Brett Mason (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Universities and Research) Share this | Hansard source

Indeed, to have the world's largest carbon tax. That might be madness for a country in western Europe that does not export energy and minerals, but, for a country with a huge comparative advantage such as Australia, it will have an enormous impact on the cost of living and the cost of our exports over the forward estimates and over the next generation or two. That to me is the great failure in public policy of the Australian Labor Party and this Labor government. That is the great failure. Okay, the Prime Minister was dishonest, but that is only half the dishonesty. The dishonesty is to impose this tax on our people, on the Australian people, when other nations are not doing it, and in any case arguing that its unilateral imposition is in the interests of Australians. That to me is the greatest farce, the greatest lie, of all.

The carbon tax is being imposed in a world where Greece is in turmoil. I understand they have even had communists and neo-Nazis being re-elected to parliament in Greece. That is helpful, isn't it! And, in France, there is a new socialist President who is against austerity. That no doubt will help the stock market and help western Europe get back to normal! Even in the United States, there are enormous difficulties. The Western world is facing enormous economic challenges, and this lot believe it is in our national interest to unilaterally impose a carbon tax to make our industry less competitive. They believe that, even when the rest of the world is in turmoil, it is in our national interest to impose unilaterally a carbon tax to make our industry, our employees, our workers, less competitive. That is a great argument, isn't it! No other nation on earth buys that argument. The only people that buy that argument are the Australian Labor Party and the Greens. No-one else buys that argument, and somehow the Australian people have to suffer because of it. No-one other than the Australian Labor Party and the Greens believes that you can unilaterally impose this carbon tax and it will be in our national interest. They know it will drive up the cost of our exports, they know it will make our industry less competitive and they will do it, irrespective of what any other nation on earth does. That to me is the greatest lie in this debate over the last 2½ years, by far.

What is the answer to the cost-of-living pressures that will follow on from the carbon tax? What is the government's answer? The government's answer to the cost-of-living pressures is a schoolkids bonus.