Mr SWAN —My question is directed to the Minister for Community Services. Is it a fact that, despite what Senator Newman says, the massive increase in the number of disability support pensioners over the last three years has nothing to do with disability in ageing and everything to do with unemployment? Are you aware of the internal departmental report which found `unemployment is the major determinant of disability pension receipt'? Will you now admit that your real agenda is to make the unemployment rate look lower than it is by shifting people onto the disability support pension and that, if you had not been so successful at this, the unemployment rate now would be 7.8 per cent?

Mr ANTHONY (Community Services) —I would like to thank the member for Lilley for his question.

Opposition members interjecting—

Mr ANTHONY —Obviously the opposition is not keen to hear the answer, because there is so much disquiet here. But the facts are that, with the disability support pension, the greatest growth rate in people on disabilities actually happened when the Labor Party was in government in the last three years. This is the whole irony: it went up 22.8 per cent, and in the last three years there has been a growth rate of 15.7 per cent—one-third less, Prime Minister, over the time we have been in government. This is the interesting thing with this great debate which is raging with the Labor Party about DSP: the Labor Party did absolutely nothing about it in its term of government. The great hypocrisy!

We do recognise that there are a lot of people on DSP. We want to help these people to maximise their potential to move back into the work force. Indeed, not only will we be looking at encouraging these people through the Employment Assistance Program—and there have been a lot more people on that program in the last three years than when you were in government—but also we want to see those people maximise their potential to move back. There is no such suggestion that we are encouraging people to go on DSP to avoid unemployment. The facts show that, if you are on DSP and looking for work, you are included in the unemployment figures, Member for Lilley.