http://au.news.yahoo.com/latest/a/-/latest/13197601/hockey-rejects-govts-deficit...

Opposition treasury spokesman Joe Hockey has rejected claims the coalition would be running a $9 billion deficit in the next financial year, if it were in government.

Finance Minister Penny Wong on Sunday produced the 2012/13 estimate, which she said was based on the coalition's current spending promises and pledges to dump the federal government's upcoming mining and carbon emissions taxes.

"I don't think the coalition can run around credibly claiming to be a party that is economically responsible when they continue to say they are going to spend this, we are going to fund this when they are opposing revenue sources that fund it," she told ABC Television.

Senator Wong challenged the coalition to "come clean" on the $70 billion worth of savings it says it has identified and tell the government how its estimates are wrong.

"If they are making cuts of that magnitude Australians are entitled to know what they are," she said.

Mr Hockey said Senator Wong's calculations were wrong and recommitted the coalition to removing government duplication to generate savings.

"Previously she's been claiming we have a $70 billion funding short fall, which is wrong," Mr Hockey told Network Ten.

"Now she says it's a $9 billion funding short fall.

"This is a finance minister who has overseen in the last 12 months a deterioration in the federal budget from a $12 billion deficit to a $37 billion deficit.

"So quite frankly we're not going to take any lectures on numbers or on fiscal prudence from Penny Wong."

Opposition finance spokesman Andrew Robb said Ms Wong's figures were "shonky analysis".

Labor wants to deliver a $1.5 billion surplus in 2012/13, after an expected $37 billion deficit this financial year.

Mr Hockey declined to run through the budget savings identified by the coalition but said certain government departments, like the Department of Climate Change and the Department of Environment, would be merged and staff levels reduced.

"We've said we are going to merge the departments, reduce the number of staff," he said.

"We stand by that and you'll see all of our savings initiatives before the next election."

Earlier this month, Opposition Leader Tony Abbott said a coalition government would commission an audit to review commonwealth public service operations, and singled out the departments of health, education and defence materiel as examples of areas where staff numbers could be reduced.

He has previously promised to scrap Labor's 30 per cent minerals resource rent tax and carbon emissions tax.

Mr Hockey said that under a coalition government, taxes would be lower.

Asked if big business would pay less tax, Mr Hockey said "overall tax" would be lower.

"We are going to focus on the overall tax take for Australians," he said.

The coalition has vowed to oppose the government's mining tax, which is currently before the senate, and any other legislation linked to it, including business tax cuts.

Mr Abbott last week said the coalition would deliver "modest" tax cuts for business but declined to recommit to a 2010 election promise to cut corporate tax by 1.5 per cent.

Mr Hockey said the coalition did not know what kind of an economy it would inherit from Labor.

"We don't know what the state of the budget will be ... until just before the election and that's the time when we will finalise all of our numbers and give you all the details on our plans for Australia," he said.

Maqqa wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 1:10pm:


C'mon Joe, we lived through the Howard era. We've been educated in the way of the weasel word by a master at it! We're not dopes and you're no good at that game. We know what you mean. This translates to your party scrapping the mining tax for your couple of billionaire mates while at the same time increasing taxes on thousands of small and middle sized business. "Overall" taxes will be lower? For the government maybe. For the billionaires definitely. For the little guy? BULL!

adelcrow wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 2:00pm:



Carbon tax will increase cost of living to everyday Australian families by well over $1,200 per year.

Their tax cut compensation will be $3.

MOTR wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 2:23pm:



Australian Treasury figures.

Andrei.Hicks wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 2:13pm:


You are assuming that people are to stupid to change their habits.
Most people will cut their use of carbon intensive goods and services by $1,200 a yr and it wont cost them one extra cent if they have any sense.

Gist wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 1:40pm:



Well you haven't got much to compare with, have you?

Try living thru Whitlam, Keating/Hawke and Juliar... Than you will realise who governs best.

Armchair_Politician wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 3:11pm:


The Howard govt remains the highest taxing govt in the countries history..check it out for yourself

Gist wrote on Mar 18^th, 2012 at 3:36pm:


There has been NO ONE (until Rudd/Gillard) who was anywhere near as bad as Whitlam. Howard is widely regarded as one of our best PM's ever.