Pat Conroy (Charlton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer to the statement by the Treasurer of New South Wales that the cuts to pensioner concessions were a cruel and callous cut which would burden pensioners. Why should pensioners suffer cruel and callous cuts to their concessions because of the Prime Minister's broken promises?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Let me just remind the member for Charlton of the commitments that this government made pre-election: to stop the boats, to stop the carbon tax—

Stephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Infrastructure) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tell that to Mike Baird!

Opposition members interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! There will be silence on my left!

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

And that includes the deputy leader!

Mr Husic interjecting—

And the member for Chifley!

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The commitments that we made pre-election were to stop the boats, to scrap the carbon tax, to build the roads of the 21st century and to get the budget back under control.

Ms Kate Ellis interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If the member for Adelaide no longer wants to represent her constituents in this chamber, she will keep it up.

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There are no cuts to health, and every single dollar of saving in health is being reinvested—every single dollar of saving in health is being reinvested. And when it comes to public hospitals, public hospital funding increases by nine per cent this year, nine per cent next year, nine per cent the year after that and six per cent in the fourth year—a massive increase. This is why, as the Treasurer says, the states are $9 billion better off as a result of this budget. Every Australian, in the long run, is better off under this budget because if you get the budget under control—if you fix the budget—you fix the economy and that makes every single Australian better off.

If the member for Charlton is so anxious about things in the budget, and if he really wants to help the pensioners of his electorate, tell his leader to scrap the carbon tax now. Scrap the carbon tax now, and that would make every single household in the electorate of Charlton $550 a year better off.