Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Carr. Can the minister inform the Senate of the outlook for Australian industry? How will this be affected by the continuing global recession? What evidence is there of worldwide recovery? In particular, what are the implications for employment? How does the Australian situation compare with circumstances in other countries, including the United States and countries in Europe? Given that employment impacts are generally felt for some time after changes in economic conditions, is it realistic to assume that no further action is required to support the jobs of Australian workers? Is this the right time for the government to abandon its stimulus strategy?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Cameron for that question. Senator Cameron, it is abundantly clear—even to those opposite—that the figures speak for themselves. The International Monetary Fund is predicting that the global economy will shrink by 1.4 per cent this year. Yet the coalition tells us that there is no crisis. Thanks to this government’s stimulus package, Australia was the only advanced economy in the world to grow in the year to June—the only one. Yet the coalition says that the stimulus package was not needed. Senator Cameron, you know that Australia workers know better. The global recession has already cost Australian jobs. Our unemployment rate stands at 5.8 per cent. This is unacceptably high. But it would be much higher if the government had not acted quickly and aggressively to shield Australia from the worst effects of the downturn.

If we look at what is happening in other parts of the world, we see that unemployment is running at 9.7 per cent in the United States. It is running at 9.5 per cent in the Euro zone. Are these the types of figures that we should expect from the coalition when they say they want to see that happen in Australia? On Saturday, the head of the IMF warned that the rising levels of unemployment represent the third wave of a global recession, following the financial crisis and the economic downturn. He stressed that it was too early to abandon the stimulus measures and he urged governments to go on supporting demand until private demand is strong enough. And this is precisely what this government is doing.

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister inform the Senate how the manufacturing sector in particular has been affected by the global recession? How has the government’s stimulus strategy assisted Australian manufacturers and manufacturing workers? How does the performance of manufacturing in this country compare with what is happening elsewhere? Can we expect to see growth in the manufacturing sector as the world emerges from recession? How important is it for Australia to retain skills and capability in the industry?

Michael Ronaldson (Victoria, Liberal Party, Shadow Special Minister of State) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I couldn’t understand a word of that.

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a pity that the opposition could not understand a word of that, because we know that manufacturing is still under a lot of pressure. The opposition has not got a clue when it comes to what is happening in the Australian economy. Australia lost eight per cent of its manufacturing workforce between the last cyclical peak in February 2008 and May this year. This is a measure of how hard the global crisis has hit this critical sector. And yet even here the government’s stimulus measures, combined with effective partnerships between companies and workers, have ensured that we are travelling much better than many other countries. Compare that to the United States, which lost 13 per cent of its manufacturing workforce in the year to June. The Australian Industry Group’s index on the performance of manufacturing rose to 51.7 points in August, which means that the sector is now growing again. (Time expired)

Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask an additional supplementary question. Can the minister inform the Senate what the government’s stimulus strategy has meant to Australian industry? What are the design principles underlying the strategy? Has the timing and scale of the government’s response been appropriate? Would an alternative approach have been more effective?

Kim Carr (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australia’s stimulus strategy has worked. It has been timely, targeted and incredibly effective. It has helped keep the lights on in thousands of businesses and it has helped keep thousands of workers in jobs. We are entitled to know which part of that picture the coalition does not support. What are those opposite really about in terms of measures that they are prepared to support? They say that Australia did not need a stimulus package. We now see that even the coalition must be beginning to understand that action was needed. They have said that the government has done too much. They are now trying to tell us that the government has been spending too much. They have been opposed to action all along, and we now see a divided opposition. (Time expired)