Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

And I've just been reminded that my colleague Senator Faruqi has done exactly the same thing on behalf of Mr Bandt.

This is an issue we all care about. I know the Labor Party care about it and, I'm sure, so do the crossbench. To my colleagues across the chamber: in the spirit in which you introduced JobKeeper—and thank you for doing that; thank you for working with all stakeholders and bringing in a living wage—let me also remind you that what has been seen can't be unseen. Government stepping in and keeping businesses going is a good thing when it's needed. We would like to see this concept extended way beyond COVID to look at a permanent living wage. We think it's very important that government plays a strong role in our lives. The Greens have always argued for a strong role.

May I remind the minister, while I'm on my feet, that, in a recovery phase, the government also has a strong role to play by investing in the community: investing in infrastructure projects that will build this country; investing in transitioning to 100 per cent renewable energy in this country; providing job security for young Australians, who, by Jove, have had a difficult few years. If you're a young Australian now, you've been told to stay at home for three months and not go out. You've seen a summer of horrendous bushfires, with Australians being evacuated from beaches; record droughts; the destruction of the Great Barrier Reef, with a third mass coral bleaching in our oceans. You surely must be wondering what the future holds for you. It's our job as government to give them that certainty—for the next generation, not just for the next few weeks or the next month through the JobKeeper scheme. Our role is to take that concept and provide a future and security for young Australians—something that they can feel that they are being supported on. So we need to take these principles that we've all applied in recent weeks and months, which have been great, and now extend them to the future. No more austerity. No more zombie budget cuts. Let's have a strong role of government in our lives. The Greens will be supporting— (Time expired)