Stephen Jones (Whitlam, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

The Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2022-2023, together with the Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2022-2023 and the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 1) 2022-2023, are the budget bills for the 2022-23 financial year, incorporating the decisions outlined in the 2022-23 October budget.

This is the first Labor budget in nearly a decade, a budget that builds a better future and a budget that I, and all of those who sit on this side of the House, are extremely proud of. It is a responsible budget that delivers on the Albanese Labor government's election commitments, delivering targeted cost-of-living relief and investing in Australia's future.

Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2022-2023 seeks approval for appropriations from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of approximately $3.6 billion. This represents funding for the endorsed March 2022 budget measures, the 2022 election commitments and other decisions taken by the government in the October 2022 budget. The Supply Act (No. 2) 2022-2023 contains, broadly, five-twelfths of the estimated 2022-23 annual appropriations which are required to support services which are not the ordinary annual services of government such as capital works and services; payments to or for states, territories and local government authorities; equity injections; and funding for new administered outcomes not previously endorsed by the parliament. The balance of supply appropriations, representing broadly seven-twelfths of the 2022-23 annual appropriations, is included in Supply Bill (No. 4) 2022-2023, which is part of the additional 2022-23 supply bills that were introduced into the parliament concurrently with the budget bills on 25 October 2022. Together with the Supply Act (No. 2) 2022-2023 and the Supply Bill (No. 4) 2022-2023, currently before the parliament, this bill presents a complete view of the proposed annual appropriations for services that are not the ordinary annual services of government for the 2022-23 financial year.

This bill provides appropriations that support the following significant items in the October 2022 budget:

(1) The Department of Health and Aged Care will receive approximately $1.1 billion, of which $770 million is provided for additional COVID-19 purchases, such as vaccines, treatments and personal protective equipment.

(2) The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts will receive $791.5 million. This includes $495 million in equity for Airservices Australia, as part of the COVID-19 response package, to continue to provide critical air navigation, air traffic control and aviation fire and rescue services across Australia, and $328 million in equity to upgrade the National Broadband Network to deliver fibre-ready access to a further 1.5 million premises by late 2025.

(3) The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water will receive approximately $538 million, which includes funding of $500 million for the Rewiring the Nation measure, to expand and modernise the Australian electricity grid.

The bill also contains an Advance to the Finance Minister provision of $3.6 billion to provide the government with the capacity to allocate additional appropriations for urgent and unforeseen expenditure. Three billion dollars of the AFM provision is set aside for COVID-19 and natural disaster or other national emergency response related expenditure, and $600 million for other urgent general and unforeseen expenditure.

These AFM provisions are similar to those currently included in the Supply Act (No. 2) 2022-23, except to expand the current provisions that are statutorily limited to COVID-19 related expenditure to also support natural disaster and other natural emergency response related expenditure. This expansion has been proposed in light of the recent flood events and would enable the government to make funding available for responses to events such as flood and fire in a timely manner, should the circumstances require. We all hope that they do not. Once the bill commences, the AFM provisions in the Supply Act (No. 2) 2022-23 would no longer be available for allocation.

Now, in light of the size of the AFM, the strong accountability and transparency arrangements that have been put in place since March 2020 will be continued, including a regular media release, in weeks when the AFMs are issued, which reports and reconciles the use of the AFM provision. Details of the proposed expenditure are set out in the schedules to the bill, the explanatory memorandum and the updated 2022-23 portfolio budget statements, tabled in parliament in relation to the October 2022 budget.

I commend this bill to the chamber.

Debate adjourned.