Wayne Swan has launched a savage attack on the government's economic management, accusing it of manipulating debt and deficit figures for its own ideological purposes.
The former Labor treasurer, who's rarely spoken in parliament since the 2013 election, also defended his government's economic record.
Mr Swan said Labor left office with the economy growing strongly and a deficit of $30.1 billion, or 1.9 per cent of GDP - one of the lowest in the developed world.
The first thing the Abbott government did was double the deficit over the forward estimates.
Mr Swan said Australia had a revenue rather than a spending problem.
But he said the government talked down the economy and exaggerated debt and deficit to demonise Labor and justify its savage ideological cuts to health and education.
In a triumph of politics over policy, it manipulated figures to match its debt and deficit rhetoric.
Mr Swan was speaking as the latest intergenerational report was being released.
He said the government had "debased" the report.
For the first time it had its own "Liberal Party chapter" devoted to political pointscoring at taxpayers' expense.
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