David Smith (Bean, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Is the real reason the Prime Minister obsesses about Labor that he wants to distract Australians from the fact that net government debt has more than doubled on his watch?

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

Net debt under this government is coming down, because we are in surplus this year. It has been a long time since we've been in surplus. After six painstaking years of getting the budget back into shape, getting spending under control, conservatively budgeting on the forecasts on revenue and ensuring that we are getting Australians back into work—so they are going off welfare and they're paying taxes—the budget is now in surplus this year.

Mr Brendan O'Connor interjecting—

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

The member for Gorton is warned.

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

That means that debt is now coming down. It will fall, as the budget was saying, by some $50 billion over the forward estimates.

I will tell you why I talk about Labor. It is because I don't think that we should ever return to the reckless policies of the Labor Party when it comes to the budget and anything else. Australians know the mistakes that Labor made when they were last in power, and the reason we are talking about Labor is that the shadow Treasurer wants those policies reintroduced. In that wonderful book that the shadow Treasurer often quotes, Glory Daze, he talked about—

Mr Albanese interjecting—

He asked me about Labor.

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

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

Mr Speaker, the question was about how, on his watch, debt has doubled.

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

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. If that was all that was asked, the Leader of the Opposition would have a stronger case. I've made the point about taglines. When a tagline includes a political party and their policy approach, I think it does make the capacity for the answer pretty broad. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

In Glory Daze, the shadow Treasurer talked about his glory days as the chief-of-staff to Wayne Swan and he said:

The Chief-of-Staff's job is tremendous, and worth the greying hair and expanding waistline. All at once you are the key adviser and confidante to the Treasurer … This requires a closeness with the boss and an ability to know his mind without even speaking with him about every issue.

He was at one with Obi-Swan—and he remains at one with Obi-Swan in this place. And as he listens to the Yoda of the time, Kevin Rudd, all he can hear is, 'Higher taxes, he must, higher taxes, he must!'

Mr Speaker, I'll tell you why I talk about the Labor Party and fiscal restlessness; it's because on our watch we will put in place stable and certain fiscal management. We will not return to the policies of panic and crisis of the Labor Party, which Wayne Swan and Kevin Rudd championed.