Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

The Albanese government is proving again and again that it just doesn't listen; that it doesn't listen to Australians and their concerns; that it doesn't listen, as Australians are feeling pain in a range of ways; that it doesn't listen to the business community and those expressing genuine concerns about the enormous complexity and the real risks that exist in their large industrial relations reform proposals; and, in this debate, that it doesn't listen to the crossbench and it doesn't listen to the Senate. It won't listen and is unwilling to budge. It's showing not only that it doesn't listen but that it is stubborn—relentlessly stubborn.

The government has now for weeks had a crystal-clear opportunity to pass key parts of its industrial relations agenda, to pass the very issues that Senator Lambie spoke so passionately about in relation to small-business redundancies, protections against discrimination, asbestos safety and first responders. All of these matters could pass the parliament and be law by Christmas, and the only people standing in the way is the Labor Party. The Albanese government is standing in the way of their own legislation. What's their justification? Their justification is that, on their basis, it's all or nothing. It's our way or the highway. That's the Labor Party approach. And what is their way? Well, of course, a raft of new union powers, a raft of measures that have been identified as being of deep concern in the way they will hurt the Australian economy and of deep concern, in particular, in the way they will hurt productivity. Has anybody heard Treasurer Jim Chalmers talk about the need to lift productivity?

An opposition senator: No!

I have heard him say it. The problem is that the only piece of major economic reform this government has is one that will harm productivity and that will drive productivity down, not up. Senators Lambie and Pocock have wisely identified issues within the government's bill that could progress that identify and address genuine issues, as Senator Lambie has spoken about so passionately. If the government were not so stubborn, they could get these matters past, and then other parts of their bill could still be considered in the normal way. Senators Lambie and Pocock have made clear that they are willing to work with the government in terms of addressing these matters. All they have asked for is time in relation to things in the government's legislation that won't come into effect until the middle of next year or until the end of next year, or even, in some cases, until the year after. Senator Cash has outlined to this chamber previously that there is no urgency for many of the things in the government's bill, but there is urgency for some of the things in the bills presented by Senators Lambie and Pocock. It is the Labor Party's stubbornness, their trickery, their feeling of the wrong priorities, that is seeing the Labor Party oppose these efforts.

So we support this suspension and consideration of what is a historic motion being proposed by Senators Lambie and Pocock. It is a historic motion calling for a conference between the two houses. No such motion has passed this chamber since 22 June 1950, but that is the passion Senators Lambie and Pocock feel in deploying a tactic that will force representatives of both chambers together. That's necessary because what the government is doing in the House of Representatives is basically sweeping the crossbench proposal under the carpet and just saying, 'Not really here, not going to look at it, just going to ignore it.' They haven't had the courage or the guts to vote against what the crossbenchers have done. They haven't had the courage or the guts to put on time for it to be debated or listed. They're doing a see-no-evil, hear-no-evil type of act and not even looking at this proposal or these bills.

Congratulations to the crossbench for calling out the trickery, the contempt and the stubbornness of the Albanese government. The chance is here for the government to change course and get these bills passed by Christmas. This motion shouldn't even be necessary, but we absolutely support it as a means to resolve this impasse.