Tony Pasin
Barker · Liberal Party · Australia
“But the truth is that, in the modern age, if you want to share and communicate with your constituency, or if you're in business and you want to share and communicate with customers, if you're not on a digital platform then you're missing out.”
“I feel a little like an imposter talking on this bill. Many of my colleagues who know me know that I'm probably best described as a Luddite. Even as a Luddite, in this role one has to be across the role of online presences.”
“But it is important that we understand that, as positive as experiences can be in the digital online environment, there are also substantial risks. Like others, I've read of very tragic circumstances. I've had constituents, parents, come to me concerned about the way algorithms are seeking to lock young people in.”
“I've got to say that, during question time, I do sometimes turn off as the Prime Minister is preening his feathers, giving us the 'never had it better' speech, luxuriating in his hubris.”
“It's true to say that today's an important day. It's a day when our nation turns an important page. I do, just as an aside, have to query why those opposite would spend the majority of their contributions obsessing over the Liberal Party on such an important day—on a day when they could be talking about what those opposite are actually ac…”
“Labor's cuts will not reduce demand for health care; they will simply shift more Australians from private health to the public system. That means greater pressure on public hospitals and health services that are already under strain. I want to conclude with another email from a constituent.”
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“I've got to say that, during question time, I do sometimes turn off as the Prime Minister is preening his feathers, giving us the 'never had it better' speech, luxuriating in his hubris. Those opposite would do well to look up at the galleries during question time, because the people in the galleries get it—they know that grocery prices have gone up, they know fuels have gone up, they know rent's gone up. Do you know what else they know, Madam Deputy Speaker Claydon? They know who to blame for it. It is the unbridled spending of those opposite that is putting pressure on Australians via inflation, because those opposite don't have a plan for it. Do you know how I know those in the galleries know this?”
“It's true to say that today's an important day. It's a day when our nation turns an important page. I do, just as an aside, have to query why those opposite would spend the majority of their contributions obsessing over the Liberal Party on such an important day—on a day when they could be talking about what those opposite are actually achieving. But it is the first day of a new financial year. Predictably, the Prime Minister and his treasurer have been out spruiking their tax cuts—a paltry $5 a week. Those opposite don't spend their time talking about this because they know that it is insignificant and it has been monstered by inflation. It's evaporated before it's even turned up.”
“But it is important that we understand that, as positive as experiences can be in the digital online environment, there are also substantial risks. Like others, I've read of very tragic circumstances. I've had constituents, parents, come to me concerned about the way algorithms are seeking to lock young people in. In fact, I myself am someone who has to check how long I spend online and how connected I can become to my devices. It's why perhaps I love time on the farm—because you just put the phone away, you get on with life and then you reconnect at some other point. So this is an important space. It's one where we need to get the balance right. I commend to the House my colleague the member for Lindsay's amendment.”
“But the truth is that, in the modern age, if you want to share and communicate with your constituency, or if you're in business and you want to share and communicate with customers, if you're not on a digital platform then you're missing out. And young people have gained aptitude towards digital acumen faster than any other cohort in the country. I've got a 16-year-old and a 10-year-old, and their acumen around digital platforms and these things is just a sight to behold. I'm not one of those people who come in here and say that everything about online experiences is wrong. I don't conform to that view. Like everything, there need to be appropriate safeguards; there need to be appropriate barriers. That is what we're seeking to achieve here, and I of course support my colleague the member for Lindsay's amendment.”
“I feel a little like an imposter talking on this bill. Many of my colleagues who know me know that I'm probably best described as a Luddite. Even as a Luddite, in this role one has to be across the role of online presences. In fact, I am wanted, recently, to describe myself to colleagues, members of the party and constituents otherwise as a 'content creator'. I've got to tell you, Mr Deputy Speaker, when I entered the parliament in 2013, if someone told me it was a condition of this role that I would have to become a digital content creator, I would have stayed in the law and transitioned to the farm. I wouldn't have sought preselection. I wouldn't have worked very hard to obtain that preselection and then worked very hard during the election of 2013 and subsequent elections since then.”
“Anthony Albanese says he's focused on cost-of-living relief, but this policy does exactly the opposite for Barker seniors. I'll continue to fight these changes and let the government know they have the wrong priorities for seniors, for taxpayers and for our health system.”
“Labor's cuts will not reduce demand for health care; they will simply shift more Australians from private health to the public system. That means greater pressure on public hospitals and health services that are already under strain. I want to conclude with another email from a constituent. This one is from someone in my home town of Mount Gambier. The constituent said: I have paid for top tier private health insurance since 1977, which together with my wife and family, has ensured we have not been a burden on the public health system. If the Albanese Government is successful in getting these rebates removed, I will likely be forced into the public system because I fear it will no longer be financially viable; right at the stage of life where we are most susceptible to health care needs. This policy is both unfair and short sighted.”
“Many seniors will be left facing difficult choices, forced to cut spending elsewhere, downgrade their cover or abandon it altogether. One constituent from Mannum has told me: My husband & I have private health insurance but taking away the rebate will make it extremely difficult if not impossible to pay. We have maintained private health insurance for over 50 years. Another couple from Blanchetown have said to me: We are extremely concerned about the proposed Medicare Rebate changes for Seniors. We are on the Pension and we have made it a priority to keep our Medical Insurance at the cost of cutting out food supplies, clothing etc. We are struggling! We have paid all our lives and now treated like this. The consequences of this policy extend beyond those directly affected.”
“I rise today to add my voice to concerns about the thousands of older Australians facing significantly higher private health insurance costs under the Albanese Labor government's proposed cuts to the private health insurance rebate. Around 23,300 Barker residents aged 65 and over currently hold health cover and stand to be significantly impacted by Labor's changes, facing increases per year of between $807 for singles and $1,614 for couples. The Albanese government is now winding back support that helped them maintain their cover, at a time when many seniors are facing rising housing costs. Older Australians who have worked hard, planned for their retirement and maintained private health insurance should be supported, not penalised.”
“We will also support small businesses by providing an instant asset write-off of $50,000—not the $20,000 that those opposite have suggested. That will buy you half a ute, if you are a tradie, but that doesn't get you very far down the road. Our $50,000 will get you that second-hand ute; it will give you a start; it will get you ahead. Only then can you grow the economy and properly begin to address declining living standards. Our plan is for a fairer, freer and better Australia, restoring living standards and rewarding aspirations. I hope those opposite have a good look at that idea.”
“If we can't meet supply, we won't hurt Australians by artificially increasing demand. We will rein in inflation and bracket creep by providing an automatic tax cut, and that, of course, will be done via ending bracket creep. When your wages rise to keep up with inflation you shouldn't be punished and taxed more. We'll provide affordable energy by backing technologies that can provide it. History is clear: you can't grow living standards without access to affordable, reliable energy. That, of course, has been the history of Australia. We don't want America's living poor, but we can't have high wages and high energy costs at the same time. Ultimately, we are an energy rich country and we need to capitalise on that wealth.”
“The budget must be reworked to build an Australia where living standards are restored, where workers are rewarded and where young people can get ahead. It should be our duty to ensure that the next generation is better off than the one that came before it, and to help this I've got a few ideas for those opposite. To restore living standards, Australians deserve a government that puts them first. That's exactly what the coalition plan to do. We've got a plan for lower taxes, for low inflation and an economy designed to back the self-starters of the nation, not kneecap them. We believe that if Australians work, if Australians take risks, then Australians should get ahead. We plan to take the pressure off the housing market by capping migration based on how many homes Australia builds. It's a simple supply-and-demand calculation.”
“It puts a ceiling on ambition at the very time Australia needs more investment, more enterprise and more reward for effort. It has taken far too long but, thankfully, the Prime Minister and Treasurer have realised, at least in part, their latest budget is a failure. Labor overreach is now trying to solve the headaches it created for itself by making tweaks at the margins. Unfortunately, this budget is not a partial failure; it is a complete failure. This government's toxic taxes don't require a tweak or a carve-out or any other Canberra policy fix; they need the axe. You don't fix a bad tax by making it more complicated, you simply scrap it. More complexity does not fix bad law. The Albanese government needs to withdraw the bill and start again.”
“No wonder people are frustrated and losing faith in government. Adding insult to injury, this government decided to double down on their efforts, reaching further into the pockets of working families in their latest budget. Feeling like they hadn't put Australian families under enough pressure, they proposed the largest tax increases in Australian history. How those opposite thought record taxes are conducive to increasing living standards is anyone's guess. Australians, however, know that higher taxes are not the answer; they're an assault on aspiration. Young Australians continue to work hard and do the right thing, but higher taxes lock them further out of homeownership. Even the budget papers themselves show Labor's taxes will lead to fewer homes being built and to higher rents. Australians are being punished for working hard.”
“Since Labor was elected, Australia has faced the largest fall in living standards in the developed world. Families are struggling, with costs skyrocketing across the board, and, as a result, the dream of homeownership for the average Australian is now sadly out of reach. While Australian families struggle to stay afloat, Labor can't shake their uncontrollable spending addiction. Their budget is now forecast to be in deficit for a decade, and debt is about to pass $1 trillion. Because Labor can't manage their money, they're now coming after yours. Their unrestrained spending doesn't just mean higher taxes; it punishes Australians and fuels higher inflation. Higher inflation has meant real wages are declining, rents are increasing, taxes are compounding and people are taking home less in real terms.”
“Agriculture has sustained the south-east for generations. It will sustain it for generations to come if governments have the wisdom to protect it.”
“Why gamble with one of Australia's most valuable food-producing regions? Why put at risk a groundwater system that has sustained communities and industries for generations? This is not a debate about being anti development. It's a debate about what your priorities are. When food production, water security and agricultural prosperity are placed alongside resource extraction, I know where the people of Barker stand, and I stand with them. The south-east should be known for growing food, producing wine and supporting thriving regional communities, not for an experiment in unconventional extraction in a limestone region. The people of Barker have made that view clear. They want farmland protected, they want their water protected, and they want governments to recognise that some places are just too valuable to risk.”
“It underpins billions of dollars of agricultural production across the south-east. That is why the South Australian parliament established a 10-year moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in the Limestone Coast in 2018. That moratorium was introduced after overwhelming community concern about the potential impacts on water resources and agricultural industries. Now—in a pattern that is common: without saying anything before an election—the Malinauskas Labor government is attempting to remove that moratorium, putting at risk all of those industries that rely on that pristine underground aquifer. In fact, there is more irrigation effort in the south-east of South Australia than in all of the Murray-Darling Basin in South Australia. I say to Peter Malinauskas: Why take the risk?”
“That is why I strongly support the principle of the right to farm—the right of farming families to have confidence in their future, the right to invest in their businesses without fear that changing political fashions will undermine their livelihoods, and the right to know that government understands the value of agriculture and the communities that depend on it. The Limestone Coast is one of Australia's most productive agricultural regions. It's home to world-class livestock producers, grain growers, forestry operations, dairy farms and wine-grape growers, to name a few. Its success is built on three things: productive soil, high rainfall and reliable groundwater. That reliable groundwater is not merely important; it's almost everything. It sustains farms. It supports regional towns.”
“It's a pattern of government expecting regional communities to bear the cost of decisions while receiving little say in the process; a pattern of treating agricultural land as though it's empty space, waiting to be utilised for someone else's agenda; a pattern of forgetting that food security is in fact national security. Prime agricultural land is not just a turn of phrase. It's the foundation of regional economies, local jobs, export industries and indeed family livelihoods. Farmers don't ask for special treatment. They simply ask for respect, consultation and the ability to continue doing what they do best: feeding Australians and the rest of the world.”
“The Albanese Labor government has legislated the end of the live sheep export trade, creating uncertainty for producers and the communities that depend on that industry. It has pursued politics that place increasing pressure on regional businesses and agricultural enterprises. Farmers are watching with growing concern as governments propose major developments across productive farmland without properly listening to the people these decisions most affect. What frustrates farmers the most—indeed, it terrifies them—is that this isn't one policy decision; it's a pattern.”
“The right of Australians to farm their land, build their businesses and pass their livelihood onto the next generation should never be undermined. For generations, farming families have been the backbone of regional Australia. They rise before dawn and work through droughts, floods and market downturns so that they continue producing the food and fibre that keeps our nation running and the world fed. Yet increasingly many of those families feel under siege. They see decisions being made in distant capital cities by people who have never worked the land, never depended on rainfall for income and never carried the responsibility of keeping a family farm viable for the next generation. Across regional Australia, farmers are facing a growing list of challenges.”
“I'll tell you what: when Aussies are really angry, they use comedy and levity to deal with it. But my feed has filled up on the back of this, because Aussies think it's rotten, mean and nasty that those opposite, who haven't picked up a shovel, haven't been on the pricing gun, haven't drenched the sheep, haven't done the fencing—”
“You work every hour the good Lord made, you invest everything back into your business, you don't put away superannuation. You don't have that free cash available to you. Your business is your superannuation. So imagine the alarm of business owners around the country. I think those opposite have underestimated the likely backlash. I expect that members of the backbench are feeling it up close and personal when they do their little coffee catch-ups or pop in on street walks and those sorts of things. Imagine the alarm across the small business sector when they'd just found out they'd acquired a new shareholder. The Prime Minister and those opposite are now 47 per cent shareholders in those small businesses. We've seen the memes online. That is an outpouring of concern, of frustration.”
“She would then come home and do copious amounts of bookwork both to pay accounts and to manage her accounts, because she ran a business that allowed ladies to buy goods on credit and pay monthly. Then, weekends were spent driving to Adelaide or Melbourne to purchase stock for upcoming seasons. In my father's case, he would get up before dawn and often come home in the dead of night. There were good years, there were bad years, and, effectively, they drew out of those small businesses simply enough to live, because every other dollar was invested back either on the farm, in the farm or in my mother's business. My parents weren't Robinson Crusoe when it came to running small businesses. I think that very much is the story of small businesses.”
“I now know that what we were doing is what people now call 'rent vesting'. Well, there's trouble on this front as well. Trouble on this front comes in the form of the fact that the advantages that come with rent vesting are stripped away as well. Like you, Mr Speaker, I grew up in a small-business household. My parents weren't butchers, although as farmers we've cut up our fair share of meat on the farm. My parents were farmers and my mum was in retail. I learned the value of hard work from both of my parents. Small businesses are a 24/7 operation. In my mum's case there wasn't a day or an hour the shop was open that she wasn't standing in the shop.”
“What do these taxes do? These taxes say to those people who are doing their best to get themselves on the property ladder: 'Thank you very much for doing the right thing. We're now going to take 30 per cent of that in the form of tax. That is what you've managed to gain by making that investment.' This makes it harder for first home buyers who might be investing in shares or ETFs to get into a first home. Then there's the idea of rent vesting. Many might not be familiar with this term, and I wasn't familiar with the term, but I've got to tell you, my wife and I did it. We purchased a home we couldn't afford to live in at the time, and so we leased it for a period of years until we could manage the mortgage payments without the rent and without the tax deductions that came along with it being an investment property.”
“What, then, about first home buyers? One of the very important prerequisites to entering the housing market is that you need to be able to save for a deposit. I'll leave aside criticism of the five per cent deposit scheme, and we read a tragic story this morning in the news of a young person who went and bought an abandoned home for an alarmingly large amount of money, given that I think it was around $850,000. He spent $150,000 doing it up and he's just had a valuation of it at about $850,000, meaning he's now deeply into negative equity. I'll leave the criticisms of that for another day. What I want to talk about is this idea that you've got to save for a deposit. Now, smart investors or smart savers put those savings where they're likely to earn a substantial return—the share market, ETFs and other forms of wealth accumulation.”
“Leave aside the fact that we've got a migration policy that's now out of control, with more people coming to the country and seeking homes. There are fewer homes. If you don't own your own home, presumably if you're not living with family members otherwise, you're renting. But what do these tax changes do to renters? It's suggested, on the modelling of those opposite, that there'll be an impact of about $2 a week. I've got to say, I've had more than one person come up to me in the street and say, 'Tony, have you ever heard anything so ridiculous?' And you know why they say that? It's because many of them are renters. Very few of them have seen their rent go up by $2 a week. They've experienced rent increases much more than that and, indeed, couldn't imagine a world in which there would be an increase of only $2 a week.”
“It's not just the fact that the likelihood of them occurring was denied not once but 50 times. I'll tell you what else is rotten about it. Those opposite, almost in an Orwellian doublespeak, seek to say that the very measures that will strip aspiration away are doing the opposite—that they're measures that will assist our nation with its endeavours for aspiration. In another example of Orwellian doublespeak, they say this will help young people into homes at the very time these measures do quite the opposite. Let's talk about young people and homeownership, which, thankfully, all sides of this place, I think, agree is a social good. We want more young Australians owning a stake in this great country. What do these tax changes do? As a result of these tax changes, there'll be 35,000 fewer homes.”
“Let's be clear: these are the most significant changes to Australia's tax law that were never put to the Australian people—full stop. When John Howard established the GST, he took that to an election. When former prime minister Shorten proposed changes, he took that to an election. These changes were never put to the Australian people. The Prime Minister wonders why, when his face is splashed on the television at a sporting event, the crowd boos. It's because he's broken that fundamental agreement that sits between those that are elected and those that elect members in and to this place. I've got to tell you that almost everything about these changes is rotten. It's not just the fact that they weren't socialised with the Australian people before the election.”
“That led to poor Mr Shorten going through some very difficult times, but the truth is that he was honest with the Australian people. Personally, I think those opposite have learnt the lesson that, if they're straight up and fair dinkum about what they want to do before an election, they won't win elections. It's a change of strategy. The strategy now is to say, 'We won't do certain things,' with the very clear intention that they will do certain things. We've seen the Prime Minister in question time. When he's now asked about yet further property and other changes—for example, taxing the family home—he rules it out. But could anyone take the word of this man, the Prime Minister of Australia, given what he sought to do in this budget?”
“It's a bad faith budget and it's a bad faith set of tax changes because the architects of this change, or changes, looked squarely down the barrel, speaking into the households and loungerooms of millions of Australians in the lead-up to the election, and said not once, not twice, but more than 50 times, 'No, no, no, we don't propose any changes to property taxes or the like.' Now, I've got to give former prime minister Bill Shorten his due. He was looking to establish many of these changes, but he had the honesty, the guts, to put it to the Australian people. Do you remember the current energy minister, who was then shadow Treasurer, saying—it's in fact my favourite quote from the energy minister—'If you don't like it, don't vote for it.' And guess what? The people of Australia didn't.”
“Quite frankly, it's causing frustration because, I've got to tell you, outside the crystal gates of this building, people are using that verb and many more besides. Do you know why? It's because they tuned in before the last election because they never want to get it wrong. In my view, electorates never get it wrong. But the fundamental, if you like, bargain between electorates and those seeking election is that you'll be straight up and fair dinkum with them before an election so that they can make that decision in good faith. Why do I say that this is a 'bad faith budget'?”
“I want to give a quick shout-out to the kids up in the gallery as I wave to them. These students—I'm sure, looking at their age—have been taught about grammar and these things. I'm sure by now they know a verb is a main word in a sentence that expresses an action or occurrence, a state of being. There is, of course, one verb that's not allowed to be used in this place. Take, for example, the students up there. I reckon, if they were talking to their teacher and gave the teacher an assurance that they would do a particular thing after recess with every intention of doing completely the opposite after recess, the teacher would bring them in and use the verb and say, 'Little Johnny, you "what-ed" to me.' But, of course, we're not allowed to use it in this place.”
“On top of this, the simultaneous expansion of the Public Service, the funding of bargaining processes and the presentation of a budget that does not accommodate expected cost increases are reinforcing concern about Labor's broader fiscal approach. Overall, expenditure from this government has skyrocketed, with no respite in sight. There is no doubt that, because Labor can't manage its money, it's coming after yours. My question to the minister is: Where is the accountability? Or is your government one that's all care and no responsibility? (Time expired)”
“Instead, they seek new ways to drain more and more money to fund their addiction. In this regard, the Albanese government is making history. Facing an economic environment where living standards have fallen harder and faster than anywhere else in the developed world, we now have the highest-taxing government in our nation's history. In an effort to sell these measures as anything different, we have tax changes dressed up as reform that will instead hit housing supply, investors and ultimately everyday Australians through higher rents and reduced economic investment. We see new and additional spending measures that fail basic value-for-money tests. Senate estimates has already shown that the government's fuel supply tsar is earning $2,750 a day, or the equivalent of a million dollars a year.”
“All of this public expenditure adds further fuel to the fire, placing further pressure on inflation, acting like a silent tax on the bank balances of every Australian. Inflation limits how far your dollar can reach, adding to the cost of everything. We know that out-of-control spending from this government has already been responsible for keeping inflation at uncomfortably high rates. The Reserve Bank has warned those opposite, but they haven't heard the message, and we've seen consecutive interest rate rises across the year. My question to the minister is: Minister, where is the fiscal restraint? Caught up in a spending frenzy, it seems like times are far too good for Labor to exercise any fiscal restraint. That can be someone else's problem for some other time.”
“How many more government advertising campaigns will we need to see, where agencies are directed to spend millions in Australian taxpayer funds to tell Australians how to fill up their car, how to pump up their tyres or indeed how to remove their roof racks? My question to the minister, amongst others, is: what will the total government advertising spend be by the end of this financial year? Time and again, this government continues to throw good money after bad. They tout themselves as responsible economic managers, but their continued wasteful spending tells a very different story. Sadly, there seems to be no end in sight and seem to be no repercussions for that waste. Budget deficits are forecast to continue to rise every year across the next decade. Government debt will surpass $1 trillion.”
“Wasteful programs that were supposed to deliver once-in-a-generation outcomes have delivered cost overruns and disappointment. Regional grant programs have had their funding redirected or cancelled altogether under those opposite. This budget continues that trend with the phasing out of the Wine Tourism and Cellar Door Grant Program. For a world-class industry struggling to deal with decreases in global demand, it's a signal that those opposite simply don't care. The tax sourced from regional communities continues to rise, with ever-shrinking return on investment. All the while, the Albanese Labor government continues to try to sell an alternative reality. 'Australians have never had it better,' those opposite continue to bleat.”
“This government has an uncontrolled spending addiction, and it's prioritising ideological objectives, which has in turn turned this budget into a political tool. Those opposite are reaping the rewards of windfalls from the very industries they would seek to shut down, dipping further into incomes earned by hardworking Australian families. All of this is to fuel wasteful spending on a grand scale. They're using record sums of taxpayer funds to prop up their pet projects, and what does the average Australian have to show for it? Departmental budgets continue to rise, yet delivery remains hindered by bureaucracy, leading to very poor outcomes. Consultants and contractors are still raking in hundreds of millions of dollars while public servants struggle with unclear priorities.”
“Australians know that they've got a prime minister who's not up to the job. They know Labor has lost control of the budget and that Labor has run out of money so it's coming after theirs. The coalition will take an axe to Labor's toxic taxes and will deliver real reform. Instead of being honest about its spending addiction, this government acts like an addict looking for another score. Sadly, for Australians that means they pay more because under Labor they always do.”
“Through a budget built on broken promises and toxic taxes, Labor are pushing tax hikes onto millions of Australians, and they're doing it to pay for a spending addiction they can't control. The Treasurer has admitted that Australians will be whacked with around $280 billion more in taxes over the next decade, compared to under the coalition's tax plan. Think about that. Labor tout reform, but in truth they intend to trouser $280 billion more from the workers, families, farmers and small businesses. They'll take it in the form of a housing tax, a small and family business tax, a saving and investment tax and a secret death tax. And then, of course, there's their favourite, bracket creep—the silent tax, the sneaky tax, the automatic annual tax hike, the tax that punishes Australians because this government can't get a handle on inflation.”
“They give of their time freely, often without seeking recognition, simply because they care about helping others and making their communities better places to live, work and raise a family. Every one of those 139 nominees represents countless hours of service and dedication. Every nomination tells a story of kindness, leadership and community spirit. Thank you again to every single volunteer who gives up their time in my electorate in support of others.”
“And undoubtedly the highlight each year is on the Saturday evening when 6,000 excited students listen to a world-class jazz concert housed in the largest tent erected in the Southern Hemisphere. I also wish to recognise the volunteers who go above and beyond in my electorate, having recently acknowledge them during National Volunteer Week. This year, through my Barker Volunteer Awards program, an extraordinary 139 volunteers were nominated by their peers, their friends, their colleagues and community organisations. These nominations came from right across the electorate, highlighting the incredible depth of generosity that exists throughout Barker. Whether it's supporting sporting clubs, emergency services, schools, charities, aged-care services, community groups or local events, volunteers are the backbone of all regional communities.”
“These students have the opportunity to perform before leading industry professionals, attend workshops with world-class musicians and develop skills that will stay with them for a lifetime. It's band camp, but better. Many participants and scholarship winners have gone on to successful careers in music. Just as importantly, countless young people leave the festival with greater confidence, new friendships and unforgettable memories. This festival is a tremendous boost for Mount Gambier and surrounds. It fills our streets, accommodation providers, restaurants and local businesses with visitors from all quarters of the country. It showcases the very best of regional Australia and demonstrates what can be achieved when a community comes together to support young people in the arts.”
“Earlier this year in my electorate, we recognised an important milestone. It was the 40th anniversary of Generations in Jazz. It's a festival that takes place in my electorate every year, and it has, in fact, taken place every year since 1987. It has developed into the nation's premier youth music event, bringing together thousands of talented young musicians from across Australia and New Zealand. Each year, more than 5,000 students travel to the Limestone Coast to perform, to compete, to learn and to share their passion for jazz. For one weekend, Mount Gambier and surrounds become a national meeting place for young people who are united by their creativity, their discipline and, most importantly, their love for that best of music styles—jazz.”
“That's how you end up with a budget which represents the highest spend and tax budget this nation has ever seen. At a time when Australians are doing it tough, those opposite celebrated on budget night—celebrated a budget of broken promises; a budget of higher taxes, with more spending and less to see for it.”
“There's another one. Treasury officials, reasonably and appropriately, take a very conservative approach when they're setting commodity prices in the budget. We wouldn't like to overestimate those things and be underwhelmed at the end of the financial year. But what happens, consistently, is that we realise commodity prices are much higher than those forecast in the budget papers. That revenue comes in, of course, in the form of higher company tax receipts. Instead of squirrelling that money away to pay down debt or to build productive infrastructure—which are the two things that we will do with those windfall gains—those opposite have consistently spent all of those windfalls in the year in which they've been received. That's not how you build a nation. That's not how you pay down debt.”
“On budget-in-reply night, we also squared it with the Australian people that—surprisingly to many, particularly in my electorate; there was an amazing amount of feedback about this—there are no less than 17 welfare payments that are made available to noncitizens in this country. To be clear and to avoid the scare campaign that is obviously emanating from places in this building, every single individual who is currently in the country will be grandfathered, but what we're messaging is that, if you want to come to Australia, then we as Australians will commit to you once you commit to us in the form of becoming citizens. I think the element of this budget-in-reply speech which is perhaps not referred to enough is the future generations fund. I talked earlier about the revenue glitch that happens in this place in terms of bracket creep.”