John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

In answer to the member for Werriwa: I have not seen those remarks in the local newspaper to which you have referred. If you would like to send me a copy of the local newspaper I will see what further inquiries I can make. In relation to take it or leave it or choice, I remind the member for Werriwa that one million people in the early nineties had to take it or leave it. Despite the massive protections that the law purported to give them, the economy in the early nineties was so weak that more than a million people were thrown out of work and all the legislative protections under the sun did not save them. I think the member for Werriwa should understand that the real test of an industrial relations system is the contribution it makes to strengthening the economy. The evidence so far is that the sky has not fallen in. We have 175,000 more jobs. We still have very high real wage growth. We have the lowest number of industrial disputes since records were kept. I think most Australians would take that rather than leave it.

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