Thursday, 4 December 2025

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:04): My question is to the Premier. The Silver review is a $5 billion admission this government has failed to prioritise spending for Victorians. Can the government guarantee there will not be a reduction of services following its response to the Silver review?

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: The member for South-West Coast is warned. The Minister for Finance is warned. The Leader of the Nationals is warned. The member for Nepean is warned.

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:04): I can give a guarantee that the Leader of the Liberal Party cannot: that our government will never cut frontline services – will never cut the teachers, the nurses, the healthcare workers –

Members interjecting.

Jacinta ALLAN: Just to repeat: we will not cut those frontline workers, the teachers, the nurses, the healthcare workers, the police officers – all these areas where there are additional workers in these critical frontline services thanks to the investment by our Labor government. The Leader of the Liberal Party cannot make the same claim, because she was out there today saying we have not gone far enough.

Members interjecting.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier is debating the question.

The SPEAKER: The Premier to come back to the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: We are doing this work now to ensure that the Victorian public sector, who are responsible for delivering these frontline services, remain laser focused on the frontline services that families and people rely on. We are doing this now as part of our responsible settings around having a strong budget position and having fiscal discipline now. And why are we doing this? It is so we can continue to invest in more frontline services, to build for the future and to invest now in the real cost-of-living help we know working people and families rely on. And I say again, the Liberal Party today have said this is not enough, which can mean only one thing: Liberal cuts.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier is defying your ruling.

The SPEAKER: The Premier to come back to the question. The Premier has concluded her answer.

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:07): The government sat on the Silver review for five months. Why has the government waited until just before Christmas to sack 1000 Victorians?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:07): Again, I am pleased to have this opportunity to talk about how we are doing the responsible work now, putting in place the fiscal and budget settings so we can continue to invest in those frontline services that people rely on, those frontline services like police officers. Now, if you had an $11.1 billion black hole, you would need to –

Members interjecting.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, this question was very specifically about the government’s Christmas Grinch decision.

The SPEAKER: I do not uphold the point of order.

Jacinta ALLAN: Let us say, for argument’s sake, you had an $11.1 billion black hole hanging over your policy decisions, that would see 4500 police officers, 9000 teachers, 926 firefighters –

Danny O’Brien: On a point of order, Speaker, the standing orders preclude the opposition from asking hypothetical questions. The Premier is now delivering a hypothetical answer.

Ben Carroll: On the point of order, Speaker, the Leader of the Nationals went to the standing orders, and I will draw him to 58(2): the Premier ‘will have discretion to determine the content of any answer’. And she was being very relevant.

James Newbury: On the point of order, Speaker, it is outside the standing orders to attack the opposition, even when you do it in some kind of faux, juvenile way.

The SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. I do not uphold the point of order. Has the Premier concluded her answer?

Jacinta ALLAN: No, not at all, Speaker. Indeed, again, the Leader of the Opposition asked a question about the announcements we have made today to ensure the public service has laser-like focus on delivering frontline services. The Leader of the Opposition said it was a drop in the ocean, which reveals she would only cut into frontline services that families rely on.