Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

This is the Australian Trucking Association. Those opposite say ‘Tony Sheldon’, but this is actually the industry—the owners, Lindsay Fox. This is not the union; it is the industry. The Chief Executive, by the way, is Stuart St Clair. Trevor Martyn, Chair of the ATA—the speaker before I spoke, and I was very interested to hear his comments—said today:

Of course it has been suggested the Australian government could reduce fuel excise, but it would be just a gesture. The price of diesel has already gone up by 48c and is likely to rise an extra 20c. A tax cut of even 10c a litre would hardly be noticeable. Instead, the best approach the Australian government can take is to focus on the long term and fix the road transport laws that are stopping us from using the latest and most fuel-efficient truck designs.

That was the view of industry today. The opposition are totally out of touch, they make promises they cannot possibly fulfil and they continue to have no regard whatsoever for economic responsibility.

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