Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, we do, and we do for a very good reason—through you, Mr President. We do because it is the coalition government that will ensure that for the Australian people—and that is what we're all for; it doesn't matter what area of this parliament you're for, you believe in it—we're making this a better place for Australians. Well, I can tell you that any alternative to the National-Liberal coalition will be bad for this country. Can you imagine raising taxes by more than $2 billion? Because that's what the alternative's going to do—more than $2 billion, destroying house prices. We all rely on the equity we have in the Australian dream, in our home. That is looking like it's going down the tube. They're going to raise the superannuation account of every single pensioner. I say to ex-Senator Sherry, behind me: I know you would shudder about that.

Talking about the sorts of things people are concerned about, what about the reopening of our borders? What about the flow, the tsunami, of misery that that will cause? The last time they promised, 'That will never happen,' we went straightaway to measure the number of boats arriving by the day—by the day. That was the unit measurement: how many boats are arriving today? We proudly stand and say, 'None this year, none the year before, none the year before that,' instead of, 'How many was it today? Look, I think it's 14 or 28.' That tide of misery from such pathetic policies, driven by the fundamentalist ideology of the Greens, is something that the Australian people will never take over a sensible and concerned government like the National-Liberal coalition.