Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Human Services) Share this | Hansard source

Here we've got Senator Hume interjecting—someone who has actually worked in the finance sector and would know much about the finance sector—and supporting the cuts to her mates in the finance sector. You know, it's all right for Senator Hume sitting here on $200,000 a year and ending up with a $6,600 tax cut. It's all right for Senator Hume to be interjecting and saying to ordinary workers, the working class in this country: you've got to stick with 550 bucks a year; by the way, we don't support you having any penalty rates; by the way, we would like to cut family tax benefits from you; by the way, when you're a pensioner, you'll work until you're 70; and, by the way, we really want to change indexation on your pension so that you lose $80 a week. That's what Senator Hume would like to do. She's now being challenged by the real right wing in Victoria because she is not right-wing enough. So it's all right for Senator Hume on $200,000 a year to come in here and defend an $80 billion tax cut to big business.

We saw the performance from Senator Birmingham today. Senator Birmingham actually called me a liar three times, said I was a class warrior. Well, if standing up for the working class in this country makes me a class warrior, I will take that any day because I do want to look after working-class people in this country. And what Senator Birmingham has done—a failed education minister, cutting $17 billion out of schools—is cut another $270 million out of funding for the apprenticeship system in this country, on top of the $3 billion he cut out previously. This is a minister who has failed in his portfolio, who called me a liar three times and said no $270 million was being cut out.

Let me take you back to the budget papers in 2017. The budget papers then were clear that there would be $1.5 billion for the Skilling Australians Fund. The budget papers this year say in Budget Paper 1, part 5-14:

Another component of other taxes is the Skilling Australians Fund levy.

So they recognise it is a tax that they're putting on. It continues:

Since the 2017-18 MYEFO, Skilling Australians Fund levy receipts are forecast to be $465 million lower over the four years to 2021-22. This reflects the measure to expand the Levy refund and exemption provisions, delays in the passage of enabling legislation, as well as decreased demand for temporary work visas.

This is a mob that wants to fund the apprenticeship system and the traineeship system in this country solely through the visa system. When they announced this 12 months ago, Labor said, 'This won't work, because there is no guaranteed funding through to deliver what's needed.' Now they've had to concede that. Now their fund is down and the fund will now be $1.2 billion. For Senator Birmingham's education, that is in 2018-19 Budget Paper No. 2 on page 90. It says:

State and Territory governments will be offered a new agreement which is estimated to provide $1.2 billion over the four years to 30 June 2022.

This budget cuts funding for apprenticeships. We asked how many apprentices would not be employed now because of these cuts—and remember this $270 million the government cut was supposed to be matched by the states. So it is $540 million out of apprenticeships. This is the mob that has destroyed the TAFE system. This is the mob that doesn't understand basic economics. This mob, this rabble of a government, has had so many plans. The Australian says, 'What a great plan this is.' Well, The Australian has said that after every budget this government has brought down, and this government has failed in every budget to deliver proper, reasonable approaches to working-class Australians. It is a disgrace. Its time is up. This is a decaying, dying government; the sooner it kicks the bucket, the better.