Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer outline what last week's employment figures tell us about the state of the economy.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Solomon for her question. It was very timely that I was in Darwin as the unemployment numbers came out, which recognised that the Northern Territory now has unemployment at 3.3 per cent.

Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It depends where you are.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That is in the Northern Territory.

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

The member for Lingiari is warned.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I know you do not go back there much, but it is in the Northern Territory. It is 3.3 per cent and—

Opposition members interjecting—

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

There is too much noise on my left.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The unemployment rate is 5.8 per cent in Australia.

Mr Snowdon interjecting—

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

The member for Lingiari is warned.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We see that 5.8 per cent unemployment rate in Australia as encouraging, because the legacy left by the Labor Party was that unemployment would rise to 6¼ per cent. In fact, the good news—Prime Minister, you might not have heard this—is that the number of full-time jobs created since the beginning of the year is now over 100,000. There have been 100,000 full-time jobs created since the beginning of this year. This completely refutes all of the commentary from the Labor Party at the beginning of the year about job losses. In fact, the member for McMahon still has up on his website, 'Tony Abbott refuses to fight for Aussie jobs.' Let me tell you, Tony Abbott has delivered 100,000 full-time jobs since the beginning of this year in partnership with Australian employers.

There is still much work to be done if we are not to reach the Labor Party forecast of 6¼ per cent unemployment. That is why we have to get our budget through. We have to provide certainty and stability when it comes to the fiscal management of this country. We need to form that in partnership with monetary policy that is sustainable and, in doing so, roll out the reforms with the taxation white paper, the reform of the federation and reform of competition laws that are going to improve productivity growth. If we do all of that the jobs will come. The new jobs, the full-time jobs, the well-paid jobs will come. Our formula for the economy is working, because we are not expecting to get to the 6¼ per cent unemployment rate that was the legacy of Labor.

But it takes hard decisions in this building to get to that point. Just as those hard decisions repair our own balance sheet on behalf of the Australian people, then business can get on with the job of creating the jobs for everyday Australians that deliver the household prosperity they expect.