Andrew Leigh (Fraser, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. This week the Prime Minister ambushed Australian motorists with a $2.2 billion fuel tax increase and cut a deal to pay big polluters $2.5 billion to keep polluting. Does the Prime Minister agree that this chaos is, in his own words, 'just a giant money-go-round'?

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

This is the policy that we have taken to two successive elections—

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The petrol tax?

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

I am sorry; I misheard him.

Our policy that we have put into place is a budget measure. One thing that we plainly had a mandate to do was to get the budget back under control. We had a mandate to get the budget back under control. I said till I was blue in the face before the election that what we would be doing would be scrapping the carbon tax, stopping the boats, building the roads and getting the budget back under control, and I am pleased to say that that is exactly what we are doing. We have scrapped the carbon tax. We have more or less stopped the boats. The roads are building, to the great satisfaction of the motorists of Australia. And, step by difficult step, we are getting the budget back under control.

And at least the crossbenchers are prepared to talk to the government, unlike members opposite that have dealt themselves into irrelevance. On the most important economic questions facing our country, the Labor Party has dealt itself into irrelevance. So, I say to the Labor Party: join Team Australia. Get on board, and have the kind of conversation, have the kind of constructive engagement, with the government that is necessary in if you too are to be part of the solution and not just the originators of the problem.

Honourable members interjecting—

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

The Member for Parramatta! I call the member for Wright.

Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. Will the minister advise the House how changes in border protection policy have affected the people-smuggling trade, and why it is so important to adopt a consistent approach?

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is always a pleasure to get a question from the bighearted member for Wright. I am asked about what impacts changes of policy on border protection have on people smugglers, and there is plenty of evidence on this fact. In August 2008, the Rudd Labor government at that time completed the demolition of the successful Howard government policies when they put through the abolition of temporary protection visas, following their own turn-back on turn-backs, and also going against and shutting down the Pacific solution. We know what happened after that—we went from an average of three boats a year under the last six years of the Howard government to an average of 165 boats a year over the next five years. Some almost 1,200 deaths later, some 800 boats later, and some 50,000 illegal arrivals later, this government has pulled the rug on Labor's people smuggler's picnic. That is what we have done. We have put the policies in place that have ensured people smugglers no longer have a product to sell, and it was achieved as a result of a change of policy and as a result of a change of leadership.

Critical in all of those policies was turning back boats. Prior to the turn back of boats, in the 10 months before, 300 boats turned up. What happened in the 10 months after? Just one boat. I was pleased that the shadow minister acknowledged that on the weekend. It was a glimmer of light. But that light was shut down so quickly from the captain of 'team idiot' over there. He was so quick to shut that down.

Honourable Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They must assume I am referring to the Leader of the Opposition, and I am! There was a glimmer of light shut down by the Leader of the Opposition, and what we have done, when he was—

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

The minister will resume his seat. The Manager of Opposition Business.

Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Speaker, you asked for the same comment to be withdrawn a couple of days ago.

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

It would assist the House if the minister would withdraw.

Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

To assist the House, I withdraw. After a few tweets after the shadow minister's acknowledgement of the success of the turn-back policy, the Leader of the Opposition, in response to those tweets, has curled up in a little ball and rolled over on turn-backs. And you know, if you cannot stand up to Twitter, Leader of the Opposition, you cannot stand up to the people smugglers, and no one will ever trust that you can do it. Because it is now the policy of the Leader of the Opposition to turn back border protection policy to Kevin Rudd. That is what we have in front of us. But it is not just the weakness of the Leader of the Opposition, which all of us know now, on border protection. What has happened to the once great Labor Right that used to sit on the Labor Party benches? What happened to those giants of the caucus who have now become minnows and handmaidens of the Left of the Labor Party? They are totally divided between Left and Right on that side of the House. And that is why they cannot be trusted on border protection: they are riven with division.