Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Youth and Employment Services) Share this | Hansard source

The Australian government is focused on the needs of Australians in this global pandemic. What we heard from the opposition leader were his two biggest attack points, on quarantine and on vaccines. Let's talk a little bit about quarantine. Agreed under the national cabinet, which is under the leadership of Prime Minister Morrison, quarantine has been led by the states and it's been 99.9 per cent effective. People around the world would be flocking to this country if they could. They know that Australia is the greatest country in the world and the best place to live, and Australians know that as well. This has not come by accident. We haven't had such a low death rate and such a low infection rate by accident. It's been under the leadership of the Prime Minister, Mr Morrison, and the states, via the national cabinet. We know, in relation to the vaccine, that today we've delivered over seven million shots throughout Australia—seven million vaccinations throughout Australia, and it's ramping up every week.

The opposition leader spoke about the Nationals. We're not here to talk about the Nationals. He spoke about Minister Pitt and what he's doing in Water. I can tell you Minister Pitt is doing a very, very effective job. He's delivered a lot. We've seen what he's been able to do with Northern Australia, we've seen what he's done with Resources and we've seen what he's been able to do with Water, and with our national radioactive waste facility along with the member for Grey. So Minister Pitt is not a great example to use. He's a very well-performing minister. I'd also say, in relation to the opposition policy: they talk about growing back stronger. What that really means is that they want to tax Australians more. That's again what they'll take to the election next year.

If the Leader of the Opposition really wants to focus on what's happening, I'll quote the Minister for Industry, Science and Technology in question time today. The minister for industry said: back before the COVID-19 pandemic, 898,000 people were employed in manufacturing, and today 908,200 people are employed in manufacturing. So what we've seen from the start of the pandemic to today in 2021 is an increase in manufacturing jobs in Australia. For everyone listening, that's really important, because Australians, including people in my electorate of Petrie, want more jobs in manufacturing and more products made here in Australia. The minister for industry, under the plan of the Morrison government, is delivering that along with our $1.5 billion modern manufacturing facility.

When I was elected in 2013 it was under the banner 'hope, reward and opportunity', and hope has never been more important for Australians. Today, this is what the Morrison government is focusing on in the middle of this COVID-19 pandemic. Australians have hope. They know that more people are employed. The unemployment rate is low. The youth unemployment rate is falling. We have world-leading health outcomes, as I said before, with fewer infections and fewer hospitalisations. In fact, the Minister for Health and Aged Care said again today in question time that there's not one person in the ICU in Australia right now as a result of COVID-19—not one person in the ICU. Yet we see what's happening in other countries around the world. We will continue to strive for an even stronger Australia, to keep our economy strong, to keep Australians safe and to keep Australians together.

The minister for health and the health department have secured 40 million Pfizer vaccines, 53.8 million AstraZeneca vaccines, 51 million Novavax vaccines and 25 million Moderna vaccines. We're also committed to helping countries in the Pacific, like Papua New Guinea, roll out their vaccination targets to help the poorest people in our region. In Australia, half of the population over 50 have received their vaccination, and more than one in four eligible Australians are fully protected. Twenty-five per cent of eligible Australians right now are fully protected from COVID-19, with both vaccinations delivered. The Morrison government has provided a crucial lifeline to Australians and the economy during COVID-19 and Australia's first recession in almost 30 years. The Morrison government's JobKeeper payment, the JobSeeker payments, the Supporting Apprentices and Trainees wage subsidy and the HomeBuilder scheme that we delivered have kept over 3.8 million Australians in work and a further 117,000 in training, which is really effective. JobKeeper payments supported 5,500 businesses, not just on the north side of Brisbane and in Moreton Bay but right around the country, and 26,100 employees in my electorate alone.

A year ago we entered the recession, and now we emerge to prepandemic levels nine months earlier than expected. This gives all Australians hope and opportunity and the confidence to back ourselves going forward. More people are in work than ever before, and unemployment is on course to settle below five per cent for just the second time in almost 50 years. I'll just say that again: unemployment is set to drop below five per cent for just the second time in 50 years. And I'd love to see youth unemployment come below 10 per cent; traditionally it's been about double.

I'd say to all the youth out there not just in my electorate but around the country—and I think of youth like Alison Campbell, a 15-year-old student in my electorate in year 10 at Southern Cross Catholic College. I think of my own sons, who are in that youth age from 15 to 24. We need to provide youth with hope for their future, we need to provide youth with encouragement for their future and we need to thank them for their contribution right now. We can learn from children, from youth and from adults.

Every member in this House needs to go out in the next six weeks and have a positive message for our youth, because right now some of the big issues for youth are not just around jobs and education but also around mental health. They need to hear a positive message from us as leaders. And we can do that. We can still support our parties, but we can also go out into our electorates and talk to those people and say there is hope for the future. I might not agree with those in the opposition, and they might not agree with everything the government's doing. But it's so important.

I'd encourage the crossbench, the opposition and everyone here on the government backbench to focus on youth unemployment as well, and to try to get youth unemployment down in this country. Let's strive to get it down. We can still have a day for politics; we can still have our differences when we come to the next election. But we really do need to focus on Australian youth, many of whom right now have mental health issues. We need to be the leaders in this place and in our electorates who are going to provide them with hope and encouragement for the future.

I'll leave it on that positive note. I've got a whole lot more in this speech, but I want to finish there in relation to youth. I encourage everyone: over the next six weeks, before we come back to this place, do your bit in your electorates, and let's work with and help Australian youth together.

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