Damian Drum (Murray, National Party, Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Defence Industry representing the Minister for Jobs and Innovation. Will the minister update the House on how sound management of the economy and the budget creates jobs and growth in the economy, allowing the government to deliver the essential services expected by the Australian people? Are there different approaches that would achieve the same outcome?

Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Murray for his question, and I can tell the member for Murray that, because of the government's economic and budgetary management, we've been able to create a million new jobs in Australia since we were elected in 2013. Because of our good economic management and our budgetary management, we've picked the economy up off the mat and we've got it moving again; we've got it growing again. Because of our economic management and our good budgetary management, we're able to invest more in health, in education, in life-saving medicines and in national security. Only because of what this government has been able to achieve in good economic management can we afford a $200 billion build-up of our military capability in the next 10 years—the largest in our peacetime history.

But the other thing that we can afford because of the budgetary management of the Treasurer, because revenues are growing and because the economy is growing, is this: we're able to give hardworking Australian families $140 billion of tax cuts. We're able to give them back their own money. And that's what it is: it's their own money.

On the other hand, Labor wants to give them either $70 billion or nothing—$70 billion or nothing, versus $140 billion from this government. It is not enough that they're belting retirees and pensioners who've worked hard all their lives to prepare for their retirement, or, if they're pensioners, have put a little bit aside to be able to ensure they can afford a few of the nicer things in life. The Labor Party are belting retirees and pensioners. But now they want to stop hardworking Australian families on incomes like $90,000 from getting tax cuts, because they describe those people as 'rich'. Apparently if you earn $90,000 you are a rich Australian. That is so frankly ludicrous that nobody would believe it. But that's what Labor wants people to believe. Those on the other side of the House are so pleased with themselves, they are so narcissistic, that they think they know better than the Australian public about how to spend their money. I mean, nothing could be starker in terms of the differences at the next election.

At the next election, people will have a choice between whether they vote for a party that understands it's their money and wants to give their money back to them in tax cuts versus a party that thinks they know better how to spend the Australian public's money, that thinks they know better about taking money away from Australians and making their decisions for them. One of the reasons we're Liberals and Nationals is that we believe that individuals should make their own decisions about how they spend their money. Tax cuts are giving back to the people the power to make their own decisions about their lives and the lives of their children, and that's why we'll win the next election and the Leader of the Opposition will lose it.