PARLIAMENTARY REPORT
including Hon. Joel Fitzgibbon, MP, Ms Jill Hall, MP, and Mr Ed Husic, MP, all resigned. The Minister for Resources and Energy, Hon. Martin Ferguson, MP, resigned stating that “I was worried about where we were heading from an electoral point of view. For those reasons I would have voted for Kevin Rudd yesterday, and Simon Crean, to try and give this party a fresh start”. Mr Ferguson commented that “I touch on today the need for the Labor Party to reclaim the mantra of the Hawke and Keating governments to govern for all Australians. The class war that started with the mining dispute of 2010 must stop.” On 25 March Ms Gillard announced her new Ministry. Some of her existing senior Ministers took on additional duties as a result of the resignations. The current Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Hon. Anthony Albanese, MP, took on Mr Ferguson’s responsibilities for Regional Development and Local Government. Similarly, the Minister for
Trade and Competitiveness, Hon. Craig Emerson, MP, took on Mr Bowen’s responsibilities for Tertiary Education, Skills, Science and Research.
Mr Emerson was to be supported by Sen. the Hon. Don Farrell who became Minister for Science and Research and Minister Assisting on Tourism. Sen. the Hon. Jan McLucas was appointed Minister for Human Services.
Hon. Catherine King, MP,
was promoted to the Outer Ministry as Minister for Regional Service and Minister for Road Safety. Hon. Gary Gray, MP, joined the Cabinet as Minister for Resources and Energy, Minister for Tourism. The House of Representatives was to be dissolved on 12 August with an election scheduled for 14 September 2013.
AUSTRALIA
Australian federal dudget 2013
On 15 May 2013 the Treasurer, Hon. Wayne Swan, MP, delivered the sixth budget of the Labor government. Mr Swan noted that in a period of challenging global conditions, Australia’s taxation receipts are expected to fall by over $60
The surplus years are here”. Notwithstanding the longer
Hon. Wayne Swan, MP
billion over the four years to 2015-16. Mr Swan stated that “powerful global forces and the stubbornly high Australian dollar have savaged budget revenues”. Mr Swan advised that “this year we face the second largest revenue write down since the Great Depression”. As a result the underlying cash deficit is expected to be $18 billion in 2013-14. The deficit falls over the forward estimates, and the underlying cash balance is expected to reach balance in 2015-16 and surplus in 2016-17. Mr Swan stated that “because of our deep commitment to jobs and growth we have taken the responsible course to delay the return to surplus and due to a savage hit to tax receipts there will be a deficit of $18 billion in 2013-14, because we put jobs and growth first”. The current budget projections
are in sharp contrast to the same time last year when Mr Swan reported that the Budget would return to a $1.5 billion surplus in 2012-13. At that time, Mr Swan stated that “the deficit years of the global recession are behind us.
144 | The Parliamentarian | 2013: Issue Two
time required to reach a budget surplus, the budget papers noted that the Australian economy continues to outperform most of the developed world and prospects remain favourable, with an outlook of solid growth, low unemployment and contained inflation. Mr Swan reported that real GDP growth is forecast at 2.75 per cent in 2013-14 and three per cent in 2014-15. Over the same period the consumer price index is forecast to remain stable at about 2.25 per cent. In 2013- 14 unemployment is forecast at 5.75 per cent. Mr Swan advised that the economy is undergoing transition with the resource investment boom shifting to a boom in production and exports. In seeking to make the economy more productive, Mr Swan commented that “we are transforming our nation’s schools by investing $9.8 billion in new school funding”. In addition, the government has committed a “new $24 billion investment in the next wave of nation building infrastructure”. In relation to social reform, Mr Swan noted that the government was proud to establish Disability Care Australia and the National Disability Insurance Scheme. On 16 May Mr Abbott gave his
address in reply to the Budget speech. He emphasized that Australia was a great country where people in various areas of endeavour were competing on the world stage. He noted that “we are a great country and a great people let down by a bad government”. He stated that a “coalition government will do what’s needed to restore the hope, reward and opportunity that should be your birthright”. In relation to specific commitments, Mr Abbott stated that the carbon tax and the minerals resource rent tax would be abolished. When the Labor government introduced the carbon price
mechanism it also introduced a compensation scheme comprising tax cuts and pension increases to offset the increased prices arising from the carbon price. Mr Abbott committed to retaining “the current income tax thresholds and the current pension and benefit fortnightly rates while scrapping the carbon tax”. Mr Abbott stated that “with a change of government, your weekly and fortnightly budgets will be under less pressure as electricity prices fall and gas prices fall and the carbon tax no longer cascades through our economy”. Mr Abbott confirmed that the coalition would not continue the twice a year supplementary allowance to people on benefits “because it is supposed to be funded from the mining tax and the mining tax is not raising any revenue”. For the same reason the coalition would scrap the low income superannuation contribution. In addition, the Mr Abbott announced that the coalition would delay by two years the ramp up in the compulsory superannuation guarantee. Mr Abbott stated that “these
Hon. Catherine King, MP
measures alone will produce nearly $5 billion a year in savings which is more than enough for tax cuts without a carbon tax”. In relation to Labor’s budget and the planned budget cuts, Mr Abbott noted that due to Labor’s poor management over five years, “there is now a
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