Page 2837 - Week 07 - Thursday, 7 June 2012
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MR BARR: It is indeed very important to continue our support for the local economy and local jobs, and on a day like today, when we now have a new, all-time record for the number of territorians in employment, with 208,300 of our fellow Canberrans in employment. This is the largest number of people to hold jobs in the ACT in the history of the territory. It is a fantastic day for those who believe in employment and the value of work in this city, and it is a fantastic achievement for this economy to have created an additional 500 jobs in the last month, to see 500 more people in employment and 100 fewer unemployed. We maintain the lowest unemployment rate in the country. We have the second highest participation rate. So it shows a very strong and robust labour market, and that is indeed a great credit to this economy.
Mr Smyth: If the economy is so good, why is the budget so bad?
MR BARR: We are delighted with this figure. It is fantastic news. And the only people in Canberra who think this is bad news, and we have just heard it from the shadow treasurer, are the Canberra Liberals. They are the only people who mope around looking for every bit of bad economic news to further reinforce their miserableness about the health of this economy.
Members interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Order, members! Mr Barr, you are free to continue, but let us focus on the question at hand, please.
MR BARR: One of the government’s key priorities is ensuring that our territory economy remains strong and resilient. So through our budget we have introduced a range of measures to grow the private sector, to reform our taxation system, to ensure that we continue to have a strong and diverse economy. We have been the envy of many around Australia, and today’s unemployment figures go to confirm that. We have Australia’s highest average incomes. The data on this is indeed very encouraging, with average weekly earnings in the territory of $1,554.50 compared to the national average weekly earnings of $1,345.20. So it is a significantly higher average wage in this city than elsewhere in the country.
Our unemployment rate has now been below four per cent for nearly a decade. We are experiencing robust population growth. However, as I have indicated through the budget commentary this week, we cannot take our situation for granted. So the government has, through this budget, sought to announce a substantial support package for local businesses aimed at supporting the economy and jobs. At the core of this is a desire to create an environment in which the private sector can thrive, and we are seeking to do this through market-based policies. This is quite a distinction between the government and the opposition in relation to our preference for market-based policies and the preference of the shadow treasurer for 1950s and 1960s style industry plans—a North Korean approach to economic development that we see from the shadow treasurer.
We are committed to creating an environment in which the private sector can thrive—market-based policies, actions to broaden employment, business activity, growth and
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