(Treasurer) — I rise to update the house on the Andrews Labor government’s achievements in growing the Victorian economy. The great news is that the most recent release of the ABS national account figures giving state final demand for the year ended December 2015 show that in the Victorian economy state final demand is running at 4.6 per cent. When you combine that with the 68 000 jobs that have been created under the Andrews Labor government, you see that this is an outstanding achievement. This is a sign of an economy on the move. It validates what we have suspected for some time — that Victoria is once again the place to live and to do business.

The economy, to put into perspective what these national account figures tell us, is experiencing almost double the growth of 2.4 per cent that was seen by the previous government in its final year. Thanks to Labor, Victoria is once again outperforming New South Wales, which only managed 3.4 per cent in its state final demand. What makes this all the more impressive is that we have done it without any assistance from the federal government. Members of the federal government are sitting on their backsides doing nothing. All we have received is 9 per cent of federal infrastructure funds, not to mention the $1.1 billion the federal government has ripped out of Victorian schools for 2018 and 2019. That is something those opposite would be well familiar with — cutting services and building phoney surpluses whilst Victorians suffer.

This growth in the Victorian economy shows what can be achieved when this government is active and engaged. It is in stark contrast to the performance of those opposite.