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

My question is addressed to the Prime Minister. Won't the Morrison recession be longer and deeper because the Prime Minister's cuts to JobKeeper, JobSeeker and wages are leaving businesses and workers behind?

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

No. The Leader of the Opposition, in the way he has framed this question, seems to be the only Australian in this country who doesn't understand there's a COVID-19 pandemic going on in the world today. As we went into this COVID-19 pandemic, the budget had been brought back into balance, 1½ million jobs had been created and Australians were looking forward to the future with confidence. But, of course, the COVID-19 pandemic did hit this country, and Australia was prepared for it. Australia's response, from both a health point of view and an economic point of view, has put us amongst just a handful of countries that have been able to steer their way through what has been a great global pandemic.

The Leader of the Opposition may not know that the forecast fall in the global economy this year is 4½ per cent. During the global financial crisis, the global economy fell by 0.1 per cent. So, what our government is facing is 45 times more severe than when those opposite thought the response was to build overpriced school halls, set fire to people's houses and send cheques to dead people and pets. That's not how you manage a crisis. You manage a crisis with the strength, the responsible economic management, the responsiveness and the certainty that our government has provided over these many past months as we have dealt with it. Those opposite can jeer all they like, but their record of failure in a crisis speaks for itself. Our government is providing the plan and the hope for recovery, and it is delivering that recovery. Sixty per cent of the jobs that have been lost have come back for women. It has been women who have led the jobs recovery from this pandemic.

We've also seen strong growth for those who are younger people. Tonight young people will see that plan for them and for their future. Whether they're leaving school, whether they're on an apprenticeship—180,000 apprenticeships already sustained through the government's response to the pandemic and another 100,000 have been provided, that we have announced as part of this budget. Young people can look at this budget tonight and know that this government has got their backs to get them into a job, not for them to spend a life on welfare, because our plan is about building for the future and getting Australians in jobs, back into jobs and to stay in jobs.