Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I once called the member for Mayo 'the Barbara Cartland of Australian politics' because of his romantic novel writing on the subject, but today we could call him 'the trash mag writer', because he basically spent 15 minutes growing his nose and telling stories that were not true. Remember, this is the member who complained that the TWU was soiling his clothes when he was writing the Work Choices act. That is where he goes back to. Going back to Work Choices is all he considers.

I have to confess that I know a little bit about outworkers. My mother was one. I was also a member of the footwear industry, very proudly, for five years. Those opposite have absolutely no idea about that industry and no idea about the working conditions of outworkers, because, I am tipping, they have never, ever seen one, let alone seen the work of making shoes and understood what has to be done and the hours that people get put on.

I am sure the member for Mayo is going back to have another glass of champagne, but I hope that the speaker is on in his office and that he can listen to the truth. The only time in the history of this country that those opposite ever stood up for workers was at National Textiles. 'What's National Textiles?' you might say. 'Who owned National Textiles?' Of course, it was the brother of John Howard, Stan Howard. That was the only time, when a company went out the door, that the coalition stood up for the workers of that company. Every other time, they wiped their hands. They have absolutely no interest in what happens to workers when companies go broke, unless of course it is the company of the brother of the former Prime Minister John Howard.

As I was listening today, there were two different emotions going through my head. There was laughter at the stories that were being told by the opposition and there was anger at the inability of the opposition to understand what they were talking about. We heard the member for McPherson. The biggest point she made was about the effect on businesses—not one concern for the people who are actually working in them.

Ms O'Dwyer interjecting—

I'm sure you've never worked a day in your life either!

They admit that they look for labels and they do this and they do that, but they never show concern about how the items are made. They are never concerned about the people sitting at home working on them. The member for Higgins is over there yapping away. It is mainly women working in these industries, mainly those with English as a second language, with poor English skills—

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