a great deal. I’ve got an expert scientific panel, they’ve given me a list of 116 animals that were affected in the bushfires. We’ve added $110 million across seven fire-affected regions of Australia to tackle habitat loss, regeneration of species and to make sure that all of our species, including the iconic koala, are looked after into the future.
JOURNALIST
Are the [quarry] in Port Stephens, will you be allowing that to happen or is that –
SUSSAN LEY
I need to make that decision by the 13th of October and I’ll make it carefully by taking into consideration everything that’s put to me, exactly the way that I should as Environment Minister, and I’m not going to forecast what that outcome might be.
JOURNALIST
[inaudible]
SUSSAN LEY
I’ve just spent a few days in my electorate and I’ve got a few days next week. Our farmers and our value-added agriculture industries are getting on with the job. They’re looking for a workforce. They’re confident about this season ahead. And sometimes as one market disappears they’re well aware that the free trade agreements that we have that we’re continuing to negotiate across the globe, other markets will open up. So it’s really good to feel the confidence coming from our farmers and our rural communities this spring.
JOURNALIST
[inaudible]
SUSSAN LEY
My colleague Angus Taylor as Energy Minister very clearly made the case for gas as a transition fuel. So in transitioning to more renewables – and may I say that Australia has one of the highest rates of renewable energy per capita – we’ve done a lot of these hard yards and to suggest otherwise is completely wrong. If you look in western New South Wales you’ll see new solar farms, you see regeneration, you see the stabilising of the grid that we need to actually bring that renewable energy into balance. So we really are punching above our weight when it comes to the quantity of renewable energy, particularly solar and wind that we’re producing. And gas is important and the work that we’re doing as a Government will make sure that we get that balance right. It’s cannot be one or the other. You do need to balance issues like the cost of electricity. You do need to balance that with our continued push towards renewables. We have got that balance right. And remember, we want to make sure that for people who live in Michael and my electorates in western New South Wales who live on fixed incomes and an electricity bill that keeps going up every quarter, it’s not something they can cope with. So again, we need to make sure that we stabilise the grid, we continue with our investment in renewables and we recognise the importance of base load power.
JOURNALIST
Has the Morrison Government got a plan to address climate change specifically –
SUSSAN LEY
Absolutely. I’ve always said that the bushfires, the black summer bushfires, were terrible. They came after a long series of droughts and climate change, intensifies the risk of fire. But our response – and I’ll just mention the $200 million that we’re investing in species and habitat recovery – is directed with climate change in mind. So I was at the South Coast a couple of days ago talking to farmers, talking to land managers, standing in areas of burnt rainforest. But I was also hearing a message of hope of how we can build back better, of how we can invest our money wisely to make more resilient landscapes, about the partnerships that we need to have with farmers because ultimately they manage a big percentage of Australia’s land and the work that we’re all doing to prepare better for the next bad bushfire season.
MICHAEL McCORMACK
Thank you.
ENDS 12:34PM