Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Roads and Regional Transport) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency was on Gippsland ABC radio last week, when he almost tied himself in knots trying to avoid the word 'tax'; it was all about a carbon price. Like the smiling assassins now walking into the chamber, he said 'carbon price' at least 20 times, but he painfully avoided using the word 'tax'. The people of Gippsland are not buying it. In fact, they are not buying anything this government is selling.

Everywhere I go in Gippsland I receive the same message: there is a sense of embarrassment about this Prime Minister. Gippslanders believe the Prime Minister is out of her depth, and they simply do not trust her. And why should they trust her? What happened to the East Timor solution, the citizens assembly and cash for clunkers? I have found myself having to defend the Prime Minister. I am a generous man: I tell them she is not that bad. But then they ask me about the fundamental breach of trust on carbon tax. I think she may have us on a technicality with that one. Before the election, this Prime Minister said there would be 'no carbon tax under a government I lead', but it is becoming abundantly clear that she is not leading anything. As we know, Kevin Rudd is running foreign policy, Bob Brown is running domestic policy and this Prime Minister is running out of excuses.

It is hard for the Australian people to follow a leader who has no idea of where she is going. It is no wonder that people in my electorate are telling me that they are embarrassed by this Prime Minister.