James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

a great, great, great mayor. He got out his mobile phone, went to SEEK and showed that there were 1,000 jobs going in Mackay. People there were unable to get work. So what we as a government have to try and do here is look at what pieces of legislation we can pass and what work we can do to help people get into work and help businesses employ people, because we've got to look at where Australia is going to be in 18 months time, two years time, six months time or even in a month's time before Christmas.

There is a new dawn coming; we will get through coronavirus. But if, sadly, we don't get a vaccine—and look at what has happened at that mink farm in Denmark where the coronavirus has mutated—and if the coronavirus effectively becomes like an annual flu that comes through, we've got to learn to live with coronavirus. We can look around this chamber here now, and, for those who might be listening at home, I'll paint you a picture: we have—

A government senator: Paint us a picture!

I'll paint you a picture. The Senate operates by having expanded pairing. We have bottles of water. We have people who sit socially distant. This chamber can still operate under such a new order. It's how Australia will need to operate under such a new order, because what we've got to do, whether it's in the Senate chamber or in businesses in trying to employ people, in trying to train people—I think Senator Whish-Wilson is trying to get your—