House debates

Wednesday, 16 July 2014

Questions without Notice

Carbon Pricing

2:19 pm

Photo of Ross VastaRoss Vasta (Bonner, Liberal Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer outline how abolishing the world's biggest carbon tax will impact on growth and jobs for Australians?

Photo of Joe HockeyJoe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Bonner for his question. All members of the coalition, and I believe the member for Fairfax, want to get rid of the carbon tax. Today is rather auspicious; it is a significant day; today is the first anniversary of the Townsville termination by the terrible trio. The terrible trio—the former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, the member for McMahon and the butler—stood at Townsville and said, 'We are terminating the carbon tax.' Old Alfred the butler was there saying, 'Go on, Batman, go ahead and do it! Terminate it, Batman.' And they did.

They said they were terminating the carbon tax one year ago today. It is the first anniversary. I expect there will be a little cake going over to the Leader of the Opposition with one little candle lit on it. He will blow it out all by himself. He will say: 'Don't worry, we have terminated the carbon tax.' But they have not. They are now the strongest advocates for the carbon tax. They are chasing the Greens around the table, saying, 'No, no, we are in favour of the carbon tax. No, we're in favour of the carbon tax.' They are defending the carbon tax because it is their creation. Despite telling the Australian people that they were going to get rid of it, they actually want to keep it. They have not just declared they want to keep it; they have voted three times in the parliament to keep the carbon tax.

We believe in a stronger economy. We believe in more jobs. We believe in Australia being more competitive when it comes to dealing, trading, with the rest of the world. We also believe that, when you have smaller government, you have a larger country. When you have smaller government, you have a bigger country and a bigger economy. The way to do that on this occasion is to get rid of the carbon tax. That is exactly what we are doing. Of course, there are some people in the Labor Party who still believe that you should get rid of the carbon tax. It was not so long ago that the member for McMahon said, 'The reason you get rid of the carbon tax is to provide real costs of living relief to families.' That is why he went to Townsville to terminate the carbon tax a year ago: because, in the words of the member for McMahon, the best way to help families with relief from the cost-of-living pressures is to terminate the carbon tax. Well, I say to the Labor Party: only we are prepared to terminate the carbon tax. Only we are prepared to do the things that give cost relief to everyday Australian families, and it is now time for the Labor Party to be honest with itself and honest with the Australian people.