Federal election 2016: Labor in a frenzy over $66.9 billion black hole

LABOR went into meltdown over government claims that it will create a massive $66.9 billion black hole in the Budget through its election spending spree.

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LABOR went into meltdown yesterday over government claims that it will create a massive $66.9 billion black hole in the Budget through its election spending spree.

In a battle that reached ­almost hysterical levels, the ALP’s key economic team of Tony Burke and Chris Bowen went on a fevered attack, ­accusing the government of making the numbers up.

Yet, despite all their uproar, they could not come up with a Budget black hole that was better than $32 billion.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten in Perth yesterday / Picture: Kym Smith

As revealed exclusively in The Daily Telegraph yesterday, the Turnbull government launched its all-out assault on Labor’s Budget bottom line, with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull labelling Opposition Leader Bill Shorten “Billion Dollar Bill.”

A conga line of Labor frontbenchers lined up to label the figures “fictitious” and not worth “a grain of salt” — but they could not explain how they would fund the spending.

Treasurer Scott Morrison said despite revised foreign aid spending, Labor still could not fund its promises.

“Worst case is $67 billion, best case is a $32 billion black hole,” Mr Morrison said.

“Labor simply can’t pay for the promises they are making to the Australian people.”

Mr Burke began yelling during a bizarre media conference as he tried to claim the black hole had been made up.

“They know the information they’re giving the Australian people is wrong,” he pleaded, insisting that over the “medium term” there would be more improvements to the bottom line than outgoings.

Bill Shorten with a young admirer in Penrith on Friday / Picture: Supplied

Mr Shorten claimed the government was lying.

“What a desperate fellow this Mr Turnbull is becoming when he is resorting to the negative big lie of this election,” he said.

But the PM refused to be cowed by the shrill attacks, ­labelling Labor’s cash splash so far in the campaign as “flagrant wastefulness”.

“The real issue is the flagrant wastefulness and recklessness of the Labor Party, outspending us by 20 to one in this campaign,’’ he said.

“Billion Dollar Bill keeping on joking, making jokes about the spend-o-meter. He thinks it’s a joke spending all our taxes, that’s what Bill thinks, another billion here, another billion there.

“That’s what Bill Shorten thinks is terribly amusing, the spend-o-meter.

“He’s got a $67 billion black hole over the next four years. He has no way of paying for it other than by higher taxes.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull visits manufacturing business Carbon Revolution in Geelong yesterday / Picture: AAP

Cartoonist Warren Brown’s view on Labor’s Canada asylum seeker solution.

Originally published as Federal election 2016: Labor in a frenzy over $66.9 billion black hole