Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Mackellar, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Seniors) Share this | Hansard source

We can all tell the time; it says one minute and 54 seconds. I would like to know precisely why that appointment was made by the Governor-General, whether or not the government has in place any policy on 'Friday to Monday appointees' and whether or not this was relevant to the appointment made by the Governor-General. I would be very pleased to receive that information. I would also like to know why, in the criteria that are set down for assisting mature-age workers back into the workforce, there is nothing about people losing their jobs because of age discrimination. In the press release they talk about discrimination on the basis of having a disability or having an illness, but there is no mention of people losing their job on the basis of age discrimination, which is of course what the need for an age discrimination commissioner is all about and presumably—I would hope—what the work bonus is about. If we are able to keep people in the workforce, particularly over the age of 55—we see nearly 1.5 million workers drop out between the ages of 45 and 55—and increase the participation rate, we would see a dramatic change in the skills and workers that we need and we would see those people, instead of being discriminated against, able to keep their skills up and in fact become part of the taxpaying community.

Proposed expenditure agreed to.

Foreign Affairs and Trade Portfolio

Proposed expenditure, $5,838,368

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