Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

If you ever wanted an example of this government not being the government they said they would be, have a look at the deal today. From a government that said in opposition that they were against debt, and from a government that said they were the party of no debt, we now have the government of no debt limit. No debt limit! The party of no debt becomes the party of no debt limit.

But even more extraordinary is the fact that they have done this with the support of the Australian Greens. You could not have written this in a sci-fi or fantasy novel a year ago if you had tried. You could not have written this in a fantasy novel if you had tried: that Joe Hockey would go into a room, negotiate with Senator Milne, the Leader of the Australian Greens, and come out with the no debt limit that he was going to get through the parliament with the support of the Australian Greens.

I do not think that we all need reminding of some of the things that those opposite have called the Greens. The Prime Minister has described them as 'economic fringe dwellers', but he is happy to do a deal on the economy with the economic fringe dwellers. The economic fringe dwellers are on the same side as the Liberal—