Mr FITZGIBBON (2:30 PM) —My question is to the Prime Minister. Can the Prime Minister confirm that his budget delivers tax cuts of just $6 per week to those on the average income in 144 electorates but $22 a week to those on the average income in the electorates of Higgins, Warringah, North Sydney and Bradfield? Can he also confirm that an average worker in Western Sydney will receive a paltry tax cut of just $6 each week but the latest rise in mortgage interest payments will cost a family with a $200,000 mortgage around $8 each week? Prime Minister, isn’t the government’s tax cut for low- to middle-income families unfair and hasn’t it already been eaten away by the recent interest rate rise?

Mr HOWARD (Prime Minister) —I will take a moment or two to analyse every part of that question, and, if I can add anything further to the answer I am about to give, I will. The basis on which the question is framed is that somehow or other all of the high-income electorates in this place are represented by this side of politics and all of the low-income electorates are represented by the other side. In fact that is not right. I saw a table the other day that showed that of the 10 electorates with the lowest incomes only one of them was not held by the coalition. I know that we represent a broader church in this place now than we might have in earlier days, and I know that the spectrum of people who are supporting the coalition is getting wider. It is the Labor Party that is narrowing its base to the inner metropolitan elite. I understand that.

The proposition is that we are only interested in representing these wonderful electorates like North Sydney, Higgins and Warringah. We are proud to represent those people. We are also very proud, equally proud, to represent the low-income electorates like Wide Bay, the low-income electorates in Northern Tasmania and the low-income electorates like Paterson and Longman. The list goes on and on.

I give this bit of advice to the member for Hunter, who I think is a person of good disposition: forget about this old idea that the Liberal Party and the National Party are in favour of all the rich people and you are in favour of all the workers. You have proved again and again that you do not understand the aspirations of the Australian worker, let alone have a capacity to represent them.