Jim Turnour (Leichhardt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to support this Corporations Amendment (Short Selling) Bill 2008part of the Rudd government’s response to the global financial crisis. We are living in unprecedented times; historic times where banks have failed around the world, stock markets have crashed, housing prices have declined and countries in Europe and the United States are facing recession. These events that started in global financial markets have moved into the real economy, battering consumer confidence and placing at risk our future economic prosperity. These are unprecedented times and world leaders all across this global community have stated so. President-elect Barack Obama, in Jacksonville, Florida, on 3 November 2008 said:

We are in the middle of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. 760,000 workers have lost their jobs this year. Businesses and families can’t get credit. Home values are falling. Pensions are disappearing … It’s getting harder and harder to make the mortgage, or fill up your gas tank, or even keep the electricity on at the end of the month.

He was obviously talking about the United States but leaders in Europe and across the Asia-Pacific region have made similar statements, highlighting the grave risks to their own economies and the world economy from the global financial crisis. Our own Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has said:

… we are waging a war against global recession and global unemployment—and we are determined to deploy every tool at our disposal.

The government will take whatever decisive action is necessary to protect economic growth and jobs for Australians

The Rudd government, like the US President-elect Barack Obama, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other world leaders, understand the magnitude of this crisis that we confront and are committed to working together to navigate a way through this global financial crisis. This shared determination to work together to tackle this crisis stands in stark contrast to the words and actions of the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Malcolm Turnbull. We need to remember that the Leader of the Opposition said the global financial crisis was being hyped and accused our Prime Minister, Mr Rudd, of hyping up the crisis.

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