Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2018-2019 and the related appropriation bills. It's always a pleasure to stand in this chamber and talk about another great budget that this government has delivered for the benefit of the Australian people. I'm very proud to see that our focus as a government with this budget is on assisting the Australian economy to build a stronger economy, because it's through a stronger economy, Deputy Speaker Gee, that we see the ability for people to get a job, to hold a job and to build wealth and prosperity for their families. But not only that; through doing that, we also receive as a government, through the hard work of Australians, individuals and business owners, the income tax revenue necessary to provide the services that we know that all Australians need and require. That is what is so important about this budget. It is built off the back of five years of hard work by coalition governments, which has seen over that time more than a million jobs created in our economy. Those jobs are only created in the economy because of confidence—confidence in the business sector to employ people and confidence in the community, to go out and take a risk where somebody might decide they no longer want to be an employee but that they want to go and start their own business and become self-employed—but it is only possible through a strong economy, and that is what's so important about what this government has been focusing on through successive budgets.

In 2017, we saw some 415,000 new jobs created across our economy. Importantly, in a period where we have seen growth in the number of part-time and casual jobs, three-quarters of those jobs created in 2017 were full-time jobs. That's 16 consecutive months of net job creation to January 2018—the longest positive run since records began. With this record jobs growth, the proportion of working-age Australians now dependent on welfare has fallen to the lowest level in over 25 years—as many have said in this place numerous times, the best form of welfare is a job. The reason for that is that it gives people self-confidence, worth and value. That flows through to their families and it also allows them to begin the process of accumulating wealth and prosperity for their families—though we hopefully see out that, when they're not on welfare, they have the opportunity for their children to see the importance, value and dignity of work. That teaches a future generation of those core, fundamental, underlying concepts that underpin our great society.

How is this strong economy achieved? It is achieved through a government that is focused on bringing the budget back into balance yet, at the same time, returning to hard-working Australians, both individuals and business-owners, taxes that we have received from them. It's because of this focus on the budget bottom line that we see the budget, which was handed down a couple of weeks ago, with the strongest budget bottom line since 2007. The budget will be brought back to balance in 2019-20 and net debt will fall by some $30 billion over the next four years. But, interestingly, the last time that a Labor government delivered a surplus was back in 1989.

The strong economy that we have seen created over the past five or six years ensures that we can guarantee services like the NDIS and Medicare and it has allowed the government to invest in nation-building infrastructure projects across this country—none more important from my perspective, to be somewhat parochial, than the M1 motorway in Logan and also on the Gold Coast. These investments create more job opportunities for all Australians and ensure that commuters in the communities of Logan, even southern Brisbane and also the northern Gold Coast, have the opportunity to get home safer and sooner. Not only that: it also creates the opportunity for the small to medium business owners in our community, whether they are tradesmen or have other service businesses, to be more productive in the day-to-day conduct of their business because they're not sitting in traffic jams on the M1.

Our strong economy is no stroke of luck. It is the result of years of hard work by the coalition government, backed by our commitment to lowering business taxes, regulations, fees and charges. I'd like to share that, in that period, since we got into government in 2013, the government's regulatory reform agenda has cut compliance costs for individual businesses and community organisations by almost $6 billion. The reduction in the regulatory burden on business is key to ensuring that business can focus on what it does best, and that is getting on with the business of business. Part of that getting on with the business of business is taking advantage of our international trade agreements. It's about employing people to provide the services that the customers of that business require. Part of this process has been through lowering our tax rates and making the system fairer and simpler, and in this budget we've seen that the tax relief plan is about encouraging and rewarding working Australians by making income tax lower, fairer and simpler. While those opposite have called it a cash handout, most people, including many in my electorate of Forde, have looked beyond that political spin to see it for what it is. It's a measure to ensure working Australians keep more of their hard earned income, because, at the end of the day, the revenue that we, as governments, receive comes from working Australians.

No-one should be punished for taking on extra shifts, earning overtime or being promoted which would result in them being pushed into a higher tax bracket, and that's where the measures outlined in the budget are so important. They will put an end to bracket creep for so many working Australians and they will allow them to keep the money in their pocket to pay the bills, save for their future or spend locally. In my electorate of Forde, the region of South-East Queensland has a wide range of diverse small businesses, service industries and hardworking families. Nearly 74,000 taxpayers there will stand to benefit from the low- and middle-income tax relief in the upcoming 2018-19 financial year.

The government's tax plan, like everything we've done over the last five or six years, is affordable, thought-out, and considered. We'll provide tax relief now for lower- and middle-income earners and, over time, provide a simpler and fairer tax system for all taxpayers because we need a system that keeps taxes under control so we can remain internationally competitive. We don't want a system that puts a greater burden on hardworking Australians. Having a lower, fairer tax system creates the incentive for people to build and grow wealth. The more the tax burden hurts individuals and businesses, the more it hurts our economy and the opportunity to create jobs. The coalition's tax relief measures will be implemented over seven years in three steps. I was pleased to see that that bill passed the House last week.

Importantly, I'd like to also touch on our energy policies. As we talk to people in our electorates on a day-to-day basis, we know that the cost of electricity is of enormous concern to many, many Australians. This is where the National Energy Guarantee and other measures we've put in place are seeking to put downward pressure on electricity prices in an effort to reduce that cost-of-living burden on families. As we stand here and discuss these appropriation bills, we can contrast our position on energy policy and seeking to still meet our Paris commitments while ensuring that at the same time energy is an affordable necessity of life for Australian families and, importantly, for Australian business. If Australian business costs continue to grow at a rate that is unmanageable, particularly in the energy sector, there will be a flow-on cost and risk to continued jobs growth. But those opposite have a very clear, stated policy of substantially increasing electricity prices because of their renewable energy policies. We know that that will add some $300 a year to household electricity bills than our policies would.

Another area where we're supporting Australian families is our childcare reforms, looking to make child care more affordable. Equally, our school funding reforms will provide record funding for schools across the country.

Importantly, one of the government's main priorities in this budget is to ensure that we keep Australians safe. It is a measure that should never be overlooked, and that is why we're investing another $294 million to make our airports safer and our borders stronger. In contrast, those opposite provide a risk to weakening our border protection measures. If we look back to what they did last time they were in government, we had more than 50,000 people arrive on more than 800 boats, costing taxpayers billions and billions of dollars.

It is through the programs and processes of this government, as outlined in this budget, that we see the opportunity for Australians to continue to grow and prosper. We are delivering through this budget tax relief to encourage and reward hardworking Australians. We're backing business to invest and create more jobs through the extension of the instant asset write-off, which we already did through the previous budget, lowering business tax rates. Those opposite are going to put them back up as part of their $200 million-plus tax grab. That is a fundamental difference between us on this side of the House and those on the other side. We are looking to reduce taxes, reduce the regulatory burden and create the opportunity for Australians to be the best that they can be. The only solution that those opposite have is to increase taxes that increase the cost of living.

We saw that even last week in the passage of the tax bills. Those opposite voted against part of the process, which would have resulted in Australians paying an extra $70 billion income tax over the next 10 years. I say to the Australian people: look not at what those opposite so; look at what they actually do. It is the same for us as a government. The things that we have done successively over the past five years through a series of budgets are now reflected in the current budget that we can work towards lowering taxes, reducing regulation and giving Australians the opportunity to grow and prosper for the future. I commend this bill will to the House.

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