George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, before I ask my question to Senator Conroy, representing the Prime Minister, can I join with Senator Abetz in congratulating him on his election as Leader of the Government in the Senate and—I am sure on behalf of all senators—in expressing the profound hope that between now and 14 September Ms Gillard and Mr Swan do not find themselves overseas at the same time!

I remind the minister that on more than 650 occasions in the last three years members of the government have promised that it would deliver a budget surplus in 2012-13. Just like the Prime Minister's promise not to introduce a carbon tax 'under the government I lead', why did the Prime Minister break this promise that the budget 'would be back in the black and back in surplus in 2012-13'?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Could I thank you for that. I am sure all Senators do join you in that particular thought—possibly the whole country!

This is a serious question, because those opposite demonstrate their economic illiteracy every single day. They cannot find a place on their front bench for the one person in this chamber who actually knows something about economics, and that is Senator Sinodinos.

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Oh, please! Where are you? I cannot even find you anymore, Senator Sinodinos! Where are you hiding? Oh, you are hiding on the front bench! That is a very backbench front bench! We have got one member of those opposite who actually knows something about the economy, just one person who understands.

Bill Heffernan (NSW, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on a point of order: if we could turn off the computer we might see if Senator Conroy's mind goes blank.

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

That is not a point of order, Senator Heffernan.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. To be fair, Senator Heffernan does live in the dark ages. He proudly boasts he has never sent an email in his life.

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

Order! Just address the question, Senator Conroy.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is probably still true. Senator Heffernan is nodding. It is still true.

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

Order! Senator Conroy, come to the question.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I digress, I apologise. Those opposite have a $70 billion black hole on their own admission in their budget accounting. No doubt they have again hired a Western Australian firm to confirm the audit of their books. This is a firm that was ultimately fined by its own professional agency for the report that it put out. Those opposite may have hired a catering company again to do their mathematics about what the cost of something may be—a catering company that is a discredited company that does an alleged audit. Those opposite demonstrate every single day. They will not give a serious frontbench position to Senator Sinodinos, they will not give him a ministry even if in the future they win government. They will not even make him a minister then. Senator Sinodinos, what have you done wrong? (Time expired)

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I have a supplementary question. I remind the minister of the Prime Minister's statement that, 'You can't run this country if you can't manage its budget.' Given the commitment to returning the budget to surplus in 2012-13 has been the government's own benchmark for its own economic performance for the past three years, doesn't this latest broken promise show that this government by its own test is no longer fit to govern?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Those opposite have a $70 billion black hole that they have not explained yet. They had an $11 billion election budget hole. You would have thought they could manage to avoid increasing that, but they actually have managed to do that on their own admission. When you get into a circumstance where the international economy is slowing and not generating the export income for this country, the economic circumstances are that the revenue streams to our companies have significantly reduced and the numbers come in, the Treasurer stands up and is totally up-front and honest with the Australian public, and those opposite demand the resignation of the government. (Time expired)

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I have a second supplementary question. Minister, if the government can break, in its own words, a 'rolled gold, ironclad, non-negotiable promise' that was 'absolutely fundamental'—

Honourable senators interjecting —

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

Order on both sides!

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If the government's own words were 'rolled gold, ironclad, non-negotiable promise' that was 'absolutely fundamental', come hell or high water, how can the Australian people believe anything this Prime Minister and this government say?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Tony Abbott when he was interviewed not that long ago by Kerry O'Brien said, 'Never believe anything I say unless it is written down.' You have to write it down. He did actually write down that he would not cut Medicare. I remember watching the interview. I remember that then after the election he was asked, 'Did you consider resigning because clearly you have broken a promise, Mr Abbott?' What did he say? 'I did think about it but in the end—

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on a point of order, as you know this question was directed only to the question of the government 's broken promise to deliver a budget surplus and each of the words that I have quoted to the minister—as he knows—were words used by members of the government to characterise their own promise to deliver a budget surplus. With respect, an answer to this question on anything other than the broken budget surplus commitment is not directly relevant to the question.

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Finance and Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on the point of order, if Senator Brandis is going to ask a highly political question, it is to be anticipated—and we are very democratic on this side, with team work—he might get a political answer. He also made the mistake of using the same words Mr Abbott used in relation to the Medicare promise which was subsequently broken.

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

Order! There is no point of order. I am listening closely to the answer of Senator Conroy at this stage. Senator Conroy still has 33 seconds remaining.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. Let us be clear. This economy is one of the strongest economies, if not the strongest, in the OECD. It has—

George Brandis (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Attorney-General) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Peter Costello—

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Peter Costello has dumped you. It is time for you to give him up.

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

Order! Ignore interjections. Interjections are disorderly on both sides.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My apologies, Mr President. I should ignore Senator Brandis's bleatings on behalf of Mr Costello. But let us be clear: unemployment would be at 5.2 per cent if it was not for the 17,000 jobs being lost in Queensland because of the Newman government. Unemployment has gone up because the Victorian government has stalled the Victorian economy. (Time expired)