Tim Watts (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

While changing the recipe for a well-known product is not something you do lightly, Arnott's learnt this the hard way when they misjudged the palates of the nation and changed the recipe for their popular Pizza Shapes biscuits earlier this year. The new and improved formula just did not resonate. It left a bad taste in the mouth of Australians. And over the last 12 months, we have had our own version of a changing Shape in this very chamber.

When Malcolm Turnbull took over from Tony Abbott, Australians thought they knew the recipe they were getting. They thought they knew the flavours—the republic, marriage equality, a strong advocate on climate change. But the new PM and his plotters thought they knew a better recipe. They tweaked the recipe and removed all of Malcolm's tasty bits as a way to win over the coalition party room. They changed the recipe and removed the flavour. They took away the opportunity to legislate for marriage equality in this place and replaced it with oratory and rhetoric with three-word slogans. They added the tax on Medicare and a $50-billion tax cut to big corporates. What we have here is Malcolm Turnbull, the new recipe, the new conservative Shape.

What is the lesson from this, Mr Speaker? Well, Arnott's listened. They heard what the Australian people wanted. Australians told them on social media: they expressed their disappointment at the folly of the Arnott's decision. They spoke and Arnott's listened. It is a real shame that a biscuit company is more open to feedback than our democratically elected Pizza Shape Prime Minister. If a biscuit company can listen to the Australian public, why won't the Prime Minister?

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