Page 5321 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 15 November 2011
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So 10 years ago or 13 years ago it was there to assist families with their budgeting and cost pressures; now it is an outrageous, disgraceful poor tax. Why don’t you tell the whole picture?
Mr Smyth: How times change.
MS GALLAGHER: So in government things are different? It is a good tax when you are in government, Brendan? Look at the disallowable instrument that you have signed here. It has got your fingerprints all over it. Look there:
Additional fee payable upon the grant or renewal of registration, or grant or renewal of a licence for a period of less than 12 months …
And there are Brendan Smyth’s initials at the bottom of each page.
Interestingly, this disallowable instrument also outlines very significant increases in parking costs and other charges that obviously are good in government—but not in opposition, right? When you are in opposition, you say—oops—“It is not a poor tax or a disgraceful tax.” There is article after article of Brendan explaining why it is a good and reasonable charge, but now it is a poor, disgraceful tax.
Mr Smyth interjecting—
MS GALLAGHER: I notice that this has not featured heavily in your announcements over this new charge—that it was actually your charge. “Yes. No. I was wrong. I was wrong to introduce it 13 years ago. It was wrong. It was a disgraceful tax when I was the minister in charge, and it is a disgraceful tax now but it is one that was worthy to implement the first time.” Let me look back at some of the increases in parking fees. Look at that one: parking in a no stopping area increased from $50 to $134, a 268 per cent increase. It may be worthy. I support that. But the issue—
Mr Smyth: Repeal it. Go on.
MS GALLAGHER: No; I actually support it. The issue is that you cannot come in here and say that, in government, you will raise no more revenue, you will put downward pressure on cost of living and you will remove charges that you implemented when you were last in a position where you could implement change. That is what you did, and that has not featured heavily in any of the speeches I have heard from the opposition about the implementation of this first wonderful election policy. I did not see in the fine print: “Yes, it was a really bad thing that we introduced. It is still a bad thing. But we thought that our first announcement is for Zed Seselja to overturn one of Brendan Smyth’s last actions as a minister.” It is hilarious. How did the party room discussion go? “That was the last thing I did. I upped the parking—
Members interjecting—
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