Mr Rudd appears to be excessively sensitive about the Labor Party debt. One of the reasons for his sensitivity could be the unrelenting rise in our nation’s gross debt and the Australian public’s understandable concern about this.
Australian Commonwealth Government Securities outstanding, as of the 8th December, 2009 was $115.71 billion. By the 5th January, 2010 the amount had risen to $ 117.31 billion outstanding. By the start of February, it had risen again to $120.61 billion. Now, not even midway through February, it has risen again to $122.01 billion.
Mr Rudd, Mr Swan and Mr Tanner concern themselves about where $3.2 billion for the Coalition’s environmental plan will come from, but their debt has gone up by almost double that amount in approximately two months. The interest bill on the current debt would be approximately double what the Coalition requires for their environmental plan. Mr Rudd does not want to tell the Australian people about the pain that will come because of this debt and the interest expense that will have to be financed.
Mr Rudd does not want to talk about the pressure this debt will place on basic services –health, education, aid, and roads .Mr Rudd wants to close his eyes and hope it all goes away, very similar to his approach to the public hospital problem.
The last time the Labor Party left government they left Australia with a $96 billion debt. It took ten years to pay off this episode of Labor’s bad management. How long and how hard will it be to pay off this episode of bad management under Mr Rudd?
Mr Rudd, no one ever had an unmanageable problem, that didn’t start with a manageable problem but with a lack of conviction to deal with it. Mr Rudd, you lack the conviction, the courage and decisiveness to manage the debt problem that you created.
The Labor Party’s reference to bearded ladies and freak shows will not count for much when it comes to meeting the demands of those to whom we owe the money. This money is predominately owed overseas and those who we owe it to ultimately want it back.