Mathias Cormann (WA, Liberal Party, Vice-President of the Executive Council) Share this | Hansard source

The government continues to focus on advancing the best interests of all Australians. Having inherited from Labor a weakening economy, rising unemployment and a rapidly deteriorating budget position, we've worked very, very hard to turn that situation around because we want Australians today and into the future to have the best possible opportunity to get ahead. Central to all of that are a stronger economy, more jobs and getting the budget back into surplus. That's what we've been working on.

Of course, any change at a federal level to Mr Shorten will make Australia weaker and will make Australians poorer, because your high-taxing, antibusiness politics of envy—the socialist agenda—will lead to less investment, lower growth, fewer jobs, higher unemployment and, on the back of higher unemployment, lower wages. Under Labor, people across Australia would earn less and would have to pay more: pay more tax, pay more for their electricity—you name it.