Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment) Share this | Hansard source

Indeed, the year after they claim they will be back in surplus. I can see the pigs flying around this chamber now, Senator Farrell, because I have heard that claim before. I have heard that claim from the South Australian Labor government before, just as we heard it from the government you were a member of. We heard it from the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd government: 'Oh, we'll be back in surplus in a couple of years time.' It is always in a couple of years time. They never ever get there.

What are we seeing? Senator Farrell wants to talk about jobs and the state of the economy in South Australia. Economic growth was written down in SA from 2½ per cent to 1.75 per cent. Growth is plummeting there. We did not have jobs growth in SA over the last year under the South Australian Labor government which has been there for 12 years. Jobs shrunk by 1.25 per cent. Senator Farrell forgets that his mob were in power most of last year and his mob have been in power in SA for 12 years. Somehow the current budget circumstances are all our fault. Senator Farrell, come and blame me in 10 years' time if we are in government that long. Let us actually have a go at governing SA. But, of course, it is your mob who have been there, and all we have seen are jobs lost, debt racked up, and the situation is just getting worse. What are they trying to do to fix it? They have upped taxes—like that somehow fixes it. (Time expired)