Wayne Swan (Lilley, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Absolutely. There is a history of reform: enterprise bargaining, superannuation, national savings, competition policy—all things put in place by a farsighted Labor government; all things which lifted the productivity performance of this country.

That, of course, brings us back to the mining boom, for which the Treasurer is very keen to take complete credit. Through this wonderful 15 years of growth and prosperity that we have had in this country, you would have thought that we could have used this period to do the one thing that was really going to set this country up for the future and lift our productivity and our rate of wealth creation. You would have thought, with the bounty of the commodity boom, we could have found enough resources, both public and private, to invest in the education and training of our people. It was a unique opportunity, squandered by this Prime Minister and by this Treasurer, to invest in our human capital and to set this country up for a period beyond the commodity boom. It was an opportunity that was not taken.

This is where the figures are absolutely damning of the squandered opportunities of the last 10 years of the Howard-Costello government. This government cut public investment in education and training by seven per cent over a 10-year period, when the average in the OECD was an increase of 48 per cent. This country is living with the consequences of that today. We see it in our faltering productivity, we see it in the skills shortages and we see it in the capacity constraints. This government not only has failed when it comes to education and training but also has failed to provide some national political leadership when it comes to infrastructure—doing something about our basic rail, road, ports, transport, communications and broadband, and setting up a national structure which would provide leadership and go to the heart of lifting our productivity and our competitiveness.

That is why Kevin Rudd started this year with one commitment that goes to the very core of meeting the economic challenges facing this country—of lifting our productivity and lifting our competitiveness and setting this country up for a future for our children and our grandchildren. What is that commitment? It is the education revolution. It is the education revolution that starts in the early years, something this government has squibbed on time and time again. There have been massive squandered opportunities. There have been cabinet submissions that have gone up to ministers, arguing for a comprehensive commitment to the early years and the funding of that commitment, and time and time again they have been locked away in the drawer, never to be seen again. Kevin Rudd’s education revolution is going to make a difference in this country. It is absolutely what we need to lift our productivity.

Doing something about the teaching of maths and science in this country is also absolutely critical. Our major trading partners, particularly India and China, are investing massively in basic sciences and in the training of teachers, particularly in maths and science. The government is mute in this area as well. The Leader of the Opposition has put forward positive alternatives in this area—positive alternatives which will lift our productivity and make us competitive.

It is about time we had an economic debate in this parliament. I am delighted that the Treasurer could see fit to come in today. I hope this remains the case as we go through month after month towards the next election. There is a very clear choice here between the Labor Party—which is committed to long-term policies that will build wealth and prosperity for the future—or more of the same from an ageing government which is out of touch, arrogant, smug and bereft of answers in key areas like climate change.

The fact that this Treasurer has allowed this Prime Minister, year after year, not to consider any discussion of an emissions trading system is reflective of how complacent and out of touch this government is. Imagine how well placed we would be now if we had put such a trading system in place. Imagine how well placed we would be now if the government had taken up our suggestions of well over 12 months ago about renewable energy and about investing in clean coal technology. All of these things are challenges for the future. You see, Treasurer, going carbon clean is the only growth strategy for the future. But the Treasurer has not even allowed his department to do any modelling on climate change. This came out at estimates committees a couple of weeks ago.

So we have a Prime Minister and a Treasurer stuck in the past, out of touch, smug, unable to rise to the challenge of the modern economy—where talent is the modern commodity of growth—unable to invest in the skills and talents of our people and unable to provide modern infrastructure that can be the engine room of an efficient economy. The government comes into this parliament and plays short-term silly political games, as the Minister for Industry, Tourism and Resources played today. We must address and debate these issues right through to the election. (Time expired)

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