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

My question is to the Treasurer. If the Treasurer disagrees with the $120 billion figure for his black hole, does he also disagree with the Director of Budget Policy and Forecasting at Macroeconomics, Stephen Anthony, a former senior figure in the Treasury and the department of finance who says, regarding your $120 billion black hole:

There is a hole—fill it—and by the way, stop raising spending promises you cannot keep.

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

I thank the shadow Treasurer for that question. I would like to go back to basics here because I think it is very important. We have put in place a responsible fiscal policy. We have set ourselves the objective to come back to surplus in 2012-13 and we are committed to doing that because our economy is growing around trend. That is precisely what we ought to do, given the strength and fundamentals of our economy, and that is what we have been working on for a number of years since the global financial crisis when we took the essential steps to support our economy, to support our communities, to keep people in work and to keep the doors of small business open.

Of course, we have always been able to find room for our Labor priorities. In some of the most dreadful conditions in 80 years we found room to put in place the most significant increase in the pension and we are very proud of that. We have tripled the tax-free threshold, a fundamental reform, which really delivers to many people on low and fixed incomes. We have done all those things because we have found responsible savings. It has been hard. We have worked very much in the budget to find those savings—$33 billion in our last budget, $100 billion before that. That has been the methodical, careful approach of the government, which stands in stark contrast to the approach of those opposite who simply want to slash and burn.

Their agenda is to slash and burn, like they are slashing and burning in Queensland and in New South Wales. We hear this afternoon that the Liberals in South Australia also have a new plan which is that, if elected to government, they will cut the public sector by—

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

Madam Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Labor just lost its AAA rating in South Australia, Mate! So you should be pretty thankful.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for North Sydney will raise the point of order.

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

Madam Deputy Speaker, my point of order goes to relevance. I would hope the Treasurer would be relevant to the question.

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

The shadow Treasurer has confirmed yet again that he has given a big tick to all of the cuts in Queensland and New South Wales and, if they are to come, in South Australia, because that is the federal Liberal agenda. What we have here is the Liberal 'Horror show'. It is produced by Barry O'Farrell and Campbell Newman and it is authorised by Tony Abbott, Leader of the Opposition.