Stephen Smith (Perth, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Industry, Infrastructure and Industrial Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. I refer the Prime Minister to comments made by the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal Pell, on Sunday:

I don’t particularly like the new IR laws because I’m frightened they could be used to force down minimum wages.

I also refer the Prime Minister to Laurie Oakes’s article in the Bulletin magazine today when he said:

Cardinal Pell is right to be concerned. These laws will lead to lower pay and worse conditions for a not insignificant number of workers. The government has known it all along. It lied in claiming other-wise.

Prime Minister, isn’t Laurie Oakes right?

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

I quite like Laurie, but let me say his analysis is not one that I would accept. Let me put it graciously: his analysis is not one that I am minded to accept. But I am in a benevolent mood and I do not want to be too harsh about an esteemed correspondent, particularly as I am attending that press gallery bash tonight—although, Mr Speaker, I will have to be very careful of how I behave. Seriously, this is an issue relating to credibility and credibility is about performance and is about delivery. If you want to compare the wage credibility and performance of this government with the former Labor government, I am very happy to engage in the analysis.

The other observation I would make is that I have an enormous amount of respect for Cardinal Pell, as I have said before. I do not always agree with him; he does not always agree with me. I think we have well-documented differences of view about whether or not Australia should become a republic, but I do have an enormous regard for the leadership that he brings to the 27 per cent of Australians who claim the Catholic faith. I think he is one of the most impressive ecclesiastical figures in Australia, but I would also invite the member for Perth to have a look at the rest of Cardinal Pell’s statement. He has some very interesting observations about workplace agreements and you ought to read them.