House debates

Tuesday, 19 June 2007

Questions without Notice

Economy

2:12 pm

Photo of John HowardJohn Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I am intrigued every time the Leader of the Opposition talks about the mining boom. It sounds as though he wants it to come to an end, and maybe that is because he knows that if his industrial relations policy is introduced it will come to an end. The Leader of the Opposition in that speech he made in December last year was talking about two vastly different visions on display before the Australian people. There are vastly different visions on display before the Australian people in relation to many things, and in relation to the resources boom our vision is that if we pursue the right domestic policies there is no reason why the resources boom should not continue for years into the future. That is the philosophy of the coalition parties.

The philosophy of those who sit opposite is that somehow or other the mining boom has been a complete accident, that it is going to come to an end—if Joe McDonald and Kevin Reynolds get their way, it will come to an end; they will see to that—and that we might as well assume that it is going to come to an end. I have greater faith in the resourcefulness of the mining industry of this country. I have greater faith in the bilateral relations between Australia and China, between Australia and Japan, and between Australia and Korea to believe that with the right mix of domestic and foreign policy the resources boom can be continued for years into the future. So the vision is between the soaring optimism and hope of those on this side of the parliament in relation to the mining boom and the dreary pessimism of those who miserably sit opposite.

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