Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Wasn't yesterday just extraordinary! I had a front-row seat to the outrageous rant by the Prime Minister, clearly only caring about his own job. This is a Prime Minister, this is a bloke, who is weaker than Billy McMahon. Let us just call it for what it was yesterday. He gets fired up about protecting his own job, but when is he going to get fired up about Australians' jobs? When is he going to get fired up about the cleaners here in this place who have not had a pay rise since his government came to office? When is he going to get fired up about the coalminers in central Victoria who have been replaced by labour hire workers who are being paid less? When is he going to get fired up about the cuts to education and about all the students who are going to miss out on vital programs because his government has slashed the funding to schools? When is this Prime Minister going to get fired up about Medicare and restore the funding that has been cut, or increase the GP rebate so that the doctors do not have to slug pensioners with more and more fees?

This is a Prime Minister who only cares about his own job, and the only time he stands up and raises his voice is to protect his own job. He is a weak Prime Minister. He is one who goes the nasty attack and does not stand up for the Australian working people. All he does is stand up for his own job. And it is a disgrace. He should come in here today and apologise to all the schoolchildren who may have witnessed his appalling display yesterday.