House debates
Thursday, 30 March 2017
Questions without Notice
Workplace Relations
3:00 pm
Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I call the member for Gorton.
Mr Pasin interjecting —
The member for Gorton will pause for a second. The member for Barker will cease interjecting.
Mr Pyne interjecting—
The Leader of the House might notice that I am trying to address the chamber. The member for Gorton has the call.
Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
My question is to the Prime Minister. Why does the government submission argue that a pay raise for all workers on the minimum wage should be held back because some low-paid workers have high-income families?
Christopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
What rubbish!
Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
It does.
Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
That statement is, like so many from the honourable member, completely false. But I will ask the Treasurer to expand on the answer.
3:01 pm
Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
I thank the Prime Minister for the opportunity to respond. I will give you a quote:
The Panel should also consider the fact that all low paid workers do not necessarily live in low income households.
That quote is from the Australian government's submission of the Annual Wage Review 2012-13. The employment minister at the time was the Leader of the Opposition.
Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
Mr Speaker, the hypocrisy is dumbfounding. We have heard the member for Fenner, the 40-year-old intern down there. They really should pay him a proper wage rather than forcing him to work on those sorts of wages, denying him his salary on their own front bench!
Mr Zimmerman interjecting—
Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
The member for Fenner has also made, like on so many other things, a contribution on this topic. He has said:
… it is conceivable that an increase in the minimum wage might actually reduce the total market income received by low-wage workers.
He also went on to say, 'Raising the minimum wage may cost jobs.' If those opposite in the Labor Party want to raise those questions, they should just ask them into the mirror. Maybe they could explain their own comments.
Mr Tony Burke (Watson, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source
In his answer, the Treasurer referred to the 2013 submission from the government. I seek leave to table the clause that says the Australian government in 2013 'supports a fair and economically responsible increase in the National Minimum Wage'.
Leave not granted.