Julian Simmonds (Ryan, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I actually want to thank the member for Bruce for this particular motion. Why? Because he has given me a fantastic opportunity to speak against the motion by speaking about all the significant achievements of the Morrison government. It's unfortunate we've only got five minutes, because I am unable to list them all, quite frankly. There has been so much significant achievement by the Morrison government protecting Australians through the COVID pandemic and now leading the COVID-19 recovery.

What we saw from the member for Bruce was a lot of ranting and posturing, quite frankly, but, honestly, the member for Bruce requires his own fact-checker just for him, because some of the stuff that he purports to represent is just so patently false. I'm very happy to go into that a little more in a moment, but we all know those people in our lives who refuse to grow up. Well, the member for Bruce is that in this place. The guy seems to be unable to graduate from student politics quite frankly, so he leads these ridiculous motions just so that he can rant and rave about facts that are simply incorrect.

What are the facts? In 2020 the Australian economy outperformed all other major advanced economies. Let's say that again: in 2020 the Australian economy outperformed all other major advanced economies across the world during the COVID-19 pandemic. First of all, that's completely opposite to what the member for Bruce would have you believe and what he is trying to claim as fact, which it is not. The fact that Australia is world leading—why has that occurred?—isn't just luck, I can tell you that. It's good management by the Morrison government, the Prime Minister and others, including the executive team, as we went through the COVID-19 pandemic. Now our economy continues on its way up. Recently, the national accounts showed that, for the first time since records began, GDP growth has been above three per cent for two consecutive quarters and business confidence is at its highest level in 11 years. So, quite simply, what the member for Bruce put on the table and would have you believe simply isn't correct. Australia is in a much stronger position because of the Morrison Liberal-National coalition government. It would certainly have been in a weaker position if the member for Bruce had his way and we had $387 billion worth of extra taxes on the books when we hit COVID-19—that's for sure. The idea that Labor are better economic managers simply does not hold up to scrutiny.

Let's look at a few of the portfolios that the member for Bruce mentions in the motion. On education, the guaranteed funding commitment of this government is an investment of $315 billion in schools over the next decade. This increases the average funding per student by 60 per cent over the decade from previous levels. On health, federal funding provided by the Morrison government for public hospitals will more than double when compared to what Labor were able to achieve. We all remember when they were in government and they couldn't even list lifesaving medicines for Australians on the PBS because fiscal constraints didn't allow it. Labor put $13.3 billion into health in 2012-13. It's now $29.9 billion. What a stark record that Labor members opposite should be absolutely ashamed of. We have our record on bulk billing as well. More Australians are now seeing their doctor without having to pay. Nearly nine out of 10 visits to the GP are now free, because this government is looking after all Australians. Nearly 143 million free GP services were delivered last year alone.

From 2021, the Australian government is investing $110 billion over 10 years on infrastructure. We're upgrading major highways and we're busting urban congestion, including in my electorate of Ryan, with some really important projects, making public transport better, such as through the Brisbane Metro, and we're upgrading our airports. Importantly, we're not just busting congestion and getting people home to their families safer but also creating jobs right across this country. Our record on the environment is also something I'm incredibly proud of. Our emissions are lower than when we came to government in 2013. We beat our 2020 Kyoto targets by more than 459 million tonnes.

The facts simply do not bear out what the member for Bruce is claiming. It simply shows the Morrison coalition government is working for all Australians and Australia is in a better place, economically and financially, because of the Morrison government.

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