Chris Bowen (McMahon, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Hansard source

Thanks for the support. I will thank the House more if we actually do the right thing by Australian financial consumers and say to this Prime Minister, 'Do the right thing and call a royal commission.' Only the executive can call a royal commission. Only the executive can determine the terms of reference. Only the executive can advise a Governor-General. That is why it is called a royal commission: because it has to have to assent of the Governor-General. But I tell you what: this House can express its will. This House can say to the elected government of the day, 'This is what we want you to do.' And if this Prime Minister and this Treasurer and this executive ignore the will of this House then they will be showing more than their incompetence. They will be showing more than their lack of willingness to embrace the best interests of Australia's financial consumers. Above all, they will be showing their arrogance through their willingness to ignore the wish of the other place and this place and their willingness and their determination to use all the powers of the executive to ignore the wishes of elected members of the House of Representatives.

Members tonight have an opportunity to look into their conscience, and I say this in all seriousness to people of goodwill on the other side of the House, those who have called and argued for a royal commission in the past; those who have tweeted about a royal commission in the past; and those who have been part of inquiries of this House and the other place that have made the case eloquently and powerfully for a royal commission: now is the time for delivery. Now is the time when you can actually do it. Now is the time when elected members of this House can stand up for this House's rights, for this House's responsibilities and obligations and all of our responsibilities to our constituents.

We all represent Australians who have been the victims of financial scandals. But, even more importantly than that, we represent people who might be the victims of future financial scandals. We represent people who may be subject to this sort of behaviour in the future, and we can stop it happening. We cannot stop the scandals of the past, but we can put in place the laws to stop them happening in the future. How will we feel if we do not? How will those members who have called for a royal commission in the past feel if they do not? When there is another scandal and we have ignored our opportunity tonight to call a royal commission, how will we feel? I know how members on this side of the House will feel. We will feel that we have done the right thing, but we will be angry, as many millions of Australians will be angry, that this opportunity was lost.

We do not detain the House lightly tonight. We do not detain the House because this is something that we want to do for fun. We detain the House tonight because this is a matter of vital national importance. We detain the House tonight because the Australian people are watching and waiting for real action. We detain the House tonight because the time for talk is over and the time for action is now. We detain the House tonight because this House can send a signal to this arrogant Prime Minister that the time has come to put the Australian people first. The time has come to put victims of financial scandals first. The time has come to put possible future victims of financial scandals first by avoiding those scandals, by having a proper and thoroughly constituted and well-resourced royal commission run by eminent Australians, run by people who understand the importance of a well-regulated financial services system. This can be done tonight.

I say to the Prime Minister: sometimes you just have to know when you have lost. Sometimes you just have to know when it is time to recognise reality. Sometimes you just have to know when it is time to say, 'Okay; I might have got this one wrong.' I know it is not in your nature, Prime Minister. I know it is not something that comes naturally to the Prime Minister, but I have to say that I think the Australian people would react well to a Prime Minister who said, 'I've got this one wrong. I've heard the message. I want to work with the Labor Party and the crossbenchers, and I will deliver a royal commission. It might not have been my idea or something that I thought was great, but I have been convinced in the national interest.' This is one where the Prime Minister can actually put the national interest in front of his political interest. This is one where he does not need to listen to the right wing in his cabinet. He can listen to millions of Australians and can say: 'I get it. I hear the message. I will deliver a royal commission, because the Australian people deserve it. I will deliver a royal commission, because the Australian people deserve nothing less—and I will deliver a royal commission, because it is the right thing to do.'

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