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

I just think this debate has exposed exactly what's going on here: there is a deal in the offing between Senator Hanson and the government. If Senator Hanson is not doing another grubby deal with this government to sell out working people in this country, then Senator Hanson will support this proposition, because this proposition is about bringing this debate on, bringing this bill on and getting a decision that she claims she will support.

Senator Hanson has got an opportunity now to put all of the speculation behind us, to get this bill on and to make sure that we have the debate now so that she doesn't end up doing as she predominantly does in this place. She predominantly sides with the Liberal Party, going back to her roots as a Liberal. She predominantly goes back to the Liberal Party and supports what is not in the interest of people in this country.

I have to say I thought the contribution from Senator Cormann was a pretty desperate contribution talking about class warfare. Let me tell you what class warfare is: class warfare is attacking pensioners; class warfare is attacking workers in this country so that they don't get penalty rates; and class warfare is cutting social security payments from some of the most vulnerable people in this country—that's what class warfare is. That's what the Liberal Party, in conjunction with Senator Hanson, have been doing non-stop since they've been in there—all the class warfare. Look at Senator Hanson's votes on the issues that are important for this community. Look at Senator Hanson's votes on the issues that give workers a fair go. What this is all about is simply another opportunity for the government to get Senator Hanson and One Nation on board to attack working people in this country. There's absolutely no doubt about it.

How about looking at the areas where this money would be better spent? How about housing? How about homelessness? How about doing the right thing by people who can't put a roof over their heads? No, not Senator Hanson, not Senator Cormann and not the Liberal Party. They would rather give the money to multinational, overseas corporations. We know exactly what's happened in Canada and we know exactly what's happened in the US, and it's not what the coalition and Senator Cormann are saying. There's been no more investment from the tax cuts in the US. There's been no more investment from the tax cuts in Canada. There have been no more jobs created. This is an economic theory that's been proposed by the Liberals and accepted by Senator Hanson, if she votes against this motion now. We will see money being handed over to the big banks and big business when it should be spent on housing and on homelessness. We should be giving families a fair go. We should be looking after the working people of this country. We should be looking after the pensioners in this country.

Senator Hanson has not indicated why she doesn't want to debate this. We should be debating it now. Not everyone who has been here this morning would know that this has been a legitimate, perfectly decent debate. It's not about bullying anyone; it's about making sure that this bill comes on so that working people in this country can be clear about exactly where people stand. What they need to be clear about is exactly where One Nation and Senator Pauline Hanson stand. You would be confused over the last period of time, because one minute it's support for tax cuts and then the next minute there's no support for tax cuts. You cannot understand what Senator Hanson and One Nation are doing from one day to another.

Senator Hanson has been out today and yesterday saying that she supports the Labor Party's position on this. She should vote that way now and make sure it's clear that One Nation does not support these giveaways to the big banks and giveaways to big business at the expense of working families.