Mr BARRETT - 2016-02-10
Can you please explain to the House the difference between the government having a plan and the other thing, which is not really a plan, coming from the other side of the floor?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question. I believe what you are talking about is Clayton’s plan, the plan you have when you do not have a plan. I call it Gunner’s gammon plan, or a fantasy. Let me explain the difference between a Gunner gammon plan and a CLP government plan ...
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fong Lim, withdraw that comment in regard to the member for Fannie Bay.
Mr TOLLNER: I withdraw.
Let me explain. We came into government with a a real plan, which is not very difficult, to cut debt and diversify and grow the economy.
Almost four years ago this government recognised that Labor had a spending addiction. Like a heroin addiction, a spending addiction is very hard to kick. We knew it could not do it, so we had to take responsibility for its waste and incompetence in government. When the Opposition Leader was in government with his federal mates, they spent all the money. There was nothing left in the can.
Since then, of course, the world has become a very different place. Middle Eastern conflicts have increased, Europe continues to dissolve under economic pressure, the United States is still coming out from the bottom, China’s growth has slowed and Australia’s economy is moving away from mining to services. The Northern Territory is not immune to those things.
Our plan has already started to take effect. We took these matters into consideration. Because we had a plan we are in a much better situation to deal with these economic headwinds. Last year’s budget outlined our plan to further diversify the Northern Territory economy. We reformed the Power and Water Corporation to be much more in line with national standards, which has helped with the new gas pipeline into Queensland to allow us to join the national gas network. We saved TIO from financial disaster. We are recycling part of that TIO money and the port lease money back into the local economy to further drive economic growth.
Let us look forward to test what our plan is supposed to achieve. The Deloitte Access Economics December 2015 Quarterly Outlook puts the five-year average growth from this year to 2020 at 3.3% for the Northern Territory, compared to 2.6% for the rest of Australia.
Madam Speaker, our plan has achieved, and is achieving, results. Labor’s plan? Slash 6000 jobs and spend $5bn to create 14 000 jobs. That is not a plan, this is a plan.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question. I believe what you are talking about is Clayton’s plan, the plan you have when you do not have a plan. I call it Gunner’s gammon plan, or a fantasy. Let me explain the difference between a Gunner gammon plan and a CLP government plan ...
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fong Lim, withdraw that comment in regard to the member for Fannie Bay.
Mr TOLLNER: I withdraw.
Let me explain. We came into government with a a real plan, which is not very difficult, to cut debt and diversify and grow the economy.
Almost four years ago this government recognised that Labor had a spending addiction. Like a heroin addiction, a spending addiction is very hard to kick. We knew it could not do it, so we had to take responsibility for its waste and incompetence in government. When the Opposition Leader was in government with his federal mates, they spent all the money. There was nothing left in the can.
Since then, of course, the world has become a very different place. Middle Eastern conflicts have increased, Europe continues to dissolve under economic pressure, the United States is still coming out from the bottom, China’s growth has slowed and Australia’s economy is moving away from mining to services. The Northern Territory is not immune to those things.
Our plan has already started to take effect. We took these matters into consideration. Because we had a plan we are in a much better situation to deal with these economic headwinds. Last year’s budget outlined our plan to further diversify the Northern Territory economy. We reformed the Power and Water Corporation to be much more in line with national standards, which has helped with the new gas pipeline into Queensland to allow us to join the national gas network. We saved TIO from financial disaster. We are recycling part of that TIO money and the port lease money back into the local economy to further drive economic growth.
Let us look forward to test what our plan is supposed to achieve. The Deloitte Access Economics December 2015 Quarterly Outlook puts the five-year average growth from this year to 2020 at 3.3% for the Northern Territory, compared to 2.6% for the rest of Australia.
Madam Speaker, our plan has achieved, and is achieving, results. Labor’s plan? Slash 6000 jobs and spend $5bn to create 14 000 jobs. That is not a plan, this is a plan.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016