Senator LIGHTFOOT (3:41 PM) —I want to take up some of the statements made by Senator Schacht. Senator Schacht said, inter alia, that the Howard government was the biggest spending and the biggest taxing government in Australian history. He related that back to the GDP. Just assume it is true—which I repudiate. This is a government that has built up the GDP. This is a government that has had, earned and brought about the biggest GDP in this nation's history. Of course there is going to be a bigger tax area on that. But if you break it down and say, `Is this a bigger tax on companies?' of course it is not. In 2000-01, company tax dropped from 36 per cent to 34 per cent. Next fiscal year, 2001-02, it is going to drop from 34 per cent back to 30 per cent. Is that a high taxing government? When there are $12 billion worth of personal tax cuts that are flowing back through the community that are benefiting small and medium businesses, is that a high taxing government?

To make a statement like that is not just utter and total ignorance but is disturbing because, whatever you like to think about the Labor Party, they are the only alternative government to the people on this side, who wish incidentally to retain the treasury bench. They are the only alternative government, but you cannot make sense of what they say. Let me tell you about what Labor propose to do with respect to taxation: we know that they are going to keep the GST. This is a Howard-Beazley GST at the moment. At the same time they said they are going to roll it back, they have said they are going to increase spending on defence, roads, research and development and local government.

It is very interesting that Senator Mackay is not here today, because Senator Mackay said in 1999 at a meeting of local government people here in Canberra that her government, God forbid, would give 6½ per cent of the GST take to local government. Not only is Mr Beazley—a bloke who has not done much in his life, who has never done particularly anything, except that he has been off to get educated, and that is laudable, but he has no life experience—going to roll back the GST but he is also giving 6½ per cent of the GST to local government. On top of that, they are going to spend on education, defence, roads and R&D.

Where is the spending coming from if the Labor Party are going to roll back the GST? One assumes that the rate is going to drop. What is the rate going to drop to? When is the policy coming out that will tell the people of Australia the rate to which the GST is going to drop when the Labor Party assume the treasury bench? I will tell you what is going to happen. It is going to be something like this: there are going to be 10 of Labor's numerous tax options, or all of these options. There is going to be an increase in the GST rate, not a decrease. If you are going to give 6½ per cent of it to local government, how can you possibly roll back the GST as well? There will be increases in the GST rate, increases in personal income tax. All that work that the Treasurer and the Prime Minister did to make sure that decent, hardworking people of Australia pay a lower tax regime is going to be undone. Company tax is going to go back up from 30 per cent to 36 per cent again. Superannuation rates are going to go up from nine per cent to 15 per cent. Capital gains tax is going to go back up from the 25 per cent or thereabouts that it is today to 50 per cent again. Look at company tax: it is going to be the ruination of this country. If Labor get in, they are going to be high taxing; they are going to be high spending.

We know that the so-called Knowledge Nation is a regurgitated mantra from the Whitlam era. That is going to be, in itself, a high cost introduction. It does not matter about work. At least Senator George Campbell knows something about work—he is straight from the union. If your blokes did not work, Senator Campbell, they did not get paid. But not Mr Beazley. Mr Beazley says he is going to roll back the GST and he is going to leave taxation where it is; he is going to spend up big and he is not going to increase taxation. What a laugh! When are we going to see some policies? Show some decency and tell us your policies. (Time expired)