Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

The Ombudsman, like all those other agencies I have already mentioned, has had to take the dividend cut. So let us be clear about this: the budget was framed in tough economic circumstances and we have had to apply cuts right across the board, including to the Ombudsman. So those opposite, who continually interject, try and pretend that there is a magic pudding—that is the level that those opposite have sunk to: continual interjections—because they do not think that $6 billion has any impact. This comes from those opposite, who are going to seek to block measures in this country which will reduce the chances for the Reserve Bank to lower interest rates.