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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Workers at Oxford Cold Storage earn around $50,000 per year. Did the Prime Minister tell the Oxford Cold Storage workers, as he was being photographed with them at a photo opportunity this morning, that he was cutting $6,000 from their family budgets? Why should those workers at Oxford Cold Storage pay for this Prime Minister's dishonesty?

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

The best thing that I can do for the workers of Oxford Cold Storage—

Mr Conroy interjecting—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Charlton is warned!

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

and for workers in businesses right around Australia is to try to ensure that those businesses remain profitable, because if you cannot make a profit you cannot survive and if you do not survive there is no employment and there are no workers. This government gets it in a way that members opposite never did. You cannot have strong communities without a strong economy to sustain them and you cannot have a strong economy without profitable private businesses. We get that; members opposite do not. That is why they loaded up private businesses with the carbon tax, with the mining tax, with endless regulations—

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

Madam Speaker, I raise a point of order on relevance. I just ask the Prime Minister: you're happy to use workers for your hi-vis photo props—

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There is no point of order.

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

why don't you tell them the truth?

Mrs Bronwyn Bishop (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Leader of the Opposition will resume his seat. I would remind the Leader of the Opposition it is not a point of order merely to try and repeat a question. The Prime Minister has the call.

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

The point I am making is that the best thing that we can do the workers of Australia is to try to ensure that their businesses can flourish, because if the businesses can flourish the workers can continue to be employed and can enjoy the higher wages that everyone wants to see workers in this country earn. More profitable businesses are more productive businesses; more productive businesses have higher paid workers. We get that; members opposite do not. That is why they loaded up the businesses of Australia with the mining tax, with the carbon tax, with more regulation and green tape. We want to see all of those go.

The Leader of the Opposition asked me about workers earning $50,000. Let me explain for the Leader of the Opposition's benefit that, under the budget that this government has brought down, if you are a sole parent, with one child aged under six, earning $50,000 in 2016-17 you will receive $11,705 in social security support.

The difference between this government and members opposite is that we support the businesses employing the workers and we want the social security system to be sustainable for the long run. We understand, in a way that members opposite do not, that you cannot continue to pay money that you haven't got. You cannot continue to saddle up future generations with ever-expanding debt to pay for today's consumption. You cannot do that. Members opposite should really wake up to themselves. We have explained how we will sort out Labor's debt and deficit disaster. Members opposite need to do the same.