Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this matter of public importance. It is the last afternoon, the last opportunity, for us as a Senate chamber to review and pass judgements on the Turnbull government's attempt to buy its way back into office.

What we saw last night was Mr Turnbull's priorities exposed for all to see. The coalition government spent the best part of five years pretending Australia had a debt and deficit crisis, making claims like Australia was heading down the path of Greece—the Deputy Prime Minister would make that claim regularly. Whereas what we saw last night was no attempt to address those issues.

I have many words I wanted to say today but I was captivated by an article written by Andrew Bolt today, who had the following to say about the budget:

It's the 'Gunna Budget'—a promise by a scared and clueless Turnbull Government that it’s gunna do the right thing one day. But not yet.

Treasurer Scott Morrison said this 'was not just another Budget' and he was right. It’s a fraud.

None of the important things you were promised have been delivered in this pathetic document.

Spending restraint? Spending is actually up next year by another $19 billion.

Cutting taxes? This government will grab an extra $21 billion from us next year.

Tackling the debt crisis? The government plans to put another $85 billion on the national credit card over the next four years.

He goes on to say:

But if this Budget is short on delivery today it’s huge in promises for tomorrow. And here’s where the spin gets mad.

Remember how—

and I am quoting directly here—

Turnbull sent poor Morrison to talk up the massive tax revolution they were planning that would cut your taxes, boost growth, cut the deficit and splash cash on hospitals?

'Everything is on the table,' the Prime Minister said. But then he got cold feet and now there’s almost nothing left on that table but a bunch of IOUs. And so Morrison in his Budget was left to feebly promise the government is gunna cut business taxes to 25 per cent to make them 'internationally competitive'—but not until 10 years from now, should Turnbull still be PM.

He promised the government was gunna start repaying our debt—but not for another five years, and even that depended on shaky China not tanking, global financial markets not freaking and the Senate finally passing the kind of cuts it’s blocked for years.

He goes on to say:

As I said, it’s the Gunna Budget. All promise, no delivery.

But some of the spinning of this dud is astonishing. Of course, I feel for Morrison but, really, how can he boast of his '10-year enterprise tax plan' to gradually cut business taxes when this government would need to be elected four times to see it through?

Talk about a boy with a finger in the dyke.

That sentiment of broken promises, talking to the hypocrisy of those opposite, as I said, captivated my attention.

What we saw was Mr Turnbull's priorities: a cut for millionaires of $4,000-odd and a cut for big business. But the funny thing about this is that he has promised a 10-year benefit. He has modelled the benefits of a 10-year cut in tax, but he has refused to reveal the costs of the 10-year plan. So you have to ask: what does the government, Mr Turnbull and Mr Morrison, have to hide? Is it $20 billion? Is it $30 billion? Is it $40 billion? Is it $50 billion, $60 billion or $70 billion? Come clean. Senator Cormann in question time today refused to tell the Australian people the price of the priorities favoured by the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, and the Treasurer, Mr Morrison. Come clean. Seventy-five per cent of Australians get not one cent of a tax cut, but the millionaires and the big banks get billions and billions of dollars—tax cuts for the big banks and tax cuts for millionaires.

With all of this, in the lead-up to the budget, it drew little comment that Mr Turnbull promised not to introduce a GST in the next three years—but we know that it is in the DNA of the Liberal Party. If you scratch the surface, you know that every single one of those senators from the coalition sitting opposite want to increase the GST and put it on food. So I am not reassured by Mr Turnbull's promise that he will not introduce it in the next three years, because what that is code for, we all know, is that he plans to propose a GST in the next three years. He plans, ultimately, to increase the cost of food in this country with a GST—15 per cent if he gets his way. He wants to spread the base to cover all goods and services. So do not be reassured, people of Australia, that if you vote the coalition government in you are not going to end up with a higher GST on food and other items currently exempt.

This is a government that wants to look after the big end of town. It is giving its paymasters, the Business Council, everything they want, but just a little bit slower than they wanted, so that they can pretend. Last year Labor proposed a small business tax cut and it was absolutely voted down, opposed and attacked by the government and then we had the farcical situation last night where they come in and say, 'Actually, we do want to steal another of Labor's policies, a small business tax cut.' And then what do they do? They start redefining what a small business is. A $2 million turnover has become a $10 million turnover and, ultimately—in what can only be described as the most ironic conversation you can have—a small business has a turnover of a billion dollars. I think there might be three or four big banks and Telstra and BHP that might escape in those first few years. The absurdity of the desperation of Mr Turnbull to give a tax cut to the big end of town was on show for all to see.

Then this morning when debating housing affordability, we found out what Mr Turnbull's housing affordability plan was: get rich parents to give you money to buy you a house. How out of touch can this Prime Minister be: 'If you are locked out of the housing market and you are a first home buyer, get your rich parents to give you a house or a loan.' (Time expired)