Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

I think, if I might say so myself, it has been a compelling case for suspension of standing orders, and it is obvious I think to all within the chamber that we must deal with this matter. We must deal with this matter because it is an issue of urgency—the fact that the Labor Party has been captured wholly and solely by the union movement. I mean, we must deal with this in this chamber, and we must support the motion of the Leader of the House. We must.

The reality is that the Labor Party do not like this exposure. That is their problem. The problem is that they do not like a spotlight being shone on the way this relationship has developed to an unhealthy position. And the reality is that the CFMEU—all of these union engagements are not in the best interests of this nation. They are not, on any test, in the best interests of this nation. The Labor Party wants to talk about penalty rates. Let's talk about penalty rates. Let's talk about these issues—where the Leader of the Opposition was involved in ripping off hundreds of thousands of workers. That is the reality. That is his history. That is something he needs to stand up and defend. The reality is that hundreds of thousands of dollars were paid to the union movement, who have been involved in criminal activities.

When you look at these people around here sitting on these benches within the Australian Labor Party at the moment, there are no teachers, there are no butchers, there are no people from backgrounds—

Opposition members interjecting—

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