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

We have a clear answer to the question we were seeking to have answered, haven’t we: the one thing that unites them. I am sure the Australian people will be very pleased to learn about that. Of course, beyond what the member for North Sydney said, the other thing that unites them is a belief in industrial relations extremism and the removal of safety nets. Australians should not be misled by any of the statements that have been made by those opposite on the question of Work Choices, because now we have it confirmed out of the mouth of the Leader of the Opposition that Work Choices continues to be the policy of the Liberal Party when he said so very clearly: ‘John Howard got it right on industrial relations.’ So it is a political party divided on so much, a political party where we have seen the political partnership of Abbott and Costello now replaced by Laurel and Hardy here, a political party that does not know whether it is coming or going. The one thing that it does know is it believes in industrial relations extremism and Work Choices, and if they ever have the opportunity it would be back.

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