Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

This is the extent to which this government does not want to talk about loss of workers' jobs. This is the extent to which this government will go to avoid facing up to the sabotaging of Holden that has occurred under this government. This is question time, ladies and gentlemen of the Senate. This is question time—when the government of the day answers questions from the opposition and from the crossbenchers about important issues. It is a day after thousands of workers and their families in this country faced the extraordinarily sad prospect of not being employed in safe and secure jobs in which they had been employed for years, and what does this government want to do? It wants to pull a stunt in question time so they can change the subject. Well, I tell you what: workers and their families across this country are alive to you. They know what you are doing. They know you do not want to come in here and face the music. They know you do not want to come in here and answer questions such as these. You do not want to come in here and answer questions about the $500 million that you took out of the car industry prior to 2015. You do not want to come in here and answer questions—