Senator the Hon Katy Gallagher

JOURNALIST: Can I just get your response to Max Chandler-Mather speaking at the Brisbane rally for the CFMEU, saying that it sets a dangerous precedent?

SENATOR THE HON KATY GALLAGHER, MINISTER FOR FINANCE: Well, I think he really needs to explain why he thought it was appropriate to speak at that rally, particularly with such serious allegations of violence, intimidation, and misogyny. I really think it's up to him. I mean, we know he likes to grandstand. We know he's never seen a stage he doesn't want to jump on, but I would say on this matter, you know, as leaders, as parliamentarians, we need to take those allegations seriously.

JOURNALIST: What impact do you think an excessive profits tax, as the Greens are proposing today, would have on business in Australia?

GALLAGHER: Well, I mean, the Greens have this luxurious position of where they don't have to – they can come out with an idea, but they never have to implement it. They never have to look at the tax system as a whole, they never need to worry about how the economy performs. They can come out with these kind of thought bubbles and never have to be accountable for it. So, we look at the tax system – as you would expect – when we put our budgets together, trying to work out what is the right level for all of the different tax measures. But you know, it has to be considered. It has to be thought through and you have to understand the consequences of some of the measures that the Greens come up with. They never, ever have to do that.

JOURNALIST: Do you think international students are really going to want to go to a regional university instead of a uni in Melbourne or Sydney Uni that are much more prestigious?

GALLAGHER: Well, we have fantastic regional universities in great parts of the country. So, I would expect – and we already have international students attending those universities – I think this national planning level is a sensible national target allocated to each university to make sure we can, you know, have a sustainable international education system going forward. And I would hope, and I know already, that there are numbers of international students that go to regional unis. And regional unis have an important role to play, not only in our national education system, but in those regional communities as well.

JOURNALIST: Minister, you know more about supply and demand than I do, but wouldn’t capping international student places at those big universities in Sydney, Melbourne lead to price spikes for international students? Could this hamper people who want to study in Australia?

GALLAGHER: Again, I don't think so. This is going back to the kind of levels that are more comparable with pre-pandemic levels. So, you know, it's a more, you know, if you look at the long-term international education system in this country, the national planning level for 2025 puts it back in those kind of numbers, and I think that's sensible. We've seen pressure, not only on universities, but with, you know, numbers of people coming to the country. We've had to look across the immigration system, to look at what's going on. There was a big influx, more than has been expected in international education, and we need to manage that. So that's part of the work that Jason Clare's been doing with universities. It’s been heavily consulted on but, you know, the feedback, when you’re getting mixed feedback, it’s not unsurprising.

JOURNALIST: So, you’re saying that those bigger universities that are going to lose some international students, that you're not expecting international student fees to go up?

GALLAGHER: Well, you know, that really is a matter for those universities, but I would expect that they need to be seen as attractive universities for students to come and study in as well. So, there are – these are decisions for them, but you know they'll have to take into consideration a whole range of factors.

JOURNALIST: They’re clearly attractive if they have to reduce students. So, they would have the capacity to put prices up, wouldn’t they?

GALLAGHER: Well again, I mean, I think that's a matter for those universities. They still have large numbers of international students arriving at their universities. Those universities do not have trouble attracting domestic students as well, and I think those universities are doing okay.

JOURNALIST: What are you expecting from the inflation figures out today?

GALLAGHER: Well, we'd be hoping to see that monthly figure continue to moderate or show moderation in the inflation numbers. I mean, it is the monthly figure, so they do jump around a little bit more. But you know, our focus has been doing everything we can under our economic plan to ensure that inflation continues to track back towards the band, and that's what we're hoping to see today.

JOURNALIST: Back on the CFMEU and the Greens. Are you concerned that union money is going to flow towards the Greens, like the ETU have flagged they’re withholding about a million dollars to fight the legal challenges and that they won’t donate to Labor. So, are you going to be handicapped in some of those seats in Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, that the Greens are trying to take?

GALLAGHER: Well, again, this is not a political decision. Our decision has been about what's the right response to serious allegations about violence, intimidation, and misogyny in a union in this country. It has not been with an eye on political donations. Let's just be clear about that. It may be for the Greens. It's not been for the Government. You know, the Greens need to be accountable for themselves about how they are responding to these serious allegations. And we saw from that Greens MP addressing the rally, you know, pretty hand-in-hand with them at the moment. So, they need to be accountable for that. From our point of view as a Government, we need to respond appropriately to the serious allegations. And, you know, if there are other consequences to that, so be it.

JOURNALIST: On international students, how much does the Government expect that’ll make a difference to housing in cities, with the reduction there?

GALLAGHER: I mean, there's a lot of pressure on the housing market and international students are not the cause of that. We need more supply in cities and in the regions. You know, certainly the numbers of students have been coming in hadn't been foreseen when we were putting our, you know, essentially our net overseas migration figures through. So, we needed to respond to that. But the work on housing continues, and it's a much bigger piece than that. We need to generate much more supply of housing in this country. The work that Clare O'Neil is doing now, $32 billion worth of programs going out the door. That has to be the focus for housing. Thank you.