Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia) Share this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. The minister has mentioned the $12.6 billion. Isn’t it a fact that $7.5 billion of that comes from the 2007-08 surplus created by the Howard government, $2.7 billion of it comes from the T3 proceeds, which was done by the Howard government, and that the balance of $2.4 billion comes from the Communications Fund, which was also established by the Howard government? I repeat: how much is the Rudd government putting into the Building Australia Fund and how much is the previous coalition government responsible for? If, Minister, you are going to suggest to me that the Labor Party is going to put anything into it, how could anyone believe that when last time you were in government you left a deficit of some $96 billion?