Treasurer Joe Hockey and Finance Minister Mathias Cormann deny retreat on key budget measures

THE bill for Australia’s fight against IS could be in the billions of dollars. And we have to pay for it somehow. That could mean more cuts to the Budget.

No retreat ... Joe Hockey and Mathias Cormann say no key budget measures are on the backburner. Picture: Ray Strange.

PARLIAMENT has ticked off on laws beefing up the powers of Australia’s top spy agency to combat terrorism.

The measures, which had already been passed in the Senate, cleared the Lower House this afternoon.

Greens MP Adam Bandt and Independent’s Andrew Wilkie and Cathy McGowan objected to the legislation.

Just after the bills passed, Attorney General George Brandis announced at the National Press Club nearly $200 million (of the already set aside $630 million) will be given to ASIO over the next four years.

It comes as The Australian reported today that new cuts will be announced in the midyear budget review in December to pay for close to $1 billion in extra spending to fight IS.

Mr Hockey was unable to confirm figure on it this morning, but said “you’ll see it in the midyear update, which is in December”.

“Well, if there had been a number of initiatives already announced which are very important, such as increased funding for security, we need to identify the savings that helped to pay for those sorts of new initiatives,” Mr Hockey told ABC’s Chris Uhlmann.

When pressed on putting a figure on it, Mr Hockey said: “No, you’ll see it in the midyear update, which is in December, because we are again carefully and methodically going through the Budget. We don’t — Chris, we don’t do what Labor did, make it up along the way.”

Mr Hockey also denies the Abbott government is waving the white flag on other key budget measures, despite facing a stonewalling Senate for more than four months.

The Treasurer this morning denied the Coalition was giving up on $30 billion of four-year budget savings, including the GP co-payment and university fee reforms, as reported in The Australian Financial Review.

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Suggestions of a retreat are “wrong”, Mr Hockey told ABC Radio in response.

“If you can win a battle you take that victory, but you never give up on the war.”

News_Image_File: Not giving up ... Joe Hockey (right) denies the government is retreating from key budget measures. Picture: Gary Ramage.

The government still plans on pushing ahead with its plan to deregulate universities, he said.

“If we want to have universities in the top 20 in the world, if we want to be able to compete with the best in the world, we need to have a deregulated university system.”

Despite facing fierce opposition, Mr Hockey insisted they will also press on with a hike in the fuel excise.

“This is a very important structural reform.”

There too won’t be any backdown on making young people wait until they can pocket the dole, according to the Treasurer.

“I don’t accept that’s bad policy,” he said.

“Ultimately we need to have a earn or learn approach.”

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann stressed the government remains “firmly committed” to all of the measures it announced in May.

“Nothing is on the backburner,” he told reporters at Parliament House.

“The Senate has been very productive since Labor and the Greens lost control of the Senate on the 1st of July.”

Senator Cormann said it was “situation normal” to negotiate with other Senators to pass bills.

Both Mr Hockey and his colleague talked up the Coalition’s achievements in repealing the carbon and mining taxes.