Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Page for his question. I note that I read an article in the Northern Star with the headline that the Far North Coast has shed its reputation as the nation’s dole capital. It says that unemployment has hit a 30-year low as the region cashes in on the economic boom. It cites no better authority than the federal member for Page as saying:

... the lifting of unfair dismissal laws gave local business owners confidence to employ more staff.

That is excellent. It is a good news story. Unemployment is down to 5.6 per cent on the North Coast of New South Wales. The unfair dismissal laws are job destroying. They have had a negative impact on small business. That is why we removed them—to provide an incentive for small business to go out and employ more Australians.

I was asked about alternative policies. I note that the Labor Party has had, to the best of my knowledge, seven different policies on unfair dismissal laws in the last seven months. Seven different policies! Policy No.1, from the member for Brand, the former Leader of the Opposition, was to abolish Work Choices and reinstate unfair dismissal laws. Policy No. 2 was in a transcript of the Deputy Leader of the Opposition on the ABC Insiders program where she suggested they change the threshold. Policy No. 3 scrapped Beazley’s policy on dismissal and flagged reinstatement. Policy No. 4 was from the shadow minister for small business, over there, in a speech to COSBOA—a landmark speech that said nothing—on 27 February. Policy No. 5 was the next day: that fabulous interview with Madonna King on the ABC! We will not forget that in a hurry. And there were a number of policies within policies in Policy No. 5 with Madonna King. Policy No. 6—God bless her!—was from Sharan Burrow. Sharan Burrow was asked today:

Do you have the unequivocal support of federal Labor for winding back Work Choices?

She said:

No question. There is an absolute commitment to reinstate the unfair dismissal laws.

It goes further. Today there was an article in the Australian; and this is the next policy.

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