Helen Kroger (Victoria, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Acting Deputy President. It is always very impressive when the chair knows and can quote the standing orders. Those on the other side have been getting a bit agitated about the due deference paid to former Treasurers who actually understood how to grow surpluses. It took Peter Costello 10 years to pay back that $96 billion of Labor debt that had been ratcheted up so easily during the Hawke-Keating years. The recipient of this award should be the former Treasurer, Peter Costello, who knew what it meant to apply financial discipline and responsibility to the task. That provided the basis for the current economic situation that the government enjoys. Euromoney magazine has commended Mr Swan for his careful stewardship of Australia's finances and economic performance, both during and since the global financial crisis. But this is not the full story, as the Australian newspaper so rightly pointed out in its editorial today, 21 September 2011. It states:

Mr Swan can claim credit for recognising—