Jason Wood (La Trobe, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer update the House on how the Turnbull government's economic plan for jobs and growth ensures Australia continues to successfully transition from the mining investment boom to a stronger, more diversified economy? How will the budget support hardworking Australians, young workers and small business who are working, saving and investing in our stronger new economy?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for La Trobe for his question and his keen interest in the budget and how the budget is actually providing for Australians' future prosperity. Last night was not just another budget. Last night was a national plan for jobs and growth in a stronger new economy. That is what it was. It was about a national economic plan. What the Australian people need, what they are looking for and what they have received is a national plan to take us through the transition from the resources investment boom to a newer, diversified economy, where all Australians who are running businesses can grow their businesses and find jobs in those businesses.

There are six key points to that plan. Firstly, there is an innovation and science program for start-up businesses. Just passed through the House today are measures that will be there for angel investing in new start-ups—a measure that was particularly championed by the member for Banks—to ensure that we can get start-up businesses happening.

Secondly, there is a defence plan for high-tech manufacturing and technology. This is about a defence industry plan which is providing for high-tech jobs for decades, ensuring a naval shipbuilding program with the decisions that were taken by this government, decisions that were ignored by those on that side of the House for six years. It took this side of the House to make those decisions and to decide to build the naval fleet improvements here in Australia. This is providing the basis for our defence supply chain right across the country.

Thirdly, there are export trade deals to generate new business opportunities. This government's record on expanding trade opportunities is well known. I acknowledge in this House again the former trade minister Andrew Robb, who was the greatest trade minister this country has ever had—and I have no doubt that the new minister will be up to that same task as well.

Tax cuts and incentives for small business and hardworking families is the fourth point in this plan. The enterprise tax plan supports small businesses, which employ hundreds, thousands and millions of Australians who are in hardworking families and depend on the success of that business for their job and for their future. It will support them in those businesses, in addition to supporting those hardworking families in that middle-income tax bracket, which we have expanded so that they do not pay higher rates of tax as they work harder and as they save and invest for the future.

This is a sustainable budget which cracks down on tax avoidance and loopholes, in particular multinational tax avoidance, which was ignored by those opposite when they were in government and ignored by those opposite in opposition when they voted against the laws. Our policies on multinational tax avoidance will deliver $3.9 billion to the bottom line, which means we can fund the tax incentives that are needed and guarantee funding to health, education and roads with real money that families can rely on.

Ms Butler interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Griffith will cease interjecting.

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. The budget states that the Treasurer's so-called enterprise tax plan will be phased in over 10 years, but the budget fails to outline a 10-year cost for this promise. So, Treasurer, what is the 10-year cost of your 10-year plan?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The budgeted tax plan, which is in our budget and forward estimates, the shadow Treasurer might like to know, goes for four years; it does not go for 10 years. I note that those opposite have adopted a 10-year budgeting strategy, which has left a $20 billion hole in their costings for their policies. But I thank the member opposite for his keen interest in company tax cuts. And I know why: because on page 63 of Hearts & Minds we see a wonderful chapter—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Treasurer will not use props. He is entitled to quote, but he will not use the book as a prop.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In his weighty tome of Hearts & Minds: A Blueprint for Modern Labor, under 'Promoting growth through cutting company tax', it says—

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, a point of order on direct relevance: the day after the budget, he should be able to be relevant to the budget for more than 30 seconds in an answer.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He is very sensitive, the member for Watson, when it comes to weighty tomes of the member for McMahon. But what he said was:

We do not need to have the lowest corporate tax rate in the world …

We do, however, need to be concerned if our company tax rate is on the higher side of the world's advanced economies. … While 30 per cent sounds low compared to the rate that Paul Keating inherited, it is how the rate compares to that of our competitors that counts.

The member opposite likes to write about company tax cuts in his books. He likes to talk about them outside of this place. But he has no plan to do it. Our company tax cuts have delivered a cost to revenue of $5.3 billion over the budget and forward estimates. We know what they cost, and we have been able to ensure that we can meet and offset that cost by the other revenue-raising measures in the budget, which include our commitment to cracking down on multinational tax avoidance and removing access to generous concessions for those on high incomes and with high wealth. In that area we have raised $6 billion in additional revenue from just the top four per cent of those with superannuation accounts, and we have reinvested $3 billion of that back into ensuring that we can pay for the company tax cuts and income tax cuts that are in this budget and, in addition to that, reinvested in making superannuation fairer, more accessible and more flexible for the Australians who need it.

Those opposite talk a big game when it comes to tax. They talk a big game when it comes to any number of issues—multinational tax avoidance and all the rest of it. But we know that in government they do nothing about it and in opposition they vote against it. And as we come to an election, the only thing you can notice is that they will engage in their class-envy politics. The Australian people are over it. They are over this opposition. There is nothing new about this Leader of the Opposition. He is the same old Labor politician we have known for a long time.

Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources. Will the Deputy Prime Minister update the House on how last night's budget is underpinning the coalition's support for Australian agriculture? How is this government's plan to deliver jobs and growth benefiting not only the people of Capricornia but the whole nation?

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for her question. I know she has a distinct interest in agricultural issues because of the region she lives in and the fact that it is at the centre of the beef capital of Australia, in Rockhampton. Last night's budget did indeed build on what we are doing in agriculture. Not only have we taken agricultural exports to being the second-largest export, after iron ore, but we continue to build on the work we have done, especially through the agriculture white paper—the fact that we have a new country of origin labelling scheme being rolled out, clearly describing the proportion of what is inside the packet that comes from our nation, the fact that we are continuing to invest in research and development, and the fact that we work on the back of the 100 per cent write-off on water reticulation and on fencing and the write-off over three years for fodder storage. We also acknowledge that we work on the back of what we have done in getting an ACCC commissioner in to make sure that famers are dealt with fairly, and the $20,000-a-year small plant write-off, which is now extended to $10 million, and that is incredibly important. And there is the work we have done on co-ops, and the work we have done on new Foreign Investment Review Board guidelines, and drought concessional loans: over 800 people receiving over $400 million. That is not a bad turnaround considering that when we actually arrived in government only eight had been given out, and now we have 800. That is 100 times better than with the Labor-Greens-Independents alliance.

But two things that are vitally important in last night's budget are what we are doing with water storage and what we are doing with transport, especially the inland rail. In water storage we have put aside $½ billion already for the assessment and for capital grants to build new dams. I know there are so many areas in the Fitzroy—Eden Bann, Rookwood and further north—and the Ord. I know Wellington also has a strong interest. These areas want water storages built, and we have a $2 billion concessional loan facility to assist us to build these water storages, because we are not scared of building the water storage. We are not scared of taking our nation forward.

We can see a great metaphor for what happens under Labor with—it is actually in my own electorate—Chaffey Dam. When we arrived it was underfunded, unbuilt, unapproved. And we will open it on Friday. That is the sort of delivery that we do, because we are 'doers' on this side. We actually make things happen.

It is not just there. It is also on the inland rail—so often just a discussion piece by Labor, the Greens and the Independents, but we put close to $600 million on the table for that because we believe that there should be a corridor of commerce from Brisbane through to Melbourne, in the western regions of New South Wales and Queensland and through Victoria to give those real opportunities. This is a great budget for regional people. It is a great budget for agriculture. It is a great budget for Central Queensland right down to Victoria and everywhere in between, and to the west and to Tasmania. (Time expired)

Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. The government last night released modelling of the impact of the Treasurer's so-called enterprise tax plan over 10 years. Given that it is inconceivable that the government would have modelled the economic impact without modelling the cost to the budget of his plan, will the Treasurer now outline to the House the 10-year cost of his 10-year policy?

Mr Joyce interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Prime Minister will contain himself.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The modelling details were released last night in accordance with the normal processes of the budget. I refer the member to those figures and to those papers that were released last night. I find it interesting, though, that the shadow Treasurer is raising questions about costings, particularly costings over 10 years. We all know that those opposite have a plan to increase the tax burden on the Australian economy by $100 billion.

Ms Butler interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Griffith is warned!

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, it was $100 billion until we found out that he was short by a rounding error of some $19.5 billion. Their promises for education are so linked to the tobacco excise revenue, courtesy of the member for Adelaide, who has linked these two together. It is what we know over the budget and forward estimates. Let's just put the $20 billion black hole that they have to one side over 10 years. Just over the budget and forward estimates, the hole in their funding on tobacco excise revenue is $3.25 billion. That is money that they do not have to spend on the promises that they have been making to Australian parents. But we have seen it all before. We saw it with the mining tax with the member from Lilley when he was Treasurer. He was going to have the great mining tax. If it were operational now, we would actually be paying money to the mining companies as a result of that tax. And this was going to build roads and it was going to do all sorts of things. It was one of the member for Grayndler sphinxes that he built while he was the minister for infrastructure. But what we have seen from those opposite is form. They get these things wrong and then they cannot fund the things they say they can fund. What happens then is the Australian people are either let down, as they were by those opposite, or they pay more in tax, because what we know about those opposite is they know they cannot control spending. I am quite sure they will make up that $20 billion black hole. They will just tax people more and more and more, and it will not stop, because this Leader of the Opposition cannot stop spending, that shadow Treasurer cannot stop spending and, worse than that, they cannot stop taxing.