Anne McEwen (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I would also like to take note of the answers given by Senator Arbib today to the questions from Senator Fisher with regard to the Building and Construction Commission and its proposed replacement by the Rudd Labor government. I was intrigued to hear Senator Fisher talking about election promises and election commitments. Could we please remind the people of Australia that the coalition did not introduce Work Choices until they had the numbers in the Senate. It was not an election commitment to the people of Australia by the coalition to introduce Work Choices. In fact, they said nothing about it at all until they found themselves in the situation of having the numbers in the Senate, and they foisted it on the people of Australia—who did not want it.

I have known Senator Fisher for quite a long time. We do know that she has worked for Mr Peter Reith. Back in those days, Senator Fisher worked for Peter Reith and she was fully supportive of the actions of the previous government in trying to destroy working people on Australia’s wharves by attempting to take their jobs away from them—and doing it by using balaclava-wearing thugs accompanied by dogs. If anybody wants to remember the attitude of the opposition to Australia’s working people, they only have to think about those visions of people being attacked by thugs and dogs on wharves. It is just hypocritical for Senator Fisher to get up here today and pretend that she is anything other than a tireless and lifelong campaigner to destroy the rights of working people in Australia.

Senator Arbib is an excellent new minister, and I am very pleased that he has got responsibility for this particular portfolio, as Minister for Employment Participation, because he also has long experience in industrial relations. He knows what it is to have a fair workplace. Senator Fisher does tend to live in the past a bit, as we know. If she wants to continue to do that, we will be more than happy to run another election campaign on industrial relations. We will be more than happy to run another campaign on industrial relations, because do you know what? The people of Australia rejected your ridiculous industrial relations policies last time and they would do it again, because the people of Australia want their workplaces to be fair. They want to have a voice in the workplace, they want workplaces to be fair for employers, they want workplaces to be fair for workers, and they will not cop the kind of industrial relations laissez-faire legislation that you would like to introduce. In fact, Senator Fisher, you would prefer to have no legislation in the workplace at all. You would like for there to be absolute free range for unscrupulous employers to dud workers. That is your agenda. That has been your agenda ever since I have known you, and here you are again—despite having lost the last election on industrial relations issues—trying to re-establish the kind of workplace system that the Howard government brought in. Bring it on, Senator Fisher. I cannot wait to run another election on the opposition’s industrial relations policies, because you will lose.