News Feature - Shadow Treasurer Kim Wells Mp - State Budget Reply Speech 6 May 2010

May-06-2010

 KIM WELLS MP

STATE BUDGET REPLY

6 MAY 2010

The Coalition's way forward

Already, the Coalition has publicly announced more than 60 policies since the 2006 state election including many with a strong focus on law and order issues.

Interestingly, more than 50 previously announced Coalition commitments have been 'adopted' by Labor to date since the last state election.

A sure and telling sign of a tired and policy-starved government that has run out of ideas.

In recent months, we have announced a range of law and order policies including:

• 1700 new police able to be deployed to areas of under-resourcing and need across the state including 100 new transit police patrolling the public transport network;
• 940 Protective Services Officers manning all metropolitan and major regional train stations from 6pm until the last train, seven days a week;
• The abolition of suspended sentences;
• Banning violent drunks from licensed premises;
• Banning the sale of knives to minors;
• A shake up of liquor licences;
• Tough new anti-hoon laws;
• Outlawing criminal bikie gangs;
• Strengthening Neighbourhood Watch; and
• Establishing an independent broad-based anti-corruption commission.

A solid plan designed to clean up our streets and make them safe again.

In terms of restoring general State Government services and infrastructure there needs to be a return to fixing the basics.

We need to ensure the effective and efficient use of existing resources within current programs to rebuild service provision.

To mention just a few:

In public transport, we must fix the basic infrastructure to ensure existing and future customer demand requirements are met.

In health, we need to fix the State's ageing infrastructure to meet the growth in demand.

This is why we have proposed to establish a $1 billion Health Infrastructure Fund, paid for from the proceeds of the current sale of electronic gaming machine licences and we have challenged the Brumby Government to match it.

The revenue stream from the sale of the EGM licences should be channelled into a dedicated fund to provide productive capital investments in health for the long term benefit of Victorians.

With respect to better assisting business in Victoria to drive the economy forward, the Coalition is critical of the level of red tape businesses today encounter.

And that is why a high priority for the Coalition will be working closely with business to drive down the level of unnecessary complexity of government compliance and regulatory red tape requirements across all business sectors.

The Coalition is also committed to undertaking a detailed review of the State tax base and Government imposts after a full and proper analysis of the Henry Review and its recommendations on State revenue and the Federal Government's response.

Other Treasury-related policy initiatives of the Coalition include:

• A commitment to a minimum annual budget surplus of $100 million;
• A commitment to overhaul the cost and time management of major projects;
• A review of the Fire Services Levy to make the funding of fire services fairer;
• An independent public inquiry into Victorian Government investments, following the unprecedented loss of more than $10 billion in funds by the Victorian Funds Management Corporation;
• A transparent and independent audit of the State's finances; and
• The production of a "Stronger Victoria" report - a comprehensive analysis of the State's economic competitiveness.

Of course, further Coalition policy initiatives will be announced in the lead up to the November election.

Introduction

The State Labor Government's 11 year legacy will be judged by Victorians on 27 November 2010.

Above all else, the Brumby Government has achieved the undisputable status of being a dishonest government.

The most dishonest in living memory.

State Labor promised an open, transparent and accountable government.

However, over 11 long years, Victorians have had to endure:

• hundreds of millions of dollars of dishonest and blatant political government advertising;
• almost $11 billion dollars in cost blowouts on projects with little or no acknowledgment of responsibility or accountability;
• A government hiding behind commercial-in-confidence to avoid proper scrutiny;
• sham public and stakeholder consultation processes - the Windsor Hotel scandal being a prime example;
• increasing evidence of and continuing ongoing allegations of corruption;
• record numbers of spin doctors and media experts;
• requests for information are met with derision, spin, excuses and expensive VCAT battles; and
• absolutely no ministerial or government accountability.

The Brumby Government focuses on cover-ups and dishonesty rather than proper ministerial and government accountability.

However, the situation gets worse.

In 11 years, the Brumby Labor Government will have collected over $340 billion in an unprecedented revenue take.

And the budget has more than doubled from $19 billion to almost $45 billion.

At the same time, the Brumby Government has presided over a concerning increase in state debt.

A debt which is expected to have increased in only six years by more than eight-fold to a forecast $31.7 billion in 2014.

Yet there are absolutely no debt repayment plans in place.

They continue to keep racking up massive debt without a care in the world or any accountability for how this debt will ever be repaid.

Our children and grand children will be left with the responsibility of paying back this enormous debt legacy.

The question that begs to be answered is, has the extra revenue and new state debt been used efficiently by the Brumby Government to provide quality basic services and infrastructure for Victorians?

The answer is a resounding no.

Victoria should have been in a good financial position over the Budget estimates period to benefit from expected world economic growth post the crisis.

However, on this point, the Brumby Government has failed Victorians.

The reasons -

1. Labor's financial mismanagement, characterised by waste and incompetent project management;

• 2. Steeply increasing state debt; and
• 3. A failure to properly plan for Vic

Contact Kim:

9 Lynton Place,
Scoresby VIC 3179
• Phone: (03) 9764 8988
• Fax: (03) 9763 9816

• Email: kim.wells@parliament.vic.gov.au

• Website:
www.kimwells.com.au