Rudd admits Australia will hit $300 billion debt by 2013
21 May 2009 1:03 PM
PERTH, May 21 AAP - Federal Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull says the prime minister is "ashamed" of the debt he's burdening Australia with.
He also accused Kevin Rudd of not being up front with Australians about the yoke of debt he's put around the country's neck.
He told Fairfax Radio Mr Rudd was "so ashamed of the debt and deficit" his government was building.
"This is a prime minister who is not coming to terms with the huge crushing debt burden he's imposing on Australians," he told Perth's 6PR.
"If Kevin Rudd was fair dinkum he would look Australians in the eye and he would say 'my government has presided over the biggest deficit in Australia's history and we're heading to our biggest debt in our history'."
Mr Rudd had to be asked several times earlier this week about where Australia's debt would peak. He finally nominated a figure of $300 billion.
On Thursday, he was freely using that figure on radio.
Speaking to Fairfax Radio from Geraldton in Western Australia, he said the country's gross debt would reach $300 billion over the next four years.
He again said the debt from the recently released budget was necessary to cushion the blow of the global financial crisis.
"Net debt peaks at about $188 billion in 2012 to 2013, a gross debt of about $300 billion at that stage," Mr Rudd said/
"Net debt rises to 13.6 per cent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product).
"That is the lowest of any of the major advanced economies and represents seven times lower than the major advanced economies."
