Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to an editorial from the Wall Street Journal this week that states:

For the latest tutorial on lousy tax policy, cast your eyes down—way down—to Australia, where the country's windfall mining tax has produced … zero revenue in its first three months.

  …   …   …

This is what happens when government tries to raid business to fill a budget hole, rather than lower taxes to promote economic growth …

Does the Prime Minister regard these comments as negative scaremongering?

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Order! The Prime Minister has the call and should be heard in silence. The member for Dawson!

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition's version of leadership might be being dictated to by editorial writers in the United States of America, but my version of leadership is coming up with a uniquely Australian plan for our nation's future. As Australians standing in this parliament I actually think it is our duty as Australians to make sure we are making decisions that are in the best interests of our nation, and as Prime Minister I will always do that.

It is in the best interests of our nation that at this time of change in our economy, when we see our resources sector going strongly, which is of course a down payment on the economic opportunities of this Asian century of change, that we make sure we have in place the right tax policy so that we can share the benefits of that period of resources growth. I believe that is the right policy, and the government has delivered it. It is a profits based policy. That is why it is an efficient tax. It is obviously true, manifestly true, that, as commodity prices rise and fall, the degree of taxation moves with it. That is why it is a profits based tax—because that is the efficient way of taxing.

To the Leader of the Opposition: it is really an interesting kind of schism in the characterisation of the opposition on the minerals resource rent tax. They used to tell us that it was so big, so onerous and so crushing that it would destroy the resources industry. Now they tell us that apparently it is not big enough and it is not raising enough money.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

The member for North Sydney!

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One wonders how people can get up in the morning and actually have these ridiculous double standards in their head. Of course, one could conclude that the opposition is incapable of reason. But what I think is more likely than that is that, whatever the reasoning is, they will always be negative. So they do not mind on one day saying that the tax is so big it will destroy the resources industry and the next day saying the tax is too small and is not raising enough revenue. The only thing that brings this opposition together, the only point of coherence in their whole strategy, is being negative about everything, every day, every time, and making sure they are always negative about Australia's future.

Opposition members interjecting—

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

The member for Sturt is warned!

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are on a different path, with a plan for Australia's future befitting a confident and optimistic nation, and that is who we are.