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

It is a pleasure to sum up the second reading debate on the supplementary additional estimates appropriation bills and the budget appropriation bills. These bills underpin the government's expenditure decisions for what remains of the current financial year and the financial year to come.

Before I go on to recap the appropriations that these bills give effect to and the major items associated with those appropriations, I would like to touch on some of the issues canvassed in this wide-ranging debate. The centrepiece of this budget is undoubtedly our small business package. We are giving Australian small businesses a reason to have the confidence to invest now, to hire now, to back their ingenuity and to have a go. As the economy continues to transition from mining-led growth to broader based growth, we need small business firing on all cylinders. The member for Page hit the nail on the head when in this debate he remarked:

… every public sector dollar, every taxpayer dollar, that you want to spend on many worthy causes has to come from a healthy private sector.

That is why in this budget we gave small business a real incentive to invest in growing their business, to back their ingenuity and, as I said before, to have a go.

A common refrain in this debate has been just how enthusiastic small businesses are about the tax cut we have delivered for small businesses whether they are incorporated or not, and our two-year $20,000 instant asset write-off. By allowing small businesses to keep more of the money they work so hard to earn, we are providing a real incentive that will make a real difference to small business. It is a message I have heard as I have travelled right across the Riverina in recent weeks. It is why it is important that we continue to invest for growth by unlocking trade opportunities, supporting job seekers into employment and building the infrastructure Australia needs.

Our small business package will make a real difference to the ability of small businesses to realise the benefits of the preferential trade agreements we have struck with South Korea, Japan and China. These deals open up market access to important export markets, the benefits of which will continue to be felt for decades to come. On the horizon is a deal with India that I know the Minister for Trade and Investment is working tirelessly to secure. These agreements are going to be transformational for Australian growers of food and fibre, particularly those in regional Australia. China is already Australia's second largest market for dairy exports and that will continue to grow, with tariffs on dairy products being eliminated over time—in some cases in as little as four years. Japan is Australia's second largest trading partner and, under the agreement struck last year, tariffs on canned tomatoes, peaches and pears, and fruit and vegetable juices will disappear entirely. Other agricultural tariffs, some as high as 219 per cent, will be substantially reduced. Our agreement with South Korea will see tariffs on wine eliminated, which gives Australian producers such as those around Griffith in the Riverina—who produce, did you know, one in four glasses of all Australian wine—an advantage over French, Spanish, Italian and Chilean competitors.

This budget is also good for farmers and their communities looking to take advantage of these opportunities by providing immediate deductions for new fences and new water infrastructure, and a three-year write-off for new hay sheds and silos—all from 1 July 2015. This is so important to regional Australia and particularly to Riverina farmers, who produce so much of the nation's food and fibre, as well as exporting to the world. They can now invest in on-farm infrastructure with confidence, and in many cases they can do it right from budget night—right from when the member for North Sydney stood and delivered that fine speech. As the member for Calare rightly remarked in his contribution:

… in regional Australia … they actually do things; they dig them up, they make things and they grow things.

We have just heard from the Deputy Prime Minister, Leader of The Nationals, Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, and member for Wide Bay. He has lots of titles. I tell you what, he is a busy boy and he has been very busy in regional Australia lately. He has been busy delivering the $300 million Bridges Renewal Program over four years. This includes 29 bridges across New South Wales—I know that will please the member for Grayndler—including Carrathool Bridge, and Gobarralong Bridge near Gundagai. This program is very, very important. Unfortunately, as the Deputy Prime Minister pointed out, the Melbourne East West Link is not being supported by the Victorian Labor government. There is a doubling of Roads to Recovery funding, which is so important to local government areas right throughout Australia. Members, as I say, right across this wide brown land, at least those on the government side, have highlighted the real results that this budget delivers for their communities.

As my neighbour the member for Hume pointed out, this is a budget about solving real problems. It delivers better roads through our Roads to Recovery program, mentioned by the Deputy Prime Minister. It fixes dangerous road black spots. It delivers a better National Broadband Network sooner. It delivers the community infrastructure which really makes a difference to the lives of local people through our $1 billion National Stronger Regions Fund and our new stronger communities program.

The other area where I know this budget does a lot of good is in getting people, particularly young people, into work or on a pathway to work. We are investing in a new $6.8 billion jobactive employment services model to better meet the needs of job seekers and employers. We are revitalising Work for the Dole to give people who are unemployed a better sense of connection to their community and skills which may provide a pathway to work. As the member for Parkes noted in his fine contribution to this debate, if you are serious about breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty you need to allow people to have the dignity of work—and he would know. That is why we are giving eligible job seekers the opportunity to undertake work experience in businesses for up to 25 hours per week for four weeks—and that is important. Participants will continue to receive their income support payment and a supplement to assist with the costs of participation. Employers who go on to offer a young person paid employment can receive a wage subsidy of up to $6,500 over 12 months. It is just one way we are getting Australia back to work.

This budget takes the necessary steps towards continuing to repair the budget, with sensible savings and a responsible approach to spending. We were elected to restore the nation's finances, and this year's budget shows the headway we have made in doing just that. Deficits over the forward estimates are reducing each and every year, from $35.1 billion in 2015-16 to $6.9 billion in 2018-19, and this is despite the fact that we have lost $90 billion in expected tax revenue.

Rather than squibbing the hard decisions and throwing up our hands in despair, we are taking a responsible, measured and fair approach to getting the nation's finances back on track, back where people expect them to be. We are back doing the job that we were elected to do in September 2013. Labor have been running the line since the budget was handed down that we have indulged in a piece of budget trickery, claiming our plan to return to surplus is based wholly and solely on including the Future Fund earnings in the underlying cash balance. The member for Fraser made much of this in his contribution to this debate. I know that his Senate colleagues have been doing their best in estimates committee hearings to accuse us of cooking the books. But I can assure the chamber that there is no trickery at play here. There is no grand conspiracy. What the budget papers reflect is that from 2020-21 the earnings of the Future Fund will be available to offset the cost of paying Australian government civilian and military superannuation benefits, which was the stated intention of the parliament when it legislated to establish the Future Fund back in 2006. In fact, it was always intended that Future Fund earnings would be shown in budget projections from 2020-21 onwards. Labor themselves made this very point in their 2012-13 budget. I will say this for the member for Fraser: he may be an economist but he is no historian in that regard. Even if you cannot remember quite that far back, the Intergenerational report released in March of this year made it clear that, once draw-downs from the fund commenced, the earnings of the fund would be included in the underlying cash balance. This is not something that we have tried to hide. Far from being a piece of budget trickery, this is clear evidence of the legacy of the last coalition government at work.

I would like to remind the House of the more specific features of the bills before us. Appropriation Bill (No. 5) 2014-2015 seeks approval for additional appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of just under $377 million for 2014-15. Under this bill, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection would receive just under $248 million in 2014-15 to fund resettlement activities and costs associated with delays in processing illegal maritime arrivals. Appropriation Bill (No. 6) 2014-2015 seeks further approval for appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of just under $423 million for 2014-15. The majority of proposed funding in the bill relates to the Department of Defence, which would receive just under $412 million, reflecting funding for supplementation for foreign exchange movements and the net effect of the reallocation of funds between running costs and capital.

Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2015-2016, Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2015-2016 and the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2015-2016 form the principal bills underpinning the government's budget. Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2015-2016 seeks authority for meeting the expenses of the ordinary annual services of the government for 2015-16. The bill seeks approval for appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of just under $81 billion. Just under $29 billion is proposed to be appropriated for the Department of Defence to keep our nation safe and to pursue our national interests. In the social services portfolio, the Department of Social Services would receive just under $5.8 billion, including funding to support families with flexible, accessible and affordable child care so they can move into work, stay in work, train, study or undertake other recognised activities.

The Department of Health would receive just over $6.2 billion, including $2.4 billion for primary healthcare, including primary and mental healthcare services, and healthcare services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people in rural and remote areas. Just over $4.9 billion would be provided to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for the advancement of Australia's international strategic, security and economic interests, the protection and welfare of Australians abroad, consular support and an effective Australian government presence overseas.

Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2015-2016 seeks approval for appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of just over $15 billion for 2015-2016. Under this bill, the Department of Communications would receive just under $7.4 billion to continue its investment in the National Broadband Network in 2015-16, and the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development would receive just under $3 billion. This includes a provision for a Commonwealth concessional loan of up to $2 billion to accelerate the delivery of stage 2 of the WestConnex project in Sydney. Further, the Department of Defence would receive just under $2.9 billion in capital funding.

The purpose of the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2015-2016 is to provide funding of just over $233 million for the operations of the parliamentary departments. Just over $28 million would be provided to enhance cybersecurity.

Details of the proposed expenditure are set out in the schedule for which money has been appropriated to the bills and in the portfolio supplementary additional estimates statements tabled in the parliament. I commend these bills to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

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