Brendan Nelson (Bradfield, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Given that the Prime Minister has accepted responsibility for Australians being worse off since the election of the Rudd government, does he stand by his statement that he has done all that he physically can for Australian families?

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I have said before at the dispatch box, as Prime Minister of Australia I accept responsibility for the good news and the bad news on the Australian economy. I accept responsibility for the good news in terms of other policy developments which we are embracing and for where we need to make improvements. That is just what I describe as a sensible exercise in levelling with the Australian people.

The truth of the matter is that we have big challenges ahead, partly compounded by what is going on globally and partly compounded by the inertia on the part of those opposite for 12 years. But the key thing, as I have said to those opposite before, is this: what is your plan of action for the future? We have a plan of action for the future based on responsible economic management. The Liberal Party oppose that. We have a plan of action for the future on a productivity revolution. The Liberal Party oppose that. We wish to implement a quality education reform program. The Liberal Party, it seems, now oppose that. I find that remarkable. We have a proposal for an infrastructure revolution in Australia, of which the minister has just spoken, based on a $20 billion infrastructure investment fund. Those opposite, it seems, oppose that because they describe it as a slush fund. We have a reform program in social policy as well—when it comes to homelessness, when it comes to closing the gap and when it comes to the fundamental reform of Australia’s pension system. I presume those opposite oppose that as well.

The key thing in all these challenges is whether you have a positive plan for the future. We have such a plan. We have such a bold reform plan. I would suggest to those opposite that the best thing they could do to help with the overall direction of inflation and the overall direction of interest rates is to tell their colleagues in the red chamber over in that direction to get behind the government’s program, to get behind the budget surplus and to deliver a responsible economic outcome for the country.