Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Putting forward the proposition in the way that he has, he is making the Tea Party look rational! The facts are these. When conditions in the global economy change, so too do responsible governments, and this government, at the end of last year, made the judgement that to cut further in the budget would hit growth and it would hit jobs. Because our No. 1 priority is economic growth and jobs, we are not going to go through and cut as they propose. That is what they are proposing: that you do not change in response to global economic conditions—you just continue going down the same road—which is why they are such a danger to our economy, because their proposal now is to cut $70 billion, at least, from the budget. If you are going to take their propositions logically, that is what the shadow Treasurer is saying. That would mean a Newman-style attack on health and education in the Australian economy.

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