Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey are becoming a modern day Laurel and Hardy with their slapstick routine on the economy. Every week there is more evidence that the Liberal Party is fielding its weakest economic team in generations.
CLANGER: Joe Hockey claims the Reserve Bank did not reduce the cash rate because the economy is overheating:
'This shows it is now manifestly clear that it is the policies of this government which are pushing up the cost of living and staying the Reserve's hand in delivering further interest rate relief to home buyers and small businesses.'
Joe Hockey – Press Release – 6 November 2012
But just a day earlier, Tony Abbott was suggesting a Reserve Bank cut would be a result of 'economic weakness':
'If the Reserve Bank cuts, that won't be a sign of Australia's economic strength; that will be a sign of general economic weakness.'
Tony Abbott – Doorstop – 5 November 2012
And last month, when the Reserve Bank cut official rates by 25 basis points, Mr Hockey, instead of welcoming the interest rate relief, criticised it, saying rates were near emergency levels:
We are one cut away from 'emergency levels' of interest rates.
Joe Hockey – Doorstop – 2 October 2012
FACT: The Opposition are so recklessly negative, they can't make up their minds on whether interest rate cuts are good or bad for families and the Australian economy. That's no surprise, given they presided over 10 interest rate rises in a row – and six times after promising the Australian people to keep rates at 'record lows'.
The official interest rate, at 3.25 per cent, is lower than it was at any time under the Liberals, saving Australians on a $300,000 mortgage around $4,500 per year in interest payments compared to when the Liberals left office. At the same time, Australia's economy is growing at 3.7 per cent and the IMF is forecasting Australia to be one of the fastest growing advanced economies this year and next.
CLANGER: Joe Hockey has said that he won't cost his policies until the election because "people would be holding us to policies that, you know, would arguably be out of date."
(ABC Brisbane – 6 November 2012)
FACT: Joe Hockey and the Coalition have been dodging scrutiny of the cost of their policies for more than two years. Mr Hockey's 2010 so-called election auditors were reprimanded for professional misconduct and the last detailed costings he released turned out to be done by a catering company – giving new meaning to 'cooking the books'.
The Opposition has unprecedented access to a confidential costings service through the Parliamentary Budget Office, so it's time for Joe Hockey to put his policies in and come clean with the community about how he's going to fill the $70 billion crater he's admitted his budget contains.
CLANGER: Tony Abbott and the Coalition claim they are the party of business.
I will end the bad blood between government and business that is damaging investment and employment.
Tony Abbott – Speech – 2 November 2012
FACT: Tony Abbott is the first leader in the Liberal Party's history to oppose a cut to the company tax rate and vote against tax relief for small business. He is now planning to slug businesses – big and small – with a $17 billion hit to business over four years.
The economic record under this Labor Government, on the other hand, has seen more than 800,000 jobs created since we came to office and our unemployment rate is less than half that of Europe and significantly below other advanced economies. We also have a strong investment outlook, with a record $260 billion of investment at an advanced stage and new business investment forecast to hit a record high as a percentage of GDP. In fact, yesterday's Dun & Bradstreet Business Expectations survey reported that one in three Australian businesses expect to boost their long-term investments next year, with capital investment expectations reaching their highest level in nearly ten years.