Rick Wilson (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The theme of today's MPI is the alleged unfairness of the budget. It made me reflect on what fairness actually means, so I have listed a few issues where I think this budget is extremely fair. Firstly, is it fair to hand on my debt to my children? Is it fair for me to say, 'I'm going to spend myself into debt. I'm going to spend more than I am earning, more revenue than I am raising'? And is it fair to say to my children, 'It is your responsibility to deal with that debt'? I think it is terribly unfair. It would be terribly unfair for me to do that.

One of the really fair aspects of this budget is that we are finally on a trajectory back into surplus. We came into government in late 2013, and it was the objective of the then Prime Minister and Treasurer to repair the budget and get us back into surplus as soon as possible. Those on the other side blocked every measure that we put up to get the budget back into surplus. It has been a hard road, and I take my hat off not only to former Treasurer Hockey but also to Treasurer Morrison for the hard work they have had to put in to bring this budget back into surplus. And we are finally on a trajectory to reach a surplus. I think that is a very fair measure; it is a fair measure for my children, because at this stage they are going to be responsible for a large amount of debt that was clocked up by this generation, starting in 2008 with the Labor government, which had inherited $60 billion in the bank and a $20 billion surplus. That is what they inherited in 2008. They then spent that money and embedded deficits in the budget going forward, into the foreseeable future, and then blocked every measure that we proposed to try to bring that budget back under control.

Another area where I think this budget is very fair is in relation to people with a disability. The National Disability Insurance Scheme was a bipartisan policy. We support the scheme not only in principle but also through funding. I am very blessed across the electorate of O'Connor. We have some wonderful disability service providers—for example, Lower Great Southern Community Living Association. I met with Ian Campbell and Penny Bryant only a few weeks ago with the Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services, the member for Ryan. Also, in the Goldfields, we have Goldfields Individual and Family Support Association. Robert Hicks and his team up there do a fantastic job delivering disability services. I have also met many of their clients as well.

Those people need certainty and security going forward and need to know that the National Disability Insurance Scheme is going to be fully funded. We put up a proposal in this year's budget to increase the Medicare levy by 0.5 of per cent, because every Australian will benefit from the insurance that that scheme provides—every Australian. I think that it is fair that every Australian contributes 0.5 per cent of their income, because, as my mother used to say, there but for the grace of God go I. Any of us or any of our children could require the services that are provided under the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Everyone that I have spoken to—I obviously speak to some different people to those on the other side—feels that that is a very fair impost on the community.

But I tell you what is not fair. It is not fair that someone who is earning $87,000 who might work a day's overtime will lose $500 of that in tax. That is not fair. It is not fair that a nurse or a policeman who might do an extra shift will lose $500 out of their pocket. That is not fair. (Time expired)

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