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

Thank you, Mr Acting Deputy President, for your protection from that. You always know that you're hitting a nerve when they take frivolous points of order that have no relevance whatsoever.

This gives me the opportunity to continue to talk about the trillion-dollar debt that those opposite left the Australian government of today. It's not just a problem of the Australian government. It's actually Australian people's debt that we have inherited from a lacklustre, dishonest, rorting government. They're the facts, so it doesn't matter how many times those opposite come into the chamber and want to rewrite history. They want to make everyone feel that they haven't been looked after or the promises that we made at election time have not been fulfilled. They know that they have cheaper medicines. They know that they have affordable child care. They know that we will be addressing climate change. They also know that there are 180,000 fee-free TAFE places.

When those opposite were in government they were very proud of the fact that they were running down TAFEs, with their state colleagues in Tasmania, and did nothing about building Australia's skills. They did nothing to protect manufacturing in this country—not a thing. Under the former government we saw manufacturer after manufacturer leaving this country and going overseas. Why? Because they were never on the job. Now they come in here and bleat about 0.5 per cent of the population who have $3 million in their superannuation funds. They're crying crocodile tears for those people, but they don't give a damn about the average Australian who has $120,000 or less in superannuation.

You never hear those opposite come in and defend Australian workers. We saw them do nothing to address the concerns about the crisis in aged care, where we can't get people to work. We didn't see them doing anything about legislating to bring more nurses back into aged care. We heard absolutely nothing. We heard nothing from them when it came to instilling the support of their government to skill up Australians. They did nothing for low-paid workers, and they come in here now and try to rewrite history.

The Australian people saw through them and they are still seeing them for what they were. I will guarantee one thing: history will actually hold Anthony Albanese, the Labor Prime Minister of this country, in much better esteem than history will ever show Scott Morrison and his government, with their rorting and dishonesty—and the fact that Scott Morrison had so much faith in his ministerial colleagues he took over responsibility for their portfolios! I mean, come on: give me a break. It is just ludicrous for those people to come in here and try and defend their record—the record of rorters, cheats and people who are dishonest with the Australian people. (Time expired.)