Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

Once again, he is referring to a bill that is not in this particular group that is before us. I think that shows exactly the challenge that he has in trying to have any level of passion about the legislation that is in front of us. If the parliamentary secretary who is responsible for the bill cannot even interject something relevant to the bill in front of us, then how on earth are his backbenchers going to be hung out to dry during the debate today to have to meet the challenge? Can they say something relevant on the legislation before us?

The Omnibus Repeal Day (Autumn 2014) Bill 2014 repeals or amends the provisions of a total of 81 pieces of legislation in the portfolios Agriculture, Communications, Defence, Employment, Environment, Finance, Industry, Prime Minister, Social Services and Treasury. It is claimed to be a bill that will reduce the regulatory burden for business, individuals and the community sector.

We will vote for the bill and I challenge anyone to find a reason to be passionately in favour of or against the bill because this legislation is a clean-up of issues which were already largely irrelevant. I will be moving an amendment to the motion—just a second reading amendment, nothing in detail—simply to get some things on the record but largely as a favour to those opposite. Unless I move a second reading amendment, they will have to be relevant to the legislation. I do not know how they are going to do it.

The member for Kooyong might be willing to hang government backbenchers out to dry but I am not. I am willing to move a second reading amendment to at least let them give speeches that have very little to do with the bill but do have something to do with the debate, to make sure that at no point are government backbenchers facing the humiliation of having it drawn to their attention that what they are saying has nothing to do with the bills in front of them. The poor Prime Minister had to deal with that—with talking about issues that are not in fact anything to do with these bills. While the member for Kooyong might be willing to hang his own side out to dry, we, in the last 24 hours, in a gallant fashion—I guess that is an appropriate description—

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