Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

What a great interjection. It was only the Prime Minister telling the parliament. Excuse me for thinking that that might matter. I mean, come in spinner, do not stop interjecting now that you have started. We were told that that would be debated and would be abolished on the first repeal day. They have decided to gag the debate and rush through all the changes that mean nothing, but they will not do that one. Once again, anything that is causing real harm they are trying to park until after the people of Western Australia have voted.

The Prime Minister said that the first repeal day will abolish the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor. That legislation is not being debated this week either. The Prime Minister told us that as a result of today's repeal day business will not have to reapply to use agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines. Surprise, surprise! After being told by the Prime Minister that that would be achieved today, they have not bothered to have it debated today.

We were given a dollar figure for what the difference the repeal day would make to the economy, but that dollar figure is not as a result of the bills that are being debated on repeal day. That dollar figure has already haemorrhaged significantly if the government is actually serious about taking a step back on the freedom of financial advice reforms, which form the lion's share of the savings that it was claiming.

Something has changed since the Prime Minister spoke to us last week. The Prime Minister told us a whole lot of things were going to be happening today but all that is left of the bonfire is the smoke. All the bits that we could have a decent argument about—such as red tape versus consumer protection, red tape versus transparency for charities, red tape versus a one-stop shop and the total dollar figure that might be seen to be achieved from a day like today—have gone. All we are left with is the vacuuming of the spare room that nobody walks into. That is all that has been left for us to debate today. Unsurprisingly, we got a very early confession from the Leader of the House that speeches today are going to be really short and the debate today is going to be cut as short as possible. If this were something that they were proud of, they would be wanting to debate this every day. If this were something they actually thought mattered, they would want the scrutiny of parliament because they would think it would advance their cause.

What we have today is legislation that repeals things that already have no impact. The only circumstance in front of the parliament today is one where issues that already did not affect business, as of today, will not affect business. And that is the achievement of the government on repeal day. I congratulate the government on their nerve at claiming that this is a big deal. I congratulate the government on the message development that has gone into the rhetoric around this. If you want to look at the politics, it has been a pretty amusing investigation of spin.

I challenge the speakers from the government side to come up with their own examples of something to be repealed in the actual bills before us that will make a difference to Australian business. I do not know which business in Australia has been wanting to get rid of the regulation about mules and bullocks for the Defence force—but maybe I just do not talk to enough people! Maybe they are out there, and maybe we are about to hear it. I do not know which state is about to introduce its own navy—but maybe there is information from some of the Liberal states that those opposite will be able to tell me about. But I do know that today is not a significant day for economic reform. And I do know that today the government is caught out on massively over-egging the content of what they call 'repeal day'.

See this speech in context