Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I wanted to ask the minister some questions. I might ask whether he has the figures for the Queensland regulator and what prices would fall in Queensland. I also seek from the minister confirmation that I am not—and I am asking the minister this—living in another world. I heard the Leader of the Opposition filibuster for about 12 minutes at the beginning of this committee session this morning. She did not even pretend to ask a question of the minister. The debates in the Senate and, particularly, in the committee stages are intended to allow senators to ask precise questions about the bill and the amendments before the chair.

We heard from the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate—one of the leadership group of the party which went to the 2010 election promising there would be 'no carbon tax under a government I lead' and then, when it got into government, immediately introduced a carbon tax—not a question but just a 12-minute rant to waste the time of this committee and to prevent other senators from asking questions. We got that from that senator who is supposedly the leader of a party in this chamber. You would expect that a leader might, at least, show some responsibility. That is my recollection.

After hearing the Leader of the Opposition, I have to ask the minister whether my recollection is correct in that the Australian people at the last election voted overwhelmingly against the Labor Party and the Greens political party. Is it also true—and is my recollection correct—that it was made very clear for about 2½ years before the last election that the last election would be a referendum on the carbon tax? That is my recollection. But, after hearing the Leader of the Opposition, I must have been on a different planet! Clearly, Australians went to the last election accepting this was a vote on the carbon tax or otherwise. The Australian public answered that question, giving Mr Abbott and his team an overwhelming response—an overwhelming answer—in the election held last year.

Similarly, those senators in this chamber supporting the lied-about carbon tax lost one-fifth of their number. Parties in this chamber which indicated they also opposed the carbon tax—which included the coalition, Palmer United Party, Senator Xenophon, as I recall, and I think Family First, Democratic Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats—did very, very well. And yet, if you heard the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate today, you would think that the Australian public said something else. So my question to the minister is: Am I right that the last election was said to be a referendum on the carbon tax? And was the result such that the Australian public spoke?

Senator Wong gets up here and says that she and her colleagues in the Labor Party know everything and know what is best for Australia. She says there are a lot of scientists and economists who also think that this should be abandoned. In the minute I have left to me, I just want to ask again: Did the Australian public clearly say at the last election they wanted to get rid of the carbon tax? For all of the economists, for all of the so-called scientists that Senator Wong quotes and for all of those people in the Labor Party who say differently, wasn't it a fact that the Australian people, voting at the last election on what was clearly a referendum on the carbon tax, gave their answer and gave it overwhelmingly?