Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Because it is your last question, Senator Trood, I will try to retain my sense of humour and politeness. But, quite frankly, it is a nonsense, Senator. We had an election, the parliament was elected and we were able to form a government. We formed a government, we are governing and we are going to provide leadership on the big issues confronting Australia. The Prime Minister is providing that leadership. We are tackling the major issues confronting Australia: bringing the budget back into surplus, dealing with climate change and investing in education and jobs, and all those policies will be pursued with vigour by this government. We are not fixated on opinion polls. We are not fixated on petty political point scoring. We are focused on providing the leadership Australia needs and, by doing that, I am sure that we will convince Australians of the need for the sorts of reforms that we are prosecuting. But we will continue to act in the national interest.