Trent Zimmerman (North Sydney, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) acknowledges that the Government won the election and has been getting on with the job of governing; and

(2) congratulates the Government for the following achievements:

(a) securing Australia's 25 consecutive years of economic growth;

(b) protecting our borders and making our nation more secure with over 800 days having passed without a successful people smuggling venture;

(c) delivering:

  (i) a personal tax cut to 500,000 middle income Australians;

  (ii) a fairer and more flexible superannuation system; and

  (iii) $11 billion of budget repair;

(d) establishing a process which makes bank Chief Executive Officers answerable to the public through appearances before Parliament;

(e) legislating to protect volunteer firefighters from union takeovers;

(f) reintroducing bills to restore the rule of law on the nation's construction sites;

(g) securing the naval shipbuilding industry and jobs for the future;

(h) strengthening trade and defence ties with Singapore, creating thousands of new jobs;

(i) strengthening the United States alliance in defence, counter-terrorism and cyber security;

(j) reintroducing legislation to crack down on illegal firearms trafficking;

(k) increasing protection for women and children against domestic violence;

(l) growing our industries with record commodity prices and a $2.5 billion water infrastructure rollout to support farmers and the resource sector;

(m) fixing the problems in Vocational Education and Training and cracking down on dodgy providers;

(n) increasing digital literacy and improved school resourcing;

(o) supporting more Indigenous Australians through skills, jobs and language;

(p) signing new City Deals to improve housing and expand public transport;

(q) accelerating the broadband build and connecting rural Australia;

(r) securing an agreement with the states and territories on energy security and reforms for affordable, reliable power;

(s) protecting Medicare, improving primary health care, making over 2,000 medicines cheaper and simplifying private health care;

(t) saving lives through a National Cancer Screening Register;

(u) supporting the South Australian steel sector and jobs by providing a $49.2 million loan to Arrium;

(v) addressing long term welfare dependence;

(w) delivering better:

  (i) tax arrangements for working holiday makers and backpackers; and

  (ii) child care for 1 million Australians and lifting immunisation rates;

(x) showing a commitment to new resettlement programs for genuine refugees as a result of strong border policies; and

(y) boosting Australia's place in the workforce with access to new markets and stronger ties including with East Asia, Europe, and the United Kingdom.

I am proud to move this motion and to be part of a government driven by the goal of creating more opportunities for all Australians. This motion lists just some of the achievements of the Turnbull government in the first 100 days since the election in July. What it records is this government's determination to provide all Australians with greater prosperity and more jobs, a fairer society, and a government that responsibly manages its finances. It is a list of achievements founded in the very Liberal principle of the importance of allowing individuals to get ahead and fulfil their own aspirations.

Ultimately, our success as an economy will always be founded on the jobs created by individuals and business, not Labor's approach of relying solely on government. It is why we have been working hard to provide the economic climate for businesses to grow, invest and create jobs for all Australians. While Labor continues to put partisan politics ahead of good policy, the Turnbull government is getting on with the job of delivering for our nation's future. This year Australia recorded 25 years of unbroken economic growth. Our economy is growing by three per cent, faster than any of the G7 economies, and last year 300,000 new jobs were created, the strongest growth in employment since 2007. It is why our economy is truly the envy of the world.

These results have not happened by accident. They have required strong economic management and an understanding that we need to open doors to new markets, ensure our economy is competitive and create new opportunities such as those that will flow from our investment in science and innovation. It is why we have moved so quickly to deliver tax relief for middle Australians, tax cuts for hardworking small businesses, and a fairer, more flexible superannuation system. We have supported the growth of our exports by working to secure freer trade with our neighbours. In a world where the barriers of protectionism are tempting some nations with false promise, we have continued to be a strong advocate for free trade. We understand that economies like our own, which have always relied on our great export industries, have the most to gain.

We have been getting on with the job of ensuring the federal government is living within its means rather than burdening future generations with debt. In just the first 100 days, we have enacted $11 billion of budget repair bills.

We have also recognised that the productivity of our economy depends on ensuring that businesses can operate without the threat of workplace lawlessness. We know from the indisputable evidence documented in two royal commissions that too many of our building and construction sites are beset by thuggery and intimidation. There is no area where the government has a clearer mandate to act, yet those opposite would prefer to put the interests of their union overlords ahead of the rule of law and the productivity of our economy.

It is the same approach from Labor that saw them place the unreasonable demands of the union movement ahead of volunteer firefighters in Victoria. In contrast, we have sent a clear message that this government sees volunteer firefighters as decent, hardworking people who embody the very volunteer spirit of Australia. They should not be a membership recruitment drive for the firefighters union. They are mums and dads, and they are community heroes who risk their lives for others. So, in our first 100 days, we have enacted legislation to protect the volunteers of the CFA, and we are proud of that fact.

Sadly, much of our work is not just looking to the future but fixing the problems left by the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd governments. We have fixed the problems in vocational education and cracked down on dodgy providers. We have created a national broadband network that is financially sustainable and now actually reaching consumers.

We have got on with the job of restoring faith in the security of our borders. No area more dramatically highlights the failings of Labor than their approach to border security—50,000 arrivals through people-smuggling operations, thousands of children in detention and, tragically, 1,200 lives lost at sea. I am proud to be part of a government that has broken the people smugglers' business model, closed 17 detention centres and ensured that no children are held in detention in Australia. And we have now created a pathway for refugees on Nauru and in Kevin Rudd's detention centre on Manus Island.

The Prime Minister promised this would be a government and parliament of delivery for the Australian people. This motion highlights our determination to do just that, from strengthening our economy to supporting families and those in the education system, from improving health care to tackling the scourge of domestic violence. We regard the trust of the Australian people as a deep responsibility, and everything this government does is about returning that trust so we create a fairer, stronger and more prosperous Australia.

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