Stephen Parry (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I also rise to speak on the motion to take note of the answers from Minister Vanstone. I will say at the outset that we need to clearly state on the record the real wage increase in this country. The 13 years of Labor government, prior to us taking office in 1996, produced 1.3 per cent increase in real wages. What has this government produced? This government, over 10 years, has had real wage increases of 16.7 per cent. What a comparison of figures! And Senator Carr has the cheek to stand up in the chamber and indicate that real wages do not increase under this government. Those are the facts and figures.

I am very pleased that Senator O’Brien has returned to the chamber because he indicated earlier what this government has been doing for skills in this country. This government has recognised emphatically the need to pick up where state Labor governments have not progressed as far as they should have. He should talk to his state Labor colleagues, because we have introduced Australian technical colleges—in our home state, in northern Tasmania, in the electorate that both Senator O’Brien and I come from. We have a technical college up and running. It is in its administrative stages now, working through to full completion. We have started the process. The money is there. What is more, this model is based on two campuses: one in Launceston and one in Burnie. Senator O’Brien knows that we have targeted particular areas.

In north-west Tasmania, like in Senator Eggleston’s home state of Western Australia, there is a resource boom. Tasmania and Western Australia are reaping the benefits of this resource boom, which was brought about by a brilliantly managed economy. When you have a boom, what then happens is that you have a catch-up phase. We have addressed this problem. We are addressing it constantly around the country. There will be skilled workers where needed as and when we develop the processes to get skilled workers back into the workforce. If you have to have a problem of either a shortage of workers or too many workers, I would much rather have the shortage. This economy is running so well that we have the luxury of the low unemployment rate, and we are now going to be picking up in the area of additional workers.

The issue of workers from other countries came up during the debate. Senator Eggleston and I happen to be on the Joint Standing Committee on Migration and our current inquiry is on skilled immigrants. We are looking at processing skilled immigrants. The Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs is working very well in getting immigrants to come in who have the skills we need in this country. The assessment processes will take place offshore and that is going to be a great boon for this country.

Another aspect of having a great economy is you end up with a shortage in different places at different times, but the best thing about the economy’s strength is that we have such a low unemployment rate. If we look at the record of the previous government the unemployment rate was extremely high. The Labor Party has never had a skills shortage. They have always had a skills surplus because they have had such a high unemployment rate. Under our government we do not have a skills surplus, we have a skills shortage. We acknowledge that and we are putting in colleges to combat that particular issue.

The migration committee inquiry has heard a lot of evidence about the immigration into this country of migrants who possess skills. We have a list of skills that the department modifies and updates as and when required to identify and make provision for the shortages and the gaps, so this government is very proactive in relation to skills shortages. But I emphasise again, Mr Deputy President, if you have to have a problem I would much rather the problem of having a skills shortage than having workers sitting at home twiddling their thumbs because of a high unemployment rate. Having workers in the workforce, gainfully employed and looking for further people to come into the workforce is exactly what we want.