Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

Firstly, the government stands by the forecast published in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook; and, in the ordinary course of events, as always happens, there will be a further update in the budget. Secondly, I would have to review the assumptions that were used.

Certainly, the government, in the 2014-15 budget, reflected the commitment that we took to the last election of a return to defence funding of two per cent as a share of GDP by 2023-24 in our medium- to long-term forecast, so that might be an assumption that the Parliamentary Library might not have been aware of. The point is that the cost in the defence white paper has been reflected in the medium- to long-term fiscal outlook of the budget for some time. As such, it was also reflected in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook delivered just before Christmas in 2015.