Dan Tehan (Wannon, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

And he knows about this, as the member for Kooyong rightly points out, because, before he came into this place, he was a beneficiary of this jobs-for-the-boys regime.

Industry super funds have their place. Let us not confuse the issue; they have their place, but we have to ensure that they are not the only place where default funds go. We have to ensure that there is choice in this sector because the superannuation system and industry in this country are too important for the future of Australians to have them played around with and manipulated. Yet, sadly, it seems that is what this government is intent on doing.

I say to the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation that, when he looks at default funds in modern awards, it is not too late to say: 'I've got this wrong. I am manipulating the industry here. I am showing a deliberate bias towards retail funds and I need to correct this.' Let us not forget what the minister has already put the superannuation industry through, through his so-called reforms which have done nothing but create red tape and more red tape for that sector. Now he wants to punish them and penalise them again. Minister, these are the future savings of Australians that you are playing with here. They are not something that should be toyed with. You should change your mind on this, and we on this side will be doing everything we can to make sure that you do.

In summary, this is a bad bill, a tricky bill and a rushed bill. The reason it is being rushed is that the government does not want it to have the scrutiny that it should have, because the government is trying to rush things through to get away with blue murder. We will hold the government to account for this. It is not good enough. This is not the way you govern a country.

As a matter of fact, the Australian people are sick of being governed in this way. What they want to see is good governance, integrity in government and high-calibre people delivering policies which are there for all members of the Australian community and which do not benefit privileged sectors of the community that ministers owe their allegiance to and owe their position in this place to. We need a better government for this country. My hope is that those on the other side will finally recognise this and have the courage to go to an election because, if they keep putting through this place pieces of legislation like this, they will harm the long-term interests of this nation, and the repair job in fixing it will be enormous. This is a bad bill. It has been rushed in, and it should be opposed.

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