Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, President. The Albanese government's first budget will begin the difficult task of budget repair after inheriting a budget in structural deficit and weighed down with record levels of debt, debt which is becoming even more expensive to service. The interest payments on the coalition's debt are one of the fastest growing pressures on the budget. We have spent our first months in office delivering on our promise to undertake an audit of spending, going through the budget to identify where money could be returned or redirected to more quality spending, and you will see the results of that tonight.