Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, my question is to the Minister representing the Treasurer, Senator Cormann. Can the minister advise the Senate exactly how much the latest iteration of the government's university deregulation plan will cost the federal budget?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is absolutely no fiscal impact, because we remain committed to the savings. We remain committed to the savings, as the Leader of the Government in the Senate, Senator Abetz, has rightly pointed out. I refer Senator Polley to page 88 of Budget Paper No. 2: the $150 million for the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy continuation, which Labor defunded. According to Senator Wong this was a lapsing program under Labor. We actually put $150 million into the budget for it. I read on page 88:

The Government will provide $150.0 million in 2015-16 to continue the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy, which funds the operation and maintenance of critical national research infrastructure. This funding will allow the most critical existing research facilities to continue to deliver maximum benefits to the research community.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pause the clock. Do you have a point of order, Senator Wong?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, Mr President. The question was, 'Can the minister advise the Senate exactly how much the latest iteration of the government's university deregulation plan will cost the federal budget?' The answer was 'nothing'. If that really is true then I invite the crossbenchers to consider the government's position.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Wong, that was not a point of order. Minister, you have the call.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. I will just ignore that outburst from the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. Clearly, she still does not understand how budget papers work. No wonder that she was the worst finance minister in the history of the Commonwealth! Guess what? If she would have looked closely at what was announced yesterday she would have actually understood that splitting the bills has absolutely no impact on the budget position. She knows exactly that the government remains committed to the savings that are reflected in the budget, and that as far as the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy is concerned the money is already in the budget.

I do not know which part of that Senator Wong does not understand but, given that she does not understand it, it is no wonder that she created such a mess of our public finances in her period in government.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The money was there all the time!

Christopher Back (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You can't own up—

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

So what was the blackmail all about?

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Back and Senator Carr! Order!

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Yesterday, the minister for education—otherwise known as 'The Fixer'—said in relation to university funding, 'They're not going to have any cut now, assuming that this Commonwealth Grants Scheme bill doesn't pass.' Will the budget estimates reflect the minister's assumption, or is the government still committed to cutting university funding by 20 per cent?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My very good friend and valued colleague, Minister Pyne, was very clear yesterday when he made his announcement, and that is that it remains government policy to pursue the savings in the budget and that those savings will be reflected in a separate bill.

Now, obviously it is a matter for the Senate to decide what the Senate ultimately does with that piece of government legislation. But it is the same as was the case when Labor was in government. Over two or three years they were not able to get their attack on private health insurance rebates through the parliament. They kept the budget treatments in place all the way through. We are absolutely acting in a way that is entirely consistent with governments in the past when it comes to the way our budgets are put together.

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. When speaking on Sky News about where he would find the savings to pay for his latest backflip, 'The Fixer' said, 'I want to make it a surprise—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, Senator Polley—I did indicate earlier that you must refer to members of the other place by their correct names. I would appreciate it if you would do that.

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister Fixer!

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Okay, yes—the Minister Fixer, Mr Pyne—

Honourable senators interjecting—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order on both sides! Just a minute, Senator Polley. Order!

Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister, 'The Fixer', said, 'I want to make it a surprise.' In light of the Prime Minister's election promise to lead a 'no surprises' government, can the minister now advise the Senate who exactly will pay for the latest backflip?

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am always happy to be surprised by my ministerial colleagues when they come up with more savings proposals! Let me also say that I am very surprised about Labor's confected outrage here, given their disastrous track record when it comes to funding higher education.

In the few budgets that Senator Wong was the finance minister for—from 2011-12 onwards—there were $6.6 billion in cuts out of higher education under Labor. So do not come in here with your crocodile tears and try—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pause the clock. You have a point of order, Senator Moore?

Claire Moore (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Women) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, Mr President. My point of order is on direct relevance to the question that was asked. It was advice about who exactly will pay for this latest backflip, not a history lesson on past practice.

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I remind the minister of the question. He has 30 seconds in which to answer it.

Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Somebody once said that if you do not learn the lessons of history you are forced and condemned to repeat them. I think the Senate needs to have a history lesson about the disastrous record of Labor in government when it came to higher education. In order to make sure that you have a detailed list of all of the cuts to higher education under Labor when Senator Wong was the finance minister, I table the list of cuts that were made to higher education by Senator Wong.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Leader for Science) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Will the minister table the ABC Fact Check that found them to be completely—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Carr. I will not take that as a point of order, I will take that as a comment, albeit not in conformity with the standing orders.

Honourable senators interjecting—

Order on both sides!