I think the point of the question was that he claimed (or promised) that they would have a surplus, without seeing the May budget figures, but couldn't release policies because he hadn't seen the May figures.
He said that based on the LAST ANNOUNCED budget figures they could promise a surplus in their first year. Of course it has to be conditional on how the next budget figures hold up. It was an inanely large amount of time spent on a topic that was clearly and logically explained by Pyne.
