MEDIA RELEASE: HOCKEY CONTINUES TO SHOW HE DOESN’T UNDERSTAND HIS OWN BUDGET

One hundred days since Joe Hockey’s unfair budget was first handed down the Treasurer continues to show he has no idea about the state or progress of individual budget measures.

After shutting down Budget Mark I due his bumbling sales job, Joe Hockey’s back trying to reboot the debate. Only Budget Sale Mark II is showing some familiar Hockey glitches.

In an extraordinary interview on Sky News last night Mr Hockey showed his complete lack of understanding about the progress of the Government’s plan to legislate changes to the pensions of 3.2 million Australians.

When asked about the Government’s legislation to change pensions currently before the Parliament, Mr Hockey said:

HOCKEY: We are taking it to another election, so our commitments on pensions...

PETER VAN ONSELEN: You're trying to legislate it before that...

HOCKEY: No, no, we haven't said that yet.  So you shouldn't assume that.

PVO NEWS HOUR – WEDNESDAY, 20 AUGUST 2014

Before the election Tony Abbott promised “No changes to pensions”. After the election there are changes to pensions and the Treasurer doesn’t even know they’ve passed through the House of Representatives on 24 June 2014 in the Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment (2014 Budget Measures No. 2) Bill 2014.

Shadow Finance Minister and Manager of Opposition Business Tony Burke said the Treasurer should just give up, stop making a fool of himself and start again.

"Joe Hockey's new budget sales pitch is the same as his first, only this time the Treasurer has found new facts to get wrong," Mr Burke said.

"Joe Hockey was caught getting facts wrong on new taxes contained in his unfair budget, now he's getting facts wrong on changes to pensions, he just has no idea.

“The Government thinks the only problem with this budget is the conversation. The problem is the content and the people responsible for the content: Tony Abbott, Joe Hockey and Mathias Cormann, the people who put this unfair budget together.

"Tony Abbott and Joe Hockey have lost the confidence of the Australian people with their constant lies and lack of understanding about their unfair budget."