Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Treasurer. In the September quarter, the American economy grew, the United Kingdom economy grew, the Canadian economy grew, the German economy grew and the French economy grew, but the Australian economy contracted by 1.9 per cent, the worst in the OECD so far. Isn't this because the government didn't order enough vaccines when it mattered and failed to establish purpose-built quarantine?

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No. I can inform the member for Rankin that since this pandemic began, other than the US and the French economies, Australia's economic recovery from the pandemic has been stronger than other major advanced economies: stronger than the Canadian economy, stronger than the UK economy, stronger than the Japanese economy, stronger than the German economy and stronger than the Italian economy. It's an inconvenient and uncomfortable truth for the member for Rankin that, even after the biggest economic shock since the Great Depression, and the first pandemic in a century, unemployment under the coalition is lower than it was under Labor. That's because our economic response to this pandemic has helped—

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Rankin on a point of order?

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

None of this spin and marketing is relevant to the fact that Australia is last in the OECD; 28th out of 28 countries.

Andrew Wallace (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Rankin will resume his seat.

Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Rankin for his question, but it's an inconvenient truth for him that the unemployment rate today is lower than when he was tagging the coat of Wayne Swan. It's lower than it was under the Labor Party. It's an inconvenient truth for the member for Rankin that there are more trade apprentices today than when Labor was in government.

It's an inconvenient truth for the Labor Party that, despite this COVID recession, we have seen business investment up by 9.1 percent off the back of business investment incentives. It's an inconvenient truth for the member for Rankin and the Labor Party that, when they took to the Australian people $387 billion of higher taxes, it was rejected by the Australian people and instead they voted for lower taxes and for the coalition. And, since that time, we have delivered lower taxes. It's an inconvenient truth for the member for Rankin that in the September quarter we saw more than $10 billion in tax relief provided to more than 11 million Australians, which was the largest tax cut in a quarter for more than 20 years. These are the facts: more people are in a home, more people are in a job, more people are getting tax cuts and more people are having a stronger recovery from the biggest economic shock since the Great Depression.