Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise this evening in the debate on these clean energy bills to support the amendment as moved by the Leader of the Opposition. I just want to read into the Hansard yet again for the benefit of those on the other side of the House why we are seeking to amend this package of bills to delay voting on this bill and take these 1,200 pages to the people of Australia. That is what should be happening. Let me read for the benefit of those on the other side of the House what the Leader of the Opposition and the opposition would like to see happen. This is our amendment:

(1) The provisions of this Act commence on a date to be fixed by Proclamation.

(2) A Proclamation for the purposes of subsection (1) must not be made until after elections have been held for the 44th Parliament and the Parliament has met.

Why do we say that on this side of the House? It is because the Prime Minister, during the last election campaign, said that there would be no carbon tax under a government that she led. Yet, what we have got in this House are 1,200 pages of new legislation. It is one of the greatest pieces of misleading information that any Prime Minister has ever bestowed on the Australian people.

If you do not want to take the Prime Minister's word and you do not accept what she said, let us look at what the Treasurer said on 15 August 2010 on Meet the Press. When asked the question whether there would be a carbon tax if the Labor Party was elected, he said:

Well, certainly what we rejected is this hysterical allegation somehow that we are moving towards a carbon tax from the Liberals and their advertising. We certainly reject that.

So the Prime Minister and the Treasurer both gave firm commitments to the people of Australia before they voted to decide who they should put into government in this parliament: there would be no carbon tax under a government led by the now Prime Minister, supported by the Treasurer, who said that this was a hysterical allegation and they rejected the notion.

The people of Australia looked at the two sides of the House—and that is what democracy is about. They look at the policies from the opposing sides of the House. It is a contest of ideas: whom do they really trust to elect on policies to lead this nation? It is a very important decision the people take. All we say is: take this package of bills back to the people of Australia and ask them. Do not ask this House; ask the people of Australia. That is what our amendment says: that there be no vote taken on this until the people of Australia have been asked.

During the sitting break I drove into the outback of my electorate, because I know that if these bills pass they will impact on everyone's daily cost of living wherever they live in Australia. I went out and searched for someone in western Queensland who might support these bills. I went to Charleville—I thought I might find someone there as it was once a stronghold of the Labor Party; there is still an office of the Australian Workers Union in Charleville. I could not find anyone there, so I went on to Quilpie. I thought I would find someone there, but there was no-one. I went further out, to Eromanga into the oilfields and I caught up with Dick Loveday. He was loading cattle to take them 1,100 kilometres from far out in western Queensland in my electorate to a processing plant near Toowoomba. He has been branded one of those big polluters because he is taking his cattle on road trains that create jobs and create export income. He said, 'Give us a go at these bills. We want to vote on these bills. We are sick and tired of working for nothing and all we see are taxes, taxes, taxes from this government. Just give us a say.'

On returning to this place, I thought I would bring these comments to this parliament. The minister is at the table. Minister, I plead with you: please, please listen to the Leader of the Opposition. Listen to our amendments. Let us take these bills to a vote and ask the people of Australia.

See this speech in context