Deborah O'Neill (Robertson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I withdraw, Mr Deputy Speaker. I say that the member for North Sydney is trying to mislead us in this debate. He has also indicated a talent for plagiarism. I can see why the shadow Treasurer might be referred to in other contexts as 'Sloppy Joe'. If I were his teacher I would make him stay behind and write out 200 times, 'I must not mislead the people of Australia'. I hope that if he were my student he would be sitting on this side of the chamber and he might have seen the light a long time ago.

The adverse impact of the carbon tax on the Australian economy is what we are supposed to be debating today. I welcome the opportunity to engage in this debate on a matter of public importance, as the Australian economy is vitally important. It is important to the public, to me, to the people of Robertson and it is of vital importance to this government. That is why I am so proud to have taken my seat in this parliament, sitting just behind the Treasurer who delivered an economy that is the envy of the world. Celebrating the economy as a mere artefact is not enough. What we in the Labor Party celebrate in our strong economy is that through the GFC we kept ordinary Australians working. That is not what would have happened if those on the opposite side had had their chance to be in charge at that time. They parrot on about the stimulus package being a failure, but the reality is that the stimulus was wise spending in the interest of the Australian people.

We kept Australians working. We kept Australians earning. We kept money moving through our economy. We kept lots and lots of small businesses on the Central Coast and other regions like mine operating because the money kept flowing through the economy. Even though we are absolutely linked to the global economy—where everyone else went into recession—in Australia we used the facts and expert advice on how to act to prevent the pain of recession. We got on with leading, delivered a stimulus package and saved the Australian economy and lots of families from the pain that is still being suffered by many people in many nations.

Even with that strong leadership and our strong economy, we still have this carping negativity, the whingeing of those opposite who peddle a tale of permanent woe. We heard the member for Goldstein talking about storm clouds.

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