Andrew Leigh

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

How government can learn what works

Published in The Mandarin

8 October 2026

For years, JobSeekers using Workforce Australia Online have generally faced a monthly mutual-obligation target of 100 points.

JobSeekers can meet their obligations through job applications, training, study, and other activities. The idea behind the target is that requiring more effort should, up to a point, increase the chances of finding a job.

But is 100 points the right number? Intuition and ideology don’t tell us much. If the target is too high, it seems reasonable to think that the obligation might stop encouraging useful job search and begin consuming time that could be spent finding work in other ways.

To shed light on the question, the Australian government ran an experiment. Almost 40,000 job-ready JobSeekers were randomly divided into three groups. One group remained under the existing arrangements, with a target of 100 points each month, including a minimum of four job applications. For the other two groups, the requirements were reduced to 70 points or 50 points, with three and two job applications, respectively.

Six months later, the employment results were similar. The three groups had worked an average of 10.4 weeks, 10.3 weeks, and 10.5 weeks. Their earnings and income support payments were also very similar.

Researchers also interviewed participants. People facing lighter requirements tended to report less stress. Some said the change gave them more time to pursue activities they thought would actually help them find work.

Before the trial, there were plausible arguments in both directions. Tougher requirements might strengthen the incentive to get a job. Lighter requirements might allow people to search smarter, focusing on the particular job where they were most likely to get hired. The experiment allowed government to find out.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH ROSS SOLLY
THURSDAY, 8 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Canberra Stadium

ROSS SOLLY: Well, Andrew Leigh is the Member for Fenner. He's also got the Bruce Stadium, of course, in his electorate. Andrew Fenner, good morning to you. Andrew Leigh, sorry, did I call you Andrew Fenner?

ANDREW LEIGH: G’day Ross. That’s alright! You’ve also called me Andrew Barr before, Andrew Fenner, and it turns out Bruce is in Alicia Payne's electorate. It was in my electorate before the boundary moved north.

ROSS SOLLY: Yes, of course! Of course, I just realised we had a boundary redrawn recently, didn't we? So, it's no longer in your…

ANDREW LEIGH: That's right. The people of Bruce have traded up to get the terrific Alicia Payne as their local MP, but I maintain a keen interest in the AIS.

ROSS SOLLY: Oh have they? Yes. Well, just on this proposal. Have you been briefed on it, Andrew Leigh? Often referred to as Andrew Fenner. Have you been briefed on it, and what do you think at first blush?

ANDREW LEIGH: Look, it's an exciting proposal. I've spoken to Stephen Byron about it. I'm interested in what it involves. I'm also aware, though, that there is a huge pipeline of investment going in from the ACT Government. So right now, you've got the pool development, that's a couple of hundred million dollars. You've got the convention centre, which is about half a billion dollars. You've got the theatre, which is about $300 million. And then you'd be adding a stadium, which could be anywhere from half a billion to a couple of billion dollars on top of that. 

ROSS SOLLY: Yeah.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury 

What Should AI Love?

National Press Club of Australia,
Canberra

Wednesday, 7 October 2026

I acknowledge the Ngunnawal people, on whose lands we meet. My thanks to the Italian Embassy and the National Press Club for organising and hosting this event. It is a pleasure to share the stage with Father Paolo Benanti and our moderator Corrie McLeod.

Today’s discussion matches the arc of how many Australians have been thinking about AI. After ChatGPT launched in 2022, most of us were focused on how it could make us more productive – summarising documents, checking our work or planning holidays.

Since then, progress has been rapid. One measure of AI agents’ ability to carry out complex tasks has doubled roughly every seven months. As the technology has become more capable, the talk has turned to its impact on humanity. 

In these short opening remarks, I want to ask two questions. What can AI do for human wellbeing? And what values should guide our AI systems?

Start with a man with ALS who had largely lost the ability to speak.

In 2025, researchers implanted 256 electrodes in the part of his brain involved in speech. AI decoded his neural signals and turned them into speech almost instantly.

The synthetic voice resembled his own voice from before ALS. He could change his intonation, emphasise particular words and even sing short melodies.

Now let’s move to a more vexed use of AI.

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TV INTERVIEW
ABC AFTERNOON BRIEFING, WITH PATRICIA KARVELAS 
TUESDAY, 6 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Pre-COP; Pacific Engagement; Immigration Policies. 

PATRICIA KARVELAS: For more on the news of the day, Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury. Welcome to the program.

ANDREW LEIGH: Thanks Patricia, great to be with you.

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Isn't that rude? I mean, that's like a traditional offering and the Prime Minister snubs them?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well Patricia, it's the first I've seen it. The Prime Minister is engaging in the Pacific as no previous Australian Prime Minister has done. This is really important work that he is doing, which comes on the back of dozens and dozens of visits by the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister into the Pacific. This is contested territory and the work that we're doing with our Pacific neighbours and the work that we will be championing as part of our bid for a UN Security Council seat really is unprecedented and vitally important for Australian national interests. 

PATRICIA KARVELAS: Okay. I want to take you to hearing from the government on what you make of the Coalition's immigration policy. Their policy is to reduce net overseas migration to 100,000 for the first two years, then it goes up a little. It is a big, big shift in the policy approach. 25 per cent reduction in foreign students. There are other changes too. There's a real focus on just skills. Is the policy what Australians want? Senator Matt Canavan told me earlier that across the country, people are saying they want lower immigration, and this is what they're delivering, and they've done it through the Parliamentary Budget Office. 

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2CC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH STEPHEN CENATIEMPO
TUESDAY, 6 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Scrapping card surcharges; Illicit tobacco 

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Alright, time to talk federal politics with Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury and the Member for Fenner, Dr Andrew Leigh. Andrew, good morning.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good morning Stephen, great to be with you.

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Before we start, I do want to talk about the illegal tobacco market, but, you know, you were one of the ones that put one of these videos out last week about these card surcharges. I hope in the interim you've gone and spoken to some local businesses about how bad this is and how it is actually bringing small business to its knees here in Canberra?

ANDREW LEIGH: Look, Stephen I've spoken to a lot of small businesses and they recognise that there's a great value in having a competitive market. Most small businesses weren't charging card surcharges, and they welcome the fact that they don't have competitors who are now throwing on an additional charge at the checkout. This is about price transparency and…

STEPHEN CENATIEMPO: Hang on a minute, hang on – let me stop you there, because that makes no sense at all. If there are businesses not charging it, why are they worried about businesses that are charging it? Aren't they already in the box seat?

ANDREW LEIGH: Because they're competing against a business which is advertising one price and then charging most customers a higher price. Card surcharges mean that the price you see on the shelf, the price you see in the menu, isn't the price you pay at the checkout. More than 80 per cent of Australian businesses don’t charge card surcharges…

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
2CC RADIO CANBERRA, LIVE WITH LEON DELANEY
FRIDAY, 2 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Scrapping card surcharges; Interest rates; Inflation; Labor’s fiscal discipline

LEON DELANEY: First up today, the federal Member for the seat of Fenner and also by sheer chance the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury, Dr Andrew Leigh, good afternoon.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good afternoon Leon, great to be with you.

LEON DELANEY: Although I suspect chance has nothing to do with it – you’re very qualified for the job. Let’s start with the abolition of those surcharges for credit and debit card transactions. It came into effect yesterday. My simple question is this: in light of the fact that many businesses now are saying, ‘We will offer you a discount for cash’, how is that any different from simply charging a fee for using your card? Instead of charging the fee that’s no longer legal, they’ll just give you a discount for anything that’s not on the card. But for all practical intents and purposes, it’s exactly the same thing, isn’t it?

ANDREW LEIGH: Here’s the big difference, Leon. When you’re getting a discount, you’re getting a better price than what you see on the menu or on the shelf. When you’re getting a surcharge, you’re getting the worst price. So what really frustrates people is when you see one price on the menu and then you pay a higher price at the checkout. No one minds getting to the checkout and discovering they’ve gotten a bargain. But people get pretty frustrated when you’re told that there’s one price, whether you’re shopping online or shopping in-store and then that price goes up at the checkout when you choose to pay by tap. That’s gone as of 1 October. A big reform helping consumers but also helping competition. Because most businesses aren’t charging these additional fees. About 84 per cent of businesses don’t have card surcharges. And now this is asking the other 16 per cent to come in line too.

LEON DELANEY: Okay. But for all effective purposes, if a business has previously been charging the surcharge to cover the cost of the transaction, they’re more likely now to increase their price anyway in order to cover that and then offer the discount for the cash transaction, ending up exactly back where we started?

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO SYDNEY, DRIVE WITH SARAH DINGLE
THURSDAY, 1 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Latest ATO corporate tax transparency report; Scrapping card surcharges

SARAH DINGLE: Dr Andrew Leigh is the Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury. He advocated for better transparency in corporate tax and saw through the passing of new tax disclosure laws. He joins us now. Welcome to Drive, Dr Leigh.

ANDREW LEIGH: Thanks Sarah, great to be with you.

SARAH DINGLE: So, what were your thoughts on this latest report from the ATO?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, there's legitimate reasons for a business not paying tax but there's no reason for failing to pay tax that's due. We've made big changes – significant reforms to legislate a 15 per cent global and domestic minimum tax, world-leading transparency requirements and tightening the rules around debt deductions, which is one way that big corporates were reducing their tax bill. And so, we've now had the lowest level of corporates paying zero tax since transparency reporting began, an initiative which began under a Labor Government.

SARAH DINGLE: But why would almost 30 per cent of large companies not be paying tax? It includes names like the Microsoft Data Centre Operations, Singtel – which is of course the parent company of Optus, Sony Australia, Starbucks I believe, and many more. Why aren't they paying tax?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, the standard reason is they're not making a profit. So, the tax is paid on profit rather than being on revenue. And we've sought to make sure that firms are transparently reporting other jurisdictions where they've got tax paid. That…

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC RADIO CANBERRA, BREAKFAST WITH ROSS SOLLY
THURSDAY, 1 OCTOBER 2026

SUBJECTS: Scrapping card surcharges; Labor’s fiscal discipline; Productivity

ROSS SOLLY: It’s new world today regarding credit card charges as well. Dr Andrew Leigh is the federal Member for Fenner. Of course, he's also the Assistant Minister for Productivity and Competition. Andrew Leigh, good morning to you.

ANDREW LEIGH: Good morning Ross, great to be with you!

ROSS SOLLY: Yeah. And good to have you on the show as well. So, just remind people from today what changes should they see Andrew Leigh?

ANDREW LEIGH: Well, they should see no more credit card surcharges. So, credit card and debit card surcharges have been banned. And we're also bringing down the interchange fee. So, that'll save businesses, particularly small businesses about $910 million. This means that people find it easier to comparison shop. You won't have a sneaky charge added on at the register. If you see a price on the shelf or on the menu, then that'll be the price at the checkout.

ROSS SOLLY: I know consumers are going to love this, but what about businesses, Andrew Leigh? Because I have heard and there's been reports in the news this morning, you know, for them, they still have to in many situations still have to pay a fee to the banks. So, they have to recoup this somehow?

The Hon Jim Chalmers MP
Treasurer

The Hon Daniel Mulino MP
Assistant Treasurer
Minister for Financial Services

The Hon Andrew Leigh MP 
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

Credit and Debit Card Surcharges End Today

Thursday, 1 October 2026

Consumers will no longer pay around $1.6 billion in card surcharges when debit and credit surcharging ends today.

These changes are all about taking pressure off consumers and businesses and helping with the cost of living.

Australians will be able to use debit and credit cards without being penalised or surprised at the checkout thanks to these reforms.

The ban on credit and debit card surcharges is one part of broader reforms to make the payments system fairer, more efficient and more transparent.

These changes will help millions of small businesses reduce costs and get a better deal and save businesses $910 million each year. 

The Hon Dr Daniel Mulino MP
Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services

The Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP
Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury

Share of Large Companies Paying Income Tax Reaches Record High

Thursday, 1 October 2026

A record share of Australia’s large companies are paying income tax, according to the latest ATO corporate tax transparency report.

Australians expect big business to pay their fair share of tax, just like Australian workers do.

The proportion of large corporates paying no income tax has dropped to 27 per cent, the lowest level since corporate tax transparency reporting began.

Large corporates paid a combined $87.5 billion in income tax during the 2024–25 financial year.

Corporate tax paid by oil and gas companies reached $10.6 billion, the second highest contribution since CTT reporting began, and the amount of petroleum resource rent tax (PRRT) payable rose by 26 per cent.