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

Let us be clear. The member for Kalgoorlie indicates, laughing, that it is a joke that $950 will be paid to farmers. Let people in the electorate of Kalgoorlie know that the member for Kalgoorlie thinks—and he puts it on the record again—that ‘a fat lot of good that will do’. That is the attitude of the member for Kalgoorlie. What this out-of-touch opposition just do not get is that it is not about them. It is also not about us. It is about the public. It is about the 21 million Australians concerned about the impact of the global financial crisis.

The Manager of Opposition Business suggests that we demand that they vote for this legislation. We do no such thing. It is up to them to determine their position on this legislation. However, we do give them a bit of constructive and helpful advice: when you have no alternative plan, when you have no solution to the crisis that confronts us, when you simply stand in the road and say, ‘Don’t give bonuses to working families; don’t give back-to-school bonuses; don’t give bonuses to farmers; don’t engage in economic stimulus,’ then we simply say that that is an unwise course for the opposition to take. And they take that road at their peril, because there will be a political price to pay if they stand in the way of this $42 billion package which has been welcomed by families, by community organisations, by the business community and by the National Farmers Federation.

They can isolate themselves if they wish to do so. And, when they vote on these bills, that is what they will be doing if they oppose these bills. That is their choice. But already we have seen an opposition who are incapable, regardless of how much time they are given to look at and peruse legislation and to get briefings. We saw them in the Senate on the last night of parliament last year when, on the nation-building legislation, they voted three ways. Some voted in favour of it, some voted against it and some went to the toilet. That was their position on nation building. There was a three-way split across the Liberal Party and across the National Party—no idea. I say to them: learn the lessons of the Senate debacle for the coalition at the end of last year. Learn the political lessons that are there. Have the debate today, engage in constructive dialogue across the chamber, but bear in mind that, when you are talking about blocking, for example, the back-to-school bonuses, you are not actually talking about blocking the back-to-school bonuses for our kids, because none of us get family tax benefit A. You are talking about the people who elected us to this chamber to represent them. I commend the resolution to the House. I also commend the bills that will be introduced to the House.

Question agreed to.

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