Keith Wolahan (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister: On Monday evening on ABC's 7.30, the Treasurer confirmed the timing of the government's decision to break its promise on stage 3 was purely political, and, 'We didn't want to wait, frankly, until after the Dunkley by-election.' The Prime Minister claimed his word is his bond. Isn't it now clear Australians can't trust a word he says?

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order, members on my left.

The Treasurer will cease interjecting.

And the member for Wannon will cease interjecting.

The member for Hume: cease interjecting. The Prime Minister has the call. He'll be heard in silence.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I can confirm to the member for Menzies that I was watching the ABC on Monday night. And they all were too! They were all watching it! They were all watching it, one by one, because most of them were on it! Most of them were on it, in a competition of who could show the most hatred for their colleagues. It was just extraordinary: one after the other, all out there, using all sorts of colourful language about each other.

I'm asked about tax policy and what people think about tax policy as well. Well, those opposite have described it—our policy to give tax cuts to every Australian—in the following terms: 'an egregious error', 'a betrayal', 'treachery', 'trickery', 'absolutely shameful', 'class warfare', 'war on aspiration', 'lifetime tax on aspiration', 'divisive', 'regressive', 'morally bankrupt', 'handful of dollars', 'inflationary', 'a big tax grab' and 'Marxist economics'. It was going to 'obliterate opportunity', 'crush confidence' and 'undermine the strength of the economy'. They said all that before they declared they were going to vote for it. You can't be taken seriously unless you—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Casey is warned.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

say that the decision that this government has made is wrong and, therefore, the original position should have remained in place. If you do that, you will vote against this legislation and you will commit, as the Deputy Leader of the Opposition did, to roll it back. Unless you do that, you're not fair dinkum; it's all about politics, it's all just wind.

We on this side of the House recognised that when economic circumstances changed we were in a position—as Senator Hume called upon us to do—to help people through. That is precisely what we have done in a way that will also—as the Reserve Bank Governor confirmed yesterday—be consistent with the need to continue to put that pressure on inflation in order to continue to see it go down, as we have been doing. We have undertaken this measure because it was the right decision done for the right reasons at the right time.