Page 1950 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 6 May 2009
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MR SESELJA: Andrew Barr—this must be why you did not get the Treasurer’s job—did not actually read the Treasury documents which showed the savings. The Labor Party cannot have it both ways. They cannot say on the one hand that those cuts are outrageous, they will cost jobs and they are unnecessary, and then come back and say: “You can’t find enough savings. You don’t have enough savings. We can find more savings than you.” It is a ridiculous argument.
It is totally indefensible for this government, who criticised our savings as being unnecessary, who said they would cost jobs when they would not, who claimed they were going too far, to now say: “Well, actually, they’re nothing. You’ve got nothing. You don’t have enough savings.” This government cannot identify the savings, and that is the other problem. They have said: “Well, there will be savings. We don’t know where they’ll be, but we’ll find them. We’ll make some efficiencies here and there.” Even after that, even if the government can find them, with the revenues returning to their highest level ever, it will still be a $150 million deficit. What an outrageous argument. Andrew Barr with his interjections has pinpointed the absurdity of this government’s economic case—it is all over the place. (Time expired.)
MR BARR (Molonglo—Minister for Education and Training, Minister for Children and Young People, Minister for Planning and Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation) (11.09): I relish the opportunity to join this debate, having just heard from the shadow treasurer and his apprentice, as they were described on 2CC this morning. They are the ones who like it both ways: critical of spending and saving. They are the ones who like to walk on both sides of the street. They are the ones who, in the lead-up to this budget, made their entire contribution around the need to be more hairy-chested on savings. Yet every single shadow minister has issued press releases in relation to this budget and on areas of government policy which have called for more money. Mr Doszpot is out there calling for more money across all of his shadow portfolio areas. Mr Smyth has never met an industry sector that he does not believe can be bought off with a bit of business welfare.
Mr Seselja: You know, Katy’s bad but he’s worse. That’s why he didn’t get it.
Mr Doszpot: This is Grimm’s Fairy Tales! Make it up as you go along, Andrew.
MR BARR: He is someone who issues press releases that contain the juiciest of quotes.
MADAM DEPUTY SPEAKER: Mr Doszpot, Mr Seselja! Mr Barr has the floor.
MR BARR: Another classic Brendan Smyth quote: “Business is another industry to suffer in this budget.” As our friends at RiotACT have pointed out, how many non-business industries are there? So someone in the shadow treasurer’s office needs a little bit more understanding in relation to these budget matters.
Yesterday, when we debated a significant reform bill, a structural reform bill to ensure that we could derive more efficiencies in the delivery of government services, there was scoffing from those opposite that, in fact, seeking efficiencies in the delivery of
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