23-June-2010
Portfolio Media Releases, The Economy
Topics: Warwick McKibbin’s scathing attack on the Rudd Government’s economic management, Labor’s grubby political tactics.
E&OE
ANDREW ROBB:
I would just like to make some comments about observations reported overnight by Warwick McKibbin who is a prominent Australian economist and a very distinguished member of the Reserve Bank board.
I think what Professor McKibbin has said overnight confirms the great risk that Australia faces from poor economic management by this Rudd Government.
In a scathing attack the Reserve Bank board member has slammed the government’s panicked and desperate approach to the Global Financial Crisis; suggested they grossly overspent in their panic, has fuelled higher interest rates as a consequence. Wasteful spending with the school halls’ program and the insulation, has said this is a government that has developed a series of poor policy, the emissions trading scheme.
He has said and confirmed that the design and the introduction of the super tax on mining was in response to a series of poor policy over two-and-a-half years and the need to plug a deep hole in their budget because of their reckless spending.
I think this does confirm the great risk that people will take if they look to re-elect this Rudd Government. What we’ve seen is that no longer does the government conduct any sort of formal cabinet process. It’s a government run by a gang of four and on many occasions a gang of one. This is irresponsible, it shows a lack of experience, it confirms the presence of panic in so many measures that this government has taken.
And it confirms the fact that Labor does not understand business, does not understand how wealth is created and then how that generates jobs and prosperity for all Australians.
It really is, as Tony Abbott said last night in his CEDA speech, a Coalition government will return to a cabinet based approach to government, a cabinet based approach to decision making. A traditional approach which has stood Australia in good stead.
Bob Hawke ran a very strong cabinet based approach to government and good policy came out of that approach. John Howard ran a very strong cabinet based approach to government. This government is a one-man-band with his few acolytes, three acolytes who appear to make all the decisions, don’t canvas issues widely and have made mistake after mistake after mistake on major policy issues which we are all now paying a huge price for.
JOURNALIST:
Did Tony Abbott tell the Coalition party room meeting that they are within reach of a famous victory?
ANDREW ROBB:
No he didn’t, from my recollection Tony Abbott advised the party room that our prospects had improved significantly, but we still had a long way to go. I’m a great believer in the market and looking at the betting at the moment we are still at $2.50 and the Labor Party’s at $1.50. So we’ve still got a long way to go to realise any sort of victory in this next election.
But to us it’s becoming not just a desire to get into government, but a sense of responsibility that we need to try and secure a victory at the next election because so much long-term damage is being done by the Rudd Government and that has been confirmed again this morning by this scathing attack by a prominent member of the Reserve Bank board.
JOURNALIST:
Wilson Tuckey believes the famous victory line was used in yesterday's party room meeting?
ANDREW ROBB:
It wasn't my recollection of the meeting at all. I have seen Tony Abbott on his feet so many times now in the last few weeks and he believes we should take confidence out of the way in which we have put pressure on the Government and exposed the many deficiencies and weaknesses especially of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister has been seen to be a fraud on so many issues and that’s dangerous, it's dangerous it’s getting into the dangerous category in terms of policy and the running of the country and the impact that's having on future jobs and future prosperity and interest rates, the pressure will continue on interest rates under this Government, there is no doubt about that. Cost of living is going to be the major issue in the election because we are going to see a series of more interest rate increases over the next 12 months, and it's going to put people in a very difficult situation.
JOURNALIST:
Should've Tony Abbott have cleared a $710 thousand dollar loan to have paid for his living expenses and his kid's school fees?
ANDREW ROBB:
Well that is a requirement and I understand it was a simple mistake. He overlooked it and there's no reason why he wouldn't disclose it unless he'd overlooked it really. I mean, it's neither here nor there, your mortgage situation is something that everyone has got so I would accept totally the fact that he had overlooked it.
JOURNALIST:
The Government says it's a bad look and shows he's not accountable and can't run the economy.
ANDREW ROBB:
This is nonsense. This Labor Party has resorted already to just grubby smear campaigns. Yesterday, Nicola Roxon in the Parliament referred to the mad monk and all of the Catholic followers who are taking this country potentially in the wrong direction, well I am sorry, to resort to sectarian, I mean I thought all that left 20 or 30 years ago the sectarian arguments. This whole notion of class warfare, they've missed it they’ve missed the mood of the nation altogether. People are out there, the average person is looking to make a better life for themselves. Their aspirations, everyone has got whatever opportunity they wish to take, if they set their mind to it.
We don't need a reversion to this class warfare, and this sectarianism and the grubby smear that they are trying to impose on Tony Abbott. You watch, this will be the dirtiest campaign by Labor on record. Their smearing of Tony Abbott will be of monumental proportions because they've got no alternative, they've got no policy to lean back on they have got no record to lean back on. They are a serious threat to the prosperity and jobs of millions of Australians in the years ahead and they will resort to fear and lying in order to maintain their electoral prospects.