David Johnston (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

There is one major devastating skills crisis in Australia, but it is not in industry—it is in the federal Labor opposition. It is chronic! It has a chronic skills shortage. Not three months ago, not four months ago, the opposition was screaming about Work Choices, about the sky falling in and about conditions of employment being eroded and unemployment going through the roof. The Howard government has created almost 200,000 new jobs since 30 March this year. What does the opposition do? As they have to do, they must change tack. What do they change tack to? Where else can they go? Oh! Unemployment is at a 30-year low in Australia, thanks to the Howard government, so let us complain about that. It has to be a skills shortage.

Here is the leader of the most underskilled opposition this nation has ever known, who, when he was minister for training, presided over the most paltry number of apprentices in Australia’s employment history. As the minister for training in 1993, Mr Beazley presided over 122,000 apprentices. The current level is 403,600 apprentices acquiring trade skills under the Howard government. It is absolutely amazing that Labor can suddenly go from screaming about workplace conditions and terms under Work Choices to thinking about and turning turtle onto a skills shortage. You have got to take your hat off to them—duplicity and disingenuousness is the principal skill they bring to the party.

The Howard government has contributed $43.7 million to apprentices in the form of a living away from home allowance to enable them to be more mobile so that they can acquire their skills in various parts of the country. We have also provided the Commonwealth Trade Learning Scholarship. We have provided $28.2 million for tools of trade initiatives for Australian apprentices so that they can acquire assistance in getting top level tools of trade. As I said, 403,600 apprentices is in stark contrast to the achievements of the now leader of the most underskilled federal opposition this country has ever known, when he could only preside over 122,000 apprentices in 1993. Labor cannot have it both ways.

This is the lowest level of unemployment in 30 years. The economic management of the Howard government has achieved the modern miracle in the OECD in growth, stability and low inflation. That is the galling thing. It is the thing that galls Labor. They cannot believe that, whilst they were in power, real wages rose by a paltry, insulting 1.3 per cent and, in the 10 years that John Howard has presided over this economy, their constituents have benefited to the tune of a 16 per cent increase in real wages. It really has to stick in their craw. It really has to hurt them.

Let us have a look at what they are saying about 457 visas. Western Australia, with an unemployment rate of about 3.1 per cent, has been the huge beneficiary of Minister Vanstone’s initiatives on 457 visas, and what a great job she has done. My state is absolutely humming with the assistance of skilled migrants. None of those migrants would have come into Australia unless the state Labor governments specifically made a request for them. So Mr Beazley is utterly at odds with his state Labor colleagues. A divided opposition, a divided Labor Party: it is a wonder to behold.

Mr Beazley claims that 300,000 young Australians have been turned away from TAFE at the same time that the government have imported 270,000 extra skilled workers. Here we have a situation where the economy is booming, unemployment is at a 30-year low and Labor is casting around like a drunken sailor to complain about something. This is the opposition of whinging and bleating. This is the opposition of nothing to contribute but, ‘How can we attack the government?’ Since 30 March, 200,000 new jobs under Work Choices say that that reform is one of the truly great reforms of the labour market in Australia, ever. All Labor can do is hope and pray that their Chicken Little predictions will come home to roost, but they will not. This economy is on a firm foundation. It is on a firm footing and is doing very well. So what do they complain about? They complain about the skills shortage.

Turning back to how well Work Choices is doing, the other day I received a press release from the Master Builders Association in Western Australia, which states:

The Master Builders Association rates the first six months of the federal government’s Work Choices industrial relations reforms in conjunction with the construction industry reforms introduced in October 2005 as a huge success.

Bear in mind that Western Australia was ravaged under the CFMEU, who the Labor Party defended. Industrial strife, extortion—you name it, we had it:

The Master Builders Association Construction Director Kim Richardson said the initial six months of these reforms and the specific construction industry reforms have seen a welcome turnaround in the behaviour of the CFMEU and its officials on major construction projects with them now conducting themselves in a responsible, reasonable and lawful manner which contrasts greatly with the unions behaviour prior to these reforms.

Well, six months later the reforms that the opposition in this chamber screamed about, predicting that the sky would fall, have not come to fruition—surprise, surprise. They have a track record of screaming about things that do not come true. Just look at the GST. Here is the interesting point:

Another positive spin identified by the Master Builders Association since March involved the changes to the unfair dismissal laws which have seen builders now confident enough to employ more building workers directly rather than through labour hire agencies.

A huge turnaround. (Time expired)