Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law) Share this | Hansard source

Senator Kemp says ‘gosh’. It comes as a shock. It will come as a real shock for the Australian people if they see the surplus eroded to this extent and upward pressure put on inflation and interest rates. The cost of the proposal for a 10c cut put forward by the member for Aston, Mr Pearce, is $3.6 billion a year. The cost of the proposed 20c cut put forward by the Leader of the National Party, Mr Truss, is $7.2 billion a year to the surplus or a total of $28.8 billion. But the National Party, who are the doormats of the coalition, know they could never implement it because the Liberal Party would never let them implement it. They are just squashed by the Liberal Party. Then we have the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Ms Bishop, saying that the cut to the excise should be at least 5c. So presumably she wants it somewhere between 5c and 20c. What we have had in the last five weeks are five different proposals—five different, uncosted proposals from an irresponsible and divided Liberal-National coalition about different fuel tax proposals that will erode the budget surplus, put upward pressure on inflation and put upward pressure on interest rates. It is irresponsible and they should get their act straight. Which petrol tax policy do they want? They have got five to pick from. For goodness sake, make up your minds.