Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Hansard source

And so the list goes on, including the so-called Building the Education Revolution. Remember the laptops, the GP superclinics and the mining tax, the topic of today's motion. It will be recalled that Ms Gillard needed to wrest the prime ministership off Mr Rudd because the government 'had lost its way'. She, of course, was the vice-captain of that government. But itemised examples were given by Ms Gillard of the loss of direction. They were volunteered by her at her first press conference as Prime Minister. What items did she nominate? What items did she volunteer? Border protection—well, that has gone well, hasn't it? The carbon tax—a $4 billion black hole and heading south. And, of course, the mining tax.

I agree with Ms Gillard on this: Mr Rudd's handling of these issues was diabolically inept.

He did deserve to be rolled. He did deserve to be ousted. But, if Mr Rudd deserved to be ousted for his gross incompetence, what do we say of Ms Gillard's handling of those issues? Ms Gillard's ineptness, unbelievably—because one would not believe that it is possible—is 10 times, if not more, worse than Mr Rudd's; border protection—worse, the carbon tax—a $4 billion black hole—and now this mining tax. Who else! Who else could dream up a scheme which shatters Australia's enviable, second-to-none, world reputation on sovereign risk? Who else could have the arrogance to negotiate personally the details of the mining tax without officials present? Who else would do it without the states present? Who else would do it without the territories present? And who else would do it in secret? Who else would do it with only three of the mining companies out of the 3,000 mining companies that exist in Australia? Who else could agree to a scheme which collects virtually no money? Who else could design a mining tax that costs a miner like Atlas Iron $2 million to comply with, only to find out—after submitting their returns—that they will not have to pay the tax? Who else could design such a maze of red tape? Who else could design a mining tax that even the Chief Government Whip acknowledges needs to be changed and that the Leader of the Opposition in Western Australia opposes because he knows the damage it will do to his state's economy? The answer to all these questions is Ms Gillard and the Green-Labor-country Independent alliance's excuse for a government. They are the people who have put such a scheme together.

The next question is: which parties combined to ruthlessly and arrogantly guillotine the mining tax—with all its fatal flaws—through the Senate? Which senators thought they knew it all?