Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, like so many of my constituents in Moreton and your constituents in Scullin, I welcome the Reserve Bank decision today to cut interest rates by 25 basis points. This rate cut will provide some small relief to households struggling to meet mortgage repayments. It will also deliver hope to first home buyers who have been let down by high interest rates for way too long. After 10 interest rate rises in a row under the coalition government, many families in my electorate have been feeling the strain. On an average loan, those 10 interest rate rises have meant $400 a month extra in loan repayments. That is tough for households already struggling to cope with higher fuel costs and higher grocery bills. Many families in Moreton have contacted me directly to express their concern about rising interest rates and housing affordability. That is why I was so surprised last week to hear the Leader of the Opposition in this place describe the Australian economy as at November last year as ‘the envy of the world’. This shows, yet again, that the opposition will do and say anything to protect the slim shred of economic credibility that they have left.

But it is what the opposition leader did not say that is really important. He did not say that the current member for Higgins had handed Treasurer Swan an economy experiencing 16-year high inflation levels. The Leader of the Opposition did not say that interest rates had risen 10 times in a row and were the second highest in the developed world. The current Leader of the Opposition did not say that productivity growth was running at its lowest level in 15 years. He did not say that Commonwealth spending in real terms had grown around four per cent a year since 2004-05 and had even spiked over 4.5 per cent. He did not say that Howard and Costello had overseen 5½ years of monthly trade deficits—that is, 66 months of trade deficits. He did not put any of these facts about the true state of the Australian economy because the current Leader of the Opposition is ashamed of this legacy, as he should be.

On occasions, the opposition seem to suggest that they should turn to the member for Higgins as if he is the economic messiah. But he is not the economic messiah; he is just a naughty boy. The Rudd government is delivering on its commitment to put downward pressure on inflation. Part of this commitment was a strong budget surplus of $22 billion to provide a buffer against global economic instability. We need a strong surplus to help keep a lid on inflation today, and we need a strong surplus to invest in infrastructure for tomorrow. The surplus is an investment in better hospitals, better education centres and better broadband. It is an investment in better roads, like the upgrade to the Kessels Road and Mains Road intersection in Sunnybank or Robertson in my electorate.

But now the opposition are planning a $6.2 billion raid on that surplus, as detailed by the member for Franklin. We saw this in action in the Senate today, and it was shameful. This is a move that will put further pressure on interest rates just as we are starting to turn the tide and just as we are starting to get some good economic news. It shows just how out of touch and how desperate the opposition are. We know that we face more tough times ahead as we continue to battle economic turbulence abroad and high inflation and interest rates at home. But still the opposition refuse to listen. The Reserve Bank warned the previous coalition government 20 times about capacity constraints in the economy, but they did not listen. They did not listen when in government to that respected and august body, the Reserve Bank, and still they refuse to listen to it in opposition.

The other day in this House, I heard the member for Dickson talk about the great economic reforms delivered by his government—by the Howard-Costello government. What did they amount to? They basically amounted to some clever accounting skills—no significant economic reforms at all. That is the legacy—no significant economic reforms, just some clever accounting. The Labor Party has a proud history of building nations and making visionary commitments. Talk about committing the nation—we build nations. Those opposite, the Liberal Party, are prepared to bill the nation that Labor built. That is all. The opposition have no plan for the future and no plan to take the pressure off the working families and the seniors in Moreton, and they should be forever condemned for that.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! It being 9.00 pm, the debate is interrupted.