Patrick Gorman (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Bec from Perth is a solicitor and mum of two who works three days a week because she says working four days a week left her worse off under the Prime Minister's childcare scheme. Bec's family has a combined income of $193,000. Why did the government rack up a trillion dollars of Liberal debt but do nothing to help women like Bec get ahead by taking on extra hours during the Morrison recession?

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

I am asked about why the government has increased the debt at this time. That was the question I was just asked. I was asked about child care, and I have given answers already about child care—

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

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

Members on my left, I am about to start ejecting people. As is the case with so many questions, there was more than one question asked. If you want the Prime Minister or a minister to focus on the question you deem most important, don't ask more than one in the question.

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

I was asked about child care. Under our policy, 84 per cent of families are not impacted by the caps in our policy, and the threshold kicks in at about $350,000 a year for a family. They're the caps that kicked in for our policy. Our policy is means tested. That is our policy that we put in place, and it saw childcare costs come down since then. But I'm asked why we have made the investments that we have. The Leader of the Opposition often makes this point. I will tell you why we have invested at this time: because there is a COVID-19 pandemic that has stripped jobs and livelihoods—and, in many cases, lives—away from Australians. This might be a mystery to the Leader of the Opposition. I've heard how he talks about the recession. If you don't understand how the country got into recession, then you don't have a clue about how to get out of it. That is the failing of this Leader of the Opposition. This Leader of the Opposition walks around this country as if there has never been a pandemic.

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

The Manager of Opposition business?

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Arts) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a point of order on direct relevance. I think it is a pretty long bow to have him still in order at this point.

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

You might think that, but I do take very careful note of the questions. I take my own notes, and if you think I heard something different, now is the time to stand up, but what I've got here is: 'Why did the Prime Minister rack up a trillion of Liberal debt, and talk about the Morrison recession.' So, if it's in the question, you can't really expect me to insist that it not be referred to.

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

This is why the Australian public do not trust the Labor Party, when it comes to whether times are good or times are bad. Times are difficult at the moment, and the budget that was handed down by the Treasurer was the budget that Australians need, and it is a budget for all Australians. It's a budget that has given Australians hope and has given Australians confidence. It is a budget that says that Australians should be able to keep more of what they earn, and that businesses who are going to employ people, particularly young people—who have been hit four times harder through this pandemic recession, and we need to get them back into work as quickly as possible. But still the Labor Party baulk at that. The Leader of the Labor Party will have it each way on every single issue, and that's why the Australian people don't trust him. Even those on his own side don't trust him. He can't go to Queensland; they won't have him up there. And the member for Hunter won't travel all the way from Maitland to Newcastle to stand behind the—

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

The Prime Minister is now straying from the question.