Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

What we have seen this morning is more than just the imposition of another tax on the people in the regions. What we have seen is an egregious breach of the trust of the Australian people. What this Labor government did this morning was to shut down debate, shut down democracy and not allow the opposition to speak on this horrible tax that will be imposed on the mums and dads and the tradies. I ask the Prime Minister, and I ask those opposite: What are you afraid of? Why are you afraid of the Australian people? Why would you shut us down and not allow us to speak to this tax that you will impose on the Australian people, particularly those in the regions?

The Australian people will not forget this. We will remind them. The member for Maranoa said at the end of his speech, 'There will be a reckoning,' and there will. I urge the Prime Minister to bring on an early election, because the people will not forget that you have prevented democracy in this place. Every single one of us, over that side and on this side, is elected by the people to come down here and speak on their behalf—for them. By blocking us from doing that today, you are saying to those people: 'We don't care about you. You don't matter. It doesn't matter that you voted for your member, because we're just going to shut you down. We will shut you down.'

By shutting us down, they are shutting you down. They don't care about you. They don't care that your electricity bill has gone up by 30 per cent. They don't care that your gas bills have gone up by 27 per cent. They don't care that this very tax will put $20,000 on the family car which is the most popular car in the regions. Who buys those cars? Tradies, farmers, families—people in the regions who put the food on the table and the fibre on your backs. But they don't care about you, and they showed that today because they shut us down. Shutting us down shuts you down.

I've had people in my office, and I'm sure we've had people in all of our offices telling us how hard it is to cope at the moment with the cost-of-living crisis. Going to Coles—I go to Coles; I do the shopping—we have an increase of 15 per cent on your grocery bills. Mark my words and listen to this, Labor: the people will not forget what you have done to them today. If you support Labor, you should be ashamed of what your government has done today to the Australian democracy. You should tell them. You should ring your MPs and say: 'We vote for democracy. We vote for freedom.' That is exactly what has not happened here today.

See this speech in context