Cory Bernardi (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

In responding to the claims and the allegations made by the honourable senator opposite, I echo her sentiments and reflect that I, too, am disappointed in some of the conduct in this chamber during question time. But, rather than lay blame on the government benches, I draw to the attention of Senator Collins the behaviour and conduct of the Labor Party. It is truly outrageous that they belittle, they yell, they scream and they get hysterical whilst ministers are trying genuinely to answer questions.

Yet I understand it in the respect that they are seeking a distraction from their own failings. These distractions take on many forms, because the government is absolutely interested in responding to the priorities of the Australian people—and that is about jobs, about growing the economy and about providing opportunity for people going forward. Those opposite are not interested in those good-news stories. They are not interested in those productive stories. What they are interested in doing is laying a smokescreen down to hide the malfeasance that is inculcated in the union movement and has been exposed so deeply by the royal commission. So, because they cannot control, for want of a better word, the royal commission or influence the events there, they target the commissioner himself. They have targeted the commissioner in the most derogatory of manners with these pejorative slurs and these allegations that they cannot back up with any substance, and they do it because the royal commission has exposed the depth of union corruption.

It goes to the very, very top, where we are seeing favours traded by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Shorten, in his time as the boss of a union in order to enrich or ingratiate the union at the expense of employees. Some may be able to justify that; I think it smells, and it has been exposed. We have also seen Mr Shorten receive pecuniary benefits in the form of employees and campaign workers, paid for by others and not disclosed. These are not mere oversights; they are not just the price of a Mars Bar or a meal at a local Chinese restaurant. We are talking about tens of thousands of dollars, and hundreds of thousands of dollars when it comes to the unions.

So, rather than the opposition trying to play a constructive and positive role in the affairs of the country, they are seeking to denigrate one of our best and most learned former justices in Dyson Heydon. It does them no good, I have to say, because the Australian people are actually interested in outcomes rather than the fire and brimstone produced by those opposite. None, or few, can conjure up the fire and brimstone like Senator Wong or Senator Conroy or even Senator Collins, with her confected outrage about how she has been harshly dealt with and poorly treated.

Yesterday's question time was very disappointing, I have to say. In one sense, it is very fortunate that it was not broadcast to the Australian people—in that they would be very disappointed in the conduct of the members opposite—but I am disappointed in the sense that the Australian people did not get to see firsthand just how shameless and how shallow the modern Labor Party has become. It is no longer about policy; it is no longer about doing the best thing by Australians; it is only about power for power's sake. We are seeing that through the royal commission exposing the union movement, where it was all about getting votes to control more of the Labor Party so you could get more of your people into government, get the largesse of government, become ministers and hold positions of authority.

That is not what this place is meant to be about. Politics is not meant to be about that; it is meant to be about coming in here with a vision of how you would like to shape the country—a vision of how you would like to help Australians do better. We are going to have differences in that vision, but it is not meant to be about self. That is one of the things the modern labour movement need to align themselves with. It should not be about them as individuals; it should not be about enriching the union movement; it should not be about progressing up the greasy pole. It should be about lifting Australians and helping Australia to become better and better.

If I sound disappointed, I am—because you need a good opposition to make governments even better, and I want to see governments of all stripes made much better.