Terry Young (Longman, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer explain to the House how the Morrison government's record investment in infrastructure is providing a stable and certain pathway to higher growth and more jobs while boosting the productive capacity of our economy. Is the Treasurer aware of alternative policies?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Longman for his question and for his background in small business that he brings to this place. He, like other members on this side of the House, knows that when we came to government, unemployment was rising, investment was falling and we inherited the second-largest budget deficit—$48.5 billion—in Australia's history. But by steady, calm, considered, disciplined economic management we now see a record number of Australians who have a job. We have seen the first current account surplus in more than 40 years, we have seen welfare dependency at its lowest level in 30 years, we've seen the biggest tax cuts in more than 20 years, we've seen the first balanced budget in 11 years and we will deliver the first budget surplus in 12 years.

The pathway to future growth is through deregulation, like the member for Tangney is engaged in, like tax cuts the member for Deakin is engaged in, like industrial relations reform that the member for Pearce is engaged in and more spending that the members for Riverina and Aston are engaging in. Our $100 billion, 10-year pipeline continues to roll out and boost the productive capacity across the economy. The Prime Minister has announced $3.8 billion is being brought forward into the forward estimates for projects like the North East Link in Victoria, the North-South Corridor in South Australia, the Tonkin Highway in Western Australia, the Princes Highway in New South Wales, the Bass Highway in Tasmania, the M1 and the Bruce upgrades in Queensland. These projects are creating jobs and getting people home sooner and safer.

At the last election, there were two competing narratives that were put to the Australian people: they could vote for the coalition and their lower taxes, more jobs and investment in infrastructure, or they could vote for the Labor Party, with their higher taxes and fewer jobs. And they took the advice of the member for McMahon when he told them, if they didn't like the Labor Party's policies, not to vote for them. The reality is this: Labor lost the election. They've had a review. The Leader of the Opposition has made a couple of headland speeches. And do you know what the only thing that has survived has been? Three hundred and eighty-seven billion dollars of higher taxes. That is the reality. The Labor Party have in their DNA higher taxes and fewer jobs. The coalition will always be the party of more spending on infrastructure and— (Time expired)