Nick Champion (Wakefield, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Climate Change, Industry and Innovation. What is the government's plan to support the automotive industry? What other plans are there, and what would be their impact?

Greg Combet (Charlton, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Climate Change, Industry and Innovation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Wakefield for his question. He has a lot of workers from the car industry in his electorate, and so he has a very keen interest in the industry. Of course, auto manufacturing is a very important industry in this country, and it is also a very graphic example of how the stupid and irresponsible policies of the opposition are undermining business confidence, how they are undermining investments and how they are destroying job security. This is an industry that provides jobs directly and indirectly to about 250,000 people in this country. It is an industry that generates skills, research and development and industrial capabilities, like robotics and advanced manufacturing, that are very important for the economy. Those are some of the reasons why the government remains very committed to auto manufacturing in this country.

Our new car plan provides for $5.4 billion of assistance to the sector to the year 2020. But what an astonishing thing: at a time when we have pressures from the high value of the Australian dollar, the pressures of global economic uncertainty, the pressures of intense international competition and the transition that is taking place in our country, how astonishing that notwithstanding all of those things the greatest threat to every motor-vehicle-manufacturing worker's job in this country are the opposition leader and the coalition's policies. They are the ones threatening this industry.

This is the fact of the matter: the opposition plans to cut assistance to this industry by $500 million to the year 2015—over the next two years—and to put at risk a further $1½ billion beyond 2015. You could not have a more concrete example of a policy position that can destroy an industry and destroy tens of thousands of jobs. That is exactly what the coalition is proposing to do, and it could not have been made any more clear than by Mr Mike Devereux, the general manager and CEO of General Motors Holden in Australia, just last week. He spelt out exactly what the coalition's policy will mean. This is important for many, many workers and their families in South Australia and in Victoria in particular, because Mr Devereux said quite clearly that Holden would cease manufacturing in this country should the coalition's policy be implemented. It would destroy tens of thousands of jobs. You could not get a more concrete example of the choice that people have at this coming election. If you stand for the car industry and workers in it, vote Labor!