Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you for your protection, Mr Deputy Speaker. I know it hurts those on the other side when they start to read the fine print of the bill before the House and realise that they too have not been told the truth by the Treasurer. I would advise them to have a look at the bill and gain an understanding of what it really means and where the money will be spent.

This is a government that in just 18 months has turned a budget surplus upside down. Australia, in the coming financial year, is facing a $58 billion budget deficit. That is an astounding turnaround of some $78 billion in 18 months. It is almost beyond belief. It must be beyond belief for the mums and dads out there trying to comprehend how anyone could turn a household budget or, in this case, the federal budget into such a deficit in 18 months when they had money in the bank. It is just beyond belief. In fact, a child born today will have stamped on their birth certificate a $9,000 debt, compliments of the Treasurer, the Prime Minister and the Labor Party. It will be stamped on their birth certificate. As they arrive in this world as an Australian citizen—

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