Victorians slam Scott Morrison’s Covid-19 rescue package ‘favouritism’

A senior Andrews government minister has declared it was ‘beyond question’ Scott Morrison gave NSW favourable treatment.

Victorian Industry Minister Martin Pakula says that while he backed the package for NSW, the ‘treatment between the two states has been unequal’. Picture: Getty Images

Victoria is at war with the federal government over Covid-19 bailouts, with a senior Andrews government minister declaring it was “beyond question” Scott Morrison gave NSW favourable treatment.

Victorian Industry Minister Martin Pakula said that while he backed the package for NSW, the “treatment between the two states has been unequal”.

He said Victoria did not get as much support during its two-week lockdown in May and June.

“I mean, we’ve spent a year hearing about ‘gold standard’ (from NSW), and now it’s gone from gold standard to gold-plated support,” Mr Pakula said.

“If you recall, we spent a week seeking support and got none, and then after that there was an income support package which contained a $500 cap, and no support at all if the worker in question had $10,000 or more in the bank.

“What you’ve got now is, I think, a $600 cap, no asset test, and support for business as well.

“So for the commonwealth to be suggesting that there’s any comparison between the two, I just think it’s clearly, unmistakably not the case.”

Scott Morrison rejected Victoria’s claims, declaring the federal government provided $750m a week in JobKeeper payments for workers in the state during last year’s four-month lockdown.

“And in the most recent lockdown they had, which just thankfully only went for two weeks, for Victoria, they got exactly what NSW got for those two weeks,” the Prime Minister said.

“So NSW is now going into week four of a lockdown, and that means the challenges are escalating. And what I announced yesterday is exactly what every other state and territory would get in week four of a lockdown.”

Treasury figures show that Victorians received proportionately more federal support via wage subsidies as a result of the state’s four-month lockdown last year.

JobKeeper payments to Victorian residents totalled $28.05bn over the life of the program, versus $29.98bn extended to NSW.

At 32 per cent of the total $89bn cost of the scheme, payments to Victoria outstripped the state’s 24 per cent share of the national economy.

In per capita terms, Victorian workers received $4220, versus NSW’s $3684, the figures showed.

Josh Frydenberg, the Morrison government’s most senior Victorian, said it was “deeply disappointing” Premier Daniel Andrews was playing “petty politics”.

“The people of Victoria – and I’m a proud Victorian – have received more on a per capita basis under JobKeeper than any other state or territory across the commonwealth,” he said.

Mr Frydenberg said the Andrews government knocked back a federal government offer to pay half of the support for businesses during the May-June lockdown.

“We were prepared to go 50-50 on the business support and 50-50 on the income support,” Mr Frydenberg said.

“They rejected that and they decided that the commonwealth would pay for the income support and that the Victorian government would pay for the business support.

“As I understand it, in some cases that business support promised weeks ago has still not arrived for some businesses.”

Opposition Treasury spokesman Jim Chalmers said Victorians were “abandoned” by Mr Frydenberg.

“What kind of Victorian Treasurer abandons Victorians in their hour of need? That’s what Josh Frydenberg did,” Dr Chalmers said.

“The Treasurer likes to say that more support per head of population went into Victoria, well, Victoria was in lockdown for longer.

“And what we need to see here is a federal government that can look beyond that petty, personal, and partisan differences to deliver the support for workers and small businesses that people desperately need.”