Mr KIELY - 2001-11-27
Chief Minister, how does the mini-budget address the unsustainable financial deficit left by the previous CLP government?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I do not know whether the now opposition have actually read the budget papers. I hope they have because there are honest numbers in here and they confirm that the previous administration - the CLP government who had been there for nearly 27 years - left the Territory with an unsustainable financial situation and a ballooning deficit.
Mr Reed: Rhubarb!
Ms MARTIN: Again, the man who has lost any right to make comments on the budget says, ‘Rhubarb’. Within a week of coming into government, your own former Treasury told me the position was unsustainable - unsustainable! We get an expert opinion in and it says unsustainable.
You had no strategy, that is your problem. Year after year, this previous administration overspent. We saw that - unrealistic agency appropriations, not recognising the growth that was happening, sometimes no growth within those agencies, and agencies coming back towards the end of the year saying: ‘I need more money’. ‘Need more money’, like Oliver wanting more food.
Every year, the former CLP administration blew the budget and seemed to think that there would be no end to their reign. That is the real reason for this. ‘We will be in government forever’, said the CLP, ‘and it doesn’t matter, we can make up the figures. And we do, we can make up the figures’. They never thought they would be caught out. Do you know what? You have been caught out and you have no credibility!
The Auditor-General’s report tabled today also further confirms the recklessness of the CLP in their approach to spending money, and heaping on Territorians - and this is the bottom line, the real stinky bottom line that you are heaping on Territorians - an unsustainable debt. You can think of yourselves: ‘Oh, this is just fiddling with budget papers’, but this is about the Territory and our future, and you are lumping debt, year after year, in an unsustainable way.
Now we have the Leader of the Opposition calling on this government to spend, spend, spend!
Mr Burke: You just borrowed $100m. What do you call that?
Ms MARTIN: This is the grasp that the now Leader of the Opposition has about Treasury matters. He says: ‘Spend, spend, spend’, but where is the money coming from? Where is the money coming from? The bottom line is that this approach could not go on forever. Territorians were saved from this mob by an election on the 18 August. The only line he had was: ‘Spend, spend, spend’.
This government is not interested in changing budget numbers. These are honest numbers, unlike your previous numbers. This whole mini-budget is about the fact that you perpetrated a deceit on Territorians with your last budget papers. The last budget papers perpetrated a deceit - an absolute deceit - and we are now left dealing with the unsustainable budget position that you bequeathed to Territorians. The fact is that we are being up-front and truthful with Territorians. We have done this since we came to government three months ago. We did it at the Economic Development Summit, which was a great success in this place, and we did it today again in the mini-budget. The government’s deficit reduction strategy - something that never occurred to the previous mob - is a very important component of today’s mini-budget.
Under the mini-budget, the Territory now has an achievable, realistic deficit reduction strategy to get the budget back in the black. The budget will be balanced by 2003-04 and will be back in surplus, albeit a small surplus, by 2004-05. This has been achieved by a balanced approach, including some revenue measures. The strategy is carefully crafted so that the majority of the load is carried by expenditure initiatives. Critical services such as schools, police, emergency services and hospitals have been largely quarantined. Expenditure is being slowed, not slashed. Revenue measures will raise $42m over four years. These measures have been imposed in a way to share the load across the community.
The Temporary Budget Improvement Levy has only been imposed for as long as it is needed to help repair the budget bequeathed to Territorians by the CLP. Under this realistic deficit reduction strategy, the budget will be in surplus by 2004-05. At that time, the Territory’s debt will start to reduce. These are the actions of a responsible government.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I do not know whether the now opposition have actually read the budget papers. I hope they have because there are honest numbers in here and they confirm that the previous administration - the CLP government who had been there for nearly 27 years - left the Territory with an unsustainable financial situation and a ballooning deficit.
Mr Reed: Rhubarb!
Ms MARTIN: Again, the man who has lost any right to make comments on the budget says, ‘Rhubarb’. Within a week of coming into government, your own former Treasury told me the position was unsustainable - unsustainable! We get an expert opinion in and it says unsustainable.
You had no strategy, that is your problem. Year after year, this previous administration overspent. We saw that - unrealistic agency appropriations, not recognising the growth that was happening, sometimes no growth within those agencies, and agencies coming back towards the end of the year saying: ‘I need more money’. ‘Need more money’, like Oliver wanting more food.
Every year, the former CLP administration blew the budget and seemed to think that there would be no end to their reign. That is the real reason for this. ‘We will be in government forever’, said the CLP, ‘and it doesn’t matter, we can make up the figures. And we do, we can make up the figures’. They never thought they would be caught out. Do you know what? You have been caught out and you have no credibility!
The Auditor-General’s report tabled today also further confirms the recklessness of the CLP in their approach to spending money, and heaping on Territorians - and this is the bottom line, the real stinky bottom line that you are heaping on Territorians - an unsustainable debt. You can think of yourselves: ‘Oh, this is just fiddling with budget papers’, but this is about the Territory and our future, and you are lumping debt, year after year, in an unsustainable way.
Now we have the Leader of the Opposition calling on this government to spend, spend, spend!
Mr Burke: You just borrowed $100m. What do you call that?
Ms MARTIN: This is the grasp that the now Leader of the Opposition has about Treasury matters. He says: ‘Spend, spend, spend’, but where is the money coming from? Where is the money coming from? The bottom line is that this approach could not go on forever. Territorians were saved from this mob by an election on the 18 August. The only line he had was: ‘Spend, spend, spend’.
This government is not interested in changing budget numbers. These are honest numbers, unlike your previous numbers. This whole mini-budget is about the fact that you perpetrated a deceit on Territorians with your last budget papers. The last budget papers perpetrated a deceit - an absolute deceit - and we are now left dealing with the unsustainable budget position that you bequeathed to Territorians. The fact is that we are being up-front and truthful with Territorians. We have done this since we came to government three months ago. We did it at the Economic Development Summit, which was a great success in this place, and we did it today again in the mini-budget. The government’s deficit reduction strategy - something that never occurred to the previous mob - is a very important component of today’s mini-budget.
Under the mini-budget, the Territory now has an achievable, realistic deficit reduction strategy to get the budget back in the black. The budget will be balanced by 2003-04 and will be back in surplus, albeit a small surplus, by 2004-05. This has been achieved by a balanced approach, including some revenue measures. The strategy is carefully crafted so that the majority of the load is carried by expenditure initiatives. Critical services such as schools, police, emergency services and hospitals have been largely quarantined. Expenditure is being slowed, not slashed. Revenue measures will raise $42m over four years. These measures have been imposed in a way to share the load across the community.
The Temporary Budget Improvement Levy has only been imposed for as long as it is needed to help repair the budget bequeathed to Territorians by the CLP. Under this realistic deficit reduction strategy, the budget will be in surplus by 2004-05. At that time, the Territory’s debt will start to reduce. These are the actions of a responsible government.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016