Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is a great pleasure to take part in this debate on a matter of public importance today. It is always a pleasure to take part in any debate when the Labor Party starts on the issue of keeping promises. You have to admire the utter shamelessness and the brazen way that Labor Party senators have come in here this afternoon to lecture people, to lecture government senators, on the importance of keeping promises. This, of course, is the same Labor Party that promised 'no carbon tax' three days before an election and then introduced a carbon tax within months of forming a government. This is the very same Labor Party that promised it would deliver six budget surpluses and delivered six deficits. They promised that FuelWatch would keep prices low; they promised that Grocery Watch would keep grocery costs down. The list of broken promises from those opposite would take longer than I have time to recite this afternoon.

We heard in this Senate chamber not so long ago some very fine contributions from senators on all sides reflecting on the memory of the late Labor senator Peter Walsh from my home state of Western Australia, who, of course, served as Minister for Finance in the Hawke government back in the days when the Labor Party took a responsible attitude towards fiscal management and economic reform. Of course, it was Peter Walsh who memorably dubbed the Australian Democrats—who were at that time a major influence in this chamber—as 'the fairies at the bottom of the garden' because they dwelled in a make-believe world which economic reality seemed not to touch. As I have noted before, the mystical, ethereal spirt only seems to have grown since that time. Yes, the Democrats have gone but they have been ably replaced by the Australian Greens and, increasingly, a Labor Party that seems to think fiscal challenges can just be resolved by magic, and magic alone.

I have no wish to be a Grinch—especially not on the eve of the budget—but the simple fact is that the deficit is not going to fix itself. The government promised the people of Australia that we would get the budget back on a path to surplus and would draw down Labor's unsustainable debt legacy. That is precisely what we have been attempting to do. That is precisely what we have been doing. That is what we will continue to do with tonight's budget.

Of course, Labor's shopsoiled complaints about cuts are not sustained by the evidence. The facts do not interest the Labor Party. But let's look for a moment at their claim of 'cuts' to education. Under the Abbott government Commonwealth spending for schools will actually reach record highs and increase over the next four years—an inconvenient truth for the Labor Party. At the last federal election the coalition promised to match the previous government's school funding commitments dollar for dollar over the four-year forward estimates. In fact, we have done better by adding almost $1.2 billion more than the previous government. This new investment is especially important in my home state of Western Australia as well as in Queensland and the Northern Territory after those states and territories had their funding cut by Labor.

But you do not have to take my word about the dishonesty of Labor's claims on supposed cuts to education funding. Where should we look? We should look to no other than the ABC's Fact Check Unit—not noted, of course, for being a mouthpiece for the government or for senators on this side of the chamber. But let's have a look at what the ABC's Fact Check Unit had to say last year in response to shadow minister Kate Ellis's claims about alleged cuts to education. The verdict was there for the world to see:

The Government did not cut $30 billion from schools in the May budget.

Senator Bilyk interjecting—

Senator Bilyk might be interested in hearing what the ABC's Fact Check had to say.

The Government did not cut $30 billion from schools in the May budget. The $30 billion figure is calculated over a 10 year period starting in 2017. It adds up the difference between the increase in funding that Labor says it would have delivered and the increase the Government may deliver. There is too much uncertainty for such a long-term estimate to be a reliable measure of either cuts or savings.

And what did they say about the shadow minister for education's commentary? They said:

Ms Ellis is sprouting rubbery figures.

Surprise! Ms Ellis and the Labor Party are sprouting rubbery figures—an inconvenient truth: the coalition has not cut education spending.

Senator Bilyk interjecting—

Challenge me, Senator Bilyk. Talk about pension cuts. I accept the challenge. Let us look at pension cuts.