Andrew Leigh

More Canberra public service job cuts promised by Tony Abbott this week. Mr Abbott said in a speech yesterday "Do we really need 20,000 more public servants in Canberra today than we had at the end of the Howard era? We don’t…".

JOINT MEDIA STATEMENT

Andrew Leigh MP

Member for Fraser

Gai Brodtmann MP

Member for Canberra

23 November 2012

Abbott confirms plans to get rid of 20,000 jobs from the ACT

Tony Abbott has confirmed that a Federal Coalition government will get rid of 20,000 jobs in the ACT – potentially throwing our economy back into the same type of downturn we suffered when John Howard slashed the public sector in 1996.

On 8 May 2012, Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey told the 7.30 program that the Liberal policy is to cut the federal public service in Canberra by 20,000. We know the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency as well as the Department of Health and Ageing are in the Liberals’ sights for job cuts, but the Liberals refuse to say which other departments and agencies are on their hit list.

Now Tony Abbott has confirmed the Liberals’ scythe will be brought again to Canberra, saying there is no need for 20,000 public servants.

This is the same scorched earth policy of Campbell Newman in Queensland, where unemployment has risen dramatically as government services are wound back.

When the Coalition last came to office, they slashed over 15,000 jobs in Canberra.  Small business paid the price, with a huge jump in bankruptcies. Families saw a massive drop in house prices.

Canberra’s public servants and the businesses that rely on a growing ACT economy deserve to know whether their jobs and their community are under threat.

We call on Tony Abbott to give exact details of which departments and agencies will suffer job losses under an Abbott Government.