Greens treasury spokesman Nick McKim has called on Treasurer Jim Chalmers to use his powers to bring down interest rates as they “continue to smash mortgage holders and renters across Australia”.

In a statement released today, McKim said Chalmers needed to step in and give mortgage holders and renters relief from high interest rates.

“According to Jim Chalmers himself, the Reserve Bank has smashed the economy. Dr Chalmers has the power to reduce interest rates, and he must act before more damage is done,” he said.

Earlier today, shadow treasurer Angus Taylor said the Coalition would not back Chalmers’ RBA reforms, prompting Chalmers to say he was open to negotiating with the Greens. McKim confirmed the Greens were open to negotiating with Labor too.

“Given the Coalition’s decision today, and Dr Chalmers’ comments, the Greens are ready to engage in good faith with the treasurer,” he said.

While the Greens will work with the treasurer, McKim argued it was “crucial for the power of a democratically elected government to override decisions of the RBA to be maintained”.

“Removing democratic oversight over the RBA would be Labor’s final capitulation to the power of capital and to the neoliberal agenda,” he said.

Chalmers has been trying to implement the recommendations of an RBA review, released last year, which argued for the creation of a separate monetary policy committee that would – like similar committees on other central banks – focus solely on interest rate settings and their impact on the economy.

The treasurer had also accepted the review’s advice to remove the government’s reserve powers to intervene and overrule the central bank if judged necessary.