Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Does the Prime Minister agree with the Macquarie Dictionary that a tax is ‘a compulsory’—

Government Members:

Government members interjecting—

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

Order! Those on my right will come to order. The Leader of the Opposition has the call.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Does the Prime Minister agree with the Macquarie Dictionary that a tax is ‘a compulsory monetary contribution demanded by a government for its support’? Does he also agree, therefore, that a compulsory fee levied on bank deposits over $1 million in return for a government guarantee is not a commercial arrangement and is in truth nothing more than a new tax?

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

I am always gladdened when the Leader of the Opposition, the alternative Prime Minister of the country, resorts to his high school debating tactics. There is nothing like pulling out the old dictionary and saying, ‘Do you know that the meaning of X in the 17th century OED is Y and the Shorter Oxford says the following and the Macquarie says this and the Collins says that?’ This is actually about serious questions of national economic leadership. What I would say to the Leader of the Opposition is: what is required of leadership is that, at a time of global financial crisis, you stand by the Secretary of the Treasury rather than attack him, stand by the Reserve Bank of Australia rather than attack that institution—

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, a point of order that goes to relevance: the Prime Minister was asked a very specific question about the government’s new deposits tax. It had nothing whatsoever to do with the Secretary of the Treasury and he should return to the question.

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

The Prime Minister is responding to the question. I will listen to him carefully—if less interjection allows me.

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

What we have had on display from the alternative Prime Minister in recent days is quite remarkable. He first of all said the global financial crisis is a ‘hype’. Despite the concerns of 10 million people with superannuation policies, the response of the Leader of the Opposition is that that is all hype. For people concerned about interest rate increases when there was an interest rate increase of 25 basis points, he said that was overdramatised. How out of touch can you get!

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I hesitate to interrupt the primary school debating, but my point of order is relevance.

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

The Prime Minister will respond to the question.

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

Being out of touch on the global financial crisis and being out of touch on interest rates is one thing, but yesterday in this parliament being right out of control in his attack on the Secretary of the Treasury places the Leader of the Opposition in an entirely new league. This country requires strong economic leadership at a time of global financial crisis and getting behind the institutions of government as is necessary; and, on the measures which the government have enacted in relation to this guarantee, we have done so on the basis of advice from the Treasury and, through them, the regulators. I stand by everything the Treasurer has said.