Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Apparently, greed is good, and climate change is better! The report says:

Some economic effects may be beneficial—where regions become warmer or wetter this may allow for increased agricultural output …

Well, that's a relief. Phew! I was worried about climate change before! I think the Minister for Agriculture has not just been changing Hansard; he has been changing the Intergenerational report as well! That is our friend the Minister for Agriculture. The report talks about the good work on climate change that happens in California. Just as well they do not have a cap-and-trade scheme! That is just as well! That would be 'an inconvenient truth'! It also tells us what the government think about productivity and innovation. The report says:

There is little evidence that slower productivity growth has been the result of inadequate investment in skills, education and innovation more broadly.

Well, you would not want to invest in skills, education or innovation to increase productivity! Why would you go and do that? What does innovation have to do with productivity? What a terrible thought! This report has cleared up quite a lot for me now! We know that climate change is actually good, and innovation and education—why would you invest in that?—have nothing to do with productivity! We know they are not, because we also know that education funding falls dramatically under the scenarios presented as government policy, this government's policy, as a percentage of GDP.

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