Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Under the coalition, investment outside the mining sector has increased by 34 per cent since we came to government. Under Labor, investment outside the mining sector fell by 10 per cent during their time in office. The member for Rankin refers to the governor of the Reserve Bank. The governor of the Reserve Bank made a very interesting speech last week. He said that the fundamentals of the Australian economy were, in his words, 'very strong'. He further said:

The strong fundamentals include: world class endowments of natural resources; a highly skilled and innovative workforce; an established and predictable regulatory system; sound public finances; a diverse and growing population; and being well placed to benefit from the strong growth in Asia, not just in China, but also in the populous countries of Indonesia and India.

This is what the governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia said. So, we have a lot to feel fortunate about. We enjoy a set of fundamentals and a standard of living that few other countries enjoy. It's important that we do not lose sight of this.

Why is it only the Labor Party that is constantly talking down the Australian economy, when the governor of the Reserve Bank is saying how strong the fundamentals are? It's because the Labor Party is interested only in the politics of the economy, not the jobs that the economy creates, not in boosting the livelihoods of hardworking Australians.

The reality is that when we came to government we inherited a budget that was in a mess: $48½ billion, or around three per cent of GDP, was the deficit the Labor Party bequeathed the Australian people and the coalition. Well, we have seen, over the past six years, a turnaround. We have now delivered the first balanced budget in 11 years. When we came to government, unemployment was 5.7 per cent; today it's 5.1 per cent. As the Prime Minister has said many times, including yesterday, when we came to government two free trade agreements covered two-way trading relationships—

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