Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

I'll take Senator Waters's interjection, because women's safety matters enormously to this government as well. That is why our government has invested significantly in support for all Australian women in terms of the type of policies that have been pursued by Senator Ruston and by Senator Payne in their respective portfolios, which I am sure Senator Ruston will seek to touch on in this debate. It's why, throughout the pandemic, we have been mindful of providing additional financial support and services. When we saw there was a potential risk of domestic violence or other circumstances arising during lockdown phases, during high-stress phases for Australians in the pandemic, we provided the extra mental health support and we provided extra assistance. We were proactive in addressing those types of issues.

We take issues raised in relation to the operation of this building seriously as well. They're not to be dismissed, but nor for the sake of supporting political points should they be elevated, as the Greens propose to do, above the issues that are important to Australians in their day-to-day lives. We as a government will continue to pursue all of our policies in relation to supporting Australian women in the workplace, to supporting them in their homes and to supporting Australian families, but we're not going to be distracted in this place by insider tactics ahead of our NDIS legislation, recycling legislation or other matters of great importance.