Senator the Hon Mathias Cormann

The independent Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) has confirmed in its post-election analysis that the Coalition's policies would lead to a substantial improvement in the Budget bottom line.

The PBO finds that the improvement would be better than estimated by the Coalition at the time of the election, to the tune of $1 billion over the forward estimates in underlying cash terms.

Of the three parties, the Coalition's policies contributed, by far, the largest improvement to the Budget bottom line.

This analysis once and for all puts to bed the lies from the Labor Party over numerous years that there was a black hole in the Coalition's costings.

This result reveals the careful and prudent approach taken by the Coalition in preparing our policy costings from Opposition.

The Coalition will continue this conservative and methodical approach to costings and the Budget in Government.

The findings further confirm the work of the Coalition's Independent Expert Panel of Review, comprised of three of Australia's foremost experts in public finance and administration, who reviewed the costings of the Coalition.

Labor's economic credibility has now been completely shattered.

Bob Hawke and Paul Keating left John Howard and Peter Costello to clean up Labor's mess, and today, once again, it has been left to a Coalition Government to clean up after an irresponsible Labor Government.

The Coalition has already started implementing our positive plans for Australia and we will have more to say about the Budget with the release of MYEFO in coming months.

Note: In relation to the abolition date of various tax measures put forward by the Coalition that were linked to the MRRT, the assumptions contained in the PBO report do not necessarily reflect final Government policy. Announcements in relation to these measures will follow in due course.