Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Education) Share this | Hansard source

I know, Mr Speaker, you understand what a caring kind of guy I am. I'm starting to get worried about the wellbeing of the entire Labor frontbench because they're absolutely obsessed with the Leader of the Opposition. It's six months until the next federal election is due to be held, and they've given up governing. Their obsession with the Leader of the Opposition is evident every day in this place. Forget about Labor's 'light on the hill'. Forget about Bob Hawke's famous pledge that by 1990 no Australian child would be living in poverty. It's now clear that by 2025 no Australian child will be living without a three-word slogan. As we've seen in question time, as we've seen all this week, Labor has given up on governing and is now completely focused on three-word slogans and regurgitating the attack lines, the negative points, that come up in its focus group hearings. They've given up any attempts at vision, hope, optimism or aspiration. 'No child will be living without a three-word slogan' is this government's plan for Australia's future. They strut to the dispatch box and they claim that cost of living is now their No. 1 priority. After wasting more than $400 million tearing Australians apart with a vanity project otherwise known as the Voice, it's embarrassing to watch.

Those of us who live in the regions understand there are many skills shortages in Australia today, but the biggest skills shortage in Australia today is in the Australian Labor Party cabinet. I'm disappointed the member for Moreton is leaving the place; at least if he was in the cabinet room there'd be a little bit of skill injected into the room. The biggest skills shortage on the Australian continent today is in the Australian cabinet, which is suffering a severe lack of skills—even the poor old member for Moreton couldn't get a game there. Instead of developing policies and making Australia stronger and safer, this cabinet has been turned into a three-word slogan factory. We have before us, effectively, an opposition in waiting. They've given up on governing, and all they're doing now is throwing mud at the Leader of the Opposition, desperately running scare campaigns and desperately conjuring up more three-word slogans straight out of their focus groups.

I'm sure that everyone here—I look around the room; maybe not Sam. What's your seat again?

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