Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

) ( ): We just heard from the member from Lingiari, and I have to say he was going on about the co-payment but he has such a bad memory that he forgot that he voted for the co-payment years ago when it was first introduced. He does not put that on the record.

I welcome the opportunity to stand here today and speak on this MPI and talk about the tough reforms this government has had to introduce to fill the path of destruction the previous Labor government created during their six years in charge of Australia's finances. The Treasurer really does have his work cut out for him in trying to clean up the mess that the Labor Party left behind. I have to say that he is doing a mighty fine job, given the state of the books when he took over after the election.

Labor's legacy to our children is 200,000 more unemployed, gross debt projected to rise to $667 billion, with $123 billion in cumulative deficits, more than 50,000 illegal arrivals by boat and the world's biggest carbon tax. That is Labor's legacy.

I am proud to say that we have commenced work on fixing all of those problems, and the Australian economy is well on the road to recovery. We have scrapped the carbon tax, saving the average household $550 a year; we have stopped the boats, preventing deaths at sea and saving the budget billions of dollars; we have scrapped the mining tax so this vital sector can create more jobs; we have handed down a $50 billion infrastructure package, the single largest infrastructure package in Australia's history.

Projects worth $1 trillion have been given environmental approval; we have cut around $2 billion in red tape; we have delivered three free trade agreements with Japan, Korea and China, which mean more jobs for Australians. We are putting in place the long-term structural reforms necessary to fix the budget. This government has provided an additional $630 million to our police and security services and updated our national security laws to address the most pressing gaps in their ability to combat the growing threat of home-grown extremism.

I think that is a pretty good track record so far. In in the face of all this progress and reform, the Labor Party have stood in the way and stomped their feet like little children. There is a clear difference between the Labor Party and the coalition: we have a plan, they do not. We have a vision; they do not. We care about small business; they do not. We care about jobs; they do not. We have a plan for budget repair, when they have a plan for budget sabotage. Our plan is the only plan, and we will continue to deliver on our economic action strategy, which I believe is the mandate given to us by the Australian people.

The Labor Party cannot seem to accept that the Australian people have given this government a mandate—a mandate to fix the mess. And we are doing exactly that. The Labor Party needs to get out of the way and let us do the job we were elected to do. The Rudd-Gillard-Rudd governments were six years of chaos, waste and mismanagement, which turned nearly $50 billion in the bank into a projected net debt worth well over $200 billion. This is the fastest deterioration in debt, in dollar terms and as a share of GDP, in modern Australian history. Australians are already paying $1 billion a month in interest payments and that is not even our money—it is borrowed. No country can continue to pay the mortgage payments on the credit card.

However, thanks to the coalition, the foundations for a stronger budget and a stronger economy are now in place. Even though it was the Labor Party that left us in this mess of debt and deficit, they are still trying to sabotage our tough but necessary budget. They have voted against $28 billion worth of savings, including $5 billion they handed down themselves.

We must work together to achieve a budget surplus again; it is necessary for this country and necessary for jobs and growth. Over six budgets, Labor increased spending by over 50 per cent—that is $137 billion. The adults are in charge now, and we are cleaning up the mess the children made. The children are the Labor Party and they should get out of the way of—(Time expired)

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