Senator CORMANN (Western Australia—Minister for Finance) (14:36): I thank Senator Edwards for that question. Senator Edwards is quite right, of course. Labor did leave behind a debt and deficit disaster after six years of bad financial management. The coalition did promise that we would repair the budget through 'operation budget repair' in the same way as we are stopping the boats through Operation Sovereign Borders. Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: When there is silence, we will proceed. Order on my left! Senator CORMANN: Thank you very much, Mr President. It is very sad really; Labor continues to be in complete denial about the debt and deficit disaster they left behind. They are in complete denial about the mess they left behind— Opposition senators: Operation Budget Repair! The PRESIDENT: Senator Cormann, resume your seat; you are entitled to be heard in silence. When there is silence, we will proceed. Senator CORMANN: We have to remember that in 2007, Labor inherited a strong economy and a strong budget—no government net debt; a $20 billion surplus; more than $50 billion in Commonwealth net assets—the government was collecting more than $1 billion in net interest payments. And of course, after just six short years of Labor's bad financial mismanagement—Labor's wasted mismanagement—we are here, looking at $191 billion in deficits after Labor's first five budgets and $123 billion in projected deficits in Labor's last budget. But of course, whenever we got a budget from the Labor Party, we knew that it was not worth the paper it was written on—it was deteriorating within weeks. Just in the three years that Senator Wong was the finance minister— Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Senator Cormann is entitled to be heard in silence. Order! If you wish to debate the issue, the time is after question time. Senator CORMANN: In the three short years that Senator Wong was the finance minister, the budget position deteriorated by more than $107 billion, compared to the forecast at budget time. So our first job was to find the bottom in Labor's mess. We did that in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook. Our second job was to lay out operation budget repair— Opposition senators interjecting— Senator CORMANN: and we did that in the budget. And of course, the Senate has now passed our budget repair bill—they have passed our appropriation bills. We will continue to work through all of the budget measures as part of operation budget repair in an orderly and methodical process. Opposition senators interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Order! Senator Conroy interjecting— The PRESIDENT: Order! When there is silence—Senator Conroy on my left—we will proceed. Senator Edwards.