Federal budget 2020: Praise for steps towards revival

The top end of town has thrown its support behind the Morrison government’s federal budget that puts business at the centre of the nation’s economic recovery.

Commonwealth Bank CEO Matt Comyn. Picture: Gaye Gerard

The top end of town has thrown its support behind the Morrison government’s federal budget that puts business at the centre of the nation’s economic recovery, with leaders from the major banks, miners and retailers among those praising the measures taken to kickstart the post-COVID revival.

Commonwealth Bank chief executive Matt Comyn said measures to support and grow employment would create a pathway to recovery.

“We welcome the budget’s focus on job creation and job support given the need to keep businesses, small and large, open which in turn is helping to keep Australians in work and in their homes,” Mr Comyn said on Wednesday.

“The measures to underpin and grow employment should help to provide certainty and confidence for employers and employees to plan for the future and create a pathway to recovery following the devastating health and economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.”

On Tuesday Josh Frydenberg unveiled a $74bn jobs and tax cut plan, including more than $30bn in business tax breaks and a $200 a week JobMaker subsidy businesses will pocket for hiring young workers.

The government’s efforts to encourage businesses to invest in new equipment, take on more skilled workers and provide new opportunities for young people to bring down the rise in unemployment, was particularly welcome, Mr Comyn said.

“Equipping the Australian economy with new ways to invest and support our training, research, development and innovation capabilities will also be key to creating new jobs in the digital economy as the country pulls itself out of recession.”

Many of the measures announced in Tuesday’s budget would complement the support the banking industry had put in place to help under-pressure borrowers, he said.

“While we are seeing encouraging signs that many customers are able to restart repayments on deferred loans, we know that others will continue to need our support for some time to come,” Mr Comyn cautioned.

National Australia Bank chief executive Ross McEwan said the budget had set the path for the nation’s rebuild from COVID-19 and that business needed to lead the recovery.

“Business will drive our economic recovery. We must do everything we can to support and strengthen businesses right now and the budget measures announced by the government will certainly help to do that as we begin to transition from support to stimulus,” Mr McEwan said.

“In particular, the tax incentives to encourage businesses to invest and wage subsidies to create more jobs will be significant contributors to rebuilding Australia’s economy.”

Welcoming the government’s efforts to help Australians buy their first home, Mr Mc­Ewan said personal income tax cuts and extra payments for age pensioners would put money back in peoples’ hands.

“Getting businesses going again isn’t just the responsibility of governments. Companies like NAB must also step up. We all have a responsibility to do our part to ensure Australia emerges as a stronger global player on the other side of this.”

Speaking to retail shareholders at an online Q&A session on Wednesday, BHP chief executive Mike Henry said the budget‘s focus on a business-led recovery would help the broader Australian economy.

“I think we should be applauding the government’s focus on upskilling the nation and creating new jobs. We’ve said for some time now that we’re in absolute agreement with what the Prime Minister has been saying about this needing to be a business-led recovery with a strong focus on jobs,” he said.

Incitec Pivot boss Jeanne Johns said she hoped the budget would pave the way for Australia to lead global economies out of the crisis, in the same way its health system had led the way in fighting the virus itself.

“We think it’s an ambitious plan, but targeted, and I think it makes sense,” she said. “We’re hopeful that, with what they’ve put in place, that we can do our part as an Australian company to help stimulate and restart the economy, get money into the supply chains and stimulate consumers’ back pocket.

“Just as Australia has done so well on COVID, it would be lovely to have Australia lead the way in the economic restart out of the recession. We think it‘s a really good budget for the times.”

Woolworths chief executive Brad Banducci said the budget was a good roadmap to resuscitating the economy and creating jobs. “We welcome the budget as a positive measure to move the economy back towards a path of sustainable economic growth and job creation,’’ he said on Wednesday.

Coca-Cola Amatil group managing director Alison Watkins said the measures would make “a real difference” to Australian businesses but that there was still a need for longer-term reform on tax and industrial relations. “The focus of this budget is right for the immediate priorities — helping our economy to recover fast, creating jobs and driving business investment,” she said.

She praised the move to bring forward personal income tax cuts but expressed disappointment that the third stage of the tax cuts, scheduled for 2024, were not also fast-tracked.

Additional reporting: Eli Greenblat