Alex Gallacher (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to make a contribution to this debate to take note of answers in question time. You have to say one thing: the opposition is consistent. They are consistent in deriding; they are consistently rubbishing and putting down our side of politics. That is fair enough; that is their job. But the facts are that interest rates are now three per cent compared with 6.75 per cent when the Liberals left office. That means for a $300,000 mortgage there is a saving of $5,000 per annum—$5,000 per annum that a family is saving on their mortgage. We have delivered schoolkids bonuses of $410 for primary school children and $820 for high school children. There are 3.2 million pensioners who are better off—$172 for singles and $182 for couples. These are just a couple of the basic things that the Labor Party has delivered, that this Gillard Labor government has delivered.

We see this impending storm, or this continual storm, about the media bills. As I said yesterday, I do know people who are concerned about the way the media conducts itself and, when they get it wrong, what redress there is for the ordinary citizen. There must be a redress for the ordinary citizen who has been maligned or put into an invidious position by the media. That is what is really at stake here. No-one wants to stop the press from writing truthfully and faithfully about what happens, no-one is worried about politics. We here are all well able to defend ourselves either under parliamentary privilege or we can sue for defamation—we can do any number of things. But the average citizen in the street, if they are taken apart by a media event, what is their redress? The answer is: they can go to the Press Council, they can complain to the principals of the newspapers. Mr Finkelstein gave evidence this morning in a committee, and he said there is probably room for improvement there. It is not the government that is saying there is room for improvement, it is the chair of the Australian Press Council who is saying there is room for improvement.

We have had a continual barrage from Senator Joyce. He rattles off that the BER is a waste of money. I have not experienced that. I have officiated at, I think, 18 or 20 BER ceremonies and each one has been a great community event, supported by the communities who support their schools. Each one that I have been to has been a resoundingly good use of public money in schools which have often been starved of capital investment, particularly in the electorate of Grey, which is one of the largest regional seats in Australia. I have not met a principal, a parent, a president of the governing council or a member of the community who has shared Senator Joyce's cynicism about the BER projects.

We have to touch on the NBN. We know that 73 per cent of Australians really support the NBN. We know it is a huge project. I cannot wait to get it past my house; I cannot wait to get the benefits of the NBN in my electorate office and also in my home. The opportunities that the NBN will provide are genuinely startling and will change the way we do any number of things, and most importantly could well improve the productivity of our nation.

I turn to the leadership speculation. We have had this speculation on and on and on. It is all designed, in my view, by those on the other side to draw attention away from the genuine achievements of this government. You cannot fudge the figures on interest rates: interest rates of around three per cent compared with 6.75 per cent when those opposite were last in office. On a $300,000 mortgage homeowners get savings of $5,000 per annum for their families. Those things you can eat. You can take them to the bank. People can clothe and feed their families with some of the savings delivered by this Labor government in one area alone—that is, in mortgage rates. That lot over there think they are the champions of delivering low mortgage rates. (Time expired)