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

I know the Deputy Leader of the Opposition is trying to appeal to the fact that we have these terrible foreigners here. That is what she is getting at—it really is—and I do not really think that should come into it.

Moving on from the application of Australian common sense to which I referred a moment ago, if you have a proposition which says that you cannot lose your penalty rates or your overtime unless you receive compensation in return for it, that sounds like a lot of Australian common sense to me. It is Australian common sense that you would normally measure that compensation in monetary terms, but if the substitute for monetary terms is adequate, clear and visible you may in fact accept that in return. You may accept enhanced childcare facilities. You may accept particularly flexible working arrangements, depending upon the circumstances of the individual. I think these are common sense principles. They are principles that are understood by Australians.

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