Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

As a Queensland senator, I rise today in this debate to refute Senator Fifield’s motion about the Gillard government’s continued mismanagement of public finances and intention to compound cost-of-living pressures on families by introducing a new income tax levy. Firstly, this motion is misleading. The federal government is not compounding the cost-of-living pressures on families with an income tax levy. It surprises me that a senator from Victoria, Senator Fifield, who I am sure has seen and witnessed the terrible flood devastation in his state, has put this motion here today. I am sure he is well aware of the national disasters that have happened and are happening around our nation, which include bushfires over in your state, Acting Deputy President Pratt, and flooding and a huge cyclone up in the north of my state of Queensland. Thousands of people have been impacted by the Queensland floods and Cyclone Yasi. Many lost everything that they owned. Along with personal loss, there was also public loss. Roads, bridges and rail lines were destroyed. Vital infrastructure that is imperative for Queenslanders to make a living was destroyed. This is what the temporary flood levy will address. The temporary flood levy—