Joint Campaign Statement

Treasurer Chris Bowen Minister for Finance and Deregulation Penny Wong
TIMES UP FOR COALITION COSTINGS Joe Hockey has this evening admitted he is deliberately shifting the goal posts to mislead the Australian people. To get the outcome he wants, hes switched accounting rules and thrown John Howard and Peter Costellos practice out the window. This is the clearest acknowledgement to date that Mr Abbott and Mr Hockey are deliberately distorting their numbers to hide their cuts from the Australian people. Federal Labor asked Treasury and Finance for specific costings. Our requests were based on the best publicly available information about opposition policies. This is clear in the from the minutes released today. We took this step because Mr Abbott and Mr Hockey refuse to submit their policies for costing consistent with Peter Costellos Charter of Budget Honesty. What those costings show is that Mr Abbott and Mr Hockey have a $10 billion hole in their numbers. This entire situation could be resolved if Mr Abbott and Mr Hockey released their costings in full. It is as simple as that. They should stand up in front of the Australian people today and release the full policy documentation from the Parliamentary Budget Office for every one of the 200 policies they claim to have costed. If they have the PBO costings, then why shouldnt it be shared with the Australian people immediately? Their refusal to do so confirms they have hidden cuts to come. They are hiding their policies, because if the Australian people knew the cuts that were coming they would not vote for Abbott and Hockey. MELBOURNE 29 AUGUST 2013

Communications Unit: T 03 8625 5111 www.alp.org.au Authorised by G. Wright, Australian Labor Party, 5/9 Sydney Avenue, Barton, ACT, 2600