Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Families and Payments) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answer given by the Attorney-General (Senator Brandis) to a question without notice asked by Senator Brown today relating to the Social Services Legislation Amendment (Omnibus Savings and Child Care Reform) Bill 2017.

My question today to Senator Brandis was about the omnibus bill and the cuts that are contained within it that will affect pensioners, families, young people and many, many more. This bill represents $5.6 billion in cuts to Australian families. My question to Senator Brandis was whether he had spoken and explained these cuts to One Nation, because it is very important, as we look at the proposal that will come before the Senate, that One Nation understands exactly who will be affected by these cuts and by this bill that will come here.

Senator Hanson should come clean—she must come clean—on where she stands on this unfair omnibus bill. Australian families deserve to know. One Nation need to understand that these cuts will have a significant impact on families, on new mums, on pensioners, on people with disability, on carers and on young job seekers. They want to know where One Nation stands. Does One Nation stand alongside those on the other side—the Liberal Party and the Nationals—on the side of harsh cuts to everyday Australians? Or will they, as the Labor Party will, oppose the government's cuts and stand on the side of fairness and of hardworking Australian families and pensioners? It is important to know.