David Bradbury (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer ) Share this | Hansard source

Now, if they were serious about opposing these reforms, they would not just come in here and vote against them. What they would do is, they would tell those taxpayers that they would reverse these measures if they are ever elected. The problem is that if they do that then their $70 billion black hole will become $7 billion bigger, because that was the size of the revenue protection measures that they came in here and voted against—the hypocrisy of them—and then they came in and foreshadowed the fact that they will vote against our sensible reforms, to the withholding rate, when it comes to managed investment trusts. They say that they are opposed to a taxation rate of 15 per cent. When they were in power, it was not 15 per cent; it was 30 per cent. We all remember how they fought tooth and nail to oppose our efforts to lower that tax rate. Now they come in here and they cry these crocodile tears. If they are serious, they will make a commitment to repeal these reforms if they are ever elected, but that of course will lead to a $7 billion black hole on top of their $70 billion.

The opposition leader talks a lot about a wrecking ball but the only wrecking ball Australians have to worry about is the wrecking ball to their budget. (Time expired)

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