Finance Bill 2012

Deputy Olivia Mitchell: I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. As I said at the time of the budget, a budget that takes money out of the economy will never be popular. However, our commitment to the public at the time of the last election was that we would regain sovereignty by getting our finances back under control. That requires a complex and difficult two-track approach involving the reduction of spending and simultaneously growing the economy by creating the conditions for sustaining jobs. The latter requires making the economy more competitive by introducing reforms and trying to reduce costs, and by providing for the incentives in the Bill. Already we have seen the progress that has been made. There have been improvements in competitiveness and a return to growth, driven by a surge in exports from our important employment sectors.
I listened over the past two days to the Opposition’s contributions. One of its attacks was that the Bill represents a return to failed policy. Nothing could be further from the truth. It actually dismantles many of the measures that were at the root of our economic collapse. More important, it seeks to return us to a successful regime such as that of the late 1990s, when we were competitive, innovative and efficient. At that time, 1,000 jobs per week were added to the economy. Many of the measures in the Bill are aimed at the financial services sector. Approximately 21 measures in this regard provide high-end sustainable jobs.
The Opposition also criticised us by stating the measures in the Bill are minor technical ones. They are but that is the nature of finance Bills. Minor technical measures can have major economic effects. Has the Opposition already forgotten the role of the minor technical property tax measures in bringing this economy to its knees? The most minor of tax measures require intense scrutiny. To think otherwise is to fail to understand what a finance Bill is about. Of necessity, some of the measures are modest but they prioritise jobs, which must be the focus of what we do.
A further criticism of the Bill is that it does nothing for vulnerable people. The best thing we can do for vulnerable people is to provide them with jobs, or provide as many people as possible with jobs so we can return to paying taxes we can afford. That is the focus not only of the budget but also of the Action Plan for Jobs 2012, announced by the Government this week.
Vulnerable people were not forgotten in the budget owing to the measure promised on mortgage interest relief. I very much welcome this. I also welcome the announcement this week by certain lenders that they will now provide negative equity mortgages. This is essential, certainly for the thousands of my constituents with expanding families who are trapped in small apartments. For economic reasons, in addition to social ones, we need a mobile workforce now more than ever.