Tuesday 19 August 2025

E&OE

Peter Stefanovic:

All right, so for more reaction, let's bring in the Opposition's Shadow Industrial Relations Minister, Tim Wilson. Tim, how are you feeling now, it's all underway this morning. What's on your mind?

Tim Wilson:

Well, when you have to have to start a conference with a roundtable with a press conference which talks about how there's a pathway to unity between the Prime Minister and the Treasurer, it probably reflects that there's neither, it's like constantly saying you're a lady. There is a real challenge here that the country faces. The challenge the country faces is you've got to improve standards of living. And that means making sure that we get more business investment, we get Australians geared towards jobs of the future and creating economic opportunity wealth and creation and jobs. The reality is the government has not really set that out in this roundtable. They've excluded mining, you know, literally the biggest one of the biggest wealth creating industries in the country. They're not putting industrial relations on the agenda as part of the conversation. So in one sense, it feels like this roundtable is set up not to talk about the core issues.

Peter Stefanovic:

Well, that's part of the problem, isn't it. Because while you've got union representation there and you've got business representation there, I mean, they're not going to agree on much, are they, because the unions want a four-day work week while business groups want IR laws to be relaxed. Part of the problem there.

Tim Wilson:

Well, most of the conversation from business groups in their submissions has been a constructive dialog about, obviously, a component of what matters to their industry, but more broadly, the conversation about the future direction of the nation and the broader macroeconomic settings. Most of what we've got from the unions has been solely focused on vested interests and ambit claims to try and push out the conversation knowing they're not going to get it and to give the government political coverage. And this is the limitation on the way that they've put it forward. The government needs to anchor it back because at the moment the government is behaving like a bunch of managers, not like a bunch of leaders.

Peter Stefanovic:

So, as the Prime Minister pointed out, there's been 900 submissions so far in the lead up to this roundtable. I mean, you're obviously not there. You've got Ted O'Brien as the Opposition's representative. What would be your submission? 

Tim Wilson:

Well, Ted's a much more patient man than I in his attendance. But look, our focus has been clear. We believe that industrial relations must be on the table. If you look at productivity and improving standards of living, it's one of the... 

Peter Stefanovic:

In what capacity though?

Tim Wilson:

We've outlined already, we think that there should be a conversation around simplicity. When I talk about the largest employers of the country, small businesses, they say that... It's the current laws under the award arrangements make it too hard to hire people let alone to then go on and pay people. So, simplicity, so that it makes it easier to pay people rather than hire an army of tax consultants, an army of industrial relations specialists, human resources departments etc., would be a really big improvement but that's not how government sees the small businesses of this country.

Peter Stefanovic:

He says there's going to be no new taxes and if there are going to be new taxes then it'll be something to take to the next election. The Prime Minister, at least the part that I saw today, Tim, he was focusing on AI and he was focusing on housing and how to speed that up. The 1.2 million target it's still there, whether he achieves that or not, he says it doesn't matter, we've still got to have a target to try and get to, but how do you get everyone on board when it comes to housing, because you need the government, you need state government and you need councils to all sing from the same hymn sheet.

Tim Wilson:

Sure, but it also starts with having an honest conversation. Before the last election, the government said that they opposed the Coalition's recommendation to pause the National Construction Code changes. They have now gone on and adopted it. So the first outcome of this roundtable was actually a policy position the government opposed that the Coalition took to the last election. So we've actually had the first win out this roundtable process. To do it you've got to be honest with the Australian people. You can have targets but then you've got to have an honest program about how you're going to achieve it. We're seeing this in energy where they've set big ambitious targets, they're not going to get there. In housing, they've made big commitments, $10 billion on the table of their housing future fund, it's built 17 new houses. Australians are being dudded because they have the lofty rhetoric, but they don't have the pathway for delivery and that's the big problem with this government.

Peter Stefanovic:

Alright, well, things are underway now. That is just some of the reaction that you'll hear today, folks. Tim, appreciate your time.

ENDS