Bruce Baird (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. Would the minister inform the House how the government’s workplace relations policies are helping to create a stronger economy? Is the minister aware of any proposals that could jeopardise this contribution?

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Cook for his question. I read with great interest his article in the Daily Telegraph today.

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

A very good article.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was a very good and compelling argument in support of the government’s workplace relations reforms. I was convinced, having read that article. The Australian people are convinced as well. Sometimes when you are in government, if you want to keep the economy strong, you have to make some tough decisions. This government has not been afraid to make tough decisions to keep Australia competitive. In order to guarantee not just the jobs of today but the jobs of tomorrow, you sometimes have to make tough decisions such as getting the budget into surplus, which the Labor Party opposed; introducing taxation reform, which the Labor Party opposed; paying off government debt, which the Labor Party opposed; reform of the waterfront, which the Labor Party opposed; Welfare to Work, which the Labor Party also opposed; and, of course, industrial relations and workplace relations change, which the Labor Party opposed.

After nearly 12 months, we are starting to see some figures that indicate that our reforms are delivering real benefits. Only last week, it became clear that since the reforms started 263,000 new jobs have been created in Australia. Interestingly, nearly 90 per cent of those jobs are full-time jobs. I well remember the former Leader of the Opposition, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition and a range of union leaders predicting Armageddon. They said the world would end with these laws; there would be mass sackings; children would go to school without shoes; and a range of other things. Wages are up by 1.5 per cent since the introduction of our laws.

I was asked whether there are any proposals that could jeopardise this contribution. I noted on the Sunday program the Deputy Leader of the Opposition saying that the Labor Party would avoid the flow-on impact of high wages in the mining industry by supporting collective agreements. I thought to myself, ‘That’s at odds with the Labor Party draft policy that says they want to introduce pattern bargaining.’ On one hand, on one side of the street, the Labor Party want to introduce pattern bargaining. They released their draft policy on a Friday night.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Gillard interjecting

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That’s an old trick, Julia. On a Friday night, they released their draft industrial relations policy, which, amongst many other things, stated that the Labor Party wanted to see a reintroduction of pattern bargaining. Then, to another audience, on the Sunday program, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition said, ‘But we’ll stop the flow-on impact of wage increases in the mining industry going to others.’

I am intrigued by this. If you have a mechanic employed by the mine, under the Labor Party’s policy how would you prevent other mechanics in Sydney or Melbourne from being caught up in the same wage net? That is what the Labor Party want to do. They want to endanger people’s jobs. They are going to introduce policies that put upward pressure on inflation. Of course, that puts upward pressure on interest rates.

It is again a case of the Labor Party trying to walk both sides of the street. On the one hand, they are giving one message to the union movement, saying, ‘Don’t worry, comrades, all will be okay—you’ll be marching into every workplace,’ on the dark day that the Leader of the Opposition ever gets elected. On the other hand, the Deputy Leader of the Opposition is trying to tell the business community and Australians that the economy will remain strong under Labor. We have caught them out again. The Labor Party’s industrial relations policy is bad for the economy and bad for Australian jobs.