Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs and Minister for Small Business, Independent Contractors and the Service Economy. What are the benefits of the government’s stimulus package and tax breaks for small businesses and independent contractors and what support is there for the package and tax breaks?

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Blair for his question and for his invitation to engage with him in a very productive small business breakfast just last week. It was very well attended too. The government supported Australia’s small businesses and our tradies during the global recession through our economic stimulus plan. During the recovery we want to support our small businesses again through small business tax breaks. In fact, the government’s economic stimulus plan is right now supporting small businesses right around Australia, including our tradies in thousands of construction projects across the nation.

I remind members of the chamber that the opposition voted against and continues to oppose the fiscal stimulus package which is supporting our small businesses and our tradies. But not all members of the Liberal-National Party feel that way. George Christensen is the Liberal-National Party candidate for Dawson and a councillor on the Mackay council. At the council’s meeting on 16 December last year, Councillor Christensen moved a motion that the council accept $4½ million from the Rudd government’s Social Housing Initiative, which is being organised and provided through the good auspices of the member for Sydney. Councillor Christiansen clearly supports the government’s economic stimulus plan, but he is not alone. The LNP’s candidate for Wright, also in Queensland, is Hajnal Ban. She is a councillor on Logan City Council, in my own area, so she is a member of a council that has benefited from stimulus funding of almost $5 million for, amongst other things, local roadworks, a library fit-out just down the road from my office and an extension to the Logan Entertainment Centre. And what about Councillor Jane Prentice? Councillor Prentice has nominated for LNP preselection for the seat of Ryan to replace the now demised member for Ryan, who has been thrown out of the LNP and obviously has a few more questions to answer beyond the LNP’s own internal investigation—and I will have more to say about that later. Back to Councillor Jane Prentice: she is a councillor on the Brisbane City Council, which has gratefully accepted more than $16 million in funding from our economic stimulus plan.

Doctors take the Hippocratic oath. These three LNP candidates and aspirants will need to join with sitting LNP members in taking the opposition leader’s hypocritic oath, which says: ‘I support the Rudd government’s stimulus package in the electorate but I pledge to oppose it in the parliament.’

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

Order! The minister will withdraw.

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw. When it comes to economic management, the Leader of the Opposition is erratic and his policies are extreme. I am asked about small business tax breaks. The opposition leader plans to block the resource super profits tax in the Senate. What would that do? Deny small businesses and tradies a much-deserved tax break. The opposition leader says that he only speaks the gospel truth when something is written down, scripted for him, prepared for him by his staff. It must be put in writing. But not so Senator Barnaby Joyce, because he walks into a TV studio and just blurts out the truth. When he was asked just before question time—very good timing, I thought, from Senator Joyce—about the deputy opposition leader’s comments that mining companies already pay their fair share of tax, what did he say? Did he agree with that? ‘No, not at all—we can have a sensible negotiation.’ Go Barnaby!

He went on, ‘To say there is not the capacity to change the tax is not right.’ We agree with Senator Joyce. He went on to say, ‘I’m prepared for people to look at the mining sector to pay more.’ The deputy opposition leader says, ‘They are paying the right amount; they are paying their fair share.’ Senator Joyce went on to say, ‘Let’s go through the proper negotiation.’ That is a good idea; that is what we are doing—going through the proper negotiation. But on the other side they are saying, ‘No, Barnaby is wrong, we should not go through the proper negotiation.’ The truth is that Senator Barnaby Joyce has blown out of the water the opposition’s confused scare campaign about the Resource Super Profits Tax. He has completely contradicted the opposition leader, he has completely contradicted the deputy opposition leader and, of course, he had a big go at the member for Goldstein. They had a tiff yesterday and the member for Goldstein rang him up.

Andrew Southcott (Boothby, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Health Services, Health and Wellbeing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, a point of order on relevance: this is 95 per cent a commentary on the opposition rather than on matters for which the minister is responsible.

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

The member for Boothby will resume his seat. The member has raised a point of order on relevance. The question, if I remember rightly, went to things like responses and I guess that that is what the minister is doing, but I would suggest that he now come to a conclusion of his answer.

Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Ageing) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Dutton interjecting

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sure, Mr Speaker, and I welcome the interjection from Pig Iron Pete over here, share trader.

Kevin Andrews (Menzies, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Families, Housing and Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Andrews interjecting

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

Order! The member for Menzies, I hope, will calm down. It is not often that I defend the particular member who might think that I have got him in my crosshair, but he did not make the interjection. The retort made by the minister was absolutely unnecessary and he will withdraw.

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw.

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

Order! I just hope that also the member behind the particular member that had that comment made to him would also not interject so we do not get into this situation. In saying that, I do not condone what the minister did. I have invited the minister to conclude his answer. He will now conclude.

Craig Emerson (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Finance Minister on Deregulation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Certainly, the opposition leader knows that Senator Barnaby Joyce believes that revenge is a dish best served cold. It was served up today. The Resource Super Profits Tax is a tax to fund small business tax breaks. The Rudd Labor government is the best friend that small business has ever had.

Kevin Rudd (Griffith, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.