Barnaby Joyce (Queensland, National Party, Leader of The Nationals in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I have had the joy—and that is a cynical way of putting it—of seeing some of this garbage that has been presented to our nation and that, apparently, we are to look at in globo. I would be fascinated to go through some of the details of some of these things because, apparently, we do not need to see them in seriatim—we are right across it. It is all a piece of cake.

This is interesting:

(1)   A person who is or was required to provide a report under section 22E for an eligible financial year must keep records of the person’s activities that:

  (a)   allow the person to report accurately under section 22E; and

  (b)   enable the Regulator to ascertain whether the person has complied with the person’s obligations under section 22E; and

  (c)   comply with the requirements of subsection (2) and the regulations made for the purposes of subsection (3).

The civil penalty is 1,000 penalty units. It further states: 'The person must retain the records for five years from the end of the financial year' and on and on it goes. Look at it: it is like Kafka's Castle. The place we have arrived at is amazing.

What about the EMEP test day? It is defined under section 63B(3) as follows:

In the income year of claim, this day is the day on which the claimant makes the claim for the payment. In subsequent income years, the EMEP test day is the anniversary of the day on which the claimant made the claim in a previous year, provided that, since the claimant made the claim, the Repatriation Commission has not determined that the claimant has ceased to be eligible for the payment. If the Repatriation Commission has determined that the claimant is no longer …

And on and on it goes. Apparently, the government are all across it. They are the absolute full bottle on this. It is all right—straight through. I would love to ask the Prime Minister about some of these details and I would love to ask Minister Combet. They would not have the foggiest idea, apart from what has been sent to them on their BlackBerries. They have the BlackBerry message all worked out, but they would not know about the legislation. You can bet your life that this will be an absolute and utter debacle. But this is what they are doing to our nation.

These are the redesigned plans for the nation of Australia, for our economy. Here they are, set up by the people who could not get fluffy stuff into the ceiling without setting fire to 194 houses and, tragically, killing four people. This redesign of our nation's economy is being undertaken by the same people who gave us the Building the Education Revolution. This redesign of our economy is being undertaken by the same people who conducted a war against obesity. Remember that? We are still wondering: did we achieve detente, did we win, did we lose? Or are we going to have a second war on obesity? This is what the Australian Labor Party has delivered to us via the Australian Greens, because the Greens are now running the show.

Some sections of this legislation could be terminal for them, because they have become so soulless and, once you start being guided by the Greens, you completely isolate yourself from your conservative working-class voters, who will just leave you. Look at all this! It is just absolutely amazing. Now come the nasty bits. I am just opening it up. Under the heading 'Scheme to avoid future liability to pay administrative penalty—Intention', it states:

(1) A person commits an offence if—

and we are seeing a lot of the word 'offence' in this—

a.      a penalty is due and payable by a body corporate or trust under section 212; and

b.      before the penalty became due and payable, the person entered into a scheme; and

c.      the person entered into the scheme with the intention of securing or achieving the result, either … the body corporate or trust:

i.      will be unable; or

ii.      will be likely to be unable; or

iii.   will continue to be unable; or

iv.   will be likely to continue to be unable;

And on and on it goes. Then comes imprisonment for 10 years. This is a nasty little document you have got yourself here, which bangs you up in the can for 10 years, and we are just supposed to look at it in globo because, apparently, you are so over it.

Minister Wong looks totally competent. I would bet you London to a brick that the government have not read the legislation. I bet you London to a brick they have not a clue what is in the legislation. We might want to ask the government questions about who they are going to bang up for 10 years. I think a lot of Australian people would like to know the answer to the question: 'Are the Labor Party about to bring in a piece of legislation which, if I get wrong, I could be in the slammer for 10 years?' Also, ' I want you to more fully disclose to me what is on page 324 of the Clean Energy Bill 2011.'

And the Greens are part of this. They do not believe in transparency. They are sitting there with that stupid smirk on their faces. Their leader 'Dr Brown' thinks this is all fun and games and that this is what you do—you just let these things run through.

Here is another quote with respect to retaining records:

(2)   The person must retain the records for 5 years from the end of the financial year …

(3)   The regulations may specify requirements relating to:

  (a)   the kinds of records; and

  (b)   the form of records—

and how the records must be kept. The penalty is two years imprisonment. This is what we are getting! It is here, Australia; it has arrived. Aren't the Labor Party wonderful people? In a brief perusal of this Kafka's nightmare, I see you get 10 years in prison for one offence, two years in prison for another offence. This is the world the Labor Party live in. This is where we are off to, as they redesign our nation's economy on a colourless, odourless gas. You better not lose any. Do not steal any. What is the price of breathing these days? It must become more expensive. Are we going to keep records on that? I thought this was 2011. It is starting to sound awfully like 1984, with this almost Orwellian type of Big Brother approach to every facet of our lives. The government can increase this tax, without it ever having to go back to this parliament. It does not have to go back to this parliament. They have got around that. We cannot have the nation of Australia and its parliament having oversight of the tax! If they have to launch their attack against the climate, making the world colder from a room in Canberra, they can jack up the tax to rise to the challenge, and in rising to the challenge they make every person in Australia with a power point poorer. Every corner of their house will become a collection mechanism for the Australian Taxation Office. And of course they have to collect some friends along the way, so down the track they will have an emissions trading scheme. That is great, isn't it? The banks will love that: moving paper here, moving paper there. The banks are doing it tough; it is good to see the Greens looking after the big banks and giving them a multibillion dollar revenue stream from trading the permits.

The friends of big banks are the Australian Greens, because they are doing it tough and they need all the help they can get. You are about to do it. You have moralised and got it through your head that it is right to tax someone in a weatherboard and iron house out in the suburbs, that it is right to collect money from them and to funnel it to someone who is probably doing very well thank you very much—and God bless them and good luck to them—and probably does not need that person's money. You are going to funnel that money to Martin Place. We do not need it in Mount Druitt when it can be in Martin Place. We do not need it in Cunnamulla when it can be in Martin Place. We do not need that money up in Bundaberg when it can be in George Street. This is a bonanza. I cannot wait to see who the geniuses are, the luminaries on the other side who will be able to answer some of these questions.

The way they are getting around it is that they are not allowing us to ask any questions. We had the first example of that today with the guillotine: they shall not ask questions on behalf of the Australian people. The job of the opposition in most instances is, naturally enough, to oppose, to see if you are prudent and across the facts. Because you are not, how are you dealing with that? You are launching yourselves into this guillotine. What is so nauseating is that we had to listen to the Leader of the Greens, Dr Bob Brown. He supported the guillotine with that stupid smirk on his face. Here is a quote from that same person:

Let there be no doubt about this: the government can—