Transcript by The Hon Scott Morrison MP

Doorstop interview

Location: Canberra

E&OE

QUESTION:

The four week waiting period, Labor seems to not have changed its mind when it comes to young people on the dole. Do you have the numbers with the crossbench to get that through? I believe it is up for debate today?

MINISTER MORRISON:

We remain absolutely committed to the measures we have brought to the Parliament on this issue. We do not believe that we should be sending a message to young people that it should be ok to go from the school gate to the Centrelink front door and that is why we are bringing these measures. We remain absolutely committed to them. Now the Labor party and others may wish to oppose that and that is their democratic right and as far as the Coalition is concerned we are looking to the evidence from New Zealand which showed that with the same measure, 40 per cent of those young people who started that four week waiting period did not end up on welfare. That is an outcome I would like for young Australians. If the Labor party and other members of the Senate want to vote against that outcome they can do that but the Coalition remains absolutely committed to this policy.

QUESTION:

Minister why should Australia accept a one-off intake of more than 10,000 Syrian refugees as has been reported?

MINISTER MORRISON:

Those matters have been obviously considered by Cabinet and various other committees and there is a partyroom meeting which is to take place and I am about to head over there now and I think the appropriate time for any comments to be made that will be by the Prime Minister when those decisions are finalised.

QUESTION:

Would you back [inaudible]

MINISTER MORRISON:

I think that is the appropriate way to do it.

QUESTION:

Are you announcing the ACNC today will not be abolished by the government?

MINISTER MORRISON:

All I have said today about the ACNC is I have consulted widely and there is very strong support for the ACNC and I don’t believe there would be support in the Senate for there to be any change.

Thank you.