Bob Katter (Kennedy, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I have changed my position on this after a great deal of consideration, and I will bend the knee to no man. My children are the sixth generation to be living in country Australia. My father worked for 18 months to two years before he went away to university. I worked for 18 months to two years before I went away to university. My son worked for two years before he went away to university. If you want to go to university, you work to earn it.

A shortage of jobs has not been my experience in country areas. My experience is that in country areas we are desperately seeking people for poorly paid jobs, not the high-paying jobs. If kids are prepared to do those jobs, there is work there for them. That is one element of it. The sister of Tanya Pascoe, a member of my staff, was married to a cane farmer who had terrible times in the cane industry. I find the comments of the previous speaker, the Leader of the Nationals, quite amazing. He was the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia when the government fell. There were 40 per cent fewer people going on to complete secondary education—

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