Mark Butler (Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the House) | Hansard source

Thank you to my fellow South Australian the terrific member for Sturt. As she knows and as I think we all know, for years we've watched the rest of the world grapple with the impact of the H5N1 variant of avian flu. Over those five years, it's hit every continent except ours, devastating wildlife and upending industries, like poultry and cattle in particular, in almost every other country on the planet. As the Minister for Agriculture, who is responsible for the nation's biosecurity, has already told the parliament, it's now been detected here, as we knew it inevitably would be at some point. Now, the numbers are still small and the cases are still confined to migratory birds, but we know from bitter experience overseas just how serious the risks are here.

That's why we've been working so hard over recent years across portfolios, led by Agriculture but including Environment and obviously Health through the CDC, to make sure that we are as prepared as we possibly can be. We are also working, obviously, with states, who have a very important role here as well. Opposition members who've also been watching this unfold across the world have recognised that work, and they've offered their support: the Deputy Leader of the Nationals, who's not here right now; the member for Maranoa; and number of others as well. We thank them for that, because they know how serious this could get.

But not everyone has been quite so constructive. The Liberal Senator Antic last night, remarkably even for him, described the H5N1 avian flu as 'spin from pharmaceutical companies,' all designed, in his view, to push people into getting a flu shot this winter. All another vast conspiracy—managing in one speech not only to spread dangerous ideas about vaccination but also to minimise and even mock this variant of avian flu and the risk we know it poses to some incredibly important industries in this country.

If you don't watch Senate estimates after dark, you might not know who Senator Antic is! But he is one of the most influential members in the opposition—certainly the most influential member in the South Australian Liberal Party. He helped gather the numbers for this guy to roll the former member for Farrer. He's the Leader of the Opposition's handpicked candidate to become president of the South Australian Liberal Party—a nice sidekick to Tony Abbott. Maybe that's why, in the 24 hours since he gave that speech, we've heard absolutely nothing from the Leader of the Opposition—showing again, as we've seen in this debate about multiculturalism, that this man lacks the spine for difficult decisions and real leadership.

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