Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. I refer the Treasurer to Westpac’s Australia & NZ Weekly, in which Mr Bill Evans, the Chief Economist at Westpac, says that despite the Christmas cash splash it was:

… bizarre to see spending on: motor vehicles; clothing; leisure; restaurants/hotels; and alcohol/cigarettes all actually falling in the quarter.

Mr Evans states that, despite the cash splash:

… consumer spending only rose by 0.1%, well below trend and at the same pace as in the third—

September—

quarter when there was no such boost to household incomes.

Treasurer, doesn’t this prove yet again that the pre-Christmas cash splash of borrowed money failed and that, far from creating 75,000 jobs, you have just left our children with more Labor Party debt?

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the former minister for Work Choices for his question, because there is no doubt that if the government had not taken action last year with the Economic Security Strategy things would have been far worse in the national accounts. Might I add, that is something which is accepted by Westpac in their analysis. Also, the figures show this quite strongly, because if you have a look at consumption in the December quarterly accounts and compare it here to the rest of the world you can see straightaway how strong, on a comparative basis, consumption was in this country.

Those opposite are continuing to play this silly political game. The first part of it is that we should not engage in any economic stimulus to support jobs. They have this proposition that Australia should simply sit and wait and see as a global recession rolls over the country. That is the proposition that those opposite are putting. This government has the view that it will do everything it responsibly can to support employment, to support business and to support demand in our economy at a time when global demand is collapsing.

Just take the World Bank report yesterday. The World Bank report yesterday talked about the sharpest contraction since World War II and it pointed to trade figures that showed the worst outcome in 80 years. On the face of that, this government moved decisively last December, and all of the evidence in the national accounts points to the fact that we strengthened demand in the economy and we supported employment. This is a bit embarrassing for those opposite because every major employer in the retail industry says that it did but the opposition think they know better. In fact, when you listen to them dismiss the retail sales figures from December and January, you get the impression that they do not think there are many people employed in retail. There are something like 1.5 million Australians employed in retail. So in the December quarter Australia had a positive outcome for consumption, when right around the world it was collapsing.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I refer the Treasurer to the question that was asked. In fact the quote was:

… bizarre to see spending on motor vehicles; clothing; leisure; restaurants/hotels; and alcohol/cigarettes all falling in the quarter.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member will resume his seat. That was really by way of debate, and there is no point of order. The Treasurer has the call.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is a swiftie from Joe. He just likes to fiddle the figures.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Treasurer will refer to members by their parliamentary titles.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Joe knows full well that—

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will refer to members by their parliamentary titles.

Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is another swiftie from those opposite, because in the month of December retail sales rose. Why was that? Why would they have risen so sharply in December? Well, they rose because of the economic stimulus package. But the shadow Treasurer seeks to quote the quarterly figure from the national accounts so he can conveniently ignore the impact of the economic stimulus package. Of course, in the month of December we had a very substantial increase in retail sales, 3.8 per cent—now listen to this: the highest in eight years. Why would that have been the case? It was the case because of the economic stimulus package. Also, we had a further increase in retail sales of 0.2 per cent in January. Why was that? It was the economic stimulus package. That is why Gerry Harvey, Roger Corbett and all of the other major employers out there are saying the economic stimulus package has been a substantial boost to demand and a substantial support to employment.

What happened elsewhere in the world during this period? In the US, retail sales fell by around three per cent in the month of December. In Japan, sales fell by two per cent in December. And of course what happened in Australia? Sales were up 3.8 per cent. So the figures show unambiguously that the Economic Security Strategy supported employment and supported jobs in the month of December—and of course those opposite just simply want to sit and wait and see. We on this side of the House will do everything within our power to support employment, to support demand and to support the Australian economy, and it is a pity those opposite would not do the same.

Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. Will the minister update the House on how the government is providing extra support to families through the government’s Economic Security Strategy and any responses?

Jenny Macklin (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Kingston for her question. She understands that around 43,000 pensioners, carers and families received Economic Security Strategy payments in her electorate of Kingston, and of course those payments were very important to supporting jobs in her community. Unlike those opposite, she understands that families, pensioners, carers and people with disabilities are doing it very, very tough in these economic times. We have provided considerable support to those people through our economic strategy payments in December last year and from this week we will be going further with our Nation Building and Jobs Plan.

In fact, in December four million pensioners and 1.9 million families benefited; they got some extra help from the Economic Security Strategy payments. The payments got a big tick from a wide range of different organisations—the Business Council of Australia and the Australian Industry Group through to National Seniors, Carers Australia and the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations. All of these national organisations supported the government’s Economic Security Strategy payments. One organisation did not—of course, those sitting opposite. We all remember the excruciating period the Leader of the Opposition took the Liberal and National parties through. They could not decide what their position was; they flip-flopped all over the place. Of course, at first they supported the payments; at first they supported the package. Then they said they wanted to change them, then they did not support the package, then they voted for the package, and now here we are three months later and they are wishing that they had not supported the package. The Leader of the Opposition is now saying he wishes that all of those people, 1.9 million Australian families and four million pensioners, had not received those Economic Security Strategy payments—quite remarkable when you consider what happened with the December retail figures, which demonstrated the biggest monthly increase since August 2000. As the Australian Retailers Association said:

… the Rudd government has done its job with the $10.4 billion stimulus package …

But according to the Leader of the Opposition, the Retailers Association are wrong. In his desperation—you can only call it desperation—to score a political point, the Leader of the Opposition is trashing his economic credibility and also trashing his moral credibility by no longer supporting these payments to Australian pensioners and families.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to data released today: the Dun & Bradstreet business expectations survey, which says 27 per cent of firms now plan to sack workers; the National Australia Bank monthly survey, which says business conditions have fallen to a low not seen since 1992; and the ANZ job ads survey, which fell 10.4 per cent in February, the biggest monthly fall since the series began. Prime Minister, as the buck stops with you, when will you take responsibility for the failure of the pre-Christmas $10 billion cash splash?

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for North Sydney for his question. He is right to point to data out today from Dun & Bradstreet; from Sensis, on small and medium business enterprises; and the ANZ job ads survey. All of these point to the bad economic data on the jobs front and on the confidence front, and this is a reflection of the international economic circumstances in which we find ourselves. Also, I draw the honourable member’s attention to the report referred to earlier by the Treasurer—that is, the report released over the weekend by the World Bank. The World Bank report said that the global GDP this year will decline for the first time since World War II. The World Bank went on to say that world trade is likely to register its largest decline in 80 years. This will be the first time that there has been an annual decline in world trade since 1982. Furthermore, the World Bank predicts that developing countries will face a financing gap of between $270 billion and $700 billion as a result of the crisis, which now engulfs the developing world as well. Also, I draw the honourable member’s attention to the data which was produced over the last several days in the United States. The US Bureau of Labour Statistics announced that 651,000 Americans lost their jobs in February and US unemployment climbed to a 25-year high of 8.1 per cent.

These are the global circumstances within which Australia currently operates, and these are difficult times for all governments. The alternatives presenting themselves to governments around the world are stark and clear: either you sit and do nothing and allow people to fend for themselves—which is, at its essence, what those opposite recommend—or you take action. This government has a plan of action. We will provide stability to the Australian financial sector, for the first time in Australia’s history providing a guarantee for bank deposits for Australian deposit holders. Secondly, we will provide short-term stimulus measures to provide necessary payments to support pensioners, carers, veterans, farmers and others in order to provide support to the retail sector in particular—and the statistics for December and January have just been referred to by the Treasurer. We will also provide payments to first home buyers. The honourable member asked a question about what actions the government have taken which have resulted in impacts on employment. One of the specific measures announced last October as part of that economic strategy, which the Liberal Party supported at the time, was the trebling of the first home buyers bonus.

Could I draw the honourable member’s attention to the following figures. New Treasury figures, recently released, show that nearly 30,000 Australians received the government’s first home owners boost in its first 3½ months of operation—10,000-plus in New South Wales, nearly 6,000 in Victoria, 6½ thousand in Queensland, nearly 3,000 in Western Australia and 2,400 in South Australia. Is the shadow Treasurer saying he wishes those payments had not been made to those first home buyers? That is the absolute logic of his position because he, through his leader, supported those measures last year.

I refer the shadow Treasurer to the following statements. In Sydney’s south-west, the Cornish Group sold 70 per cent of its 53 sales at the Spring Farm estate in Camden to first home buyers. Chris Lamont, from the Housing Industry Association, said were it not for the first home owner boost, a lot more people in the building industry would be out of work. Furthermore, Michael Cant, of the Commonwealth Bank, said: ‘We’ve had to put on more staff and we’ve been looking to increase staffing levels through temps and contractors to deal with the bank’s response to the extra applications which have come in from first home buyers.’ Furthermore, if you look at the ABS figures for the period in question, you will see that the number of first home buyers increased by 17.8 per cent, pushing their share of loans to 23.6 per cent—the highest since January 2002. The number of new houses purchased by first home buyers jumped by almost 10 per cent.

The shadow Treasurer asked the question: where is the evidence that the measures taken last October have had effect? I have demonstrated—through figures from the ABS and through statements by responsible bank representatives and by corporate leaders—what that effect has been. It is quite plain that those opposite, when confronted with the global economic crisis that we are dealing with, have this as their response: the government is embarked upon an economic strategy to see Australia through the crisis; the Liberal Party is embarked upon a political strategy to take advantage from the crisis. That is the difference.