Interview with Laura Jayes on Sky News AM Agenda

‍Subjects: Minimum wage increase, use of AI, Liberal Party workings, Bradfield recount

E&OE………

Laura Jayes

I want to bring in now Andrew Bragg. He's a Liberal Shadow Minister. He joins me live now. He's the Minister for Productivity and Deregulation. He joins us now. Andrew, great to see you. There's a lot to get to in your portfolio area. But first, I want to get your reaction to this minimum wage decision.

Senator Bragg

Laura, we'll obviously take our time to look at the Treasury analysis and the market analysis as to what is the appropriate setting over the medium term. This has only just been announced, so we will take some counsel.

Laura Jayes

Okay, fair enough. Let's get to your portfolio then. When we look at work from home in particular, and I know you spoke to The Australian newspaper about this. So you now see, is this correct, the work from home component of the workforce as having huge productivity gains, or would that be overstating it?

Senator Bragg

There are significant productivity gains to be had, particularly for those Australians who are working in a hybrid environment where they work a couple of days at home and a few in the office. And there are a number of studies, including by the Productivity Commission, which shows this has got a real benefit to families and the economy overall. So, we want to make sure that's a part of our long-term settings because that's good for individual agency, good for individuals, good for families.

Laura Jayes

How does this compare with what we're looking at coming down the pipeline? How do you marry this right to work from home and the small productivity gains you might get from that, and then generative and agentic AI really changing the workforce in the next couple of years? How do you see those two working? I mean, if you're working from home, should you be worried about your job being one of the first to go when we do have this agentic AI explosion?

Senator Bragg

Artificial intelligence itself is everywhere. I don't think it really matters where, in fact, you are undertaking your work tasks. But the real opportunity for Australia now with our long-running anaemic productivity growth is to use AI to harness that, to ensure that we have a more productive economy, we can attract more investment, and have those jobs here in Australia. I think the government mainly see it through a prism of risk. There are some risks, but there is a massive opportunity from artificial intelligence, which can help our very anaemic productivity growth move.

Laura Jayes

Sure. But does productivity growth amount to significant job losses?

Senator Bragg

No, I don't think so. I think what you see over the long run is that when technology has appeared on the landscape, generally it has been jobs accretive. It's not true to say that new technology has destroyed all jobs. Otherwise, the personal computer would have destroyed a lot of opportunities in the workplace. So, jobs change over time. But generally speaking, technology is used by humans to do a better job.

Laura Jayes

Yes, it is. But there are problems here. And Tim Wilson, your colleague, was just on my programme. He points out that our education system, particularly tertiary, but I would say, secondary as well, is not keeping up with the demands of the workforce when AI is going to shape it. Would you agree with that?

Senator Bragg

I think that's a good point Tim makes. We have to prepare the nation for this massive disruption, because right now, what you see is a huge war between China and the US on who can best develop and deploy AI in their economy and more broadly. We need to make sure that we are ready to avail ourselves of these new opportunities that will make people work faster and smarter, because that is ultimately going to be in our interest. We're trying to import capital. We have always been trying to do that. I think we will be a backwater, unless we prepare all of our laws to benefit from AI.

Laura Jayes

This was not talked about once during the election campaign. What should we read from that? That both the major parties are completely on the backfoot here and have really no plans to shape it. Indeed, AI is going to shape us.

Senator Bragg

I think it was a very shallow campaign. It was a campaign about not much at all. And I very much regret that because I don't think we had the opportunity to talk to the Australian people about the great opportunities that can be found in these disruptive technologies like AI. But the good news is we still have time to do it over the next few years, and that's what we're looking to do alongside our other economic colleagues, Ted O'Brien, James Paterson, Tim Wilson.

Laura Jayes

Yeah. It was a shallow campaign. It was low rent, sometimes depressing at times, you could say, because it was just lacking in any ambition for the Australian people. Would you like to add anything to that? And what responsibility should the Coalition take?

Senator Bragg

Well, I think we take our fair share of responsibility. Ultimately, the government has won with very little of a mandate to speak of. And so, our opportunity now as the Opposition is to develop policies across productivity, deregulation, the economy more broadly, and to have that mature conversation about Australians. I think Australians are excited about new ideas. We always have been. We're early adopters. I think people want individual agency. They want agency for their families. They want flexibility. They're anxious. I think that's a great thing for us to harness, and we have to ensure that we are able to meet these new opportunities, which will hit us like a ton of bricks if we're not prepared for them.

Laura Jayes

Yeah, they will certainly hit us like a ton of bricks. I want to talk about the Liberal Party values now. You've got your issues at a federal level. I think you're soul-searching, as you should do, because you've got time to do that. But then we have a division of the South Australian Liberal Party dumping net-zero. You have now in New South Wales, the New South Wales Liberals squabbling over workers' compensation reform, not appearing to back small business. What do you stand for? And what about those two state problems at the moment, how should we read that?

Senator Bragg

We stand for enterprise. We stand for the individual, individual agency, as I just said. And these matters that are canvassed widely shows the open nature of the Liberal Party, that it's not a closed shop. A lot of its discussions happen publicly. The issues to do with South Australia, I think, are quite clear that it is the parliamentary wing that sets the policy of the Liberal Party, not the organisational wing. That's always been the case. In relation to New South Wales, I think they're having a debate about policy, which is not unusual. That is something that is a feature of our party, unlike other parties, where you've got no idea what happens internally. At least in our shop, everyone has a fair idea.

Laura Jayes

If you're fighting over workers' compensation and reducing the whole permanent impairment percentage from 30 to 25 percent, businesses then have to pick up the slack in their premiums, essentially. Is that really the message you want? Does that back small business?

Senator Bragg

It's not for me to give a lecture to my state colleagues. I'm sure they'll...

Laura Jayes

Fair enough.

Senator Bragg

I'm sure that they will stand on our timeless values of supporting enterprise, supporting individuals, and particularly protecting small businesses.

Laura Jayes

One final question, Andrew. I want to ask you about Bradfield. What do you think? It's looking pretty hard now for you to get that one seat in New South Wales. It looks like it will go to the independent Nicolette Boele. Is that your read of things?

Senator Bragg

Look, I really have no idea. That's really a matter for the AEC, people who are scrutineering there. I know it's been a long slog for everyone. We're hoping for the best possible result there, but it's really in the hands of the officials now, so I won't be able to add any further insight. Sorry.

Laura Jayes

Yeah, fair enough. Do you think the Liberal Party should challenge it, take it to the Court of Disputed Returns? Would you fight hard for that seat?

Senator Bragg

Look, I think, as you know, the parliamentary wing sets the policy, and the organisational wing deals with these administrative arrangements, and they will make a judgement in good time.

Laura Jayes

Oh, Andrew, they never bleed over. You never step out of your lane, do you? Ever?

Senator Bragg

Never.

Laura Jayes

We can talk about the internal machinations another time. Andrew, great to talk to you. Hope to get you on again soon. This issue of agentic and generative AI is certainly not going away. And it's something that we need to shape, and we can't let it shape us. So I hope to speak further.

Senator Bragg

Thanks, Laura.

[Ends]

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