Tony Smith (Casey, Liberal Party, Deputy Chairman , Coalition Policy Development Committee) Share this | Hansard source

Those opposite do not get it. They are prattling on opposite, but they do not get that their administrative incompetence and what they have done in the last week damages business confidence. Do you understand this simple concept? The Australian public look at you—the most incompetent government in living memory, with the most pathetic backbench in living memory. You said for 18 months that the member for Griffith was absolutely fantastic, right up until the day before the member for Griffith had to go. You had the Treasurer of the country, two weeks before the member for Griffith was politically executed, saying what a great job he was doing. The Treasurer then released this extraordinary statement about the dysfunctionality of the government under the member for Griffith.

Yet those opposite think that somehow this does not send the signal to the Australian community that all is not well in Canberra. If you are looking at investing in a small business, or if you are running a small business and thinking about expanding, you might be thinking: 'They are having some tough times in Europe. How are things going in the Australian economy?' Do you really think the incompetent display you have put on, where you have revealed exactly what your priorities are and the lack of cohesion and lack of purpose in your government, has no possible effect on business confidence?

Those opposite have now gone back to the fake party. The one thing—the only thing—I would agree with the previous speaker on is that the next election will be a choice. When the Australian public go to the ballot box, they will have a choice between hope for reward and opportunity and the continuing chaos that they have seen since 24 November 2007. There is one thing this government could do to improve business confidence. It is, as the Leader of the Opposition said over the course of the last week, to let the people of Australia have an election to make that choice that the minister opposite was talking about. So let them make the choice and that will restore business confidence, because they will have the chance to elect a government of grown-ups that is capable of managing the Australian economy.

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