Michael Forshaw (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, and backbenchers, as Senator Marshall has said. With the amount of talent and merit that is on the backbench and keen to get onto the front bench, we should enlarge the ministry; but unfortunately we cannot. I digress. The real issues are interest rates, inflation and doing something about the skills crisis in this country. The skills crisis affects so much of our manufacturing industry, including the vehicle industry.

There has been a pathetic attack today by Senator Abetz on Senator Carr, who has undertaken to look properly at the motor vehicle industry in this country. We have just had an announcement by Mitsubishi about closure. That is a problem that has been lumped on our desk at the very outset of our getting into government, after those opposite had been in office for 11 years. Minister Carr has taken the issue on board, and we are going to deal with it. So senators opposite should not come in here and lecture us. They have been sitting around for two months since the last election trying to figure out what issues they can attack us on. Well, they have none.

The cost of living is another important issue, and then there is the housing crisis and education. We have made announcements on what we are going to do to give the young kids in this country greater education opportunities. I could go on and on. My time has expired today but I look forward to further opportunities to get up here and remind those opposite of what a pathetic bunch they really are.