Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

They have gone. You had the opportunity, Senator Colbeck—through you, Mr Deputy President. Show us the way. Why are you not doing something? Why are you prepared, because one of your members goes on Q&A, to throw money into Geelong and have a coordinator there? Why is it that one of your members has to go on Q&A? I very much doubt that that is the way the Tasmanian community are going to have any respect for this government because we are not interested in invasion, which has been demonstrated here today. We are not interested in posturing, we are not interested in vague media releases where the local member says to the people who have lost their jobs, 'Go and see Centrelink,' when they know full well that they would not be entitled to the sort of support that they need now.

When we debate this, we have inaction from those opposite, but we want action. We want action now for an immediate intervention to help these people and then we need a long-term plan and strategy to assist that community. We do not want Queenstown to become a ghost. Those on the opposite side come into this chamber every week talking about small businesses. What are you doing to ensure those businesses in that region are able to succeed? What are you going to do to assist families trying to pay their mortgage? Today after questions in relation to the GST, Senator Abetz said, 'No, it is not government policy to support an increase in GST to 15 per cent,' but he did not say anything about not broadening that tax.

We have seen from this government through their budget that they are callous and heartless, and the Tasmanian Liberal senators and the Liberal members of the House of Representatives have proven once again that they are out of touch. They don't listen, and Senator Colbeck says, 'We go down there and we talk to the people.' That is right: you only do the talking. You never listen to the community. You never listen to the experts and you have not even been there.