Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Minister for Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Herbert for his question. He asks me about the effect of the abolition of the carbon tax on jobs growth. I can tell him that when the carbon tax is abolished—we hope that will be today or, at the latest, tomorrow—it will remove a $7 billion a year handbrake on the Australian economy, a handbrake that Labor wants to keep on the Australian economy. I can tell the member for Hebert that it is estimated that by 2050 the abolition of the carbon tax will lead to the cumulative economic output of the country increasing by $1.3 trillion. If the carbon tax remains, that cumulative impact will not occur. That is what Labor wants to happen. They want to keep that handbrake on the Australian economy.

With economic growth comes jobs growth. Without economic growth, it is not possible for the jobs market to grow. On this side of the House, the coalition recognises that if we want the economy to grow, if we want Australian families to have jobs, and to have better and better jobs into the future, we must abolish the carbon tax. I am pleased the Palmer United Party and other crossbenchers see it that way too. Without a carbon tax, real wages are estimated to increase by 2020 by 0.7 per cent. That is 0.7 per cent that households will gain in extra spending so that they can decide the priorities for their spending, rather than Labor and the Greens deciding the priorities for Australian families. On this side of the House, we want to expand freedom. We want to give families more opportunities to make their own decisions. On the other side of the House, they think big government knows best. They think individuals and Australians do not know best.

If Labor is re-elected at the next election, as sure as night follows day, as sure as God made little green apples and as sure as I am standing here, Labor will reintroduce the carbon tax. At the next election in 2016, it will be another referendum for the Australian people on the carbon tax. What Labor has done is ensure that at the next election the coalition will be explaining to the Australian people that, if you vote Liberal or National, there will not be a carbon tax reintroduced. If you vote Labor at the next election, Labor will reintroduce the carbon tax, and that handbrake on the economy will be back, that reduction of real wages will be back, the job losses that have come since the carbon tax was introduced, like at Penrice Soda in my great state of South Australia from that job-destroying carbon tax, will be back. So, at the next election, Australians can decide: do they want the job-destroying carbon tax, or do they want the freedom, the extra finances and the support the economy gets by the abolition of the carbon tax?