Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I second the motion. The reason standing orders should be suspended is that the most important item that should be before the chamber today is the integrity of the Prime Minister. On Sunday, when the carbon tax is introduced, exhibit A in the case against the Prime Minister's integrity will be the broken promise that 'there will be no carbon tax under a government I lead'. Standing orders should be suspended because this is a Prime Minister without integrity, without solutions and without a future. She promised she would stop the boats. She promised she would build a lasting consensus before she introduced any change on climate change, and she failed. She promised that she would fix the mining tax, and she failed. She promised she would lead a more transparent and accountable government, and she failed. And she promised that she would restore respect in the parliament and, my, how she has failed.

But the great conceit of this Prime Minister is that when she first announced the reversal of her position on the carbon tax and introduced a carbon tax she said she was just doing what John Howard had done on the goods and services tax. That was the great conceit—that she compared herself to John Howard. Prime Minister, I know John Howard, I served with John Howard, John Howard is a friend of mine and you are no John Howard.

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