Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, my question is to the Treasurer. I refer to reports that the minister for innovation reassured nervous coalition MPs that the government would in fact not jack up the GST. Will the Treasurer join his senior cabinet colleague and rule out raising the price of everything by increasing the GST to 15 per cent?

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Old politics!

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for his question. I agree with the minister for innovation that the story was complete rubbish, because that is what he said.

Opposition members: He didn't say that!

That is exactly what he said if you read the article. It was completely dismissed. As usual, what we have from the opposition is a complete lack of respect for the Australian people. Those opposite want to treat the Australian people as mugs. They do not think that the Australian people are capable of having a genuine discussion in this country about how we can grow jobs and how we can grow the economy, but that is the discussion, that is the focus that those on this side of the House are having. We are having a discussion about how we grow jobs and how we grow the economy. What those opposite are engaged in is just the usual old, cynical politics: rule-in rule-out fear campaigns—all of those things.

Ms Butler interjecting—

They cannot break out of that mould! On this side of the House, under the Prime Minister's leadership, we are moving on with the plan for jobs and growth in our economy, and those opposite just have little, little faith in the Australian people.

Ms Butler interjecting—

They have so little faith in the Australian people they do not think that Australians can hold more than one idea in their heads at any one time. That may be true for many of those opposite, but it certainly is not true of the Australian people. We know that, and we respect those who we are engaging with to ensure that we can grow jobs and grow our economy.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just before I call the member for Petrie, the member Griffith was continually interjecting. We are not going to take up from where we left off yesterday. She is warned.