Janelle Saffin (Page, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, how is the government working in the national interest and why is it vital to have responsible debate on the challenges facing Australia?

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

I thank the member for Page for her question. We have spent a number of parliamentary weeks now and as parliament has sat it has become clearer and clearer that, whilst the government pursues day after day the national interest, we are seeing the opposition day after day pursue its political interest. We are seeing once again a day of a fear campaign. Today’s theme is a fear campaign about Australian jobs. Yesterday’s campaign was a fear campaign about not enough information. Curiously, two days before we had a fear campaign about price rises, which they said at that stage they could put a dollar figure on, so the inconsistency in these fear campaigns might cause some to pause and reflect. But it is a fear campaign.

Where have we heard these fear campaigns before? Let’s just think back on the short number of parliamentary weeks since the start of this year. We had a fear campaign about the flood levy. For a while the opposition thought that it was onto a winner. I announced the $5.6 billion package to rebuild Queensland, to rebuild the nation, and the opposition was straight out of the blocks saying: ‘Australians will never accept this. This will break the government. It won’t get through the parliament. People will never accept this. They’ll never take it. People should ring talkback. People should complain.’ Of course the opposition was squealing with delight.

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

Mr Speaker, on a point of order, the honourable member for Page asked the Prime Minister to respond to the challenges facing Australia. She has been speaking for almost a minute and a half now and she has not identified one challenge facing Australia. All she is doing is using this as an opportunity to attack the opposition.

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

The member for Menzies will resume his seat.

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

I was asked about the national interest and I do consider rebuilding from the most expensive natural disaster in the nation’s history as a challenge. It is a challenge we are up to and a challenge that we have allocated $5.6 billion for and that is before we made the allocation for the damage stemming from the cyclone.

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

Mr Andrews interjecting

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

That of course has been a challenge the government has stepped up to in the face of an opposition fear campaign. I ask members of this parliament and the public to reflect today: where is that fear campaign? The parliament has indicated that it will pass the flood levy legislation—where is that fear campaign? Like all fear campaigns, when it was really held up to the light it just fell away.

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

Mr Andrews interjecting

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

Of course we have seen fear campaigns in other areas. We have seen fear campaigns about health.

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

The Prime Minister will resume her seat. The member for Menzies is now warned. But by way of response to his interjections, listen to the whole question; do not approach the dispatch box quoting only half the question. The Prime Minister is responding to the question and, I repeat, the member for Menzies is warned and I remind the House that a warning can also be a precursor to a naming.

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

Of course, we saw fear campaigns and criticism about our health package—condemned out of the mouth of the Leader of the Opposition before it was announced. But the government will deliver that health package because we need to reform health for the future. We have had opposition criticisms of our education reforms, but we will deliver those reforms, including MySchool 2.0 tomorrow, another step in transforming Australian education. We have heard opposition fear campaigns about the National Broadband Network, but we will build the National Broadband Network so that Australians have access to the jobs and services of the future. There is a theme here. It is: who is up to acting in the national interest, dealing with the challenges of the future? Who is it that always looks to the short-term, narrow political interest and always says no? Australians want to see positive leadership for this nation’s future and we will continue to provide that positive leadership. I say to the Leader of the Opposition: there will come a day when Australians will look at him and say, ‘Why is he incapable of saying yes to any positive proposition for the nation’s future?’

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

Order! The Prime Minister will come back to the question.

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

National interest versus political interest—that is the divide in this parliament.