Tim Wilson MP
Shadow Treasurer

Wednesday 18 March, 2026

Topics: Jim Chalmers' inflation, Interest rates, CFMEU & NDIS corruption.

E&OE

Mark Levy: Tim Wilson is the Shadow Treasurer. He joins me on the line. Tim, good morning to you.

Tim Wilson MP: Good morning.

Mark Levy: Well, there's a lot of Australians hurting out there right now, Tim.

Tim Wilson MP: They are. Since the Albanese Government has been elected, the average mortgage has gone up $27,600 a year. That is a lot of money out of people's pockets and it's all derived from the government not being able to manage its own budget. So Australians are paying the price through their budget.

Mark Levy: Well, the government at the moment is rubbing its hands together, I suppose, because it's got the war to blame. But this is a two-week war, Tim. The inflation problem's been there a lot longer than that.

Tim Wilson MP: Well, this time last year, Jim Chalmers said we turn the corner on inflation and interest rates. Of course, the answer is we have, but the trajectory has been upwards, not downwards as he's liked to crow. The RBA Governor said yesterday, the second sentence in their opening statement was that this was driven by December inflation data for the second half of last year, not as a consequence of what's happening in Tehran now. Australia's inflation problem flows from the second-half of last-year in Canberra, not overseas.

Mark Levy: What did you make of the 5-4 vote of the Monetary Policy Board? Obviously the board was fairly split. I'm assuming it was the Governor who had the deciding vote. 5- 4 in favour of a rate rise?

Tim Wilson MP: We know she voted in favour of a rate rise and she answered this yesterday in her press conference. She said clearly that the only difference was about whether to raise them now or raise them later because of what's going on overseas, but that might mean that it had to be increased more. So the RBA's hand has been forced by the decision of the government to keep pouring debt petrol on the inflation fire in the second half of last year. They've responded the question is only how much more regressive it may have to go and of course households can't afford it they desperately don't want it to go any harder but the government won't do anything about the debt petrol they're pouring on the inflation fire.

Mark Levy: Well, I want to come to the government spending in just a sec, Tim, but let's just stay on Michelle Bullock for a second, the governor. She warned yesterday that a recession may be the only way to drive inflation out of the economy. What's your reaction to that?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, I think everybody is worried about that sort of language because we know that we've had essentially a GDP per capita recession now for four years. We've had a few bumps up and down, but everybody's been watching, as their inflation's outstripped wages. Everybody's been watching as they go to the supermarket and whether it's the trolley or the basket, they're getting less to put in while the bill keeps going up. So everyone's living the consequences of a lower standard of living. Most of us want it to end and see hope on the horizon. Instead what they're getting is the government saying 'we're just going to keep them in this trajectory' because they're in a state of denial.

Mark Levy: I don't know whether you watch any reality TV, Tim, but there's a new show in the works here, Jimbo knows best. The Treasurer, every economist in the country, it seems, is saying the Treasuer needs to cut government spending. But when it comes to the Treasuer's response, when either your side of politics puts questions to him or the media puts questions to him, no, government spending's not the problem. Is he living under a rock? Why won't he listen to the country's leading economists who are saying, look, you've cut spending and you've got to do it at the next budget.

Tim Wilson MP: Because this is a man dominated by his pride. He's in a state of denial. The Treasury, his own Treasury, has said he's spending $100 billion more than was projected four years ago. So his Treasury is saying he's been caught out. We know, of course, around public spending it continues to drive expenditure. He's been caught out and the government's been caught out on what's been happening in the Middle East. At every point, this government's being in a state of denial, but the problem is it's just numbers on a piece of paper for them. It's for Australians declining stands of living. And that's what's so horrific.

Mark Levy: All right I'll come to the capital gains tax in just a sec but you are the alternate Treasurer in this country the Shadow Treasurer in the Coalition there, how would be, what would be your... I mean you've been in the position long enough now to have an opinion on this. If you are in charge of the economy how would you fix the inflation problem we face at the moment?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, the first thing I do is cut out the corruption and the spending that's going on there and this is a really important point. We've got the National Disability Insurance Agency saying 10% of the $50 odd billion budget is going towards fraud and organised crime. It does go to fraud and organise crime, but it also then goes on and stokes inflation because it's fueled by debt. So we need to cut that sort of stuff out. The $15 billion has been going to organised crime through the CFMEU-Labor cartel. That is stoking inflation too. So you've got to go after the fraud and corruption first because that's honest Australian taxpayers money going to dishonest activities. And then you've got to look at...and that would save us $20 billion or at least $20 million right from the outset. That would be $20 billion less of inflation and of course debt being passed on to future generations. Then you've got to look very carefully at how you remove the waste that exists in the system to make sure we're getting best value for buck. But it's pretty simple. Honest Australian taxpayers' money shouldn't be going towards dishonest organised crime.

Mark Levy: I know Jim Chalmers wrote his thesis on Paul Keating. Is Jim Chalmers up to the job as being the Treasurer of this country, Tim?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, he's been saying for ages that he's Paul Keating mach II. I think he's more Aldi Wayne Swan, who's the person he worked for as an advisor. He finally got his front page today, his Keating moment, of the interest rate hike that we had to have. That is not something to boast about. I just think he is the emperor caught without any clothes on. He's been naked for a while, but unfortunately inflation in Australia, plus of course, overseas events are now revealing it to everybody.

Mark Levy: That's pretty good from you Tim and Aldi Wayne Swan, I like it.

Tim Wilson MP: He was the advisor to Wayne Swan when we went from basically having a surplus as a budget and having savings as a nation to going into debt and deficit.

Mark Levy: You should have produced that in the Parliament over the singing Tim, you might have got some more positive press as opposed to people like me who were saying, oh come on Tim, singing, what are you doing there champion?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, I'm a creative man, but it's also a point of truth. But I have to refer to people in Parliament by their titles. And that's why I talked about the Treasurer starting the inflation fire.

Mark Levy: Fair enough. Capital gains tax. A Senate inquiry into the 50% tax for investors formed with the Coalition's support has found the policy is skewing home ownership to investors at a time when first home buyers are struggling. Should there be adjustments to the CGT?

Tim Wilson MP: My starting point is just like the inflation problem. If the government is handing honest Australians money to dishonest organised crime, my objective is cut that out first before increasing taxes on Australians. The objective of what they're trying to do here is between Labor and the Greens to green light a pathway to introduce new housing tax on Australians. You do that, it does nothing to incentivise building more housing, which is what we desperately need to get prices down for younger Australians. It's just more revenue while they won't address the organised crime and corruption problem.

Mark Levy: What did you make of the Teal Independent Allegra Spender's white paper on tax reform? She wants to cut income tax and move more taxation onto assets. Is there merit in what she's proposing?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, the Treasurer has already ruled out the income tax cuts part, so the only objective now is how much is she green-lighted increasing taxes on Australians, and she's given permission for Jim Chalmers to do it. This is the problem, Labor governments don't try and find ways to reduce taxes on Australians. They find a pathway to increase taxes on Australians and consciously or unconsciously Allegra Spender has given the green light for that and I think she really needs to think about the strategy that she's employing because she's doing their bidding.

Mark Levy: Fuel prices a lot of people angry and upset about this given that soon we'll be paying over three dollars a litre by the looks of things for petrol and diesel I know the PM's announced a National Cabinet meeting for Thursday about all of this do you think he should follow the lead of Scott Morrison and what he did in 2022 and temporarily cut the fuel excise?

Tim Wilson MP: The challenge we've got is that when Scott Morrison did it, we didn't have the same sort of interest rate and inflation problem we have now. If you cut these things, it could have an inflationary effect. That's what the government will be reviewing in terms of their decision making. And so you could end up giving some short-term benefit and having a much bigger longer tail associated with it. This is what happens when you don't get inflation and interest rates down earlier, it constrains your hand, limits your choices in crises exactly like this and may potentially make them worse.

Mark Levy: All right Tim one last one before you go i just want to get your comments and your reaction to what Barnaby Joyce has said on Sky News this morning saying that...

Tim Wilson MP: Well this could be wild.

Mark Levy: He's saying that the Liberal Party's attempt to gain re-election in Farrer is pathetic with some choice words for you have a listen:

Barnaby Joyce: [Recorded] The party of the once great Robert Gordon Menzies, you know, they're in the corner in the shade, throwing rocks at One Nation, they've sent, for goodness sake, they send Tim Wilson out as their attack dog. And that's the problem with the poor old, where the Liberal Party have got themselves too. Tim Wilson best reflects the Liberal Party and the Liberal Party is best reflected by Tim Wilson. And, that's how people see them.

Mark Levy: Your thoughts?

Tim Wilson MP: Well, it's cute. I mean, is he off the Braddon pavement in the evening? You know, this is a bloke with the greatest respect to Barnaby, who has not had an illustrious career. I'm not really interested in engaging with him because our focus has to be how we're going to build out the future of this country. Not simply repeating platitudes and attacks. The people of Farrer deserve better than Barnaby Joyce hitting a Braddon pavement drunk at night.

Mark Levy: Bang, Tim Wilson, thanks for joining us.

Tim Wilson MP: Thanks.

Mark Levy: Good on you, Tim. Tim Wilson Shadow Treasurer. Wow, cop that Barnaby.

ENDS