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

My question is to the Prime Minister. Yesterday in question time, the Prime Minister said that he supports the decision to cut penalty rates. Today's national accounts confirm that corporate profits had their biggest increase in 40 years and that wages and salaries had their largest fall in over 20 years. Why is it that, under the Turnbull government, when companies receive record profits, they get tax cuts and, when wages flat line, workers get pay cuts?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The only person I am aware of in this room—or there may be some others on the Labor side—who has actively cut penalty rates is the Leader of the Opposition, and he has done it again and again and again. He has been a champion. There are so many examples. I have a pile of enterprise agreements here that he has signed. But let's talk about cutting penalty rates. Let's talk about what he did to the workers at Clean Event.

Ms Owens interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Member for Parramatta!

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Clean Event entered into an enterprise bargaining agreement in 2006 with the AWU. I have the agreement here. It was signed by the Leader of the Opposition's delegate. He has turned away. He always does that. He cannot take it. He cannot tell the truth. He cannot be consistent. He flip-flops and backs away. He is in favour of the independent umpire one day, proclaiming the importance of respect for the Fair Work Commission, and then he runs away from it.

What about the workers? What about the casual cleaning workers at Clean Event, who were paid, thanks to the Leader of the Opposition, $18.14 an hour when they were entitled to $50.17 under the award? That is what he did.

Honourable members interjecting—

And where did the money go? Was there a payment to the AWU? Were membership lists provided to the AWU. Follow the money; follow the politics. I see his members are all looking down. They cannot stand it either. They know that they are led by the world champion in cutting penalty rates. As the royal commission was told, the benefits to Clean Event and the Australian Workers Union were obvious. The persons who missed out were the workers. And that was just one case. We heard yesterday about Cirque du Soleil—another great triumph by Bill Shorten, in his capacity as a union leader.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Prime Minister will resume is seat. Before I call the Manager of Opposition Business, the member for Parramatta is warned, I caution the member for Griffith, yet again, and the Minister for Environment and Energy, and I remind the Prime Minister to refer to members by their correct titles. Now I call the Manager of Opposition Business on a point of order.

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

Thanks, Mr Speaker—on direct relevance. I appreciate your ruling that you allow time to compare and contrast. We are now well into the answer and there should be some reference to the 700,000 people getting a pay cut.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Manager of Opposition Business will resume his seat. I am going to rule on the point of order, so that there is absolute clarity for all members. The question, of which I have a summary, had a number of aspects to it—one of which was penalty rates. As I have made clear over and over again, the Prime Minister needs to stay on that topic, and he is. He is on the topic of penalty rates. He is completely in order.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Speaker. On the subject of penalty rates, we have seen again and again the Leader of the Opposition in his days as a union leader signing away workers' penalty rates in return for payments to the union, union lists and some new arrangement—again and again—whether it is the workers at Melbourne Olympic Park, the workers at Chiquita Mushrooms or the workers at Clean Event. We have a long list of workers who earn less on Sundays and Saturdays because of the Leader of the Opposition. He is a master at cutting penalty rates. He is an adept expert at cutting penalty rates. (Time expired)