Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I am searching for an explanation, Mr Speaker, which could possibly make the version from the Manager of Opposition Business true. So here we have the Howard government ministers around the ministerial table—the only Australians who do not know, according to him, that Work Choices is hurting working families, so self-absorbed are they by their divisions: the member for Higgins hunched over his wallet note, the current shadow minister for family and community services hunched over the John Howard defence minutes because that was his role, the current shadow Treasurer hunched over a number sheet—apparently the only ones who were so self-absorbed they did not know that Work Choices was hurting working families. Well, this truly is fiction. Each and every one of them knew that it was hurting working families. Before the election they defended Work Choices with propaganda, and now they defend it with their Senate numbers. It is time to do what the Australian people want and vote for Labor’s—

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