Economy
Renee HEATH (Eastern Victoria) (17:31): (122) My adjournment matter is for the Treasurer and relates to the significant debt incurred in the increasing interest repayments we are currently experiencing. The action that I seek is for the Treasurer to provide a detailed plan of how we will repay this debt so we do not burden future generations with crippling repayments. According to the October 2022 budget update, net debt is projected to be at $165.4 billion by 2025–26. That is almost 25 per cent of Victoria’s economy. Currently net debt is around $100 billion. With interest rates increasing we have seen interest repayments rise to $10 million per day. How many teachers would that train? How many new roads would that build? How many homeless people could we house? How many more students with special needs would we be able to support – or more hospital beds? How many more cases could we see in our local court systems? The list goes on and on. But what really concerns me is who pays for this. Once we are all gone from this place, there will be a new generation of leaders that will have to come in and grapple with the consequences of today’s spending. There will be a new generation of taxpayers that will need to fund these repayments. In effect we are burdening the next generation or the young people of today with being the debt reducers of tomorrow. It is like going into a restaurant, ordering the most expensive meal and then expecting the next five customers to come in and foot the bill. It is time for this government to get its finances under control.