Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Is the Prime Minister aware that, because of the government’s industrial relations changes, Spotless Services, contracted to clean army barracks in Victoria, has offered its employees a new agreement that will cut part-time loadings, casual loadings and penalty rates? Isn’t it the case that a permanent, full-time shiftworker, working an afternoon shift from 2 pm to 10 pm on less than $30,000 a year, stands to lose $16.96 a week under the new agreement? Prime Minister, how can any relief this worker receives under your budget possibly make up for the triple whammy of petrol price increases, interest rate increases and lower wages caused by your industrial relations changes?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I do not know the particular circumstances to which the Leader of the Opposition is referring, but I do know something about the way real wages have moved under my government compared with how they moved under the government of which he was a member. As I have said frequently in this House, when it comes to the impact of industrial relations changes, my guarantee about real wages is my record. What the budget has done is to address in a very real way the concerns of millions of Australian families who are obviously feeling the impact of higher petrol prices.

I am interested that the Leader of the Opposition mentions petrol prices, because I seem to recall the Leader of the Opposition doing an interview on 6PR, I think in October or November last year, when he was asked whether it was a good idea to cut the petrol excise. He said: ‘No, it’s not. The way in which you help people with higher petrol prices is to cut their tax.’ And that is exactly what this government has done.

I am fascinated with the Leader of the Opposition, because I heard him this morning say that the tax cuts in the budget were long overdue. That is very interesting. They are long overdue in 2006, but who voted against them in 2005? None other than the person who asked me the question. I do not think the Leader of the Opposition has a lot of credibility in asking me about so-called triple whammies.