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

Order! Before I call Mr Bidgood, the member for Dawson, I remind honourable members that this is his first speech. I therefore ask that the usual courtesies be extended to him.

James Bidgood (Dawson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When the laws that govern a nation are unjust then those laws and the government that created them must be changed. This is what the people of Australia comprehensively did on 24 November 2007. They rejected the coalition of conservative parties and their policies on Work Choices and nuclear power. In the seat of Dawson there was a primary vote swing to the Australian Labor Party of 16.9 per cent and 13.2 per cent on the two-party preferred vote. This wiped out 32 years of National Party rule. Yes, it is the first time since Dr Rex Patterson, the former Whitlam Labor government minister—the only person to hold this seat for Labor for nine years until 1975. Ironically, on election day, I met him at the polling booth, where he said to me: ‘I think you could just do this.’ Dr Rex is highly regarded. The people of Dawson still talk about how his visionary plans for the region were years ahead of anyone else of his time. Yes, he is a true Labor Party hero.

Members of any political party should be warned: a 10 per cent margin is not a safe seat, especially when gross injustice has been done to working people and their families, when the laws of the nation allow wages and conditions to be legitimately ripped away from them. No-one should ever forget that. Ten per cent is not safe in those circumstances.

The Bible says: ‘Where there is no vision, the people perish.’ The previous government had no real vision for the future of this nation. They had lost their way. The Rudd Labor government has a very clear vision. Labor is about justice for all, regardless of wealth, race, religion, political view, sexuality or birthright. Labor is about treating everybody equally—a real fair go for all. Labor is about the freedom of speech, association, rights and liberties. Labor is about the strong helping the weak. Labor is about a bright vision for the future. Labor has a plan and a strategy that will invest in health, education and research, housing and key infrastructure to produce the productivity of this nation for the benefit and common good of all.

In the first 100 days of this Rudd Labor government we have delivered on our promises to, first, sign the Kyoto agreement; second, apologise to the stolen generations; and, third, introduce legislation to scrap the unfair Work Choices laws. The Australian people, under a Rudd Labor government, have a nuclear-free future. We will not waste $25 billion on 25 nuclear power stations around this country which in 50 years time would have cost hundreds of billions of dollars to decommission. The people of Dawson and Australia have rejected that nuclear notion and have given a mandate to the Rudd Labor government to invest in green, environmentally friendly clean coal technology and to invest in solar, wind, wave and hot-rock thermal technology. Under the leadership of Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard and Wayne Swan, the Labor future for energy in Australia is safe. Our great-grandchildren will look back and thank this generation of leaders for creating a safe, renewable and sustainable energy system.

I am so proud, humbled and honoured to be a part of this government. I am elected to serve, and I commit to serve with all my energy, as a representative for the people of Dawson, and to serve their interests well. We are all the product of our own experiences—where and what circumstances we were born into. My political philosophy has been shaped by my development as a person and will guide my time as a representative in this place. Primarily, I am utilitarian. I believe that the role of government is to bring about the greatest amount of good to the greatest number of people. I believe in the fair go for all Australians. I love the ‘have a go’ culture: ‘Give it a go and, if you fall over, here’s a hand up, mate—and have another go.’ That is what I love about our Australian attitude. It is positive and encourages people not to give up. If at first you do not succeed, try again. I believe in community and grassroots democracy. It is all about everyday people wanting to live a healthy, peaceful life, free from the fear of poverty, homelessness and war.

My mother, Milly, was a single parent. I was fostered out when I was born at St Andrews Hospital, by the railway tracks in Bromley-by-Bow in the East End of London in 1959. I can truly say that I was born on the wrong side of the tracks. I was ‘adopted back’ when I was one, when my mother married my stepfather, Michael Patrick Lynch. He was ‘Dad’ to me. Dad was a labourer on building sites—a man who worked hard all of his life for very little reward. He passed away in February 2000. He would have been so proud to have seen me standing here today—St Patrick’s Day—in parliament. My mother, Milly, is still alive, aged 87. She lives in Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England, where we moved in my first year of life and where I grew up sharing a house with my grandparents. I know what crowded housing is all about; I have lived it. My mother may be frail in her body but she is strong and young in her spirit and will argue her point strongly. Not a lot has changed there.

When I left school I went into the print trade as an apprentice darkroom technician, planner and platemaker for the presses. As a young apprentice in the print trade in England, I witnessed firsthand the workings of the Conservative Thatcher government against the printers, the miners, the steelworkers, the car workers and the shipbuilders. I saw firsthand the way the government marginalised generations of the working class in my community and kept honest people trampled under foot. Three and a half million people were officially unemployed in 1982 in the UK. Living through that injustice instilled in me—long before Work Choices—the notion that working people deserve a fair go and that government has no place in making the lives of working families worse off. The government of the day, whoever that may be, should lift up working families, not put them down. That is why, as a Christian, I feel at home in the Labor Party. It is the party that stands up for social justice for all people, not just those who can afford it. My faith is what drives me spiritually, with the conviction that society can change when people change their way of thinking and leaders make plans that benefit the whole community, not just one selfish part of it.

Prior to entering this place, I owned and managed two medical centres in Mackay as the financial director. I understand firsthand the issues that face small businesses. I have proven that you can run a successful business and look after your workers. I also understand the needs of the health system in this country. The provision of health care is a core Labor priority. That is why we need Labor’s National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission to end duplication and cost shifting, and we are committed to getting it right. Already, $150 million has been invested to fund 25,000 additional elective surgery procedures for those waiting beyond recommended times. Every child needs access to good health and a decent education from day one in order to have the best foundations in life. That is why we need Labor’s plan to appoint Professor Barry McGaw to chair a new national curriculum board to create consistent curricula across Australia in maths, English, science and history. Equality of opportunity in these fundamentals is not negotiable, and we are committed to getting it right.

My electorate of Dawson is in the heart of Queensland, spanning from Mackay, Proserpine, Airlie Beach, the Whitsunday Islands, Bowen, Ayr, Home Hill, Stuart and Oonoonba to the Ross River in South Townsville. Stretching over 19,000 square kilometres, it is a seat of wonderful diversity, from agriculture to fishing and from sugar to meatworks and mines. Dawson is a true economic powerhouse of the Australian economy. We need to move on and develop the economic triangle from Mount Isa to Townsville to Mackay. We need to have Chalco based at Abbotts Point, 20 kilometres north of Bowen, and a baseload power station between Bowen and Collinsville to power North Queensland. These are some of the key infrastructure, along with road and rail, that will boost the export productivity of the nation. I will be lobbying my fellow members of government and advocating these issues. Mining production value in Queensland as at 2007 equalled $25.3 billion, according to the Queensland Resources Council. From that, 36,000 jobs were created, and one in four of those are in the Bowen Basin. Queensland will need another 15,000 skilled resource workers by 2015.

The sugar and coal industries are key economies in Dawson. The sugar industry has created many of the great townships of Mackay, Farleigh, Proserpine, Ayr and Home Hill in my electorate. Theirs is a rich history and they have an exciting future under a Rudd Labor government. Indeed, many of my constituents are descendants of sugar industry pioneers, among them South Sea Islanders, Italians and Maltese—those manual canecutters who slogged it out in the tropical Queensland heat to earn a hard living off the land, to build a life and raise a family in the region. They have come up the tough way, building their lives over the generations. Dawson is a region founded on sugar, and the sugar industry has a friend in Labor. There are exciting projects like the Rudd Labor government’s investment, direct to canefarmers, of $200 million to help them in managing the water to reef run-off. There is also the $15 million commitment into research grants into Next Gen Ethanol, which offers real possibilities to the region for innovation allowing for continuous sustainability and growth of the sugar industry. Especially in times of low international sugar prices, we the Labor government will add value to the sugar industry by encouraging research in these areas.

My vision for the future of Dawson is for real investments, not just lip service. This includes real investment in education and training to address the skills shortage which has so acutely affected regional Australia. The Rudd Labor government’s investment in 450,000 new training places and our commitment to upskilling our workforce into the future is essential to deliver real results. There is also our investment into developing a $14 million mining technology and innovation skills centre in Mackay, which is a specialised centre that will deliver terrific long-term outcomes for all of Australia. Investment in such essential infrastructure is needed to secure our future prosperity. We need to work to ease capacity constraints in our economy. In Dawson we are powering on and contributing to the nation’s bottom line. We on this side of the House are heading in the right direction on skills and training. We put priority on investing for the future: real commitments, real investment and real results. The Labor Party is the miner’s friend—always has been and always will be. The coal industry has a true friend in the Labor Party, a true friend that will not give up on the industry. Dawson’s economy relies on a sustainable coal industry, and I applaud our government’s clear commitment to clean coal technologies, a technology that will ensure a real future for our coal industries. The $150 million fund—$50 million by government, $100 million by industry—will deliver clean coal technology to cut carbon emissions and clean up the industry. The workers in the coal industry have a true friend in Labor. These workers, above all, want health and safety and a fair go at work. They want their union by their side, and they see that Labor has a plan to secure the future of the coal industry.

Another key industry is tourism and it continues to contribute significantly to employment in the region. Tourism, especially international tourism, is something that I am very passionate and determined about, as I can see great potential for Dawson to build on its image as a dynamic international tourist destination. To develop a greater range of tourist experiences, in partnership with the industry, is an achievable goal. Already, within my electorate, the world renowned Whitsunday region increased total visitations by nine per cent and the Mackay region increased total visitations by 11 per cent for the year ended 2007. Sports tourism is another aspect that has potential in our region. One thing about the people who live in Dawson is that they love sport. I thank the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, for coming to Mackay during the election and promising to fund $8 million into the Mackay rugby league and junior rugby league stadium.

The people of Dawson voted to scrap Work Choices and move forward with fairness in the workplace. The people of Dawson voted to say no to 25 nuclear power stations in Australia. The people of Dawson voted yes to new leadership, yes to fresh ideas, yes to an education revolution and yes to a government with vision. The Rudd Labor government has that vision for the future.

I pay tribute to the tireless work of over 300 Labor Party members and supporters throughout the entire electorate who have worked selflessly towards electing me into a Rudd Labor government. There would be no Labor Party without these true believers: the rank and file. A special thanks must go to my committed campaign team. I thank my campaign director, Frank Gilbert, and his wife, Julieanne. It is amazing to think that I campaigned for Frank in this seat after I had just arrived from the UK in January 1993, and also in 1996. It is especially pleasing for him to see this victory in Dawson. I want to say thank you to my old friend, and assistant campaign director, John Pollitt. He single-handedly managed my successful Mackay City Council election campaign in 2004. He is in the gallery today. John, I salute you for all the hours and hard work you have put into this victory. Thanks go to my campaign office manager, Nurse Wendy Clement, and her husband, Jeff. Wendy and Jeff gave so much time and energy. Thanks for everything. Thanks also to my campaign team: Deborah Green; Dennis Bailey; Andrea Pozza and his fiancee Zoe; Therese Kingston and Muddy Waters; James Sullivan, who organised the pre-poll booths; and all of the branches of the ALP in Dawson. I could not have won this victory without you, the true believers. Thank you, one and all. Thank you, Queensland Labor campaign organisers Chris Forrester, Antony Chisolm and Lynis Powell; Queensland president Ron Moynahan; and state secretary Milton Dick. Thank you, Sharan Burrow of the ACTU. Thank you for your support, Dave Smith, from my union, the ASU. Thank you, Dave Hannah, from the BLF—the building labourers will always be special to me. Thank you, Andrew Vickers, Tony Maher from the CFMEU, and Bill Ludwig and Bill Shorten from the AWU, whom I am pleased to see is now the member for Maribyrnong. Thank you to the entire Your Rights at Work campaign team across the great Australian union movement. Locally, Lara Watson was the Dawson Your Rights at Work organiser. Thank you for the ‘Rock off Johnny’ concert and all that you did. We won’t—or can’t—forget it.

Thank you to the rank and file of the MUA locally in Dawson for their dedication, especially Laurie Horgan and Gary Bell. It really is ‘all the way with the MUA’. Thank you to Glenn Hall from the ETU and Shane Brunker from the CFMEU. Thank you to Les Mofit of RTBU and Margie Dale of QCU Townsville. Thank you to the Queensland state member for Mackay, Tim Mulherin, and the state member for Whitsunday, Jan Jarrat, for their wisdom and advice. To my former Labor councillors who I served time with on the Mackay City Council for the last four years, Don Rolls, Kev Casey and Greg Thomsen, I thank you for your support. To my friends in the gallery today, Rex Small, Brendan Greenhill and Lee Webster, I thank you for your friendship and support. To my friend and the pastor of Christian City Church Mackay, John Gilbank, I thank you for all your prayers—more will be required.

To Kevin Rudd, Kim Beazley, Simon Crean, Wayne Swan, Martin Ferguson and Kirsten Livermore, I thank you all for visiting me and for giving your time in Dawson. Thank you to Senators Chris Evans, John Hogg, Claire Moore, Joe Ludwig, Kerry O’Brien, Kate Lundy and Kim Carr and to the new Senator-elect Mark Furner. Thank you also for coming to support me in Dawson. I want to personally thank Senator Jan McLucas, whom I first met during Cherry Feeney’s two federal campaigns. Jan, you really have been a great help in this victory. It was your encouragement and support that convinced me to stand and you were there at key times during my very long campaign. I congratulate the new mayors in Dawson on their election on Saturday, 15 March 2008. Well done to Les Tryell in the Townsville City Council, Lyn McLaughlin in the Burdekin Shire Council, Mike Brunker in the Whitsunday Regional Council and Col Meng in the Mackay Regional Council. I promise to work with you all, regardless of political lines, for positive outcomes for our people.

The recent flooding in my electorate has been nothing short of devastating. From Ayr, Bowen and Proserpine to the Whitsundays, it really has been a big wet. Indeed, in Mackay, this year’s rain has been the worst seen in 90 years. Over 600 millimetres of rain fell in 24 hours. There has been $170 million worth of damage—and rising—done to date, which has left 8,000 homes affected; 400 families cannot return to their home for six months. My electorate office has also has also been completely knocked out and my staff have been working out of my home office while we wait six months for new premises. Thank you Jane Casey, Adel Howland, James Sullivan, John Pollitt and Andrea Pozza; you are a great staff team. You are the mobile office.

Since the flooding, the community have rallied together and responded magnificently in their moment of crisis. Their spirits have been comforted and lifted by the visit of His Excellency the Governor-General; the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd; and Queensland Premier Anna Bligh. Thank you, Prime Minister, for your immediate action in releasing $1,000 per adult and $400 per child in emergency relief payments. Thank you also for giving half a million dollars while you were on your visit in Mackay to match the Queensland government’s half a million dollars in its flood appeal. That will help all flood-affected areas in Queensland. On behalf of the people of Dawson, I say, from my heart, thank you. I sincerely congratulate and thank all the volunteers and emergency service workers on the ground. They have been working around the clock to help local families and small businesses get back on their feet as soon as possible. I say to the SES, the Red Cross, all the emergency services and Meals on Wheels: you are the true community heroes; you have done a magnificent job and we are proud of you.

There is no greater honour than to be elected to serve, represent and be a real voice for the community in this parliament. I promise to honourably represent my constituency, following in the footsteps of great community leaders such as William Forgan Smith; Dr Rex Patterson; and, in the state seat of Mackay, the former state opposition leader against the Bjelke-Petersen government, the late, great Edmund Casey.

For me, Australia truly has been the lucky country and the land of opportunity. From the East End of London to Southend in Essex, then to the east end of Mackay and now to the east wing of parliament, it has been a long journey and one that I only ever dreamed of. Mackay has given me among the things that I cherish most in life. It is in Mackay that I have built a home and raised a family. My daughters—Jazmin, 12, and Zoe, six—and son, Jade, nine, are my pride and joy, born to my former wife, Dr Rachel Bidgood, at the Mackay Base Hospital birthing centre. Unfortunately, the kids cannot be here today, but I have a photo of us together on the night that we won Dawson. I am so proud that they could share that historic moment with me. I want to thank my partner, Davina, for her love and support over the last couple of years.

To conclude, I promise to continue to listen and act on behalf of the people of Dawson. Rest assured that I listened when the prospect of a nuclear Australia was rejected by the constituents of Dawson. I listened when the people said they did not want unfair industrial relations laws. I will work for the people and, in government, make their voice heard. Labor will give voice to the voiceless, homes to the homeless, power to the powerless and strength to the weak. This Rudd Labor government stands for the rights and freedoms of association for the common good of all. The Labor Party stands united with the workers of this great nation of Australia, and this unity is the strength that will deliver a great future for Australia. (Time expired)

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

I indicate to the chamber that here endeth the first speeches.

Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment Participation and Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I congratulate the member for Dawson on his maiden speech. We all remember our maiden speech. I cannot help but think that his skills in oratory might have been honed on a soapbox in Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park. I would also like to congratulate you, Mr Speaker, on your election to that office, an office that was also occupied by your father. We have enormous respect in this House for the way you have carried out all of your duties and responsibilities as Deputy Speaker and also Speaker. I would like to congratulate you very sincerely on your election to that position.

I would also like to record my thanks to the voters in Boothby who, on 24 November, re-elected me as their representative. I will do my best to see that their views are faithfully represented in this chamber. It is a great honour for anyone to be a member of the House of Representatives in the federal parliament. Since Federation in 1901, just over 1,000 people have served in this House. It is an honour that none of us takes lightly. I regard it as a great honour, and I am glad that I have the opportunity to continue in this role.

A lot has been written and said about the 2007 campaign in the electorate of Boothby. The Labor Party said a lot about it before the campaign, during the campaign and after the campaign. I do not seek to add to the commentary on the 2007 campaign, but I will say that a lot of hard work went into it and that I would not have missed a second of anything that happened during it. Since 2004, I, as the member, and my team have doorknocked over 10,000 homes on our spare Saturday and Sunday afternoons. I have held thousands of conversations with the local people and their families on their doorsteps, sometimes from behind their doors. I heard directly from them about the issues that they would like to see action on—the issues that are important to them.

I have many memories of these conversations. For instance, I remember being at a railway station at 7 am and explaining to a constituent the intricacies of our tax plan and the low income tax offset, which had been released only the day before. It is the sort of thing that you are expected to do as a member—to be on top of everything. I found many people in their front gardens when I came to talk to them, and they spoke of their enormous frustration over the lack of water and lack of security for Adelaide’s water supply. This was one issue that many voters in Boothby wanted to see action on. The crippling drought and the severe water restrictions were almost always a topic of conversation at the door or in the front garden.

Last week, I presented a petition from 7,000 constituents calling on the South Australian government to do more in providing security for our water supply and to revisit the water restrictions, including the bucket policy. The petition was distributed last September, and I am pleased that the South Australian state government has moved, slowly, to begin work on a desalination plant and that it has modified its water restrictions in the face of overwhelming community opposition.

I am also pleased to note that it is the Liberal Party in South Australia that is now setting the agenda on a whole range of things. They have a vision for South Australia and a comprehensive plan to deal with the drought and our reliance on the Murray. At the beginning of the year, I flew over the Murray, from Mildura to Murray Bridge, and it was clear that, where once lagoons supported bird life, all that was left was a salt pan. Beaches were exposed in the river which were previously the river bottom. The state of the Murray, the drying up of Lake Alexandrina and what that means for the environment of the Coorong are the reasons I supported the $10 billion plan for water security in the Murray-Darling. It is worth noting that the new government is over 100 days into its term. This plan was 90 per cent complete when it was presented to Labor on the change of government, but we still have not seen any action on it. This is a very important issue for my constituents, and it is one that I will take an interest in as long as I am the member for Boothby.

The environmental issues raised by constituents ranged from local to global. I am pleased that the Liberal Party supports the ratification of the Kyoto protocol. While our concerns about signing it were legitimate, once we were on track to meet our commitments it made little sense to continue to decline ratification of the protocol. I pledge to work with local groups to help restore our coastal dunes, eradicate weeds in our local reserves, improve the quality of the Sturt River and Sturt Creek and help reduce the bushfire risk to homes in the Hills Face Zone.

In January, our local community had a serious bushfire which threatened homes in Brownhill Creek, Mitcham and Belair and which consumed over 20 hectares of bushland. The CFS and MFS responded with every asset they had and were able to contain the fire within three hours of its outbreak. It is 25 years on from Ash Wednesday, and this recent fire has been a reminder that many of our built-up areas are too vulnerable to the threat of bushfire. This makes it absolutely critical that households eliminate any fuel loads on their property and have a detailed fire safety plan available that they can implement when they make their decision to stay or go.

Local and state governments also have a role in helping to reduce the risk of flammable weeds and in ensuring that fire services have the assets that they require. I have spoken on this previously, but we have a particular problem in our area with feral olives; they are highly flammable. It requires a concerted effort from all levels of government to reduce this fuel load. On the issue of fire assets, the helicopter did fantastic work filling up from the Playford Lake and dumping its load on fires. However, I wonder whether the time has come for us to consider having an Erickson sky crane full-time in South Australia. The one currently based in Canberra is available to us. But fires occur very quickly. This latest fire broke out at 4 o’clock and was contained by 7 o’clock, with the work dealing with the logs and so on continued overnight.

Another issue which I will continue to speak out about is the quality of local infrastructure. You do not have to travel far to realise that the quality of infrastructure in Adelaide is very poor by comparison with other capital cities. During the campaign, while talking to people at railway stations last year, it was clear that people are fed up with the lack of investment in infrastructure by successive state governments. Breakdowns are a common occurrence on the South Australian rail network, and delays on our simple train system are part of commuters’ daily routine.

Something else that I have also spoken about is the vision of a north-south road corridor. The RAA visited me on this issue last year, and I took up the issue of the north-south road corridor and putting a stretch of South Road from Sir Donald Bradman Drive to Darlington on the national road network, which allows it to receive AusLink funding. I was very pleased that, after a lot of lobbying, the Prime Minister made this announcement in August last year. While I am disappointed that it will not be my side of politics that will now be in a position to fund this north-south road corridor, I am pleased that the Labor Party made a similar commitment to the one made by the Howard government, so this important project will go ahead. I welcome the $500 million which was committed by the Labor Party to continue the work on this vital piece of infrastructure. It is not clear to me how much the South Australian state government will be contributing over the same period—we had a proposal that it would be matching funding—but I do welcome the $500 million which has been committed by the Labor Party to work on grade separations and an upgrade of South Road between 2009 and 2014.

Another issue which concerns residents is law and order and crime. Just last month, there was a serious incident in my electorate involving over 100 youths from the southern suburbs swarming on a party. Police cars were vandalised. It was apparent that people had used the internet and SMS to descend on what was a child’s party. This now means parents have to have security for children’s parties, and we also have an issue with gangs in the southern suburbs. One of the things I was very keen to do, had the Howard government been re-elected, was push for CCTV cameras to help local policing. With the City of Holdfast Bay, we were able to get a CCTV camera in Moseley Square in Glenelg. This was the major priority for the Sturt LSA and also for the southern suburbs. That has been welcomed by the community, it has been welcomed by traders in that area, and it has also been welcomed by the police.

The Labor Party made a number of commitments in the electorate of Boothby during the campaign. They made a commitment for $3 million for a feasibility study on alternative rail routes through the Adelaide Hills. They made a commitment for $2 million for a performing arts centre at the Brighton Secondary School. They made a commitment for $1 million for an upgrade of the Marion Sports & Community Club. They made a commitment for $130,000 for lights at the Blackwood Football Club. And they made a commitment for $20,000 for the Sturt Baseball Club for nets and for junior sport. Of those commitments, four were taken from my future plans, but I am pleased that they did take up my future plans, and I look forward to these commitments being delivered by the Labor Party as soon as possible. These are all worthy projects which have my support and, I am sure, the community’s support, and I will be asking that this money is forwarded to the local groups as soon as possible.

There are many features of the electorate of Boothby which I have spoken on in the past. One of the things that make it special is that we have a number of landmark institutions in disability services: Minda Inc., Bedford Industries and CanDo4Kids, which used to be the old Townsend House. While these names are not always known interstate, they are certainly outstanding facilities. Bedford is now the second largest provider of disability employment services in Australia. Also, Townsend House has been providing education for children with multiple sensory disabilities for over 130 years. As the local member, I have been pleased to have a great relationship with all of these organisations, and I look forward to working with them on any issues that they would like addressed.

There are a number of issues that the parliament will have to consider. One of them is, obviously, the ageing of our population. It is expected that, in less than 40 years, a quarter of our population will be over 65. As a result, we are going to have much lower growth of the labour force, and this means it is absolutely critical that we improve workforce participation. This was a focus of the previous government. There are a number of areas for older workers, for men aged between 25 and 54 and especially for women in their late 20s, 30s and early 40s where our participation rates are much lower than those of comparable countries. We can do better there, and we will need to do better if we are going to maintain our standard of living into the future.

The most recent unemployment figures show that the unemployment rate is at four per cent. This is before the new government has made any changes to any of our settings on workplace relations or tax—although it is our tax policy that the new government will be implementing. However, I saw in the newspaper that Access Economics believe that, as a result of Labor’s strategy on inflation, we will see the unemployment rate go up to five per cent. That will mean that 100,000 people who would otherwise be in work will be put out of work under this government’s economic policies.

Recently I visited the Mitsubishi car plant in my electorate. As members would be aware, a decision was made in February to cease operations in Australia this month. The plant has been operating since 1964. At the time it was opened, it was one of the jewels in the crown of South Australian manufacturing. It has been an important source of employment in the southern suburbs. My principal concern is for the workers at Mitsubishi. I am pleased to say to the House that the support they have had from the company, from the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, DEEWR; from the South Australian Department of Further Education, Employment, Science and Technology, DFEEST; and from a whole host of businesses and training providers has been outstanding. The way that all of the workers are getting advice about their futures has been well thought through. I think it is certainly a very good example of government, the company and business working together to find jobs for these skilled workers.

In concluding my speech in the address in reply debate, I would like to say that it is a great honour to represent the electorate of Boothby. It is a fantastic electorate to represent and I am very pleased to have the opportunity to continue my work as its member.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Deputy Speaker Adams, it is nice to have a friend and fellow Tasmanian in the chair for this address-in-reply debate, to have a friend who is also returning to parliament, the member for Hasluck, to have my friend the member for Lowe at the table and to have new members with me as well.

Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister Assisting the Shadow Minister for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What about us?

Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment Participation and Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Yes, what about us?

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am just about to get to you. Congratulations to returning members and to new members. As you know, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I am in the unusual but certainly not unique position, having two other members in this House in the same position, of being a new member again, a resurrected MP, which is probably rather apt around Easter time. My return journey to this place, like that of my colleagues no doubt, has taught me some very valuable lessons, some personally very painful I must say and others very salient—salient perhaps for others in this House, new and renewed, high and low.

Today gives me an opportunity to share some of these, if I may. As I said, this journey is both a personal and a political journey. At its heart are the people and communities of the north-west coast of Tasmania and King Island—that is, the electorate of Braddon. I have the privilege to live in and represent a truly beautiful part of the world. Physically, the electorate of Braddon, from east to west, takes in the townships of Port Sorell and Latrobe, the city of Devonport, the towns of Ulverstone and Penguin, the city of Burnie and the towns of Somerset, Wynyard, Stanley and Smithton—and the gem in this north-western crown is King Island itself. To the south lies the fertile rugged hinterlands of pasture, mountains and forests and to the west lies the magnificent rugged west coast with its mineral wealth, forests and abundant fishing, bordering on the electorate of Lyons, so ably represented by you, Mr Deputy Speaker.

When we talk about economic activity, several traditional industries are associated with Braddon. It is renowned as a major food-producing area, particularly in relation to vegetable growing and processing. I have always said that the soil is so fertile where I live you could throw a toenail in the ground and grow a foot. It is so wonderful. Dairy, beef and fish are iconic products of the region, along with forestry, papermaking and mineral producing. Our region also is, as some may not know, a quality producer of fine carpets and towels. Braddon’s tradespeople are well known for their practicality and skills. The region has a long history of light industry often associated with the larger more traditional manufacturing and processing industries. Newer industries have emerged along with an economy that is becoming more diversified, so necessary in the light of challenges facing our more traditional manufacturing industries. Light industries and an innovative range of service industries have grown up around the wind energy industry, for example. Innovative companies service the agricultural and horticultural sectors. Local small and highly creative IT companies have emerged. Viticulture, with the production of wine and with the spirits industry, continues to expand. Tourist ventures further seek to cash in on this magnificent environment.

There are many strengths in our region and in our communities. Businesses leaders and organisations strive to build on those in partnership with local, state and federal governments. But, like so much of regional and rural Australia, my region faces many challenges. My region is an ageing one—we still lose many of our young to other parts of Australia and the world, often to seek better education and careers prospects; many never return, however, to work and live and settle with their families. Comparatively low educational standards, low university participation rates and low retention rates to years 11 and 12 are hindering productivity and employment opportunities for many of our young. The reliance on attracting and retaining professional services and skills is doubly difficult because of this, a problem I know we share with many regions. Whilst unemployment has declined in our region, we still have a comparatively high national rate of youth and long-term unemployment. This, along with the ageing population, puts even more pressure on the demand for social services, benefits, health and wellbeing services, and social and physical infrastructure such as housing, aged-care facilities, communications and transport. My region is positively responding to many of these challenges, and I look forward to encouraging and supporting individuals, businesses and communities in this process. I am really proud to say that many of this new government’s policies are designed to support this process and that I have been able, in the last few years, to actually have some input into some of these at the national and electorate level.

I first campaigned as a federal candidate for Braddon in 1996 and managed a three per cent swing to Labor in very difficult electoral times. I continued to campaign between 1996 and 1998 and, with a swing of around 10 per cent, won the seat in 1998 with a campaign that cost around $17,000. If my memory serves me correctly, the polling said we could not win. In 2001—again, against the odds—we had a further three per cent swing in Braddon to Labor.

For me and my region, the period 1998 to 2004 was indeed a time of exciting change, opportunity and challenge. The innovative Cradle Coast Authority came into being and, with politically and organisationally rejuvenated local councils and regional leadership, the region began to coherently adjust to the changing economic and social challenges facing us. A dynamic state government led by the late Jim Bacon promoted and nurtured a resurgent, outward-looking and more confident Tasmania, and the north-west coast contributed to and benefited from this renewed sense of optimism.

Much of this legacy is still with us as we seek to consolidate and then expand on our successes and come to grips with the challenges that continue to face us. One of these challenges is sociocultural in nature. It involves a need to adopt practical, realistic expectations of service availability, delivery and costs. This is never more so than in the area of health services, matching traditional expectations with modern standards of sustainable service delivery, safety and cost.

In 2004 I lost my seat. Needless to say, I was devastated, along with my family and hardworking and loyal staff. I am confident, however, that what happened in Braddon, rather than to Sid Sidebottom, is a salient lesson—not just for me but, I humbly suggest, for others, both politicians and political operatives, in this place. Indeed, another returning member, the member for Canning, has returned to the House, and I thank him for his personal support.

I see a parallel between the 2004 election and its result in Braddon and this election past in November 2007. In both cases, Braddon reflected the national verdict and, I suggest, for primarily the same reason: crossing the line between acceptable practices and policy and those which were not—in short, violating the fair go principle. Until the 1998 election, Braddon had voted conservative for nearly 25 years after a long stint of voting Labor. The change coincided with the introduction of the GST by the Howard government which disadvantaged many low-income people in Braddon. I would like to claim that my standing as a candidate made a significant difference this time; however, the pollsters told me: ‘minimal’. In 2001, federal Labor was preferred again to a Howard government intent on selling off Telstra, increasingly strident about industrial relations and pursuing social policies that divided rather than united Australians—sound familiar?—even if many in Braddon sympathised with Mr Howard’s strong anti-boat-people policies. But many of these same folk saw the policy for what it was; the methods became increasingly objectionable.

In contrast with many other parts of the country, Labor’s vote in Braddon went up by about three per cent, reflective again of a good national campaign led by Kim Beazley in the face of the after-effects of 9-11, the Tampa affair and ‘children overboard’. On 9 October 2004, I lost my seat in a major swing against Labor of around seven per cent. I can honestly tell you that I knew this was going to happen when I heard of the extent of Labor’s forest policy on the Monday of the final week of the campaign, when Mark Latham delivered his bombshell in Hobart and immediately flew out of the state. Howard’s subsequent forest policy was far less explosive in comparison, although still substantive in effect, but it was greeted with enthusiasm by the industry and many in my electorate, in comparison with the Latham blitzkrieg policy. The images of workers greeting and cheering John Howard at the Albert Hall in Launceston later in the final week all but ended the campaigns in Braddon, Bass, McMillan and Eden-Monaro.

While some analysts will say that to blame the forest policy for the loss of these seats is somewhat simplistic—and I will grant that the Latham Labor campaign was becoming progressively more volatile and problematic the further the election campaign went—I have no doubt that the loss of Braddon was guaranteed. Indeed, the last EMRS poll taken in Tasmania late in the campaign had Labor in Braddon at around 53 per cent of the two-party preferred vote leading into the last week. However, we literally saw—and I mean literally saw—and heard prepolling voters turn dramatically away from us after the Monday with the same message: ‘Your radical forest policy was a disaster for our region and working families.’ The people of Braddon voted accordingly and I have always said that I can understand why. Call me vain, but I never interpreted it as an anti-Sid vote, and that is why I announced on the day after the election that I would seek preselection again—to put right what I believed was a wrong policy and, most importantly, what I saw as a betrayal of working people. It was not just the end in this case; it was also the means.

To announce without consultation and without notice a policy which so affected the lives and jobs of so many people in my electorate and state, both directly and especially indirectly, was both an insult and terrible politics. It was not fair in any sense of the word. Labor had to go in Braddon and so did I as its representative. I cannot deny that I was bitter over what happened, and it took me over 12 months to come to terms with this loss. However, my family and close friends were very supportive and I took heart from the many people I met who encouraged me to stand again. The Labor Party was also supportive and I thank all those who helped and encouraged me to keep at it. I also had a chance to directly help correct our flawed forest policy, which I was able to do through direct personal lobbying and nagging over three years.

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

You have always been a nagger!

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to nag but will never reach your Olympian nagging heights! I was therefore very proud when our Prime Minister chose Smithton and the historic mill of the Britton Bros to announce our forest policy and $20 million industry package. This, along with our other working family positive policies and our industrial relations policy, saw an 11 per cent swing back to Labor in Smithton and other forest booths. I felt in no small way vindicated in my stance and grateful to a party and a leader prepared to do the right thing by once again balancing the important needs of industry, working families and the environment and by putting that policy out publicly and early. The rest is history.

The return of Braddon to Labor was no accident. The voters of Braddon perceived unfairness and arrogance in Labor in the 2004 election. The same verdict played out for the Howard government in November 2007. I would like to place on the record that the 2007 vote was not primarily a reflection of the work of my predecessor, Mark Baker, as such—and I thank him and his team for their hard work from 2004 to 2007. It was, I suggest, a repudiation of the methods and arrogance of John Howard and his government. Just as Mark Latham adopted without consultation or notice a radical policy which affected the lives and jobs of working people in Braddon, so too did John Howard with his so-called Work Choices legislation, which cruelly offered little choice to workers. This was introduced only after he had won the 2004 election and gained control of the Senate. It stirred a dispirited union movement into a grand cause, which in turn rallied many working families and individuals to action. Federal Labor joined this cause and, for the first time in many years, the Labor movement united in a common campaign against an unfair industrial relations system. Mums and dads, grandparents, uncles and aunts and the young rallied against this attack on the fair go.

Mr Howard’s self-professed aspirational nationalism had nothing to do with uniting the nation. People in Braddon saw through this and they saw that it had a lot to do with Mr Howard’s political aspirations. Kevin Rudd, on the other hand, captured the mood, interest and aspirations of millions of Australians, in stark contrast to the old politics of the Howard era of wedge politics and pandering to interest groups. The people of Braddon know what is fair and reasonable and, just as they did in the elections before and no doubt will continue to do in the future, they voted accordingly in 2004 and 2007. There is nothing fickle about this. They vote primarily on what they perceive to be a fair go for the majority and, as much as I suffered from it in 2004, I would not want it any other way. I sincerely thank the electors of Braddon for again choosing me to represent them both in Canberra and at home, and I will do so to the best of my ability and energy. I have a new team on board and already we are flat out with constituent enquiries.

My journey back was encouraged and supported by many people, many of whom are in this place and gave that as a result of my association with them as a former member and colleague. I hope that I do not embarrass anyone, as some belong to the other side, but they were concerned for me as a friend and individual and shared the similar prospect of winning or losing. I thank in no particular order and with equal gratitude, and I pray I have not left anybody out, the following: Kim Beazley, Martin Ferguson, Julia Gillard, Craig Emerson, Michael Danby, Steve Gibbons, Julia Irwin, Brendan O’Connor, Simon Crean, Carol Brown, Kerry O’Brien, Kirsten Livermore, Dick Adams, John Murphy and Harry Jenkins. My friend and colleague Senator Nick Sherry and his office were constant supporters and provided invaluable help. In particular, I thank my special mate and confidante Sally Young, along with my lovely cousin, Tresa, and Shane, Robyn, Marcus, Richard and Leonie. Andrew K. from Canberra gave up his annual leave to come down and work on my campaign, and I will always be grateful.

Special thanks also go to Tracey Winters, Kim Pagan, Sally Pugsley and Michael O’Connor for their individual friendship and encouragement. Kerry Whittle, Norm Britton, Leigh Jordan, Matt Tidswell, Steve Allen, Justine Keay, Beth Lockett, Ken and Brenton Best, Grace Matcham, Dee Alty and Julie Collins were always there with their support and encouragement, as were my local Labor Party branches. I also want to sincerely thank Labor’s National Secretary, Tim Gartrell, Elias, David Feeney, Paul Foster and Monique Woodham-Earsman for their terrific support. I was very proud to work alongside my very active local Your Rights at Work team, so ably led by Jill Batt, and I thank them for their hard work, determination and solidarity. So too do I thank the many unions who backed me in my campaign. My friend Christian Zahra, the former wonderful member for McMillan, never stopped encouraging and supporting me even though he too lost his seat in 2004. Christian Zahra was probably the most inspirational of my parliamentary peers from my first class, the class of ’98, and was a major reason why I am fortunate to be a member of the class of 2007—thank you, matey. I am already missing our games of squash. The driving force behind my campaign was the indomitable, hardworking, superorganised, ultranagging political warrior and all-round good bloke John Dowling. I thank you, John, from the bottom of my heart. I was so very proud when you were recently appointed state secretary of the Tasmanian branch of the Labor Party.

In speech after speech there comes a time when new and returning MPs reach a point of almost emotional saturation—where there is an extra deep breath, a slight pause, sometimes a moist eye, and the gathering of the self—when they reflect in an instant on the influence, love and support of their loved ones. My mum and dad were alive to see me elected to this House in 1998 and 2001. They both died before I lost my seat in 2004, but I know they would be pleased to see their ‘Pete’ not throw the towel in after 2004 but keep pressing on to finish the business. They are constantly in my heart and they are certainly with me now. I also love and thank my brothers and sister—Geoff, John, Essie and Jenny—and their lovely families. My strongest supporters and the ones who love me most—so often undeserved by me—are my family: my lovely wife, Bron, who asks and expects nothing of me but encourages me to find personal happiness and fulfilment—whenever and if ever; and my two beautiful sons, Julian and William, who have always supported my endeavours whether they be in career, theatre or politics. I thank them for their love and indulgence. I thank all members and wish you a very successful and happy parliamentary career.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

When the February unemployment figure of four per cent was released last Thursday, we did not hear much about it from the government. All we hear from the Treasurer is how he wants to modernise the economy, whatever that is supposed to mean. He provides very few particulars. He was asked last week a dorothy dixer about unemployment and he gave what is fast becoming his stump speech—an explosion of complete incoherence and utter confusion. His first quarter headline CPI, which in this context is the ‘competence performance indicator’, is not good; and his underlying measure of CPI, his ability to answer questions coherently, is even worse. Late last year the member for Higgins said that the now Treasurer reminded him of ‘a political cyborg who runs a line over and over again in the hope that journalists will pick it up’. Well, the cyborg is malfunctioning. It needs reprogramming; it needs help. It is the cyborg, not the Australian economy, that is in desperate need of modernisation!

The Treasurer thinks he can get away with commenting on the Australian economy in a way that persistently misrepresents our economic circumstances and our economic history. And it is not just our history that he misrepresents; he misrepresents all the members of the opposition who speak about the economy. Only today he said again in question time, as did the Prime Minister, that I have described inflation as a fairytale. So once again I wearily rose to my feet on a point of personal explanation and corrected it. The Treasurer knows full well that I have never said inflation is a fairytale. Inflation is a very significant economic challenge, particularly in these times where we have high economic growth and historically very low unemployment—and I have said that again and again. What I have criticised the Treasurer for doing is telling falsehoods and fairytales about our economic history and, in particular, the history of inflation. There is a transcript of my remarks in that context from 23 January—a public document that is on my website—but he misrepresents them every time he has the opportunity.

But the person whom the Treasurer, the cyborg, misrepresents the most is surely the Governor of the Reserve Bank. There is nobody in Australia at present who is more misleadingly cited than the Governor of the Reserve Bank. Last week the governor gave a very comprehensive speech about inflation, its causes, its remedies and its context in modern Australia—it was a speech in the Australian Treasury seminar series—and today we had the Treasurer claiming that this supported his views about inflation. The Treasurer wants to set up a straw man to the effect that the opposition does not believe inflation exists. Of course, the Reserve Bank supports the Treasurer’s views that inflation exists. But nobody has denied that and nobody has denied that it is a challenge. Where we take issue with the Treasurer is not in the form of the straw man, the bogus proposition that he puts up as our case; our criticism of the Treasurer is that he is misrepresenting a very serious challenge and that, in doing so, he is talking down the strength of our economy and exacerbating inflationary expectations.

Every time he opens his mouth on this subject, the Treasurer says that inflation has been caused by the ‘reckless spending’ of the Howard government, by a ‘chronic skills crisis’—that is his phrase—and by a failure to invest in remedying what he describes as infrastructure bottlenecks, the ones we are most familiar with, being the problems at ports that export raw materials, particularly coal. There are certainly infrastructure bottlenecks in our society. There are certainly skills shortages in a number of industries—we would say many sectors now—where there is strong demand. But it is untrue to say that there is a chronic skills crisis, because, by saying that, it suggests that there is a shortage of skills right across the economy, that it is pervasive, that it is chronic, that is of long endurance and that it is not being addressed. Yet we know from the many speeches and papers given by the Reserve Bank—you only have to look at the speech last week by the Reserve Bank Governor—that our inflation has not come from wages. It is obvious that a chronic skills crisis would cause wage inflation right across the economy. That is why you would not want to have a chronic skills crisis. The Reserve Bank Governor said he is not saying that wage earners have been responsible for inflation. He said:

This episode—

this episode of elevated inflation through which we are living at the moment—

has not been caused by some exogenous ‘break out’ in wages. Until recently, it was, in fact, possible to say that wages growth had been remarkably steady at an aggregate level in the face of a very tight labour market, with relative wages across industries and regions doing what one would expect given the shocks hitting the economy. At one stage, I described this as a textbook case of adjustment, in a labour market made much more flexible by a long sequence of reforms.

That statement, which is in the same terms as many remarks from the Reserve Bank, underlines the nonsense that is being spread by the Treasurer. Yes, we have skills shortages, particularly in those areas with the strongest demand, the mining sector being the classic case. But, because we have a flexible labour market and because we have an efficient labour market, workers have been able to move to the areas of greatest demand and, remarkably, we have not seen the type of wage inflation that we had in the past.

If you go to the conclusion of the governor’s speech, and this is a speech by the governor that the Treasurer calls in aid for himself, it rejects the notion of a chronic skills crisis—it does not even mention the term—but it makes it clear that it is not skills shortages that are driving inflation. He compares our economy today with the circumstances of the 1950s and the mid-seventies, when in the early fifties CPI inflation reached 25 per cent and in the mid-seventies it reached about 18 per cent. He said:

This time, we are grappling with a peak CPI inflation rate that looks like it will be around 4 per cent in CPI terms, and trying to assess how soon it can reasonably return to 2-3 per cent.

I should add that the average headline CPI throughout all of the 47 quarters of the Howard government—including the December quarter of last year which was, of course, only partly under the Howard government—is exactly 2½ per cent, right in the midpoint of the RBA’s range, so it is mission accomplished in terms of inflation targeting. But the governor went on to say:

This is a far cry from the problems of yesteryear.

He then said:

The reason we are doing better this time around is not hard to fathom ... a flexible exchange rate, a reformed and flexible industrial environment, better private-sector management ... stronger fiscal and monetary policy frameworks have made a lot of difference. The fruits of those decades of effort of reform are an economy that, for all its strains, is doing well under the circumstances.

And further:

Our challenge is to keep those improved structures in place and to develop them further, in the period in which we have the privilege of having some influence.

That is a balanced description of our economic circumstances. Yes, inflation is an issue; it is a challenge; it is consequent upon, as the governor says, the extraordinary improvement—a good, positive shock—in our terms of trade. We have been able nonetheless to manage our economy, thanks to the sound economic management during the Howard and Costello years, with low unemployment, high economic growth and inflation managed within the range.

Why does it matter that the Treasurer misrepresents our economic history? Well, the fact is that inflation is a function of expectation. He chose to misrepresent our economic history and, for purely politically partisan purposes, to try to paint a picture of a new government that had been handed an economic mess. That was the picture he tried to create, presumably so he and the Prime Minister could be given the credit for resolving it. The fact is that we have a very strong economy. We have very considerable international pressures and threats. We are strong and we are resilient, but we are not immune to the rest of the world, and everything that senior officials say in this country is taken seriously in the rest of the world.

When our Treasurer said in early February, just before the bank board met, ‘The inflation genie is out of the bottle,’ and, ‘Inflation has been on the march for two years,’ the headlines around the world described a country where inflation was out of control. He has the effrontery to call the Reserve Bank Governor in aid in support of this nonsense. The Reserve Bank Governor is there saying, ‘Yes, it is an issue. Yes, we are going to tackle it. That is why we’ve put up rates.’ That, of course, is what central banks do: they put up rates when the economy is growing and they want to moderate growth, and they pull them off—as Governor Bernanke is doing in the United States—if the economy is heading in the other direction and they want to avoid slowdown or, as in the United States, a recession.

What the Treasurer has done, instead of talking about our economy in a measured, objective and informed way, in a way that assists the markets to understand and deal with the complex challenges we face, is create his own ‘Wayne’s world’ parallel universe in the hope that if, cyborg like, he continues to repeat one falsehood after another often enough, it will be picked up. This ‘cyborgitis’ is infectious, because the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government has been infected by it. Only last week he said that on 20 occasions the Reserve Bank has called for the national coordination of infrastructure. The national coordination of infrastructure may or may not be a good thing. There are advocates for it, there are sceptics about it, but we would all like to see better and more timely investment in infrastructure. I particularly committed to that when I was the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources. As you know, Mr Deputy Speaker, we undertook the National Plan for Water Security, which was a $10 billion investment, almost all of it in water infrastructure—and what could be more important than that? The Howard government committed the $2 billion Australian Government Water Fund—again, almost all of that went into water infrastructure—not to speak of the investment in transport infrastructure through AusLink. So, yes, investing in infrastructure where there is a real net benefit is a good thing—we all agree with that. But the Reserve Bank has not called for the national coordination of infrastructure on 20 occasions. It is absurd. It is a falsehood. It is made up. It is no different from the approach that the Treasurer takes: find a falsehood that serves a political purpose and just repeat it and repeat it in the hope that it will be accepted.

The former Prime Minister, Mr Howard, and his predecessor, Mr Keating, both said that when you change the government you change the country. Well, we have certainly seen a lot in our country change since the election of the Rudd government. Since the election, business confidence has declined and consumer confidence has plummeted. Since the change of government, inflationary expectations have risen particularly, as is plain, among trade union officials. That is precisely why the Reserve Bank is not as confident as it was six or nine months ago that wage pressures will continue to be ‘a textbook case of adjustment’.

Is this all just an unhappy coincidence? When the coalition took office on 11 March 1996, the Reserve Bank’s cash rate was 7½ per cent. The coalition’s goal was to eliminate Labor’s $96 billion worth of debt and take pressure off interest rates. It is a matter of public record that this was achieved. Labor’s debt was paid off and interest rates came down, no thanks to the Labor Party, which opposed that form of fiscal prudence. Australians found the coalition’s commitment to fiscal consolidation and good economic management highly credible. They had confidence in the coalition.

How do we know that? For a start we can look at the measures of confidence. In 1996 there was not a 15-point drop in the Westpac-Melbourne Institute measure of consumer confidence in two months, which is what has happened under this government. In fact, the index jumped seven points in the month of March 1996, when the coalition took office. On average the Westpac index was 11 points higher during the coalition years than it was under Labor, and the National Australia Bank’s quarterly business confidence index jumped by almost 12 points in the March quarter of 1996, the fourth largest in the history of that index. When the coalition took office, inflationary expectations fell; they did not rise.

What has happened with bank interest rates under the Rudd government? The US subprime crisis has started to affect banks’ wholesale borrowing costs. That started in last August, long before the election. The cost of some of our banks’ funding base rose and now, I think it would be fair to say, all of the banks have significantly increased wholesale borrowing costs. They chose to wait until after the election to pass on those increased wholesale costs, and some people have suggested this was due to the Treasurer. I would not make that claim. Those costs inevitably had to be passed on at some point in time, and I imagine many banks balancing, on the one hand, their commitment to their customers and their desire to maintain the loyalty of their customers and, on the other hand, the speculation—and it genuinely is speculation—as to how long this disruption in global credit markets will continue.

There is a key issue here. It is one of confidence. Confidence is absolutely essential to financial markets; it is everything. Once the participants in financial markets lose confidence in each other, they will not lend to each other. You can see the consequences of that now in the credit crunch. Bear Stearns, the fifth largest investment bank in America, nearly collapsed and was taken over by JP Morgan at a tiny fraction of its value a few months ago with the support of the US Federal Reserve. That was decisive action by the US Federal Reserve to stop a bank collapse that would have had shocking global ramifications. What caused that lack of confidence? If people do not have confidence in other institutions they will not lend; if investors do not have confidence in markets they will not invest. These elements of confidence are fundamental to the security of our economy. That is why the Treasurer is so reckless in his constant refrain of running down our economy and talking up a skills shortage across a number of sectors of the economy into a chronic skills crisis. Instead of speaking about inflation in measured and objective terms, he talks about it as though it is another crisis. (Time expired)

Sharryn Jackson (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to commence by acknowledging the Ngunawal people, the traditional owners of the land upon which we meet. I also pay my respects to the Noongar people, the traditional owners and custodians of the land that encompasses the seat of Hasluck, in Western Australia. I said in my first speech in this chamber, in 2001, that during my time in the parliament I hoped to participate in and be witness to real and meaningful reconciliation with Indigenous Australians, something I believe is essential for Australia to become a united and just nation. Unfortunately, this was not to be. Instead it seemed that the country became driven by the values that divide us—blame, suspicion, self-interest and greed—rather than the values that unite us—respect, empathy, compassion and equality of opportunity.

I truly hope that this 42nd Parliament, commencing as it has with a national apology, will witness a huge leap forward for social justice. I have been a member of the Labor Party since the early 1980s. The day of the national apology, 13 February 2008, led by our Prime Minister, was the proudest day of my party membership. I was asked recently by a year 7 student at St Brigid’s College in my electorate whether we intend to commemorate the day every year. My reply was that I sincerely hope so.

This opportunity to speak in the debate on the address-in-reply can be described, perhaps oddly, as my second first speech. As one joker quipped to me, ‘You can’t be a maiden twice.’ I do not resile from anything I said in my first speech, but I can say on this occasion, Mr Deputy Speaker Bevis—with respect  to you, to the chamber and to my fellow Labor colleagues and especially to the class of 2001—as they say in the classics: ‘I’m back.’ I have wanted to do that for some time! Perhaps contrary to the perception created by my last remarks. I believe I am older and wiser since last I was here.

It is with a sense of achievement but also humility that I stand in this House again as the elected member for Hasluck and make this speech. I know it will not be as eloquent or as profound as the first speeches delivered by my colleagues in the class of 2007. They are an awesome group who have spoken from the heart, full of passion, commitment and vision. I am proud that my name will stand in the history books as one of them.

The 42 members of the class of 2007 include 11 outstanding women, 10 of whom are Labor women. At the opening today of the refurbished ‘women in parliament’ exhibition, I was reminded that we still have a very long way to go before our parliament is truly representative of our community. Since Federation, of the 1,059 people elected to the House of Representatives only 77 have been women. Forty of the current 150 members of the House are women—only 26.7 per cent. This is another list that records my name. I am pleased that Labor’s representation is better, albeit only marginally, with 27 of the 83 members, or 32.5 per cent, and 13 of the 28 senators, or 46.4 per cent, being women. I hope to see the numbers on this list grow exponentially.

With my re-election to the seat of Hasluck in 2007 my name joins yet another list in history. I am one of a select group of over 80 people who have regained a House of Representatives seat after losing their seat at an election. Seventy-eight people have served two separate terms, returning after a defeat, and another eight people have served three separate terms—that is, returning after two defeats. I said a ‘select group’; I perhaps should say it is a select and diverse group, as it includes great leaders such as Ben Chifley and WA’s own John Curtin as well as the infamous Hugh Mahon, the only person ever to be expelled from the Australian parliament—alas, another Western Australian. There are six current members of the House who share this extraordinary experience with me—the members for McEwen, Canning, McMillan, Paterson, Lilley and Braddon. The most special to me and the one whom I wish to welcome back, acknowledge and say, ‘Well done, mate,’ to is the member for Braddon, Sid Sidebottom. I know that he, along with me, will today be thinking of former colleagues who also lost their seats at the 2004 election, especially talented, passionate people like Christian Zahra and Michelle O’Byrne. I wish they were both sharing this with us today, and perhaps they are. I would like to salute their service.

It is also appropriate for me to acknowledge Stuart Henry, the former member, who was defeated at the last election and to thank him for his hard work on behalf of Hasluck constituents during the last parliament. The lesson of our individual experience is that politics is not always fair or just—it just is. In life we learn and grow stronger from the tough times and the personal challenges. We learn that it is always better to live in the moment.

So, whilst I again have this moment, this privileged opportunity to represent and advocate for my community of Hasluck, I promise to do so passionately and diligently. I thank the voters of Hasluck for the chance to do so and I thank the Labor Party for entrusting me with the responsibility of contesting the seat at the 2007 election.

Behind every member in this place stand many others. In my case I have a loving partner and family, a circle of close and dear friends, a magnificent campaign team, a strong union and an army of true believers. I am grateful to them all. I especially want to record my appreciation of Catrina Tierney. No words will ever express the feelings I have for her and the thanks I wish to extend. I hope it is enough to simply say that I would not be here without her. She, along with Juliana Plummer, John Halden, Hayden Falconer, Liz Nedela, Terry Healy, Ron Sao and my partner, John Walker, held the key roles in my campaign team. I would also like to record my appreciation of my doorknocking mates James Turnball, Tristan Cockman and Peter Collins. I thank others like Marcia Maher, Paul Cheah, Nita Sadler, Di Meakins, my ‘bookends’ Brian Wright and Mat Nugent, the Your Rights at Work campaign team—especially Chris Merfield—my crew of truck drivers, the branch members, the local residents and supporters for their good wishes and their tireless hard work on the campaign trail. I wish I had time to name them all, but with over 750 volunteers it is simply not possible. Their unquestioning support was both heart-warming and humbling.

I am also fortunate to have behind me many women in WA and around Australia who supported my decision to stand again, including EMILY’s List. I am and always will be a campaigner for women’s rights. I want to pay my respects to the women who have come before me who have made it possible for women like me to get here. I hope that leap in social justice I want and referred to in my opening remarks will include, among other things, pay equity for women in Australia.

The Hon. Kim Beazley, Senator the Hon. Chris Evans and Senator Glenn Sterle cajoled, nagged or counselled me through the decision to stand again. For their benefit and for the benefit of the record I will now admit that they were right. I thank them for their support and encouragement. It was a big decision and a hard one for me. It is difficult to run for a marginal seat, especially when you know what the task requires—and, believe me, I knew exactly what the job entailed.

I was joined in that task by a number of outstanding candidates in WA who were not successful: the former member for Swan, Kim Wilkie, but also Sharon Theile, John Hughes, Peter McFarlane and the two whom I worked most closely with, Liz Prime and Peter Tinley. I want to thank them and their families for their friendship and support, for the campaigns that they ran and the sacrifices they made to help Labor achieve its election victory.

As I said earlier, politics is not always just or fair. It was a hard contest for the seat of Hasluck. I am part of the Hasluck community; it is where I live. They are the people I had the privilege to represent as the first member for Hasluck. From Midland to Maddington, Gosnells to Guildford, Kalamunda to Koongamia, I know the diverse communities that make up the electorate of Hasluck and the local issues that concern them. Hasluck communities are full of good people—genuine, hardworking Australians doing their best for themselves and their families. As the local member, I established a good reputation and was known for being active in the local community. We ran a strong local campaign highlighting the ways in which the Howard-Costello government had lost touch with Australians, and I believe this, combined with Kevin Rudd’s positive plan for Australia’s future, was responsible for the increase in our support among Hasluck voters.

I said I had returned to the parliament older and wiser. I have learnt a lot since the 2004 federal election, especially about government and my great home state of Western Australia. I thank the Hon. Bob Kucera for offering me the opportunity to work as his chief of staff when he was Minister for Disability Services, Sport and Recreation, Citizenship and Multicultural Interests, Seniors and Volunteering. It provided me with even greater insight into the lives of people encompassed by the portfolios, especially people with disabilities and their carers. I understand the level of unmet need in the areas of supported accommodation, respite and therapy. I share the frustration felt by many in the disability services sector about the inadequate levels of funding committed to the Commonwealth state/territory disability agreement. This must become a priority area for reform and improvement.

In a nation that reveres sport, it is ironic that we do relatively little to genuinely sustain and support recreation and sport in our community. Whether it is providing the funding necessary to establish and maintain community sporting facilities or supporting and developing the volunteers who are critical to the operation of most of our sporting clubs and associations, we do not do enough. I was appalled to discover that, other than a grant of $8.5 million from the Keating government in 1995, the federal government had provided Western Australia with no funding for sports infrastructure since the Empire Games, now called the Commonwealth Games, held in Perth in 1962. It was a fabulous year, the year of my birth, but that is simply not good enough and must be addressed.

My thanks also go to the Hon. Alan Carpenter, Premier of Western Australia, for the opportunity to work in the Premier’s Policy Division of the Western Australian state public service. There is a dedicated group of policy officers employed in the division and I enjoyed working with them. Doing so restored my faith in the public service and made me realise that effective government can and will make a difference to people’s lives. Where there is a will there is a way. That is why ending the blame game between Commonwealth and state governments is vitally important. I note the announcements by the Treasurer last week following the meeting with all state and territory treasurers, and I welcome this commitment to try and genuinely tackle the issues associated with Commonwealth and state funding. Most Australians expect all levels of government to work cooperatively and efficiently in the interests of the whole community—a not unreasonable expectation. I would like to wish ‘Carps’ and his team the best for the coming WA state election.

I have said that I have learnt a lot since the 2004 election. I am pleased to say that the voters of Hasluck showed that they had also learnt since 2004. They know they had many rises in interest rates after John Howard and Peter Costello promised to keep them low. They know that many people are doing it tough with rising mortgage payments or rents, high childcare costs and high petrol and grocery prices. They know that, under the Howard government’s extreme workplace laws, the basic conditions which make up the take-home pay of working Australians, like overtime and penalty rates, were under threat. They know that the Howard government wasted a decade with their inaction on climate change. They were disturbed by the controversies that plagued the Howard government: the disgraceful AWB wheat payments scandal; the circumstances of the detention and treatment of Australian citizens such as Cornelia Rau, Vivian Alvarez and David Hicks; and, of course, the deterioration of the war in Iraq and Australia’s role in it.

Wherever they lived—in the suburbs of the cities of Swan and Gosnells at either end of the electorate, where they are experiencing both the pleasure and the pain of urban renewal, rapid growth and development, or in the foothills and surrounding suburbs where there is great anger at the Howard government decision to allow a brickworks to be established on Perth airport land in the middle of a residential area—the 2007 election presented all Australians with a choice about the sort of future they wanted for themselves and their kids: did they want more of the same or a change for the better?

After more than a decade of John Howard’s leadership, the electorate were ready to make a change. They want a better and fairer future. They want high-quality, affordable health care for themselves and their families throughout their lives. They want a national dental program that fixes people’s teeth when they need it, not months or years later. They want real investment in healthcare services and cooperation that ends the blame game between federal and state governments over funding.

They want better education services and fair funding for Australian schools. They know that learning does not start at school; it starts on the first day of life. They want investment in the early years of a child’s development. They want high-quality, affordable schools and child care, whether community, government or private, with great teachers, good carers, good discipline and sufficient resources. They want every child to have the chance of a quality education. They want to know that their kids or grandkids have real opportunities for postsecondary education and skilled employment. They want more university and TAFE places closer to where they live. They do not want to see kids who are making an effort missing out on a place because they cannot afford to pay.

They want safe and fair workplaces that appreciate the realities of family life and respect the dignity of working people, where everyone has the right to a fair go no matter how they are employed or engaged—employee, contractor or small business person. They want a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.

They want action on climate change and sustainability. They want to secure our water and energy future. They want a national government that is wise to the pressures on our natural environment and that is proactive in protecting and conserving it. They want a federal government that is committed to nation building and investing in our infrastructure, like a high-speed national broadband network, to meet the challenges of Australia’s future. They want Australia to be a proud and independent nation that is a good international friend and a strong voice for human rights and freedoms.

That is the sort of future that I want, too. I am honoured to be part of the Rudd Labor government. In closing, I will borrow from my leader’s style and ask: do I believe the Rudd Labor government can build a better future for Australia? The answer: yes, we can. Thank you.

Debate (on motion by Mrs Moylan) adjourned.