Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation) Share this | Hansard source

I accept that interjection from Senator O’Brien that ‘You don’t like the truth.’ That needs to be in the Hansard. On 26 September, a Tasmanian Labor MP made a shameful speech to the Tasmanian parliament about the tragic suicide death of a resident of north-east Tasmania. I do not intend to go into the details of this tragic incident, suffice to say that suicide is always tragic. My condolences go out to the man’s family.

Labor claimed, through Ms Heather Butler MP, that this man took his life after being dismissed from his job and that he was allegedly denied union representation because of Work Choices—an entirely false assertion. Work Choices in fact enshrines the right to union representation. This claim was vigorously denied by the Mayor of the Break O’Day Council, Mr Robert Legge. In a letter to the Labor MP the mayor stated:

Your claims are totally incorrect. This had absolutely nothing to do with the industrial relations laws that were introduced earlier this year.

However, based on these false claims, the Labor MP made the following shameful assertion:

John Howard’s unfair workplace relations changes surely have contributed to this man’s death.

So according to the Labor Party not only will Work Choices lead to mass sackings, which of course have not occurred, but it is now apparently the cause of suicides. What a baseless and shameful claim, so baseless, I note, that Ms Butler, the Labor MP in question, has declined to repeat her claims, which Senator O’Brien is so foolishly repeating in this place now. And of course she fails to apologise.

The sad fact is that, in making this claim, this Labor MP was only following orders—the orders of the ACTU. We on this side recall the outrageous statement last year by the President of the ACTU, Sharan Burrow, on ABC’s Lateline program, in relation to the campaign against Work Choices. What did she say? ‘ I need a mum or a dad of someone who’s been seriously injured or killed. That would be fantastic.’ Ms Burrow failed to repudiate that statement, as did Mr Beazley. So with such weak leadership, the pitiful Labor foot soldier, Heather Butler, MHA, blindly followed with her unsubstantiated and shameful claim.

I understand that Mr Beazley is trying to get fit for office by going to the gym. I welcome that, but can I say there is a greater imperative and that is to be morally fit for office. Mr Beazley needs to repudiate Sharan Burrow and Heather Butler, MHA, for their outrageous comments.