Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Evans foolishly interjects and says, ‘What about pressure on families?’ That is exactly the sort of pressure that we committed ourselves to taking away from the Australian people—the high unemployment rate and the high mortgage rates. It is up to people to decide, within certain limitations, as to the hours that they work. Many families are in fact aspirational. Mums and dads are willing to work those extra hours so they can afford the private health insurance that certain people would seek to abolish the government support on, or to send their children to a private school and exercise real choice and make a real investment in their kids’ future. But under the mob opposite what you would have today, courtesy of Senator Hogg’s question, is a commitment to take Australia back to high unemployment, lower wage growth and high inflation. If given a choice as a parent, would you want high unemployment and high interest rates or the capacity to earn a bit more for your family in a low inflationary environment? I know what choice I would take for the sake of my kids and for the future of my family.

This is a very foolish question, if I might say. I think Senator Hogg knows better but, unfortunately, the brains trust of the question time committee gave him the question to ask, so he did. The point is very clear: the Labor Party are complaining about the amount of work that is available in the economy and the capacity for aspirational families to earn more, buy a better house, go on another holiday if they want to or invest in their children’s education. We as a government are pleased with the sorts of choices that Australian families are getting. That choice is a lot better than the no choice they suffered under Labor—no employment prospects and high interest rates.