Jamie Briggs (Mayo, Liberal Party, Chairman of the Scrutiny of Government Waste Committee) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to oppose very strongly the motion by the member for Melbourne. I am not surprised that Senator Lee Rhiannon has already begun moves to unpick the new leadership arrangements in the Greens after hearing that contribution to this parliament, because I think even Senator Rhiannon realises that the ideological insanity of the positions that the member for Melbourne wants to take this country into are beyond the pale even for such a well-renowned former communist. What we have here is the Greens with absolutely no understanding of how the economy works and how the federal budget works. What you have heard from the member for Melbourne is that the House should simply, as the motion says, increase the Newstart and other allowances—he does not include the other allowances in the motion, but he has added that in his remarks—by $50 per week, and he calls on the government to find appropriate savings. He then lists a series of assertions about big miners and more tax for them, because somehow if you tax mining companies more they will remain prosperous and they will continue to pay that amount of tax. I think it shows why we saw the Government Whip yesterday start to leak out news that he is moving, because he knows that an association in a coalition with this party is destroying the Labor Party that the Government Whip loves. He knows that the association out there in his seat up in the Hunter with this ragtag bunch of economic illiterates is killing the Labor Party that the Government Whip has come to love. He knows that this stuff is just fanciful, as are so many of the other Greens' policies.

I had a chance to have a quick look this morning on the Greens' website. I am sure that the Government Whip will join me in acknowledging some of these policies and their approaches are far beyond the pale. For instance, take the heading 'Global Economics':

… the Greens will remove Australia from existing bilateral free trade agreements where possible;

and further, they will—

… support abolition of, unless radical reform can democratise, the IMF, World Bank and WTO.

The impact on Australia of removing ourselves from the bilateral trade arrangements and the additional unemployed people that would result from that are beyond comprehension, certainly beyond the comprehension of the member for Melbourne. That policy alone would add thousands and thousands and thousands to the unemployment queues. It would add thousands and thousands and thousands in additional commitments for the federal government's budget.

It also gives an ideological perception or understanding that somehow the government can regulate people into wealth, that somehow the government can increase the dole or the Newstart allowance and this will give people the best opportunity to fulfil their lives. Of course it will not. The best way to give people their best opportunity to fulfil their lives is to create the circumstances where the economy will create jobs and people who do find themselves in the unfortunate circumstance where they are out of work will be able to find work more quickly through deregulating how the government involves itself in the economy. We know that government regulation holds businesses back from employing Australians. Increasing the amount of tax that businesses have to pay for this ideological nonsense from the member for Melbourne and his friends holds people back because businesses have got less cash and less opportunity to employ more Australians and get them away from the dangers of being stuck in the welfare trap for a lifetime.

In parts of Northern Adelaide, for instance, we have seen what happens when you have generational welfare dependency. I congratulate the member for Wakefield on the work that he has done in his electorate in identifying that, if you have generational dependency on government, you end up with generational problems including increased crime. You take away the prospect of a better life for Australians by encouraging them to stay in this welfare trap.

This is really the most insidious part of this motion, and I am sure that the Government Whip will support this move by us to oppose this motion. He knows that this economic claptrap from the Greens will vandalise our economy if they continue in this coalition with this government. That is why the Government Whip is starting to say privately that we need to end this government now. It is destroying our country's future. This is another example of a motion that should not be supported by this House. (Time expired)

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