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

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answers given by the Minister for Finance and Deregulation (Senator Wong) to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today.

They talk about a spring in their step. I do not think there is much spring in the step of the Australian economy at the moment. There is not much spring in the step of aluminium workers at the moment. I do not think there is much spring in the step of the meatworkers of Australia at the moment. In fact, I do not think there is much spring in the step of those who are working in the fourth estate, in the media. There is not much spring in the step going around at the moment, because of the complete and utter incompetence of people such as Minister Wong and the ludicrous position that we are now modelling the loss of Australian jobs. We have someone who is supposed to represent the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union—Minister Wong. What a joke! What a ludicrous proposition that she would represent any of those unions or any of those people. What is it that she is doing for the construction workers of Australia? What is she doing to the price of aluminium? What is she doing for the price of steel? What exactly is she doing to the Australian economy? What does she care? That is the point.

When was the last time we heard them talking about helping forestry workers? When was the last time their representative, who is now walking out the door, was going to help forestry workers or mining workers or energy workers in this nation? They do not care about it. They have evolved into a higher species; they are beyond looking after workers nowadays. It does not matter anymore. They now look after the eyrie realms of the inner suburbs. They do not care if in their own modelling we are faced with the loss of over 16,000 jobs in the aluminium industry. But what does it matter? Why are we doing this? We are doing this because on a certain day a certain prime minister, Prime Minister Gillard, sat in front of the registry book with Senator Bob Brown—he had a bit of wattle in his lapel. It was such a beautiful day; they had the support of their coterie. In the bridal party behind them stood Tony Windsor—I do not know what he was; perhaps the second best man—and Mr Rob Oakeshott, who looked like he just came out of a cave with a big beard. They all stood around, looking so happy. They were happy that they had just signed the death warrant for large sections of Australian manufacturing.

There is not much spring in the step of people who have been decimated by the live cattle trade. There is not much spring in the step up there in the Northern Territory. Perhaps it is a better gait, but still there is not much spring in the step. Then we had the small retailers. I have been talking to them. After you buy a shirt, they almost chase you around the block trying to sell you a pair of socks. Not much spring in the step there. We have been talking to the people of the Murray-Darling—in town after town they are thinking about their livelihoods that are about to be taken away. There is not much spring in the step there, either. But, apparently we have the Prime Minister coming out and saying, 'Don't worry about a carbon tax, because 850 million people in the world have one already.' It makes abundant sense with 7.05 billion people in the world; we just have to work out why the other six-plus billion people do not want one. It is all right, because even though 850 million people have got a carbon tax, apparently about 900 are still using camel dung as a mechanism for cooking. Maybe we should do that. It is just as logical. That is what it is all about. It is the Labor Party taking us back to the dark ages with the Greens, because the Greens told them to.

I know what is going to happen at the next election: we will see the Labor Party, they will all be wandering around like the burghers of Calais as a dance sculpture. They will be moping and gnashing their teeth—asking, 'Where did it all go wrong?' It might have been when they decided that they were more fascinated with the Manic Monkey Cafe of inner suburban Nirvanaville than with their own people, or the people who used to their people, the workers—when Labor used to care about the workers, people who worked for a living, those people out there with the reflecto jackets on. You should go and talk to them one day. They are sort of keen about keeping their house. They have a desire that they want to keep the dignity of having a job. They would not mind going fishing. But now you are waltzing with a group that wants to shut down the fishing zone and shut down forestry. What is your ideal town: Smithton in northern Tasmania with 30 per cent unemployment? Is that what you want? Shut down the manufacturing industry, shut down rodeos— (Time expired)