Have you heard the one about the new car and ute tax? What about $600m of funding cuts weakening Australia’s borders?

If you did, then the joke is on our political system – because these are the latest two opposition lines of attack, completely untethered from reality, infecting the discourse.

The first is Peter Dutton’s claim that fuel efficiency standards amount to a tax on less efficient cars.

While it’s true that carmakers could be penalised if they exceed a yearly cap on the emissions output for new cars sold in Australia, this isn’t a tax. Claims of cars costing thousands more are based on an assumption of no change in behaviour.

The Federal Chamber of Automative Industries has contradicted the basis of the fear campaign in its own briefing paper, projecting that cars will get greener even without the new standards. When standards are improved the result is using less petrol and consumer savings.

The second claim, about Operation Sovereign Borders, has been comprehensively debunked: funding is up relative to the Coalition’s last budget, not down, and the $600m cut is an illusion conjured by comparing projected funding with one expensive reference year.

A reduction in surveillance flights is due to issues with the contractor, crew shortages and aircraft maintenance, not decisions of........

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