Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition, in asking this question, is continuing to peddle his mistruths to the Australian people: that the only thing that explains change in the Australian economy is carbon pricing. Anyone who has done high school economics would be able to tell you that long-term changes are underway in the Australian economy, and they are being accelerated by the structural transition in our economy now. Anybody who has done high school economics would be able to tell you that the percentage of the Australian economy deployed in manufacturing has been in a long-term decline, but it continues to be a very important industry segment to Australia, employing, as it does, one million Australians. The Leader of the Opposition seeks to deny that economic truth and pretend that all structural change in our economy is about carbon pricing. That is a falsehood. It is peddled to the Australian people for political advantage, in a manner calculated to raise concern amongst the Australian community.

I say to the Leader of the Opposition that he should do the right thing and listen to the workers at Alcoa, who have a very sophisticated understanding of what is driving change in their business, a very sophisticated understanding of the global market they relate to and a very sophisticated understanding of the business structures in their own business and in the global business they relate to. It insults their intelligence and demeans their capacity when the Leader of the Opposition comes in to this place and peddles this nonsense that would get a fail in high school economics. It certainly demeans anyone who is putting themself forward for consideration as Prime Minister. You cannot do the job by making up facts.

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