Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Will the Prime Minister outline to the House how government services are being guaranteed for Australians through the Morrison government's elimination of the budget deficit? Is the Prime Minister aware of alternative approaches?

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

Throughout the course of this week and last we have been noting how the stability and certainty of the approach the government has taken, particularly to managing our government's budget that we manage on behalf of the Australian people—the fact we're able to keep our head, understand the many and significant challenges, whether they be global or domestic, and respond in a disciplined and targeted way while maintaining the resilience which is necessary through our budget to meet challenges that we know will come in the future—continues to ensure we can deliver the essential services that Australians rely on.

The increase in funding and support for those dealing with mental health challenges in this country is something we outlined very clearly in the last budget and at the last election, and we are getting on with the job of delivering that support all around the country, whether it's what we're doing in headspace or particularly in the area of dealing with eating disorders. We're increasing funding for farmers and for graziers, particularly by 21 projects around the country that are dealing with resilience through the water infrastructure we're supporting, with some $1½ billion being directly invested in those projects. We're providing world-class settlement services, as was recognised last night at the Migration Council dinner. These are the best settlement services of any in the world. They are the world leaders in settlement services, and our government continues to fund these important essential services by having a strong budget. Supporting first home buyers, through the first home super saver scheme and the first home loan deposit scheme—that's what a strong budget can do to back the budgets of first home buyers, who are getting back into the market, and we welcome that. We are maintaining our strong border protection regime—which, as I know the Minister for Home Affairs knows, is well-known by the Australian people—and the Australian government's strong border protection policies, and we are keeping our region safe and stable through the investments we are making through our Pacific Step-up program to ensure we're investing in their stability, prosperity and security for the future in front of the challenges they face.

We are not adopting the panicked crisis policies of the Labor Party, which they continue to urge us to do in this place, channelling their former compatriots, the Rudd and Swan government, who recklessly raided and destroyed the budget, taking away the resilience of Australians. We will not adopt Labor's policies of panic and crisis; we will continue the policies of stability and certainty that give Australians confidence to plan for their future.