JOINT PRESS RELEASE

THE HON. TONY ABBOTT MHR, LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION

THE HON. JOE HOCKEY MHR, SHADOW TREASURER
THE HON. ANDREW ROBB MHR,
SHADOW MINISTER FOR FINANCE AND DEBT REDUCTION

FURTHER BUDGET SAVINGS, FURTHER PRESSURE OFF INTEREST RATES

The Coalition has released an updated list of Budget savings measures, including an additional $1.183
billion of identified expenditure restraint over the forward estimates.

These savings are in addition to those savings already identified by the Coalition earlier this year. All
identified Coalition savings have been updated in light of the Economic Statement released by the
Government last week.

As a result, Coalition savings represent a running total of $45.8 billion. These are real savings.

Labor’s reckless spending must stop.

Julia Gillard promised last week that “there will be some hard choices and some unpopular cutbacks.”

The time has come for Ms Gillard to put her money where her mouth is and tell Australians in what areas
she is going to make the cutbacks she has promised.

This plan to put an end to Labor’s reckless spending will take pressure off interest rates, help to ease the
cost of living for families and start to pay back Labor’s debt.

The Coalition has consistently taken the fiscally responsible approach of identifying specific Budget
savings in order to fund our policy commitments. Budget savings were identified in the Opposition
Leader’s Address-in-Reply this year, with further savings subsequently identified by the Shadow Treasurer
and Shadow Minister for Finance and Debt Reduction. Offsetting savings were also identified as part of the
Coalition’s recently released $1.5 billion Mental Health policy. The release of further savings today
continues this process.

A prudent and responsible government must tackle reckless and wasteful spending. Unless we are prepared
to rein in government spending, the reality will be higher interest rates, higher taxes and higher cost of
living.

In just three years the Rudd-Gillard Government has taken us from $45 billion of net financial assets in
2007/08 to a projected peak at $89.7 billion net debt in 2012-13 which is a turnaround in the
Commonwealth’s net debt position of $135 billion.

Labor is still borrowing $100 million each and every day to fund its spending binge which will continue for
at least the next two years.
It is everyday Australians who will have to pay back Labor’s debt and it is everyday Australians who will
have to pay higher interest rates thanks to Labor’s addiction to spending.

The Coalition will end the waste, cut the debt and stop Labor’s tax increases.

We will bring the Budget to surplus and repay the debt through spending restraint and eliminating
government waste.

All of us want to see better government services and government spending that provides value for
taxpayers and the community. But no responsible government should fund programmes that do not deliver
value for taxpayer dollars.

Australian taxpayers and families deserve a government that will rein in its own spending and ensure that
its spending will not place further upward pressure on interest rates and taxes.

Only the Coalition will take real action to bring Labor’s wasteful spending and addiction to borrowing
under control.

20 July 2010