Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Banking and Financial Services) Share this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. The question was not based on the article by Mr Megalogenis; it was actually based on the recent observations of the Audit Office and respected independent commentators, such as Allan Fels, Fred Brenchley and others, who have been openly critical of the declining fiscal discipline of this government, with Professor Fels and Mr Brenchley saying that it ‘appears alarmingly weak’. What does this say about the finance minister’s competence, given that he is failing to ensure billions of dollars of spending programs are properly costed and reported and undergo due process? Isn’t this yet another example of a decaying, tired, arrogant and lazy government?