Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

We have just seen an example of hypocrisy writ large. The Labor government, which were re-elected in 2010, came to office in 2007 with $50 billion in the bank and they managed to turn that into a gross debt of $450 billion in just six short years, or we could say six long years of 'hard Labor'. They have left us with a $123 billion cumulative budget deficit. If we did nothing about this debt bomb, the amount of money owed would blow out to $667 billion. We would be saddling future generations of Australians with a debt to pay back. That is a disgrace.

We heard the member for McMahon, the shadow Treasurer, talk about jobs being lost. No-one likes to see a job lost, no-one at all, certainly no-one on this side and certainly no-one in the general public, save for perhaps people in the 17 seats held by Labor, which are no longer held by Labor after last year's election. They have gone from 72 seats won at the 2010 election to 55 seats won at the last general election. I have to say that those 17 seats had job losses that perhaps people were applauding; jobs lost on that side of the House.

I am, of course, delighted to support the    Tax Bonus for Working Australians Repeal Bill 2013, which marks another step in delivering on the coalition government's commitment to end Labor's waste. The Abbott-Truss government are getting on with the job of fixing the mess, repairing the absolute disaster left to us and left to the nation. This legislation is proof of this government's commitment to regaining control of our budget and, once again, getting the nation's economic house in order. The repeal bill will put a stop to any further stimulus payments, or 'the $900 cheques' as they are affectionately known, some five years after the peak of the global financial crisis. We did not need the cheques then and we certainly do not need them now. The coalition, quite rightly, opposed these payments when the first Rudd government proposed them in 2009. We believe that they were poorly targeted and that the nation simply could not afford such a wasteful measure—and we were right.

Since being introduced, 21,000—let me repeat that, 21,000—so-called stimulus payments have been sent to deceased taxpayers, totalling more than $18 million. These $900 cheques have, so far, cost taxpayers more than $7.7 billion in borrowed money—money we could not afford. That is $7.7 billion more on the nation's credit card, which we now pay interest on, which we now have to pay back—and then some. The worst part is, however, that the $7.7 billion is but a drop in the ocean of the debt that Labor left behind.

It bears reminding the House that, when the coalition were last in government, we left a $20 billion surplus, money in the bank. But eight long years later we have inherited a projected $30 billion deficit. We are now hurtling towards peak debt of $667 billion in deficits as far as the eye can see. That is Labor's legacy. The people of Australia, Mr and Mrs Average, have entrusted the Truss-Abbott government with the task of cleaning up after Labor and tackling the task of building a more prosperous economy. It will be a difficult job, but I know the member for Fadden would agree with me that we are up for the job. We are up for the task. It is a big task but we are up for it.

The Commission of Audit is a vital step in that process. The commission's task is to assess the role and the scope of government, identify ways to eliminate wasteful spending and consider ways of improving the efficiency and the effectiveness of the Commonwealth's operations. The need to take a good, hard look at expenditure was reinforced by the International Monetary Fund's comments overnight about the challenge facing Australia. An important guiding principle of this exercise is that the government should have respect for taxpayers. All governments should have respect for taxpayers. That respect goes to hard-working small business owners who take risks in order to generate prosperity for themselves, their communities and their employees. That respect goes to employees who work diligently to generate a livelihood for themselves and for their families.

If we are taking one dollar out of the hands of hard-working individuals and businesses, both large and small, then we should be clear that the spending to which it will be devoted is only for those things that people cannot do for themselves or cannot do efficiently. This is in stark, harsh contrast to Labor, who seem to think that the solution to everything is just more government, more bureaucracy, more red tape, more green tape, more regulation. In little more than 5½ years Labor introduced more than 21,000 additional regulations. That is a huge impost on the economic drivers of our nation—the business people, Mr and Mrs Average, the taxpayers. The regulatory burden established under Labor is stifling many businesses and our economy. It is consuming time, energy and money that businesses could otherwise devote to ensuring the future profitability of their operations by improving the productivity of their businesses, identifying new opportunities and planning for the future. Planning for the future is something that Labor never actually did. It was government by media release, government by GetUp!, government by Four Corners, but it was not government for the people. Unlocking that potential is key to building a more productive and prosperous future for Australia. It is the key to building businesses that can offer workers better paid, long-term jobs.

I have often heard the Minister for Small Business—surely one of the most passionate advocates for small business we have had, and we saw a plethora of small business ministers under Labor—talking about a renaissance in small businesses and family enterprises. I only have to walk down the streets of either Wagga Wagga or Griffith, the cities in my electorate, or any of the small towns I represent to know how right Bruce Billson is. That is why the government is committed to cutting $1 billion of red and green tape. We have already made a significant down payment on reaching that very target.

Our first order of business in this place was to introduce and pass legislation to abolish the carbon tax and the mining tax, which will cut the red-tape burden on business by nearly $100 million when it passes the Senate. Why will Labor not come with us? Why will the Leader of the Opposition not say to his senators, 'Get this through, lift the burden off business, lift the burden off taxpayers, lift the burden off ordinary householders'? Why will he not do that? Why is the former government so stymying the drivers of our economic prosperity? For small business we have introduced legislation to transfer responsibility for administering paid parental leave from employers to government. For agriculture, Minister Joyce announced rural research and development corporations are being empowered to establish their own operating plans and appoint their own boards.

The Minister for Agriculture is getting on with the job of helping to boost regional Australia. That is so important, because too often under Labor's watch we forgot that regional Australia is the major driver of the wealth of this nation in the mining and agriculture happening in regional Australia. That is certainly the case in the Riverina where we grow just about everything and there is a goldmine. We get on with the job of helping boost Australia. What did the previous government do when they were in power? They kept buying water, taking water from production.

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