Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the Member for Warringah moving immediately—That this House censures the Prime Minister for her announcement today that confirms that she will introduce a carbon tax this year breaking her solemn promise to the Australian people that “there will be no carbon tax under the Government I lead” and in particular:

(1)

that the Prime Minister stand condemned for:

(a)

inflicting another new Labor tax on families already battling to make ends meet because of the rising cost of living;

(b)

hitting pensioners and carers with another new Labor tax at a time when they are already struggling with soaring power bills and increased grocery prices;

(c)

burdening small business with another new Labor tax at a time when many of them are barely surviving;

(d)

adding an extra $300 to the average household power bill with her new carbon tax; and

(e)

adding an extra 6.5 cents per litre to the cost of petrol with her new carbon tax; and

(2)

at a time when there is no global agreement on reducing emissions and, under this new Labor tax, Australia will bear an unacceptable economic cost that wont be shared by our international competitors.

Let us be clear on the extent of the betrayal. Before the election the Prime Minister said:

There will be no carbon tax under the government I lead.

Before the election the Prime Minister said:

I rule out a carbon tax—

on the front page of Australia’s major paper the day before the election. We even had the Treasurer and Deputy Prime Minister calling the claim that a carbon tax would be introduced post election an ‘absolutely hysterical allegation’. That hysterical allegation has turned out to be cold, hard fact. Cold, hard fact is the betrayal of this government.

Mr Speaker, I want you to listen to the words of the Prime Minister in ‘full sincerity’ mode. She said in an interview with Jon Faine:

I think when you go to an election and you give a promise to the Australian people, you should do everything in your power to honour that promise. We are determined to do that … this is a Government that prides itself on delivering election promises. We want Australians to be able to say well, they’ve said this and they did this …

They said one thing and they did another thing.

We have heard a lot about Real Julia and Fake Julia. Was it Real Julia or was it Fake Julia who said, ‘We gave our word to the Australian people’? Was it Real Julia or Fake Julia who said, ‘There will be no carbon tax under the government I lead’? I tell you what: nothing is more fake than making a promise to the Australian people before the election and breaking it after the election. I am sure that this Prime Minister, in her heart of hearts, in those quiet moments of reflection in the still, small hours of the night when she considers what she has said and done, like some latter-day Lady Macbeth would consider the statement ‘There will be no carbon tax under the government I lead’ and say ‘Out, foul spot!’ ‘Out, foul spot!’ But she said it and she will be judged by it.

There has been no greater betrayal in recent Australian history. This is the greatest breach of faith with the Australian public since the l-a-w law—fake tax cuts of another Labor Prime Minister. I say to the Australian people: if the Australian public could not trust the Prime Minister on this, how can they ever in the future trust her on anything at all?

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