House debates Questions without Notice
Crime: Illicit Tobacco
Mark Butler Hindmarsh, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the House
2:28 pm
I'm asked whether we'll be joining with the coalition in their policy they announced on the weekend. I can say that we're not interested in joining the coalition in a price-discounting war with organised crime. We're not interested in joining the coalition in the game of follow the leader that he pathetically appears committed to playing with the One Nation party. I'll tell you that. We won't be joining in a policy plucked out of thin air with one apparent objective: to go a little bit further than One Nation—to just go that little bit further than One Nation.
The member for New England is pumping his fist! He knows what's going on here. He knows this follow the leader game that he's playing.
We're not going to join in a policy that the Leader of the Opposition admits assumes that organised crime isn't going to change their price one cent. They're not that smart, are they? They're just going to leave their price completely as is. We're not going to join a policy where the Leader of the Opposition expects retailers just to pass on the excise cut with no regulation. The Leader of the Opposition wouldn't dare saying on Sunday: he has faith in the winds of competition, but ordinary Australians know how well that serves them in the retail industry. Most importantly—
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