Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

They think that money is the answer to every problem. And because members opposite think that money is the answer to every problem, they were driving this country into an unsustainable budget situation. They were saddling our children and our grandchildren with unsustainable debt. It was intergenerational theft that they were practicing against our country's future. We will not do that. Not for a second will we do that. We will deliver better schools and public hospitals, but we will do it not just with more money—although there will be more money. We will do it through better structures. We will do it through independent public schools. We will do it through community controlled public hospitals. We are absolutely committed to better public schools and better public hospitals. Unlike members opposite, we will do it in a sustainable way. I have one final point I want to make in response to the member for Newcastle.

An opposition member: This will be deep.

It may not be deep, but it will be important. If the member seriously believes that somehow public schools have been short-changed by $30 billion, she must insist that her leader put that money back and not fob her off with lies, the way he treated Neil Mitchell.

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