The "fragile" global economic recovery has taken a hit from the shock Brexit result, Malcolm Turnbull has said, even as he sought to reassure Australians that a re-elected Coalition can weather gathering waves of instability.
Both Mr Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten sought to turn the British vote to their advantage ahead of this week's federal election. The Prime Minister stressed the need for continuity and stability while Mr Shorten drew parallels between the Tory party disunity that paved the way for the Brexit vote and the delicate truce within the Liberal Party under Mr Turnbull.
Mr Turnbull vowed to forge ahead with the government's program of cutting new trade deals but effectively hosed down expectations that Brexit offers a swift opportunity to secure a separate deal with a newly independent Britain.
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon, who is expected to make gains next Saturday, said Brexit carried a lesson about "political elites not listening to people's concerns" and linked the backlash to uneven economic gains in Australia from free trade deals, an issue on which he is campaigning.
Appearing with Treasurer Scott Morrison, Mr Turnbull said the global economic recovery remained "somewhat fragile".
"So the British decision to leave the European Union is not helpful in terms of the global economic recovery," he said. "It is a big economic shock … It will increase risk."
Mr Morrison said he had spoken to the chief executives of the major banks, the Reserve Bank, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority and Treasury on Saturday morning and was convinced the fundamentals of Australia's financial system were sound.
The Prime Minister stressed that the new British government had a lot of work ahead just to re-establish itself as a separate trading nation. But he said Australia would continue to pursue trade deals – including with both Britain and the EU – as a cornerstone of its growth plan as Australia tackles the need to transition its economy.
"We recognise that in this … rapidly changing and growing global economy, we need to have access to as many markets as possible because that is a big driver of economic growth."
Mr Shorten sharpened his personal attack on Mr Turnbull, describing him as "weak" and vulnerable to post-election disunity by forces loyal to former prime minister Tony Abbott.
"He is a weak man beholden to the right wing of his party. I think the major lesson of the Brexit outcome in the UK is the need to elect a government that can deliver stability and deliver unity," he said.
Senator Xenophon said the major parties should heed the result and be "hard-headed about trade deals that take away Australian jobs", citing the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the World Trade Organisation procurement agreement.
"The trickle-down effect hasn't worked and I think that … [Brexit] is in part a reaction against people's concerns about not being listened to, that their vote doesn't count.
"I wonder if the result wouldn't have been different if they heeded some of those concerns some years ago."
