Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2020-2021, Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2020-2021, Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No.1) 2020-2021. These bills propose appropriations that broadly cover five months of funding for the 2021 financial year as funding for 2020-21 and in the 2020 budget. Bill No.1 would appropriate $36.8 billion, bill No. 2 would appropriate just under $14.9 billion and the parliamentary departments bill would appropriate $141.7 million.

While there is a larger advance than usual to the finance minister's provisions in these bills, the Labor Party recognise the extenuating circumstances presented by COVID-19. We do not oppose the bills, as they're important to facilitate Australia navigating our way out of this crisis. This bill is being handed down in unprecedented times. The bushfires, which devastated so many regions, were the largest in recorded history and had already presented unprecedented disruptions to our lives and to the economy. These have since been overshadowed by a once-in-a-generation pandemic. As COVID-19 hit our shores, it quickly exposed structural weaknesses within our economy. The Morrison recession is the deepest and darkest recession in over 100 years, and our recovery will be protracted for too long. Australia is now heading very quickly to a national debt record of $1 trillion under this Morrison government.

According to research undertaken by the Grattan Institute, our recovery should be occurring much quicker. Unlike previous recessions, this one was brought on by government restrictions and not financial crashes or conflict. That is why the recession is dubbed the Morrison recession. Now that the government is turning things back on, the economy has undergone too much mismanagement over the past seven years to respond to the significant fiscal stimulus the government has announced. Recovery is projected to be sluggish and reflective of the slow job market and lack of business investment which already plagued in our economy well before COVID-19 hit our shores.

The Liberals have been in power for seven years now and they have established a legacy of subdued economic growth, soaring power prices, a lull in apprenticeships and traineeships, and an increase in the price of university degrees. And now our trade relationship with China seems to have hit rock bottom, thanks to the incompetence of the Prime Minister and the trade minister, Senator Birmingham. The fact that 82 ships carrying coal are sitting in the South China Sea unable to dock into Chinese ports is a significant diplomatic and international trade disaster. And it's not just coal. Tasmanian produce is not getting to China because this government does not understand the word 'diplomacy', and now our wine industry is being caught in the firing line because of those opposite. This has the potential to decimate Australian winemaking companies. Late last week, China announced a 212 per cent tariff on wine entering China. That's right: Australian winemakers will now be forced to pay China a 200 per cent tax for the privilege of selling our wine in China.

These tensions must ease, or Australia's economy will continue to deteriorate under this government. And it isn't just wine, as I stated before. So many of our industries have been affected, including beef, barley, seafood, sugar and timber. My home state of Tasmania relies heavily on exporting our world's-best products to China, and so Tasmania can't afford this government continuing to stuff up our relationship with China—because that's what they're doing. This economic neglect has been exposed in this moment of crisis and, unfortunately for many Australians, they will have to deal with the blunt nature of this political ineptness as well.

From a national economic perspective, the government has now begun to withdraw support from the economy, and households will begin to feel the sting of this recession. The International Monetary Fund has warned that support is being withdrawn too soon and that this will result in unemployment remaining too high for too long. But the Morrison government is fixed on their plan, regardless of what happens, because—as we know—they're not very good at taking advice. The stimulus is made up of measures which will not necessarily produce jobs. The income tax cuts will more likely result in money being saved and not spent. According to the government, the tax cuts will cost $16.9 billion in the next financial year alone and create 50,000 jobs. But if this money was invested in other sectors such as university education, child care, health care, aged care or creative arts, modelling from the Australia Institute predicts that this could generate up to 210,000 jobs—a significant amount more than the government has indicated. This has been mentioned to those opposite, but do you think they would listen? Of course not. They only listen to their rich mates. Those opposite are not fans of independent research or, one could say, facts.

The Liberals road and transport infrastructure projects also create fewer jobs per dollar spent than other industries. The Treasurer is content with unemployment remaining high and thousands of jobs being lost. But this comes as no consolation to the millions of Australians who will now face undue hardship because of a lack of leadership from those sitting opposite. Australia is at a crossroads. We are at a pivotal point in our recovery. We could rebuild our nation and ensure a more resilient and robust economy into the future—but all this budget is doing is handing down a one-year, short-sighted response with no guarantee of any meaningful reform.

As Anthony Albanese outlined in his budget-in-reply speech, the Labor Party has a plan and a vision for Australia that are supporting the rebuilding of our economy and that will work well beyond the next 12 months. We have a plan that creates jobs, enhances our manufacturing self-sufficiency, considers the disproportionate impact on women and, most importantly, makes sure that it doesn't leave anyone behind. The $4 billion JobMaker initiative completely excludes older workers. The Labor Party has been campaigning for years to address Australia's high levels of youth unemployment and underemployment. This group of young workers have been suffering from low wages and difficult labour markets since the GFC. But all this policy does is ensure that the 928,000 people aged over 35 and on unemployment benefits are deliberately excluded from hiring subsidies.

This policy divides Australians and is creating tensions within our community when we can least afford it. This subsidy will predominantly target low-skilled industries, which were the hardest hit throughout this recession; however, it will likely entrench the structural issues which younger people were already facing prior to the pandemic. As older people are being excluded from this wage subsidy, the Labor Party fears that this will result in older workers, and in particular older women, facing a higher likelihood of homelessness and joining the group of long-term unemployed. I urge the government to rethink this decision as we head into Christmas. I want those opposite to think about how this policy, and their policies generally, are hurting Australians. I urge those opposite not to pit Australians against one another, but at the moment that's exactly what their policies are doing.

Policy must be based in evidence. When evidence based policy is implemented, it often succeeds. Labor are doing the important policy work necessary for success. We are ready to govern. Ahead of the next election, Labor will bring forward a comprehensive plan for the repair and construction of social housing. Data shows that Australia has a social housing shortfall of about 433,000 properties, and up to 116,000 people are homeless on any given night. This crisis has made it ever more clear how essential safe and affordable housing is. We have a housing crisis in Australia and there needs to be investment in this essential service. Public housing more than pays for itself: for every $1 million of residential building construction output, it has a multiplying effect of $2.9 million throughout the industry and broader economy. This stimulation must boost the post-crisis economic recovery and reduce homelessness. Repairs could start almost immediately, providing work for local plumbers, chippies, sparkies, plasterers and painters, as well as companies that manufacture building supplies and materials. Access to appropriate support with secure long-term housing provides the stability required to break the cycle of homelessness. This housing-first principle is known to improve prospects. It has yet to be adopted by the Morrison government. Construction jobs are always welcome in an economy that requires it.

Under the childcare policy proposed by Anthony Albanese in his budget reply speech, it would mean that working mothers would be able to afford child care for their kids. It's as simple as that. Women will not be let down by Labor's plan to kickstart the economy and get Australians back to work. Modelling from the Grattan Institute has indicated that this reform would work. It would boost workforce participation, and families will be better off as more parents are encouraged to work more hours. As we are currently experiencing a service-led recession, it is imperative that we boost the discretionary spending in the economy, and this reform would do just that. Childcare fees in Australia are some of the highest in the world.

Australia can and should be a country that makes things. We currently have one of the lowest manufacturing self-sufficiencies in the developed world. A strong local manufacturing sector can deliver world-class goods incorporating the best technology and provide the good, secure jobs our workers need and deserve. We need to see more trains, buses and boats built in Australia by local workers, and ensure every dollar of federal funding spent on these projects boost their local jobs and industry. In my home state many companies have the know-how, skills and professionalism to get the job done right there in Tasmania. I have spoken many times about companies such as Definium Technologies and Incat, two world-leading companies that deserve the backing of state and federal governments to ensure local manufacturing continues to happen in Australia. Why won't those opposite jump on board? They talk a lot about 'Team Australia', but when it comes to actually backing local manufacturing they are all hat and no cattle. It's time to start backing locals to locally manufacture—no excuses anymore.

Anthony Albanese's defence industry development strategy will leverage a $270 billion investment pipeline and develop sovereign industrial and research capacity. We cannot enact this reform without a skilled and appropriately qualified workforce. Therefore, an Australian skills guarantee will give apprentices and trainees an opportunity to work on major Commonwealth projects by ensuring 10 per cent of workers on federally funded projects are apprentices. The Liberals have a plan to boost apprenticeships by 100,000, but this doesn't make up for the loss we have experienced in the past seven years, nor does it account for the predictable drop in involvements as a result of COVID-19.

This budget put us in trillion dollar debt. That is a remarkable amount of money, but it doesn't offer any guarantee of ensuring a strong economic future for Australia. We are certainly in unprecedented times and, as many countries begin to experience a second and third wave, I am thankful for our swift response to COVID-19 which has meant that we have performed relatively well, thanks to our state and territory leaders. However, we need strong leadership and a long-term vision for Australia. This country is screaming out for leadership at the federal level. It can't rely on Scott Morrison and his team to deliver that certainty. We cannot rely on the Morrison government to lead us out of the economic circumstances that we are in. They have delivered a trillion dollar debt. They can talk about being good managers, but we know we were heading for disaster before COVID-19 hit. We knew that there was a hit to the national economy, and they have done nothing in this budget to actually steer us out of these troubled waters.