Peter Costello (Higgins, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

That would depend on whether the financial institutions which have borrowed it—Westpac, CBA and ANZ, principally, and National Australia Bank—have entered into fixed or variable borrowings. But let me ask you this: by how much will it increase the government’s interest payments? Zero—not a single dollar. Why? Because the government does not pay interest any more.

When this government was elected, the Australian government had $96 billion of Labor Party debt. It was costing us $8.4 billion to service Australian Labor Party debt. Because of the economic management of the last 10 years, in net terms we have now wiped out Labor Party debt. We have reduced our interest payments by $8 billion. That means that the Australian government has now freed itself from the economic waste and recklessness—

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