Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The hypocrisy of those opposite never ceases to amaze me. They came into this place seven years ago and threw money around like confetti. They racked up a deficit faster than ever before in the history of our country and left debt fast on its way to reaching $700 billion. Their legacy includes an interest bill of almost $12 billion each year. Each year, that is $12 billion of wasted taxpayers' money. After leaving a tsunami of debt in their wake, they then criticise. They moan and groan and whinge and whine when the voters call on the coalition to clean up their mess. It is as if a delinquent child has run through the family house with paint and dirt and garbage, leaving behind a monstrous, chaotic mess in their path. And when they are sent to their room as punishment they refuse. They do a dummy-spit, they drag their feet along the floor, they toss their toys and they throw a tantrum.

The Australian people recognised that the country could not afford another term of a Labor government. They voted in the coalition to clean up Labor's fiscal disaster, to get the economy back on track—promoting growth and jobs—to implement an economic action strategy that allowed everyone to get ahead and ensure prosperity for generations to come. Yet, when it comes to delivering on this promise, Labor ignores the mandate Australians gave to the coalition government. It is typical of those opposite to focus on petty politics when the real issue at hand is our nation's economy and our international standing.

Is the opposition floridly psychotic? They rack up $123 billion in cumulative deficits, introduce budgets with massive structural deficits and think that no-one will ever have to pay it back. They inherit a $20 billion surplus, and in just six years leave behind a projected $30 billion deficit, turning nearly $50 billion in the bank into a projected net debt well over $200 billion, causing the fastest deterioration in debt in dollar terms and as a share of GDP.

Australians know that the coalition would never allow our nation's finances to become this bad. But unfortunately, due to the incompetence of the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd governments, they are this bad. Perhaps, instead of forcing the Australian people to pay back the money squandered by the previous Labor government, they would like to offer to pay it off themselves. However, sadly, history shows they simply do not care. They do not care about the hard-earned dollars the Australian people give to the government with the trust and belief that it will be spent efficiently, effectively and in the best interests of the Australian people. Those opposite took to the budget like an arsonist takes to dry bushland in the heat of summer—setting fire to it all, burning all that is standing in their sights, letting it spread and get bigger and bigger and bigger until it was totally out of control. And then in come the firefighters, the coalition government, working hard to put out the fire. And what does Labor do? They squeeze the hose, cut off the water and fan the flames. And that is where we stand today: with the fire still burning on our nation's budget and with Labor playing politics and disregarding sense and good policy, completely ignoring their responsibility to all Australians and ignoring their responsibility to future generations. Enough is enough. Let the government get on with the job. Let us act in the best interests of all Australians.

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