Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Could you advise what free-marketing has done for, or rather to, Australia? Are you aware that, because of the ALP-LNP's free-marketing, 68 per cent of the wool industry has gone—$16 billion; gas is sold offshore for 6c while onshore we pay $16—$23 billion; the motor vehicle industry has gone—$21 billion; petrol—no ethanol—$19 billion; and the Galilee coal rail line—$12 billion a year. These five items are costing us $91 billion a year. When will you and the ALP leave the fantasy land of the Sydney suits and realise you've imposed Struggle Street on Australians?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his very wide-ranging question. Let me deal with the success of the government's policies in regional Queensland. Last year, with 403,000 jobs created Australia wide, around 123,000 jobs were created in regional Australia—

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

The member for Kennedy—

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I asked a question about free market policies with the highest—

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

The member for Kennedy will resume his seat. I'm prepared to call the member for Kennedy on a point of order. I am going to finish my sentence before he starts addressing it. He can state what the point of order is. He can operate under the same rules as every other member of this House, and he is not going to shout at me. I call that member for Kennedy on a point of order.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We ask questions in this parliament—

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

You need to state your point of order.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and the people of Australia deserve to have an answer to that—

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

The member for Kennedy will resume his seat. The member for Kennedy has not raised a single point of order. He's just made a statement. I'm therefore not going to waste the time of the House. I'm simply going to call the Prime Minister.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I understand the member for Kennedy does not approve of or agree with free market economics. But I have to say to him, with respect to his views, that we here in the government believe in free markets, we believe in trade and we believe in free enterprise. I was noting that, in regional Queensland alone, 49,000 new jobs were created last year—nearly as many as in greater Brisbane. Our policies are creating jobs in the honourable member's electorate and other areas in regional Queensland. The big export trade deals are giving cattle farmers across Queensland greater to access to enter the new large markets in Asia. Our instant asset write-off is benefiting small-business people such as store owners and tradesmen in Innisfail perhaps. The honourable member would be prepared to acknowledge that.

Energy is very important. The honourable member often accepts that. The National Energy Guarantee will make energy more reliable and affordable. Of course there are also our company tax cuts, I know the honourable member comes from a business background, so he understands how important small and medium family businesses are. In fact, he's representing a family business here in the House of Representatives. The honourable member knows that those family businesses are employing more because of the tax cuts that we've given. They're investing more and getting ahead. I appreciate the honourable member does not agree with free market economics. We do. We are seeing—and he is seeing this in his electorate—the benefits of the economic leadership that the government has provided.

Chris Crewther (Dunkley, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. Will the Treasurer update the House on recent economic data releases and how this reflects the continued strength of the Australian economy, including in my electorate of Dunkley? Is the Treasurer aware of any approaches that would risk this economic strength?

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

I thank the member for Dunkley for his question. I know the member for Dunkley is proud to be part of a government whose plan for jobs and growth is working in this country. As we see from the recent data releases, which we've often referred to in this House, those results include over 403,000 jobs created in the past year, with more than 1,100 jobs per day and three-quarters of those jobs being full-time positions.

I note that in Tasmania jobs growth has been running at 3.2 per cent. That's almost five times the average of the past decade. That's a great reason to re-elect the Hodgman government in Tasmania. Nationally, jobs growth has been positive now for the last six months—the longest consecutive run of jobs growth in recorded Australian economic history. ANZ says job ads are at their highest level in almost seven years. Confidence levels of consumers have risen eight per cent in the past six months. Business conditions are close to the highest level on record, and they are highest in Tasmania where, I note, business confidence is twice the long-run average. Capital expenditure expectations, according to the National Australia Bank survey, is at the highest level in over a decade. Today's capex data for the December quarter showed non-mining capital expenditure grew by 10 per cent in 2017. That's the strongest pace in three years and it's the fifth consecutive increase in non-mining investment, the first time that has happened since 2002. Overall, new capital expenditure growth of four per cent in 2017 is something that has been the result of a government that understands the importance of driving investment. It's driven by a party that is focused on growth.

But, sadly, not all political parties are interested in growth. I refer to that great tome Hearts and Minds by the shadow Treasurer. It's still available for others if they want to borrow it. I seem to be the only one. In the foreword from Paul Keating it says this: 'Not all parties embrace economic growth and instances the manifesto of the Greens in turning its back on it.' How things have changed, because the shadow Treasurer has now become the very thing he warned against in being a party, and in a party, that is more focused on the politics of envy than in the economics of economic growth. Bob Hawke is known for being able to chug things down, but if he was forced to chug down the almond-latte left economics, if he had to chug that down in the way that the leader of the Labor Party is today, he would be spewing.