Labor’s half-baked bid to cook the books
29th November, 2011
IS THERE no dodgy stunt this Labor government won’t pull to con Australians? Ahead of the Gillard government’s crisis mini-budget this morning, leader of The Nationals and Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Warren Truss exposes a $1.2 billion hoax.“The Gillard government is bringing forward infrastructure payments of $1.2 billion from next year to this year in the hope it will artificially revive its flatlining promise to deliver a budget surplus in 2012-13,” Mr Truss said.
“But it doesn’t mean roads will be built sooner because the required contribution from state governments will generally not be available until next financial year, as scheduled.
“This is simply accounting duplicity that takes Australians for mugs.
“Do Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan think anyone will take a budget surplus in 2012-13 seriously if it is created by empty sleight of hand?
“Is it any wonder business and consumer confidence in this country is rock bottom when we have a shifty government that shuffles $1.2 billion dollars but does not lay a single metre of extra bitumen.
“Sadly, Australians are all too familiar with this government’s grubby deals, shonky tactics and desperate lies to the point we’re barely surprised anymore.”
Addendum - 11:40am
Following the release of the crisis mini-budget, Mr Truss added:
“This is Labor being too tricky by half. It’s just a reshuffle of federal monies to create an illusionary surplus. In fact, when Wayne Swan is aiming for a wafer-thin surplus of just $1.5B, it is virtually all bogus money, based on the $1.4B infrastructure rort.
“A quick look at the numbers show the amount Labor is bringing forward for infrastructure is actually $1.4B (an extra item was revealed in the MYEFO papers following the media release this morning, namely the Western Ring Road in Melbourne).
“Again, this so-called ‘accelerated funding’ doesn’t equate to roads being built sooner because the co-funding from state governments doesn’t come through until much later.”
[ENDS]
