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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Given that massive projects have been shelved at Olympic Dam, Port Hedland and James Price Point and that $150 billion worth of new investment is now in jeopardy, why is the government persisting with a carbon tax, a mining tax, the abolition of the Australian Building and Construction Commission and other disincentives to invest and employ?

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

From the Leader of the Opposition we continue to hear misrepresentation about the circumstances of the Australian economy. It is remarkable to me that he is audacious enough to come into this parliament and talk about the Olympic Dam when he was so exposed on national television as making false claims about the Olympic Dam and not even bothering to read a few pages put out by the company, which accurately went to the issues about the Olympic Dam investment—all of it emblematic of the Leader of the Opposition's approach, which is that you seek to whip up fear but you never bother to acquaint yourself with the facts.

To the Leader of the Opposition: we in this nation have a resilient and strong economy. The government have worked hard to ensure it is resilient and strong and we have focused on jobs and growth. I would refer the Leader of the Opposition to reports in today's newspapers about how difficult it will be under his proposal for Australian businesses to increase company taxation and the way in which that will flow through to the things that ordinary Australians use, particularly the mortgages that they have on their homes.

I am pleased that under this government we have seen falls in interest rates, which means that, for the average mortgage, Australians are $5,500 a year better off. Their mortgage repayments have been reduced. The Leader of the Opposition talks about business certainty. What he really means is that if he is ever Prime Minister it is certain that Australian businesses would be paying more tax and, in accordance with today's newspaper reports, that would mean interest rates for families and small businesses would go up. So to the Leader of the Opposition, who is keen to give economic lectures but never actually analyses his own policies, I would say: it is bad for the Australian economy for him to put up company tax and it is bad for the Australian economy for him to reduce the amount of money in superannuation funds.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will return to the question.

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

These are things that would hit working people and the resilience of our economy hard. In the meantime, the government will keep doing what we do, pointing out the risk that the Leader of the Opposition poses to jobs and growth, while we go on harnessing jobs and growth in the interests of working Australians.

Mr Pyne interjecting—

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Manager of Opposition Business might be finished very early today if he is not careful.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The member for Sturt was yapping throughout that entire answer by the Prime Minister, from the beginning to the end. I ask you to draw his attention to standing order 65.

Ms Anna Burke (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. He does not want to tempt fate at the first question. The member for Corangamite has the call.