Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

The most amazing thing is that we talk about influence. I will tell you where most of the influence is. Most of the influence is in the union movement. I will tell you where there is real influence. We saw some influence today—Eddie Obeid. Now there is a man with real influence. Here is another one of influence—Ian Macdonald—another former colleague of yours with real influence. These people have real influence. Their influence has been proven by the Independent Commission Against Corruption, that said today that they are corrupt. And where do they come from? They come from the austere environment of the Australian Labor Party, New South Wales Division.

The Australian people know that if they really do want an increase in the tax on diesel, then they must vote for the Labor Party, because they endorsed a 6.85c a litre increase in the price of diesel. That is correct, isn't it? We know it is correct because they stand by that policy. The reason they stand by that policy is because of their alliance with the Australian Greens. People have got to understand that the Greens and the Labor Party have this pact. Single-handedly, they were going to cool the planet, and one of the ways they were going to do it was by making everybody poorer with a 6.85c a litre tax. It is quite bizarre. On the day when Eddie Obeid has been declared by ICAC to be corrupt, that you start talking about who is influencing who.

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