⢠Transcript: Doorstop Interview, Perth Stephen Smith,Wayne Swan posted Tuesday, 27 July 2010 E & O E - PROOF ONLY Subjects: Building the Education Revolution; The cost of Tony Abbott’s company tax rate hike; Tony Abbott’s costing bungle; Minerals Resource Rent Tax; Gillard Government company tax rate cut; Wikileaks and Afghanistan; Asylum seekers STEPHEN SMITH: Thanks very much for coming. I'm obviously very pleased to have the Treasurer, Wayne Swan, my good friend and colleague at Beechboro Primary School. And you've seen for yourself the great benefit that the Building the Education Revolution program has brought to this local school. Just over $3.2 million worth of investment in the school; $200,000 under the National School Pride program; and $3 million to see the erection of an early learning centre and two new classrooms and a multipurpose centre. So this has been a terrific outcome for the school. It's transformed the school entirely. And so I'm very pleased to show the benefits of the program on the ground in my electorate to Wayne. I'll throw it to Wayne. He'll make some remarks. I've then got a couple of foreign policy issues to deal with. So once we've done that we're very happy to respond to your questions. Wayne. WAYNE SWAN: Thanks very much, Stephen. It's great to be here at this school. It's great to be here to see the difference that the Building the Education Revolution investment can make, not just to local schools, but to local communities. What that has done is provide a pipeline of investment; a pipeline of investment which has supported small business and which has supported employment, particularly during a very difficult time in our national economy, and also in the local economy here. So there are tradies who are employed today who wouldn't necessarily be employed if it hadn't been for Building the Education Revolution. There are small businesses who are still open who would not necessarily have survived if it hadn't have been for the Building the Education Revolution. And of course, it has been investments like these that have meant that Australia grew when other countries went into recession. Of course, if the Liberal Party had their way these investments would not have been made, and of course, Australia would have went into recession. But we grew through 2009 because the Federal Labor Government put in place essential investments which supported small business and supported employment. And that's why these projects are so important. But of course, as the global economy recovers we are beginning to experience mining boom mark two. And the Gillard Government has in place a range of reforms which will strengthen and reform our economy as we go forward â and these reforms are very important.
Date: 27/07/2010 - Collection: Media - ID: media/pressrel/D1IX6 - Source: DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER AND... - Author: SMITH, Stephen, MP -...