The assertion by Business Council of Australia chairman Tony Shepherd that the Commonwealth government sector is getting bigger, bigger and bigger is incorrect.
Payments as a proportion of GDP are below 24 per cent over the forward estimates, the longest sustained run since the 1980s.
And our tax to GDP ratio is at 22.1 per cent, well below the level of 23.7 per cent inherited from the previous government.
In the 2012-13 Budget, over $33 billion in savings were identified across the forward estimates, adding to the $100 billion in savings found in the last four budgets.
Furthermore, Federal Labor has a strong record of driving efficiency in the public service:

• The 2012-13 Budget forecast a reduction in the size of the general government sector the public sector is getting smaller, not bigger.
• The Government has also imposed, through the efficiency dividend, a strong discipline on the expenses of federal departments and agencies and expectation. For this financial year, departments and agencies will need to find extra efficiencies equal to 4 per cent of the spending on their own operations.
• Over $13 billion in public sector savings have been achieved since Labor came to government through major reforms to areas such as travel, property management and ICT.

The Government is continuing to look for ways to improve the effectiveness of the public service and ensuring government departments deliver their services at the best value for money for taxpayers.