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

It is all rhetoric from the Liberal Party. The mining tax is a classic example. The mining tax was going to destroy the mining industry in Australia; it was going to mean the end of mining investment. Now what do we see? Record investments and acceptance by the major companies that paying a fair share of the superprofits from their mining operations is a reasonable thing. So what do we get now? We now get the argument that the tax that was going to destroy the mining industry is now not going to raise anything at all. They have gone completely full circle. The other thing is that those that were running around saying, 'It's constitutionally invalid,' have gone quiet, apart from who? Twiggy Forrest. But where are the other supporters? Where are the state governments? 'Oh, well, it may not be quite as unconstitutional as we first said.' All we hear is rhetoric and negativity from the Liberal Party. We hear nothing positive, and as each deadline approaches their rhetoric becomes even more meaningless. (Time expired)