Questions without notice and ministers statements
Employment
David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:06): My question is to the Treasurer. Treasurer, this week a breakdown of ABS data by the Australian Industry Group has shown that only one of every 10 jobs in the financial year 2023–24 were created in the private sector. The AIG analysis showed that the private sector lost 3900 jobs last year. Treasurer, why have private sector jobs bombed so disastrously in Victoria under your government?
Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Treasurer, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Regional Development) (12:07): I thank Mr Davis for his question. At the outset, Mr Davis, I actually put out a press release on Thursday 18 September, just before we had a bit of a break from Parliament. In this release I relied on the latest ABS statistics. What that showed is that in Victoria the economy and employment are strong and they are growing, and these statistics back it up. They were released on the day that I released it – 18 September 2025 – as opposed to the Herald Sun and AIG’s analysis, which included outdated statistics. I think it would be useful to point to this. We have an additional 32,400 Victorians who found jobs in August, which obviously was not part of the analysis that you referred to in your question. This is the highest growth of jobs in the nation. The jobs boost propels Victoria’s total employment to 3.82 million. We are at a record level.
In relation to your specific question about non-market and market jobs and the private sector, Mr Davis, the proposition in your question that nine out of 10 jobs are not created in the private sector is actually not right. Again, I repeat that our economy is thriving. It is a direct result of our investment and our policy settings. Many, many jobs are created in Victoria because we get on and build infrastructure – construction jobs, support jobs and administration jobs for those important projects that Victorians can rely on time and time again. If you use the latest available data from the ABS, Victoria’s market sector jobs growth is within 2 percentage points of New South Wales and Queensland over the year to date at March 2025 while our non-market sector growth is broadly in line with the national average.
Mr Davis, whilst you and other Liberal Party members will be quoted in the media as talking down this state, I will continue to point to the accurate stats and the most available stats and continue to talk our state up, because that is what Victorians deserve.
David DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan) (12:09): The Treasurer has put her spin on all of this, but the AIG has warned the state’s economy is in decay. The AIG also said:
Other states are successfully feeding off Victoria’s malaise and investment and jobs growth that would normally be created for the state increasingly headed interstate and even overseas.
Saul Eslake said:
The biggest risk (of this trend continuing) is a further decline in Victorians’ material living standards relative to the rest of Australia …
I ask, Treasurer: do you accept some responsibility for Victoria’s parlous state? It is becoming in fact the sick man of Australia.
Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Treasurer, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Regional Development) (12:10): Again, Mr Davis, this is not spin, these are facts. At 11:50 this morning the NAB business survey came out. Business conditions in Victoria are up 2 points to 5 points – Australian rate unchanged. Business confidence is up 4 points to 8 points in Victoria and up 3 points to 7 points in Australia. Mr Davis, business growth in Victoria is outstripping the nation. Business confidence continues to grow. There is always more to do. I will not rest just on the statistics. I will continue to work with business, continue to invite investment and continue to work with private industry to grow our economy, but I also will not talk down those public sector jobs that make sure that our economy can continue to be healthy, live well and grow well. That is aged care, that is health care and that is all of those support services that Victorians rely on not only to live well but to do other jobs in the economy.