Swan must explain $7 billion mining tax shortfall

19/08/10

Reports that Labor has a $7b. budget shortfall from their new tax on mining confirms that Labor won’t get the budget back into surplus in 2012-13 as claimed.

Labor has claimed that the revised MRRT will raise $10.5 billion in revenue, however, according to a member of the government’s own policy implementation group, the $10.5 billion revenue forecast is not achievable in three years, let alone two, and there has been no modelling.

Reportedly, the Committee also believes that the revenue from the tax it is more likely to be $3.3b over two years, rather than then $10.5 billion heroically asserted by Wayne Swan.

This shortfall does not affect the Coalition’s finances because we will axe the tax and all associated spending programmes, and we are not claiming the revenue. It is Labor’s problem and Labor’s problem alone.

Wayne Swan (and whoever will be Finance Minister should Labor be re-elected) must today front the media and release a full financial statement detailing Labor’s spending and supposed savings during the campaign.

A two line press release won’t do.

And he must explain how the budget will return to surplus given his missing $7b.

The Coalition has released a comprehensive set of financial statements that outline how we will achieve a bigger surplus than Labor, and how we will start the task of eliminating Labor’s massive $90b. debt by cutting it by 35 percent by 2013-14.

Wayne Swan has cried wolf once too often about our costings.

It’s time he answered questions about his own seriously flawed finances.