Tim Ayres (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Trade) Share this | Hansard source

One would think one would withdraw it, but sometimes senators aren't capable of self-reflection to be able to do that kind of thing.

So much of the contribution over the course of the last 20 minutes has been about defending the legacy of the coalition's inaction in government around these questions. So much of it is about that. It's a sort of thin-skinned approach and a sensitivity to criticism and a developing grievance politics felt on that side of the chamber about the inadequacy of the reform process. I understand that criticism while you're in government hurts people's feelings. I get it. But the most important issue here is not how people feel about their period in government; it's about what we do.