Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

It is a very good question. In fact, a couple of weeks ago the Minister for Trade and I met with the most senior economic minister in China, and in his opening statement he said how important it was for Australia to abolish the carbon tax and the mining tax. The most senior economic minister in China, who is responsible for dealing with carbon emissions in China, praised Australia's abolition of the carbon tax. And I say to you: that reflects the importance to the economy of the abolition of the carbon tax, because while it remains in place it costs Australia $11 million every day. Repealing the carbon tax will not only save business $85 million a year but it will also boost competitiveness for 76,000 entities that will no longer have to comply with a carbon tax.

The bottom line is we will strengthen the Australian economy by abolishing the carbon tax, and that means more jobs and better economic security. It makes us a more competitive nation. It was identified by the Prime Minister of Canada, when he and this Prime Minister jointly stated how important it was to get rid of carbon tax.

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