Bruce Baird (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2007-2008. I would like to congratulate the Treasurer on what is, I believe, his best budget yet. There are no losers in this budget. It is a responsible, forward-thinking budget that locks in the gains of the past 10 years and secures Australia’s future prosperity. The Treasurer highlighted very well the huge gap between where we stand today and where we were in 1996. We have taken a huge step forward in the last decade. When the Howard government came to power in 1996 the budget was $10.1 billion in deficit. That is a deficit of almost two per cent of GDP. We owed $96 billion. Real wages had fallen by 1.8 per cent over the preceding 13 years of Labor government. The unemployment rate was 8.2 per cent, and almost one million Australians were out of work and in the dole queue. Wholesale sales tax was on the increase and promised l-a-w tax cuts were not delivered. Inflation was averaging 5.2 per cent and interest rates were 10.5 per cent.

We did not inherent the current position of economic strength. Australia was in a fairly tenuous economic position in 1996, as those numbers quite clearly demonstrate. After 11 years, I think people more readily forget what those times were like. Getting a job was difficult for many Australians. Many families lost their homes. Thousands of small businesses were forced into bankruptcy. That is the historical context through which I view this budget. We have come a long way. We have come a long way to have a budget in surplus to the tune of $10.6 billion. We have come a long way to have reduced the inflation rate to around 2.5 per cent. Net government debt has been eradicated entirely, which is saving taxpayers $8 billion a year in interest repayments. We have cut personal income taxes in the last six successive budgets. Two million new jobs have been created in the last 11 years and unemployment is at a 32-year low at 4.4 per cent. Household wealth has more than doubled since 1996 and real wages have increased by 20 per cent.

There is no shortage of good news here and none of it happened by accident. We did not accidentally find ourselves in this position of economic strength and security. The government made very hard decisions—decisions that were opposed at every step by those who sit opposite. But those decisions were right and were in the best interests of the country, and we are now reaping the benefits. That is how we found ourselves in a position to announce so many initiatives for so many working families, for those on low incomes, for higher education and technical education, for aged care and for the elderly.

The first major aspect of this budget will be a major boon for working people in my electorate of Cook. The 30 per cent income tax bracket will now apply to incomes over $30,000 a year, up from $25,000. For low-income earners, the tax-free threshold is now effectively $11,000. Thanks to our low-income tax offset, the tax-free threshold has now more than doubled since 1996. From 1 July this year low-income earners will be getting a $21 a week tax cut, while those on the average wage will get a $14 a week tax cut. Strong economic management has allowed us to provide low-income earners with tax relief worth more than $1,000 a year. That is significant relief that will make a great difference for working families and workers on low incomes. It also provides greater incentives for part-time workers and low-income earners to work. For middle-income earners we have increased the top end of the 30 per cent tax bracket to $80,000, so that now more than 80 per cent of taxpayers are in that bracket. We have generously provided for low- and middle-income earners in this budget, as we have in previous budgets.

With respect to aged care, this budget has a strong focus on new initiatives for veterans, seniors and their carers. We have allocated $1.6 billion in funding to help older Australians stay in their homes and to further assist aged-care facilities. In the last financial year, two aged-care providers in my electorate received funding for a total of 44 residential places. Aged care is a major concern for seniors and their families in my electorate, and seeing funding boosted to local providers allows them some peace of mind for their future. For pensioners who qualify for the utilities allowance or the seniors concession allowance we are providing a $500 one-off bonus payment for individuals and a $1,000 one-off payment for couples to help alleviate some of the costs associated with staying at home and running a household on the pension.

In the area of medical research, the government has committed an additional $772 million for research that will help to better direct and treat chronic illnesses and a further $4.86 million for medical research infrastructure. For carers we are continuing our strong support. For those who are receiving the carer allowance we are providing a one-off bonus payment of $600. This is the fourth successive year we have paid the bonus to carer allowance recipients. We have been able to provide this additional support to carers because we have been managing the economy well and ensuring that significant budget surpluses are available for programs such as these. Also, in July this year the veterans special rate disability pension will increase by $50 a fortnight. The government will also make a one-off payment of $25,000 to Australians who were prisoners of war in Europe, and it is appropriate we should do that. This payment is available to them or their surviving widows. This initiative has my strongest support. It is great to see those who served our country in conflict being recognised for their sacrifice and great hardships.

There is also plenty in this budget for young families. We have further boosted the childcare benefit rate by 10 per cent and given parents more timely access to their rebate as a direct payment through Centrelink. These programs are incentives for mothers to re-enter the workforce, and historic lows in unemployment are plainly evident. We acknowledge the very considerable costs associated with child care. I think anybody who has a family recognises that during the early years of having children it is tough on economic grounds to meet all the bills. It is often tough having to live off one income and yet the needs of young children in the formative years are great, and mothers being at home with their children is important. We should be supportive.

For women who want to re-enter the workforce we need an incentive. We need to have childcare assistance. The fees are rising very steeply, particularly in capital cities. The budget obviously seeks to address that problem and I am confident that young families in the Sutherland shire and the 700,000 families across the country affected by these initiatives are going to notice the helping hand this budget gives them in this area. It is a great plus for young families in Sutherland shire, where we are seeing many young families that want assistance that can make their family situation stronger. Because our economy is going well, because we have managed the economy well, it is appropriate we should share those benefits with the families of Australia.

In the area of vocational and technical education, this budget lays down concrete programs to address the skills shortage and encourage young people into trades. There is no doubt that Australia has quite a challenge in terms of the skills area right now. As Chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics, Finance and Public Administration, which is looking at the manufacturing and the services sectors, I know that the No. 1 factor people are concerned about is getting skilled people. It is a great plus that our economy is going so strongly and that the unemployment level is down at 4.4 per cent but, on the other side of it, trying to find people with the training is difficult. Of course, the resources sector is consuming a lot of the skilled tradespeople that we have, leaving others not being able to find those resources.

The government is spending $549 million in this budget to assist first- and second-year apprentices in skills shortage trades by giving them each a $500 voucher towards their fees. Those apprentices who are under 30 will also receive a $1,000 tax-free cash payment designed as a wage top-up. Isn’t it appropriate that we should be assisting apprentices and providing incentives to them? It is not all about going to university and doing an arts degree—not that there is anything wrong with an arts degree, speaking as one who holds one. But we find young people who think, ‘If only I could be a film director and do all these wonderful things,’ when the real need at the moment is getting people in trades. It is often trades that can reward people much more; they can own their own business and the financial incentives are there. There is great demand and need for skilled people.

So a real incentive in the form of this $1,000 tax-free cash payment designed as a wage top-up is important for these young people who are often struggling. They see their mates who have gone down to work at one of the retail outlets, where they get the bigger pay straightaway, while they have reduced wages because they are apprentices. This provides a real incentive for them to stay in their apprenticeship and to recognise that the Australian government says: ‘What you are doing is really important. We want to encourage you in that role. We want to see that you are financially okay.’ I am sure this will be well received by our young people. This policy is a great incentive for young people who want to take up or who are already undertaking apprenticeships. It will help to address the shortage of skills in some trades and perhaps allow some young people to consider apprenticeships that they would not have otherwise considered. I commend this policy and hope it encourages young people in my electorate to consider a trade as a career and helps those apprentices who are already on their way to gaining a trade.

I believe that these five areas are the most significant gains for my electorate of Cook: aged care and medical research, assistance for carers, tax cuts for low- and middle-income earners, more incentives and programs for apprentices and apprenticeships and increased childcare support. This is the stuff of life in many ways in terms of my electorate and, I am sure, in yours, Mr Deputy Speaker. A lot of these people are out there working as carers. It is a tough role. For low- and middle-income earners with families, the incentives are there. There are incentives for apprentices and incentives to assist with childcare support. These are just a few of the many programs this budget has delivered, thanks to strong economic management by this government. They are the five that I would identify as the most important for the people of Cook.

We must also look at the bigger picture. The Treasurer of course has announced the largest spending in a generation on higher education. The establishment of a $5 billion Higher Education Endowment Fund doubles the total endowments and financial investments in tertiary education in Australia. We are doubling the money available to universities around the country for research infrastructure, capital works and a raft of other programs. This is a great day in terms of the opportunity for young people to see this great investment in the universities in this country. There has been a shortage of funds in the past and we all are aware of that, what with the great growth and proliferation of universities across Australia following the Dawkins report—and let us not debate that issue now; it happened. What we are seeing now is a reverse of that situation so that we have this $5 billion fund. When the fund is topped up we will have $1 billion a year to reinvest in universities for research facilities, for new buildings and for new programs, which will assist enormously. Of course, young people deserve that. One of the great money earners at the moment for the country—we have received $10 billion from it—is the educational sector in terms of trade. Many people are coming here from all around the world. This will assist our position because of the quality of the facilities that we are going to have in this country. So that is a great thing for our universities.

Numeracy and literacy are also important. A further $3.5 billion has been allocated to improve outcomes in schools to help meet numeracy and literacy benchmarks and to ensure better teaching. Of course, that is important. We want to ensure that we meet those benchmarks and we put the emphasis on numeracy and literacy. That is a key part of it. As part of this, the government is providing $102 million to establish summer schools for our teachers to undertake professional development for teaching literacy and numeracy, Australian history, maths, science and English. We will pay teachers who participate in their summer holidays, in addition to their existing income, a $5,000 bonus on completion of the course. We will also pay a bonus of $50,000 to schools that make significant improvements in literacy and numeracy standards. Some would ask why we have this $5,000 bonus for teachers who undertake that. If you are going to give up your school holidays and your time down at the beach and on holidays, it is worth an incentive. For those committed teachers who want to improve their skills, it is highly appropriate.

We are investing back into the country—in our young people, in the teachers—for the future. The most valuable area of all is teaching our young people, an incredible resource. It is very important for parents in my area who are eager for their children to get strong, tangible outcomes from their children’s learning. The quality of schools and teachers in Cook is first rate. I have been constantly impressed by that on my school visits in the past nine years. I am a strong supporter for ramping up teacher quality, and providing additional training is no reflection on the teachers in Sutherland shire. They are a very capable, committed lot of professionals. However, we must ensure that as young, new teachers come through the system we provide them with the capacity to meet excellent standards for the sake of their students.

In summary, I can say the Sutherland shire will reap great benefits from this budget. I have outlined the main areas where I think there is most significance, but there are a variety of significant initiatives for everybody—from education, defence and security spending to better health care and even transport infrastructure and funding for the film sector, which I think is important for showing our cultural life to the world. It would be impossible to cover everything but I believe I have highlighted some very noteworthy gains for the shire residents. I am very proud to have served with this government in terms of the achievements in the quality of life and living standards of Sutherland shire residents during this time I have represented them. Because of the strong economic management of this government we have been able to afford the significant benefits contained in this budget—benefits in terms of aged care, assistance to veterans, education, training and assistance to apprentices—and at the same time deliver tax cuts for working Australians in the last four successive budgets.

The budget is something of which we can all be proud. It is going to make this country even greater. Each successive budget adds its own part, but we have been very fortunate in this country to be blessed with incredible resources, skills and talents. There is no doubt that the success of the resources sector has fuelled much of the ability of the economy to afford these measures. But it also goes to the ability to undertake strong economic management by this government. Without providing unfortunate comparisons, that is the strength of this government. That is the basis on which we can provide these significant results for young people, for working families, for low-income earners, for carers, for veterans. I certainly commend this bill and this budget to the House.

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