John Murphy (Reid, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Assistant Treasurer and Minister Assisting for Deregulation. What is the government doing to prepare our economy for future challenges while looking after Australian families? Why is it important to set out policies for the nation's future in an economically responsible way?

David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Reid for his question. This government is determined to reward the effort of hard-working Australian families and to build a stronger economy for the future. That is why we have delivered tax cuts and increases in superannuation for hard-working Australians. That is why we have provided tax relief to small businesses. Now as we seek to meet the challenges of the Asian century we are investing in skills and education, and rolling out the National Broadband Network.

These are serious plans to tackle the serious challenges that our nation faces. In contrast, those opposite are hiding from any scrutiny. We put our proposals and our plans before the Australian people and they will be scrutinised. The Leader of the Opposition is such a policy lightweight and so determined to hide from any scrutiny that he will not even turn up and front up on breakfast television any more. I am not surprised that he will not turn up on breakfast television anymore because it was on breakfast television that the member for North Sydney confirmed not once, but on two occasions that they have a $70 billion black hole. It is about time the member for North Sydney told the Australian people how he intends to fill that $70 billion black hole.

We heard from the member for North Sydney two years ago. Two years ago he said their policies would be ready in a week. Last year he said their policies were ready to go, fully costed. Two weeks ago we heard from the Leader of the Opposition that, 'You'll hear all about our policies after the budget'. Every time they make a commitment to release their policies, when it comes to the crunch they squib it. And we saw this again yesterday from the member for North Sydney, who put out a press release selectively quoting officials from the Parliamentary Budget Office and where he used the words that they had to offer to try and justify the fact that he wants to keep secret from the Australian people his costings until the final days of the election campaign. It is no wonder, after the $11 billion black hole fiasco of the last election.

The member for North Sydney was out at the doors this morning trying to airbrush that out of history.

A journalist asked him, 'Your costings were wrong before the last election?' He said: 'I don't accept that. I don't accept that at all.' '$11 billion out', the journalist says. And the member for North Sydney says, 'I don't accept that—not at all.' He does not accept it. So shonky were his costings that the so-called auditors of their costings were reprimanded for professional misconduct.

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You say your policies are ready. Stop making excuses and come— (Time expired)