Sarah Henderson (Corangamite, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I know as well as anyone in this House how the devastating recent developments in the auto industry and across manufacturing have been. Thousands of workers across my region are employed in the manufacturing industry and many will be affected by the shutdown of the automotive manufacturing industry right across Australia. A number of companies in the Geelong region supply components to car manufacturers, including Toyota, and this is terrible news for the industry. But let me assure the member for Gellibrand, and let me assure those members opposite that—despite the spin, despite the deception, despite the untruths—we are fighting for jobs. We are fighting for a future.

We are in very difficult times. This is a very tough time for Australian manufacturing. But, unlike members opposite, we are confident that we have a bright future in manufacturing. I come from a proud manufacturing city, and I am going to hang onto that and do whatever I can to work with my community leaders and my community to ensure that we have a bright future.

See this speech in context