Vince Connelly (Stirling, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Could the PM explain the alternative policies to the government's stable and responsible approach to managing the nation's finances in the face of global economic uncertainty?

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

I thank the member for his question, and I agree with him that the government is taking a responsible approach. We are taking the stable approach. We are ensuring that the way we manage the nation's finances is ensuring that we're able to address the very present needs that Australians have today, and those are to keep more of what they earn through lower taxes, which we have already legislated through parliament. We are investing in the $100 billion pipeline of infrastructure projects that support the growth of our economy.

I'm asked about what the alternative approach is, and you have just heard from the Leader of the Opposition that what Labor would do, and what Labor would have us do, is return to the failed and reckless spending of the Rudd-Swan government. What they think is the response to the circumstances that we face today, which they put in some strange alignment with the issues of the global financial crisis and bird flu and any number of things—

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

The Prime Minister will resume his seat. The Leader of the Opposition on a point of order?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks, Mr Speaker. It goes to relevance. If the Prime Minister hadn't jagged—

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

No, the Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. That is no point of order.

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

Before I was interrupted, what I was saying—

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Members on my left! The Prime Minister has the call.

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

The reckless policies of the Labor Party under the Rudd-Swan government, which saw billions upon billions upon billions wasted on overpriced school halls and on pink batts, where people died in roofs as a result of the ill-considered, rushed and reckless spending policies of the Labor Party—

Mr Dreyfus interjecting—

Mr Brian Mitchell interjecting—

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

The member for Isaacs is warned. The member for Lyons will leave under standing order 94(a).

The member for Lyons then left the chamber.

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

The thing about the Labor Party is: they never learn from their mistakes. They've never learnt from the mistakes of their fiscal recklessness that plunged the government's budget back into deficit and kept it there. And that's the reason they were six years in government and they didn't deliver one surplus, despite inheriting one.

Our government, having inherited deficits, will deliver the first surplus in 12 years, because we understand the importance of disciplined financial management. Our government will not return to the reckless spending of Rudd and Swan. We will never engage in their reckless spending—because Labor will take any excuse to spend more of your money and take more of your money off you, in order to indulge their habit of reckless spending. They never learnt from their mistakes. We were elected to implement Liberal policies and Nationals policies of stable and disciplined financial management, not to engage in the budget recklessness and the policies of panic and crisis of the Labor Party. The only budget they've ever seen is one they want to blow.

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

The Prime Minister's time has concluded.

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

Mr Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.