Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to inform the opposition that the Gillard government's budget is certainly not one that can be characterised as more debt, more deficits and more taxes. It is a balanced, prudent, reasonable budget that makes wise investments in Australia's future. It is a budget which recognises that the global economy remains fragile, and that a high Australian dollar is not welcome news to many businesses. We cannot expect to reap the same tax revenues we have enjoyed in previous years. This budget prepares for that.

My own state of Tasmania will benefit enormously because we in the Gillard government have made sound choices for the future of the state. We have chosen improved infrastructure. The next phase of the $60 billion investment through the Nation Building Program commits significant funds to major new projects. This takes Labor's total investment in the state's road, rail and public transport infrastructure to an unprecedented $1.9 billion since 2008. The government has released its preliminary schedule of new projects to be funded and delivered under the Nation Building Program over the next five years. This list includes $500 million going towards the Midland Highway Safety Package to improve safety and productivity. But this budget is not just about improving Tasmania's roads; just under $120 million has been dedicated to freight rail revitalisation to continue improvements to the major lines. We have also chosen a first-class health system. I know this issue is a particularly uncomfortable one for those opposite, since their leader presided over massive cuts to federal health funding whilst he was the health minister—I recall it was some one billion dollars that was gutted out of the health budget under Mr Abbott. This budget provides Tasmania with a record $399 million investment in funding for its health system. This means that the state will enjoy improved health and hospital facilities, more frontline services and improved care for patients, no matter where they live.

We have chosen superior schools. Schools in Tasmania will benefit from an additional $400 million under the groundbreaking National Plan for School Improvement. The federal government is paying two dollars for every dollar being spent by state governments on our nation's schools: what an achievement! We have chosen more jobs, the issue of the highest possible importance to Tasmanians. Over the next four years, over $10 billion will be spent on employment services. This includes $5.3 billion for Job Services Australia, an organisation that works with job seekers to provide the training and support they need to get back to work as quickly as possible. Since this scheme replaced the Liberals' Job Network, we have achieved 90 per cent better outcomes for the most disadvantaged job seekers. We want all Tasmanians to be able to find work. This investment has seen over 43,000 people placed in work since the program began. On top of this, $238 million in new funding has been dedicated to establishing up to ten industry innovation precincts, including a defence precinct. This takes total funding for this initiative to close to half a billion dollars. We chose the National Broadband Network, something I am particularly passionate about and from which Tasmanians have already seen benefits. The Gillard government has announced plans to bring the total number of premises where NBN construction will commence or be complete by mid-2016 to more than 208,000. We are doing it all.

I note also that the state's share of GST revenue has jumped by $71 million, despite predictions it would plunge. If a coalition government were in power, we know that GST revenue to Tasmania would fall by $600 million dollars. The coalition plans to take money from Tasmania and deposit it into the hands of richer, larger Liberal held states such as Western Australia. I can see my colleague opposite, Senator Sinodinos, smiling. We Tasmanians are not smiling because we know how that will impact on health and on schools. We cannot let this happen.

When it comes to considering this budget in the broader context of Labor's strong management of the economy, it is important to remember that we are the envy of countries around the world. Had we been able to experience the full force of the global financial crisis and the impact of slipping into recession, perhaps people would now recognise just what Labor has achieved. Despite a global credit crunch, Labor has presided over an economy that is 13 per cent larger. Our unemployment rate is at 5.6 per cent, we have experienced solid growth and we have contained inflation.

Australia enjoys a gold-plated AAA rating from all three global ratings agencies—something the coalition never achieved in 11½ years. Even as various industries experience a fall in international demand and a high Australian dollar, since coming to office Labor has created around 900,000 jobs.

We should never forget that, during the Howard years, the coalition failed in its duty to invest in the nation's future. Despite enjoying unprecedented tax revenues that delivered a sugar hit to the Australian economy, there were negligible advances in education and health measures to assist vulnerable elements of the community. Instead, we saw unsustainable middle-class welfare and a series of election year bonuses and bribes.

Not so with this government: Labor governments understand that all members of the community can thrive and take advantage of our strong economy only if a level playing field is created. We want our children to enjoy a world class education system and we have not put services for those with disabilities into the too hard basket.

On numerous occasions I have had the privilege of speaking in this chamber about the National Disability Insurance Scheme. As the Prime Minister demonstrated so poignantly this morning, there is nothing more important to this government than realising the full potential of this scheme. This budget sets it in stone. DisabilityCare will ensure that the level of support a person with a disability will receive will not depend on where they live or how they acquired their disability. In Tasmania alone, the Gillard government will contribute close to a quarter of a billion dollars by 2019. This means that over 11,000 Tasmanians will be eligible for support under DisabilityCare.

Over the course of today, as journalists recovering from last night's festivities across Kingston and Manuka report from tents outside a rain-soaked Parliament House, we are going to hear a lot of strange things said about this budget. We will no doubt hear the shadow Treasurer claim that the Gillard government has broken promises. But he knows full well that budgets need to be adapted to meet changing economic conditions—or I hope he does; I am not always sure from what I read and what he says. We may well witness hysterical predictions from various talking heads on Sky News that this budget will cause the sky to fall in on itself. But, of course, that is not the real story. I remind all Australians that, despite everything they have seen on television or read in the newspapers about this budget, they really need to consider that they have a choice—a choice between a government making targeted and intelligent investments in the future and an opposition that wants to make unnecessary cuts that will sacrifice jobs and harm the economy; a choice between a government focussed on employment and growth and an opposition obsessed with fearmongering about deficits and uncertainty; a choice between a government that provides opportunities for all Australians and an opposition operating at the behest of mining executives, big tobacco and the noisy, privileged few.

We are not like those opposite in this chamber; we will never forget about you. I guarantee you this: the Gillard government will persevere and make our voices heard over the din of cynical opposition jibes and lazy reporting. We will always fight to improve this country and put jobs and economic growth first. Sometimes in Canberra it is difficult to find the signal amidst the noise, particularly during budget week. It comes down to a simple choice between a government making smart investments in Australia's future, enhancing prosperity across every corner of this increasingly divided country and protecting jobs, or an opposition working for the haves and the have mores. Labor will never forget about you. Whether you are someone struggling to run a small business on slow broadband speeds, someone confined to an unsuitable wheelchair, someone who did not enjoy a private education on the North Shore— (Time expired)