Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Hansard source

If the senator looked at the figures, she would know that this government is on track to deliver the largest, fastest return to surplus since at least the 1960s. So when she says ‘cutting back on spending’ I would say to her that we are. We are, and we know we are already seeing stimulus subtracting from growth now, and it will continue to subtract from growth as it is wound back. We will deliver about a 4½ per cent—about 4.4 per cent of GDP—fiscal consolidation over three years. So the government is acutely aware of the importance of complying with its fiscal strategy. That is why we have handed down a MYEFO which ensures that we remain on track to deliver the surplus. That is why we have far stricter fiscal rules than were applied by Mr Costello in his last five budgets. (Time expired)