Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Again, I thank the Greens, in this case, for their assistance.

We passed legislation last night—the parliament passed legislation last night—to reform the renewable energy target, and that will put downward pressure on electricity prices while also providing certainty for the industry. I want to congratulate the Minister for the Environment and the Minister for Industry and Science for their hard work, particularly the Minister for the Environment. I thank the Labor Party for their support for most of this legislation, and I also thank the Senate crossbenchers for their support for critical elements of this legislation.

Importantly, this parliament has in the last few days passed more than $10 billion worth of budget savings through the Senate. This will make our services more sustainable for the long run, and this is helping the government to deliver our country on a sustainable path to a surplus. We are delivering half a percentage point of GDP in deficit reductions over each of the forward estimates. So good things are happening, this government is delivering and, I have to say, in the last fortnight this parliament is delivering as well for the people of Australia.

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