Mr PALLAS (Werribee—Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for the Coordination of Treasury and Finance: COVID-19) (12:26): I want to advise the house about the work that the Andrews government is doing in getting on with the job of delivering for businesses, workers and households as they deal with the trepidations of the coronavirus pandemic, a global pandemic. It is the biggest economic shock to the world and of course to the state of Victoria since the Great Depression, and the government has responded in both substantive and immediate terms with record levels of support that will provide many Victorians with the security of a job and businesses with the opportunity to make it through as we stay the course to a COVID normal. The government is investing nearly $13 billion towards coronavirus measures to support Victorians through to the other side of this crisis. That includes $6.5 billion to businesses that have received payroll tax refunds in the last financial year worth more than $550 million, and thousands more have received full waivers.

Our $2.7 billion building works package will create thousands of direct jobs by funding shovel-ready projects across the state, and of course let us not forget the $1.2 billion of private-sector investment that the state has unleashed as a consequence of fast-tracked projects through Building Victoria’s Recovery Taskforce and what those jobs and that investment will provide in terms of economic opportunity. Independent modelling from Deloitte Access Economics has found that our economic support has helped boost economic activity in the June quarter by around $7.5 billion and protected 81 000 full-time equivalent jobs, but the road to economic recovery is only just beginning. We know that getting this virus under control is not just the key to protecting life, it is the fastest way to a sustained economic recovery.