Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member opposite interjects about the Grand Prix. It is a classic case of what I am talking about, but I should say that it is my understanding that, since we have had the Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, the general community there is pleased that we have got that as an alternative to the Grand Prix. My understanding is that it is drawing greater crowds than the Grand Prix.

I used that as an example of where a lot of time, effort and money goes into subsidising something that is in nobody’s interest at all. Perhaps one state picks up additional tourism value and economic activity at the expense of another—in other words, at the expense of your fellows in South Australia, in this case. I saw that happening way too often across Australia, and it is time that we ended it.

We saw it happening again with the Murray-Darling Basin, and we still see it happening every day now. In the Murray-Darling Basin, the states not agreeing with one another because they were all protecting their own interests in the water supplies that are provided by the basin has caused the crisis that we are now facing with respect to water in this country. It shows how cooperative federalism should have been commenced years and years ago.

I mentioned earlier some of the efforts of the previous federal coalition government. Again, if you look back to the record of the coalition government, you see the states being underfunded, you see education being underfunded, you see the hospitals being underfunded, you see housing being underfunded and you see infrastructure being underfunded. And then the federal government had the audacity to turn to the states and say: ‘It is the states’ fault. They are the ones who are underfunding these areas.’ Not for one minute did they accept the responsibility that they were short-changing the states by underfunding them to the tune of billions of dollars in all of those areas. Again, it was convenient politics.

The electors of Australia could and did see straight through it. After almost 12 years of the coalition government, the electors of Australia voted them out. The areas of education, hospitals, housing and infrastructure were key issues at the last election. They were election issues because people in this country knew that those areas had been underfunded and that a much higher level of funding was needed in those areas to get the services they expect out of government. They were not fooled, and they voted accordingly.

This budget responds to those very needs. It is a budget which allocates some $11 billion into the Education Investment Fund, $10 billion into the Health and Hospital Fund and around $20 billion into the Building Australia Fund. These funds were established in the first Rudd government budget. In saying that, I want to make this point: the coalition constantly tries to claim credit for the strong economy that they left the Rudd government. Because of the strong budget surpluses that we inherited, they try to take credit for the Rudd government being able to allocate these funds. They may well say that, but the first point I make is that the first Rudd budget was a budget of the Rudd government. It was the Rudd government that determined its allocations and its expenditure priorities in May. It was the Rudd budget that committed to set aside funds for these nation-building funds.

If the coalition members really believe that they left Australia in a strong economic state then why were our hospitals and health systems in crisis? Why was our education system, according to world rankings, deteriorating yearly? Why was our housing system in crisis? Why was the Murray-Darling river system in crisis? Why did we not have a broadband system that was anywhere near the standards of other countries? It was interesting that yesterday when we were debating the Aged Care Amendment (2008 Measures No. 2) Bill there were speakers from the coalition who were talking about how the aged-care sector is also in crisis. Again I ask: if the economy was so strong and the previous coalition government was doing such a good job, why did we have all of these crises on our hands? Why was inflation at a 16-year high? Why did we have 10 interest rate rises in a row? Clearly the economy was not as strong under the watch of the coalition as they would have us believe. They certainly did not manage what economic opportunities they had very well at all. It is all right for them to come into parliament and talk about how they left a budget surplus. You can leave a budget surplus, but when you leave all of your infrastructure run down and when you leave all of your services depleted and inadequate, that creates a massive debt for the incoming government, because all of those things need to be responded to sooner or later. The time has come when they do need to be responded to.

Services and infrastructure are key priorities of any government. The fact that the previous coalition government refused to commit real money in those areas is, I believe, a sad indictment on the previous government. If nothing else, not investing in infrastructure and not investing in improved education and health services lowers Australia’s productive capacity. It is like allowing a business to run down. If a business does not invest in research and development or plant and equipment then, while it may well save money in the short term, in the long term it will lead to the demise of that business. That is exactly what was happening to this country until the election of the Rudd Labor government.

The ability of this country to live off the back of our natural resources—an ability which the previous coalition government was entirely reliant on—cannot be guaranteed forever and a day. We need to ensure that our economy remains strong not just because we have natural resources that other countries do not but also because we can compete with other countries in every other sphere. It is my view that the Rudd government is picking up the pieces by allocating funds into these areas. It is doing so in the face of some very tough economic times caused by international factors.

It is interesting commentary coming from the coalition because, when we talk about the tough economic times that we are facing and we look at the Economic Security Strategy of the government and the decisions made by this government in response to the financial turmoil, on the one hand they want to take credit for some of those decisions but on the other hand they criticise them. On the one hand they urge this government to increase spending in different areas; on the hand they talk about the government having to maintain a budget surplus. They want more tax cuts for families but they oppose revenue raising measures. The opposition simply cannot have it both ways when it comes to managing the economy of this country and managing the budget that this government is now managing. They cannot try to take credit for the good components of the budget and then criticise other components of it.

These are bills which, as I said from the outset, get us back on track in investing in nation-building projects and investing in the projects that will ultimately lead to greater productivity in this country. It is long overdue that the Commonwealth and the state governments work as one. I am pleased to see that that process has started. I understand that there will be a Council of Australian Governments meeting in a few days time and I am sure that, as a result of that meeting, we will see other examples of cooperation agreed to between the federal government and the states. I am also very pleased to see that this federal government, as part of that process, has included local government in the responsibility that ought to be shared between all three levels of government when it comes to providing services in this country. It is about cooperation, not just between the states and the federal government; it is about cooperation between local government, the states and the federal government, because they all have a role to play in the provision of the very services that these funds, which have been allocated under the first Rudd budget, will be used for. I commend the bills to the House and compliment the Treasurer and the other ministers that were involved in establishing this framework, which I believe secures the future of our country.

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