Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I take that interjection by the member for Bruce. It's almost encouraging today, but there you go! The construction sector in this country is built on independent contractors. I'll say that again: the construction sector in this country is built on the backs of independent contractors. And what this government wants to do is, effectively, to overhaul the way that independent contractors and subcontractors are dealt with, under this legislation. What that's going to is to make it very, very difficult for small businesses—like the small businesses that are operating in my electorate on the Sunshine Coast.

Now, independent contractors choose to be independent contractors because they want flexibility. They want to be able to take holidays when they like. They want to be able to choose who they work for and when they work. But this government wants to continuously regulate. And why? Because they don't like independent contractors. They don't like subbies. They don't like tradies. They want everybody who works in the building industry to be members of the unions, so that they—

An honourable member interjecting—

I'll take the interjection—that those members opposite don't think that independent contractors don't want to be members of the union, because—

An honourable member interjecting—

Independent contractors do not want to become members of unions, by and large. They do not want to be members of unions. They want to get on and do their own business. They want to be able to get on and do their own work. They want the opportunity to be able to do the work that they're engaged to do.

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