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

Good government is delivering lower cost of living to the Australian people by the removal of the carbon tax—a tax that would be reinstituted under Labor, not in its former form but in a higher form which would absolutely bankrupt the household budgets around this country and destroy thousands of jobs. Good government is delivering free trade agreements with China, with Korea, with Japan—things that Labor tried and failed to achieve, agreements that people like people like the former ACTU president Mr Crean acknowledge will create thousands of jobs and help create greater wealth for the Australian nation. Good government is also providing national security by ensuring that boats have been turned back, to ensure that we save literally thousands of millions of dollars—and it is now pleasing that Labor are, slowly, at least paying lip-service to this. Having given us self-righteous lectures about turning back the boats, they now say, 'What a great idea.' Have we heard an apology from those opposite for all the hectoring that we received during that time? No, of course not.

So there is good government, be it on the environmental front today with our announcement, a very exciting announcement, about the target we will be taking to Paris—we are looking in the Environment portfolio and foreign affairs—or be it in employment, where we now have the highest number of Australians ever employed in gainful employment. No matter what area of government endeavour is being looked at, we are doing a lot, lot better than we did when we came into office.