Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

They may have forgotten, but I refer them to the comments of the then finance minister, Penny Wong, on 18 March 2012. In relation to these sorts of questions, when they are put, 'What is the 10-year cost?' of the particular item, she said, 'We don't release 10-year costings.' That was the policy of their government. It has been the policy of pretty much every government. So we follow the practice put in place by those opposite.

If they go to Budget Paper No. 1, page 3-11, they will find the underlying cash balance predicted to 2026-27 and they will know, if they have had an involvement with the budget before, that what happens is you take the individual measures and you combine them all together and you look at what the long- and the medium-term projection is over 10 years to 2026-27. What that document means is that our Ten Year Enterprise Tax Plan ensures that, on projections, we move to a position of budget balance in 2021 and we stay there until 2026-27. That includes our Ten Year Enterprise Tax Plan. So every measure across the medium term, across the short term in the budget and forward estimates is affordable, and the way we have done it is we have not spent more than we have saved and we have not taxed more and increased the tax burden over previous projections. But, from those opposite, every time you see the Leader of the Opposition's lips moving tonight, he will be spending more money, which means only one thing—he is going to be taxing you harder and harder and harder.

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