Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2026-2027

Mr GREGG (Deakin) (18:28): I rise in support of the proposed appropriation. This is about funding our essential government agencies under the Treasury umbrella. These are agencies that help shape our economic policy, administer our tax system, protect consumers, support business and ensure that all of us, as decision-makers, have the information and thoughtful advice we need to make good decisions on behalf of the Australian people.

We know that our economy is facing a series of long-term challenges—the difficulty for Australians to buy their first home; demographic change; technological change, which is presenting both remarkable opportunities and challenges at the same time—so we need more than good intentions. We need strong, robust institutions that support good governance in Australia.

This budget paper is more than just about supporting bureaucrats, it's about maintaining and building on our economic resilience, our productivity and on our consumer protections. The efficiency and effectiveness of our institutions doesn't mean that this is something that can just be ignored. I understand the temptation for political theatre, and I have enjoyed some of the showmanship as much as anyone, but the reality is a well-governed society requires good institutions.

It's the boring bit of the budget process, but it is important. It ensures that, when we come up with challenging policies, we actually have the facts behind us. It ensures that, when we're confronted with decisions that affect the future of the Australian people, we have the relevant facts on the table, whether we like them or not, and that we have the economic reality put in front of us, whether it suits us politically or whether it reflected our perceptions years ago, simply to make decisions based on the world as it is, not how we wished it to be.

The strength of those institutions is essential for us to maintain the strong governance that Australians rely on. These institutions also play an essential role in protecting us from things like scams, like the work of the ACCC. I know in my electorate of Deakin there are a lot of people—older people, young people and even small businesses—that are being affected by scams, and some of the remarkable work being done by the ACCC in helping protect individuals and small businesses from the increasing risks of scams has been incredibly important.

That is the kind of day-to-day grunt work that is so essential to keeping our economy going, and it's these bodies that sit under Treasury that do a lot of that thankless work. They do the stuff that we don't talk about in either the main chamber or in this chamber but is really important and affects people's day-to-day lives, such as ensuring our tax system works properly and with integrity to ensure that we receive the revenue that is required to pay for all the things that Australians need—defence, health, education and all of those important things—but also making sure that it is done in a way that Australians can have trust in.

That institutional trust is essential for the functioning of our democracy and our economy. It's the strength of our institutions which can give investors confidence all around the world that Australia is the right place to invest. So, when we invest in the institutions listed in this appropriation, we are actually investing in our own economic prosperity going forward.

There's also a lot of important work being done around cutting red tape. We've had a lot of discussions in this chamber about small business, but I think one thing we can all agree on is that we've really got to get out of our own way. We've got to minimise the impost of compliance on small business.

The work being done to cut unnecessary red tape is an essential piece of work that we've been following through on in successive budgets, and certainly this one has a real focus on ensuring that we continue to cut red tape and simplify things for small business going forward. It also has some specific measures that are of benefit to workers. We have the $250 working Australians amount.

We also have the simplification of a year-on-year tax through that $1,000 instant deduction, saving a whole lot of people the trouble of keeping receipts and hiring an accountant when they have fairly straightforward tax returns by simply being able to tick and opt for a $1,000 instant deduction, which we expect to help millions of Australians recover more every single tax year.

That's not just an election sweetener. That's not just a one-off. That is permanent structural reform to the tax system.

It's because we have the support of professional institutions that we were able to develop and implement these really important policies and changes. While we get the glory work and get to take the credit for the good—and sometimes we cop the blame for the bad—the hard grunt work is really being done by our institutions in government, who really don't receive enough credit.

I get as frustrated as anyone with bureaucracy, but the important work that our Public Service does really lacks recognition in this place sometimes. The important work being done to ensure that the trust and integrity in our institutions that we currently enjoy is preserved and built upon is essential. If we continue to invest in these important institutions, we can all be assured that governance in this country is based on robust information and advice from professionals who have done the grunt work.

I commend this appropriation to the House and thank all of the hardworking people in Treasury and all of its agencies for their great work.