❓ Premier Carpenter criticises the federal budget, arguing it relies on WA's economic activity without providing adequate infrastructure investment in return. He accuses the federal government of using WA's resources to fund election bribes and neglecting crucial areas like apprenticeships.
AnsweredQoN 190Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
FEDERAL BUDGET - WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S ECONOMIC GROWTH
Can the Premier explain what was in the federal budget to help sustain Western Australia’s economic growth? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
Can the Premier explain what was in the federal budget to help sustain Western Australia’s economic growth? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
I can. This is the situation with that federal budget. Prime Minister John Howard is a person I have a high degree of respect for as a politician and a political operative. He is a very interesting character to watch. There is no doubt that he is one of the cleverest politicians the country has had. He is very cunning, he is very shrewd and - Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I can. This is the situation with that federal budget. Prime Minister John Howard is a person I have a high degree of respect for as a politician and a political operative. He is a very interesting character to watch. There is no doubt that he is one of the cleverest politicians the country has had. He is very cunning, he is very shrewd and - Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
I can. This is the situation with that federal budget. Prime Minister John Howard is a person I have a high degree of respect for as a politician and a political operative. He is a very interesting character to watch. There is no doubt that he is one of the cleverest politicians the country has had. He is very cunning, he is very shrewd and - Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I can. This is the situation with that federal budget. Prime Minister John Howard is a person I have a high degree of respect for as a politician and a political operative. He is a very interesting character to watch. There is no doubt that he is one of the cleverest politicians the country has had. He is very cunning, he is very shrewd and - Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
I can. This is the situation with that federal budget. Prime Minister John Howard is a person I have a high degree of respect for as a politician and a political operative. He is a very interesting character to watch. There is no doubt that he is one of the cleverest politicians the country has had. He is very cunning, he is very shrewd and - Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Ms S.E. Walker : He is very sincere and genuine. Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Several members interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I will begin again. He is clever, cunning and shrewd and, above all, he is calculating. He has calculated how much he thinks he needs to spend to bribe the Australian electorate to get himself back into government. That is what he has done. I agree with the National Party; it is not a good budget for Western Australia. Do members know how Peter Costello and the Prime Minister have been able to actually afford those bribes; those throwaways to various sectors of the community? It is because of the economic activity in Western Australia. The mining and resources boom in Western Australia has funded that federal budget, and they know it. What do we in Western Australia get in return? What investment has been made into our infrastructure that facilitates - Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I shudder at the thought of the Leader of the Opposition becoming the Premier of this state and thinking that the sort of support we get for infrastructure from the current federal government is sufficient. Western Australians, through the Western Australian state government, are investing billions - I think the figure was $17 billion to $18 billion in the last budget - in infrastructure to facilitate economic growth in this state, which is fuelling the economic fortunes of the nation. Western Australia provides in revenues to the commonwealth government $5 billion more than is returned. That is more than the annual spend that we must commit to infrastructure to provide that economic growth. There was virtually nothing that I could see or hear about in that budget speech that told us that our key economic infrastructure program would be supported by the federal government - nothing. Once again, it will be up to the people and the government of Western Australia to do it on their own. We, as the government and the private business community of Western Australia, will be providing the infrastructure with virtually no federal support, even though we are fuelling the budget revenues that Peter Costello applied to bribe the community in advance of the next election. That is what has happened. No-one is going to knock getting a tax cut, but let us take training, for example. The extra allocation that I heard mentioned last night and read about in the paper today to increase the number of apprenticeships in Western Australia is pathetically short of what is required. The notion that giving a tax-free $1 000 one-off payment to an apprentice will boost the number of apprentices in Western Australia is so far short of reality it makes me think that the federal government does not understand what is going on here. Some apprentices in Western Australia are already earning $50 000, $60 000 or $70 000. An extra $1 000 will not do anything for them. We need a sustained investment program. We do not need the creation of yet another Australian technical college to add to the two that have already been established and that are producing a handful of students. We in Western Australia have increased the number of apprentices and trainees from something like 18 000 to 34 000. That is the sort of human infrastructure investment that was missing from the budget last night. There is nothing in the budget that tells me of an economic and infrastructure strategy. I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
I think I share the thoughts of Michael Chaney about last night’s budget. I was dumbstruck when I heard John Langoulant saying that it was a good budget for business. It made me wonder what he sees in it that we do not. Michael Chaney said that there is nothing in it for business and there is no strategy in it for business. That is the reality of it. John Howard missed the chance to invest in the infrastructure for Australia’s future. He wanted to bribe people with one-off payments - the trick that he has tried before in election campaigns - to buy their votes for the next election. That was the strategy in that budget last night.
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