Page 1782 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 8 June 2016
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MR BARR (Molonglo—Chief Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Tourism and Events and Minister for Urban Renewal) (10.17): I move the following amendment circulated in my name:
Omit all words after “That this Assembly”, substitute:
“(1) notes that:
(a) in the 2016-17 ACT Budget the Government is returning the Budget to surplus;
(b) the Headline Net Operating Balance in 2015-16 has more than halved since the 2015-16 Budget review, with a deficit of $94.3 million in 2016-17, before the Budget returns to balance in 2017-18 and 2018-19, with a strong surplus in 2019-20;
(c) the ACT Government ran strong surpluses in the early 2000s, which gave the Government the capacity to respond effectively to external shocks, such as the deep job cuts by the Federal Liberal Government and the need to rid Canberra of the legacy of loose-fill asbestos;
(d) the ACT Government used the Budget to support the local economy, and to support jobs, during the Commonwealth’s cuts;
(e) this strategy worked, as evidenced by recent economic data showing the strength of the economy:
(i) the ACT’s unemployment rate is the lowest in the nation, at 4.1 per cent;
(ii) that retail trade is the strongest in the country;
(iii) commercial building approvals and residential building approvals are increasing;
(iv) service exports have increased by 65 per cent since 2010, which is well above the national average of 25 per cent; and
(v) growth in economic activity, as measured by State Final Demand, in the Territory was the highest in the nation;
(f) net debt in the ACT is falling in the coming years, and that the Territory retains a stable AAA credit rating; one of only three jurisdictions in Australia to have this highest possible credit rating;
(g) Net Financial Liabilities to Gross State Product in the ACT is in line with the other AAA rated states of Victoria and NSW;
(h) the capital works program in the coming four years will be $2.9 billion;
(i) the Territory is leading the nation in delivering taxation reform, through abolishing unfair and inefficient taxes;
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