Daryl Melham (Banks, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. Will the minister update the House on the government’s progress in implementing the fair, balanced and flexible workplace relations policies it took to the last election?

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Banks for his question. He is a man who you can always hear in this parliament, no matter what the circumstances. Of course, today this House took the step of passing Labor’s transition bill, which will go to the Senate later this week. This bill will end forever the making of new Australian workplace agreements. From its passage by this parliament and from its proclamation, Australian workers will no longer have to worry about walking into work only to be confronted by an Australian workplace agreement that rips away their basic terms and conditions. When that debate was finalised in this place, there was a remarkable scene. This was the issue that was at the heart of the last election campaign, the issue on which members of the Liberal Party fought for many months and the issue about which government ministers day after day under the Howard government used to walk to this dispatch box full of brimstone, fire and defence of Work Choices, yet when it came today in this parliament to deal with the bill that would end the first part of Work Choices, what did we see? We saw the Deputy Leader of the Opposition here as the relevant spokesperson. We saw the member for Warringah here, presumably on duty. We saw the member for Cowan sitting on the back bench. Apart from that, we saw nothing. They no longer have the courage to come into this place and defend what they believe in. What they believe in is Work Choices.

When it came to dealing with this legislation, which is of so much importance to Australian working families, there was one honest man on the opposition side in that debate, and that was the member for Fisher. I would like to quote the member for Fisher, because I believe it is important in indicating what will happen in the future should the Liberal Party ever be re-elected. He said:

I have a little difficulty with the position of the coalition—

which he described as meaning that ‘we are not going on to oppose Labor’s bill’—

While the government does have an obligation to bring in this bill, on the other hand I would like to have been able to vote in the parliament on the basis of the principles on which I stood for re-election on 24 November…

There is one honest man on the opposition benches. Apart from an absence of passion and defence of Work Choices as they cowered in their offices, not supporting and not opposing the legislation, there was one other remarkable thing that was missing from the chamber. Members of parliament might have thought they heard the corridors resounding to a shout of ‘Miranda’ during the debate in the parliament. They might have thought that Picnic at Hanging Rock was on the TV again. But it actually was not a shout of Miranda; it was a shout of ‘Malcolm’ as the member for Wentworth did not turn up for his allocated speaking spot in the debate. When called upon—

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The first answer that the Deputy Prime Minister gave went for six minutes. This answer, I understand, has now been going for around four minutes, if not more. She is now hallucinating at the dispatch box. I ask that you bring her back to the question at hand.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There was no point of order but I do suggest to the Deputy Prime Minister that, given the careful wording from our learned colleague who asked the question, she is now stretching her response. She will bring it to a conclusion.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker, and I will conclude shortly. The only hallucination in this parliament was the prospect that the member for Wentworth would come in and stand up for anything, because he is obviously leaving his options open on Work Choices for later leadership ballots within the Liberal Party.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The minister will bring her response to a close and be relevant.

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On the question of the workplace relations legislation, the bill has cleared the House of Representatives. There will be a Senate inquiry that reports later today. We will, of course, be mindful of what has occurred in the Senate inquiry, but there is no reason why this bill will not clear the parliament by the end of this week other than a desire by the Liberal Party to keep Work Choices staggering on.