David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member from the other side, who no doubt will have the opportunity in a minute to lay his economic credentials bare on the table, has said that those on this side, and our economic credentials, are not up to the job of managing this economy. The only credible claim that those on the other side ever had before the Australian people as to why they should have been given an opportunity to manage this nation’s finances was that, on occasions, they had actually run the economy in reasonable shape. But what we have seen, in recent years in particular, is out of control spending. It is not enough for these people to have spent all that money that they did trying to get re-elected. Now, having had the burden of government lifted from their shoulders, there are no constraints. It is a ‘spendathon’. It is ‘another day, another dollar’ when it comes to spending. They will throw money at anything.

The reality is that the Leader of the Opposition is in such dire straits that he knows that whatever promises he makes at this point in time he will not have to deliver, because his timetable is not the next election, it is the next day, the next week—it is making sure that the shadow Treasurer behind him looking over his shoulder takes a little bit of pressure off and does not go in for the kill. I support the proposals. These are important integrity measures. Those people committed to cracking down on the lurk and the loophole will stand up to be counted on this legislation, and I have a sneaking suspicion that history will repeat itself in that regard.

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