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senate vote 2013-02-25#3
Edited by
mackay staff
on
2014-01-24 12:04:21
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Title
Description
<p class="speaker">Eric Abetz</p><p>by leave—I move:</p><p class="italic">That the Senate declares that it has no confidence in the Government's handling of the mining tax.</p>- <p class="speaker">Stephen Parry</p>
- <p>The question is that the amendment moved by Senator Milne to the motion moved by Senator Abetz be agreed to.</p>
- <p>Question negatived.</p>
- <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p>
- <p>The question now is that the motion moved by Senator Abetz be agreed to.</p>
- <p></p>
- <p class="speaker">Rachel Siewert</p>
- <p>Mr President, would you please ensure that the Greens vote for our amendment is recorded in <i>Hansard</i>.</p>
- <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p>
- <p>That will be recorded.</p>
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<p>Never before in the history of the Commonwealth have the Australian people endured such a dysfunctional and incompetent government. Those of us who recall the debacle known as the Whitlam government are beginning to look on that short-term yet devastating era with a degree of fondness, as an example of sound administration and robust policy development in comparison to the past five years. In fairness, though, we do not know what depths the Whitlam government might have sunk to if given five years.</p><p>The Rudd-Gillard governments have presided over the worst governance Australia has had to endure in its 112-year history. They came to office on the back of a promise, backed up by paid commercials, that Mr Rudd was an economic conservative, yet, on gaining government, he immediately took to scribbling that essay in the <i>Monthly </i>condemning sound economic policy, parading his economic illiteracy in grand style.</p><p>Mr Rudd and Ms Gillard will be remembered for stunning evidence based public policy initiatives! Who can forget Fuelwatch? Who can forget GROCERYchoice? Or what about the cash splash which paid the dead and those overseas in a vain attempt to stimulate the domestic economy? We then had the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme, which Ms Gillard herself wanted Mr Rudd to dump. We then had the temporary deficit, which is now in its fifth year and no end in sight. We then had the border protection disgrace, and so the list goes on—</p> <p class="speaker">Honourable Senators</p><p>Honourable senators interjecting—</p> <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p><p>Order! On both sides, Senator Abetz is entitled to be heard in silence.</p> <p class="speaker">Eric Abetz</p><p>And so the list goes on—</p> <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p><p>Wait a minute, Senator Abetz. I will give you the call when I am ready. Senator Abetz.</p> <p class="speaker">Eric Abetz</p><p>And so the list goes on, including the so-called Building the Education Revolution. Remember the laptops, the GP superclinics and the mining tax, the topic of today's motion. It will be recalled that Ms Gillard needed to wrest the prime ministership off Mr Rudd because the government 'had lost its way'. She, of course, was the vice-captain of that government. But itemised examples were given by Ms Gillard of the loss of direction. They were volunteered by her at her first press conference as Prime Minister. What items did she nominate? What items did she volunteer? Border protection—well, that has gone well, hasn't it? The carbon tax—a $4 billion black hole and heading south. And, of course, the mining tax.</p><p>I agree with Ms Gillard on this: Mr Rudd's handling of these issues was diabolically inept.</p><p>He did deserve to be rolled. He did deserve to be ousted. But, if Mr Rudd deserved to be ousted for his gross incompetence, what do we say of Ms Gillard's handling of those issues? Ms Gillard's ineptness, unbelievably—because one would not believe that it is possible—is 10 times, if not more, worse than Mr Rudd's; border protection—worse, the carbon tax—a $4 billion black hole—and now this mining tax. Who else! Who else could dream up a scheme which shatters Australia's enviable, second-to-none, world reputation on sovereign risk? Who else could have the arrogance to negotiate personally the details of the mining tax without officials present? Who else would do it without the states present? Who else would do it without the territories present? And who else would do it in secret? Who else would do it with only three of the mining companies out of the 3,000 mining companies that exist in Australia? Who else could agree to a scheme which collects virtually no money? Who else could design a mining tax that costs a miner like Atlas Iron $2 million to comply with, only to find out—after submitting their returns—that they will not have to pay the tax? Who else could design such a maze of red tape? Who else could design a mining tax that even the Chief Government Whip acknowledges needs to be changed and that the Leader of the Opposition in Western Australia opposes because he knows the damage it will do to his state's economy? The answer to all these questions is Ms Gillard and the Green-Labor-country Independent alliance's excuse for a government. They are the people who have put such a scheme together.</p><p>The next question is: which parties combined to ruthlessly and arrogantly guillotine the mining tax—with all its fatal flaws—through the Senate? Which senators thought they knew it all?</p> <p class="speaker">Kim Carr</p><p>Mr President, a point of order!</p> <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p><p>Order! Just wait a minute.</p><p class="italic">Senator Kim Carr interjecting—</p><p>Order! You will be given the call when there is silence on both sides.</p><p class="italic">Senator Joyce interjecting—</p><p>Order! Wait a minute Senator Joyce. You will be given the call. Order!</p> <p class="speaker">Barnaby Joyce</p><p>Mr President, I rise on a point of order. I could not properly hear Senator Abetz because Senator Conroy was negotiating with their former partner about what they were going to do next.</p> <p class="speaker">John Hogg</p><p>That is not a point of order. Senator Abetz.</p> <p class='motion-notice motion-notice-truncated'>Long debate text truncated.</p>
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