Amanda Rishworth (Kingston, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers) Share this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to be speaking on the Australian Jobs Bill 2013, because I believe in actually boosting our manufacturing sector. I am disappointed to hear tonight that the opposition has decided not to support this bill; however, I am not surprised. I heard you, Mr Deputy Speaker Cheeseman, talk about the car industry. The opposition has shown very clearly where their true colours lie when it comes to the car industry, and that is: not to support the car industry and not to ensure that we keep innovating in the car industry. So it is not surprising that the opposition has decided not to support what I think is a very important bill.

It is an important bill but it is the government that has decided to put jobs first, and this has been something that we have done since the day we came to government. Our focus has constantly been on jobs, and it is good to have the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations—otherwise known as the minister for jobs—here at the table. He worked, as did the rest of the government, to support jobs through the global financial crisis. That was a very, very difficult period. But this government took action to ensure that there continued to be economic growth and that people continued to be in jobs, and that is why we have seen, under this term of the Labor government, over 900,000 jobs created. That is a significant number when, in many other nations around the world, jobs are in decline. They cannot boast such job creation.

However, we have to recognise that part of the success has led to significant challenges for the manufacturing industry. In particular, the high Australian dollar and greater international competition have put pressure on the industry. So we need to make sure that there is continuing support for manufacturing in this country. This is very important, considering the challenges and how important this is to our next stage of job creation.

The manufacturing sector employs nearly 1,000,000 Australians across the country, and one in 10 of those employees live in my electorate of Kingston. Their message to me is loud and clear: they expect their government to stand up for jobs and stand up for opportunities for them, and this bill before the House today does exactly that. In the past we have seen Australian companies working on major projects and they have demonstrated that they can successfully compete against global competitors to win work in supplying goods and services. Often it is the innovation that Australian companies can show and the excellent services that they can provide that put them ahead of the pack when it comes to actually winning in open tenders. Unfortunately, though, we need to ensure that we are giving those companies an opportunity to compete for this work and, through the Australian Jobs Bill, the government will be supporting the creation and retention of Australian jobs by requiring Australian Industry Participation Plans for major projects, and this will ensure that Australian businesses have full, fair and reasonable opportunities to bid for key goods and services. This approach will assist Australian industry to gain a foothold in major projects by encouraging them to innovate and develop competitive capabilities to take advantage of investment opportunities.

What this actually means for Australian industry is quite significant, and it is disappointing that the member for Mitchell was criticising this legislation and saying it would amount to nothing when what we have seen through the modelling is that Australian industry could receive an additional $1.6 billion to $6.4 billion worth of work. I do not know about the member for Mitchell, but to me that is significant work. Many companies around Australia could benefit, and many workers could find meaningful and interesting employment in that. So I think this is a really important part of the bill, and it makes sure that there is an opportunity for businesses, with their innovation and their great products and services, to actually gain a foothold.

But it is simply not enough to have rules requiring organisations to have Australian Industry Participation Plans if there is no-one to oversee them. For this reason, the Australian Jobs Bill will create a new entity known as the Australian Industry Participation Authority, whose duty it will be to administer the AIP Plans and make sure that the AIP Plans are compliant and administered and that there will also be consequences for non-compliant plans. The authority will act as an independent entity from the government and ensure that Australian firms are offered every opportunity to grow and prosper. But it will also directly advise the minister on the Australian Industry Participation Plans and issues around those, and will administer programs aimed at improving the capacity of Australian firms to win work on major projects.

At no stage—and I think this is a myth sometimes peddled by those opposed to this legislation—will the Australian Industry Participation Authority ever force an organisation to use one supplier over another. What this bill really aims to do is to create a fairer playing field, to increase the opportunities for Australian firms to win work on major projects, and not—and I make this very clear—to require that Australian firms must be used but to really ensure that they do get a look in. But I have to say that this is one part of a very important package that the Labor government has put forward. In fact, it is a $1 billion package because we recognise the importance of the manufacturing sector, the importance of jobs that go along with that, the importance of the workers and also of the companies in the area of manufacturing.

So the plan was launched on 17 February. It has three objectives at its heart. First is backing Australian firms to win more work at home, and this has been a critical part of the Australian Jobs Plan. The second is supporting the Australian industry to increase exports and win business abroad. That is really important; we have always been a big exporting nation and we need to ensure that industry, and especially our manufacturing industry, gets the opportunity to export overseas. I have a number of manufacturers in my electorate that really have taken the opportunity to innovate. They have, at times, had assistance to export overseas from this federal Labor government that has resulted in an increase in some of these companies from a few employees to just under 100 employees. So we can really help industry win those export opportunities. Thirdly, helping Australians in small and medium businesses to grow also creates new jobs. I think this is incredibly important.

The plan is about what we can do right now to get more work for Australian factories, workshops, offices, construction sites, services and businesses. We have put the money on the table: $1 billion into the productivity, prosperity and jobs of the 21st century. As I said, it is very, very disappointing that the opposition have said they will oppose this part—obviously, we are not sure which parts. They have also been on record saying that they will oppose the industry precincts, which are another part of this package—a very innovative way to bring industry together and build capacity. They have said that is the 'old' way to do business, but I see in my electorate the collaboration that goes on with a range of different industries and that is really one of the ways for the future.

Through our plan, we will see our nation's research efforts translate into better economic outcomes by promoting collaboration between business and research institutes through a major new network of industry innovation precincts. We will also see small- to medium-size businesses and start-up companies be provided with expanded business assistance and better access to finance through measures to further stimulate Australia's venture capital. These are incredibly important measures; this is an incredibly important package. I believe this will really improve the manufacturing sector as we go forward.

As I mentioned earlier, in my electorate of Kingston, one in every 10 workers are employed in the manufacturing sector. We have been through a transition in our local area as well—it was incredibly disappointing when in 2008 Mitsubishi announced it would close its doors at the Tonsley Park site, and this had also occurred at the engine site, which had been in Lonsdale—this actually took interventionist federal and state Labor governments, working to retrain workers who lost their jobs and also supporting the creation of new jobs through co-investment with industry as part of the SA Innovation and Investment Fund. I have been able to visit a number of recipients that have received grants as part of this fund, and seen how they are thriving. In fact, the minister at the table, Minister Bird, visited one of those sites—Redarc Electronics—which has a very exciting model. They do sales, investment and research and development on site, as well as the manufacturing. But they are also participating with another site in working to educate their workers and helping with literacy and numeracy as well. That is just one of a number of very successful businesses that transformed as a result of the Mitsubishi closure.

Another very important part of the Mitsubishi story, though, is that the South Australian government had the foresight to buy this site—to buy the old site at Tonsley. Now, they are working to reactivate this site as an employment hub, focusing on high-value, advanced manufacturing that integrates industry, education, research and affordable living options, as well as community facilities.

This is a very important site because it not only has a connection to public transport that is going to be upgraded as a result of the most recent federal budget but it is also connected to Flinders University, and a TAFE is being constructed on the site. So we see that real connection now with translating research. Not only is Flinders University across the road; there will be buildings on that site as well that start to connect that. I see a real opportunity there at Tonsley. There is a lot of commercial interest in Tonsley as well, and a lot of discussion about the type of place it is going to be.

It will become an integral manufacturing hub and, while it was disappointing to see the exit of Mitsubishi for so many, it is great to see that this industrial area will be transformed to create the jobs of the future. This story is really important. We need to continue to seek out those types of stories, support those types of stories right through Australia and ensure that we are doing everything we can to support innovation right around this country.

As I said at the beginning of this speech, it is disappointing that the Liberal Party and the National Party have chosen to put their heads in the sand when it comes to supporting manufacturing. It is disappointing because when I am out there talking with people they do want to ensure that local companies are getting a bite at the cherry when it comes to work that is here in Australia. They also want to know that their government is supporting and promoting their manufacturing and services overseas and that they have increased opportunities. Importantly, they want to know that their government is supporting venture capital research and development, and stimulating the research sector. These are all very important parts of this bill and the package, and I commend the bill to the House.

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