Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Car workers Gary and Anthony are sitting in the gallery today. Like 250,000 other automotive workers, they want to see a strong industry. I also refer to the Prime Minister's pre-election commitment to cut half a billion dollars from the car industry. Prime Minister, is the government still going to cut half a billion dollars from our industry, and how many workers will lose their jobs as a result of your decisions?

Tony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. On day one of the new government we saved the car industry from Labor's $1.8 billion fringe benefits tax hit. That is what we did. Today in this parliament we are seeking to save the car industry from the carbon tax, which has added up to $400 to the cost of a domestically produced new car. Apart from that, we will implement the policies that we took to the election, and the policies that we took to the election are designed to ensure that, amongst other things, the car industry has the best possible chance of surviving into the future.