Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Treasurer. Will the government heed the calls to reduce the petrol excise?

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

Every economy in the world is facing tough economic conditions. The global economy is going through a very difficult time.

Michael Ronaldson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Special Minister of State) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You said that yesterday.

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This record is stuck!

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

It needs to be repeated because those opposite just seem to have completely lost touch with economic reality. The global credit crunch and global oil price shock have buffeted confidence in share markets around the world and are slowing global growth.

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This is yesterday’s answer.

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Superannuation and Corporate Law) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Get used to it, Ian.

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

Get used to it, absolutely, because every day that you want to behave economically irresponsibly by blocking budget measures you are going to get a lecture from this side about responsible economic management, whether you like it or not.

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on a point of order: could you draw to Senator Conroy’s attention to the standing order that requires him to deliver his answer through you and not lecture us with a finger-pointing ‘you, you, you’?

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the point of order, Senator Conroy, I direct you to the fact that you should address your comments to the chair.

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

Thank you, Mr President. I accept the point of order. The global credit crunch has pushed up borrowing costs for households and businesses around the world. Global share markets have fallen by an average of around 20 per cent in developed economies since the global turmoil began and consumer confidence across the OECD economies has fallen to its lowest point in almost 30 years. Not surprisingly, these global difficulties are slowing growth across advanced economies.

We recently learnt that the UK economy did not grow at all in the three months to June, while Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Canada have all recorded negative growth in the most recently reported quarters. Japan’s economy contracted by 0.6 per cent, Germany contracted by 0.5 per cent, France contracted by 0.3 per cent, Italy contracted by 0.3 per cent and Canada, in its March quarter, contracted by 0.1 per cent. Australia, as I have said repeatedly, is not immune to these global—

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I have a point of order on the issue of relevance. The question could not have been shorter or more simple. Will the government heed the calls for the reduction in the excise?

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Parry, as you are aware, I cannot direct a minister answering a question in question time how to specifically answer, but I can draw the minister’s attention to the relevance of the answer that is being given. Minister, you have one minute 37 in which to respond to the question.

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

Yet again, those opposite have decided we can just fritter away the budget surplus—just give out another concession, just fritter it away as if it did not make any difference to the economic circumstances that families in this country face. What families in this country need is responsible economic management delivered by its central government. It does not need cheap political point-scoring from a Senate that seems to be committed to obstruction and blowing a $6 billion hole in the budget. To those who continue to argue that we can just lose that $6 billion—and apparently there is another chunk of money that should be just frittered away out of the surplus, evolving out of that question: just give it all away; it won’t matter—there is a reason—

Alan Ferguson (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I raise a point of order. It is true that you cannot direct a minister how to answer a question. It is also true that there is a point in the standing orders about relevance. Mr President, I put it to you that in this answer the minister is not being relevant in any way to the question that was put to him.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Ferguson, on the point of order: if I heard the minister’s answer correctly, and I believe I did, in just the last 30 seconds of his answer he did refer to the question that was put to him. But I draw the minister’s attention to the question and to being relevant to the question that was asked.

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

Thank you, Mr President. As you correctly pointed out, I was very specifically discussing the consequences of doing what the question suggested. I was very specifically referring to the policy proposal that was being advanced by those opposite, because once again it shows that this opposition and some others in this chamber have lost touch with economic reality. What Australian families need is for pressure to bear down on inflation so that there is pressure to bear down on interest rates, so that their mortgages will be reduced after 10 consecutive interest rate rises, because those opposite chose to ignore (Time expired)

Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. In light of the minister’s answer, is Tasmanian Labor Premier David Bartlett’s call for the adoption of the coalition’s policy also economically irresponsible? And will you send a copy of today’s Hansard with your answer in it to the Tasmanian Premier?

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

For those who want to enter this debate, the message is the same: the federal government is committed to delivering its $22 billion surplus, because it is that surplus that is combined to add pressure in the fight against inflation—something that those on the other side ran up the white flag about. They gave up before the last election. They were engaged in nothing more than pork-barrelling at every opportunity. That is why they were the highest taxing, highest spending government in 30 years—with nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. They lost the economic plot. This government will continue to stand for sound and responsible financial economic management. We will not be diverted (Time expired)