Terri Butler (Griffith, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In February we had the Griffith by-election, and at that by-election the Abbott government failed to reveal to voters the content of the Commission of Audit recommendations for cuts. And here we are heading towards an April Senate election in Western Australia, and the Abbott government is again failing to reveal to voters the cuts that it is going to be considering after receiving the Commission of Audit. When will the Abbott government let voters know what cuts are being recommended? For example, will we see any suggestion in the Commission of Audit for a GP tax, which was previously mooted before the Griffith by-election and which still will not go away.

It is clear to me that the Abbott government has its priorities all wrong when it comes to cuts and when it comes to spending. An obvious example is the government's $5.5 billion Paid Parental Leave scheme. We know that public policy experts, economists and business people have all raised concerns about that $5.5 billion scheme. We also know that experts and academics have called on the government to revisit its priorities when it comes to that scheme and to spend the money, if it is available, on, for example, child care and better childcare solutions for working parents. It is an example of the problematic priorities of the Abbott government. With respect, the Abbott government ought to come clean and get its priorities right for spending, and it ought to advise Western Australians what they will really be voting for this April.