Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade. Would the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade update the House on Australia’s record export performance? How might proposals to reregulate the Australian labour market damage Australia’s export performance?

Simon Crean (Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Crean interjecting

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! I notice the member for Hotham is back.

Kim Beazley (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, he’s trying to prove that there’s life in the National Party—

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The Leader of the Opposition holds a responsible position in this parliament. He should exercise it in a responsible way. I call the honourable Deputy Prime Minister.

Mark Vaile (Lyne, National Party, Minister for Trade) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Indi for her question. Australia’s exports continue to grow, with figures released on Friday last week showing that exports for July were a record for that month and the second highest monthly level ever at $17.5 billion. Exports for the last financial year rose by 17 per cent to reach a new high level of $192 billion worth of goods and services exported out of Australia. That has risen from $99 billion in 1995-96 when the Labor Party was last in office. Last year $192 billion worth of goods and services were exported out of Australia.

All of those industries and businesses that are exporting around the world have made a contribution to the generation of new jobs in the Australian economy that has helped drive unemployment down to 4.9 per cent. It has lifted the participation rate to the record level it is at today. In recent months, since the introduction of Work Choices, we have seen 175,000 new jobs created in the Australian economy. So those industries are making their contribution and playing their part as well.

The government, over the years, has made a number of significant reforms to strengthen and underpin the competitive nature of Australia’s export industries. One of the most important reforms that we did undertake to ensure the competitiveness of Australian exports was on the waterfront. We all remember the debate and the battle that we had to try and improve the efficiency of the waterfront. Today, in 2006, crane lift rates have hit 27 movements per hour.

In 1996, there were 14 crane movements per hour and we were being told by the Labor Party and the union movement that that could not be improved upon. They said: ‘There is no way that it could be any better. You will never improve on it. That is world’s best practice.’ And today there are 27 movements per hour. The Leader of the Opposition is now committed to tearing up AWAs if he is re-elected. He is committed to going back and reintroducing collective bargaining in the workplace, so you have to ask yourself the question: is he going to roll back the reforms on the waterfront?

The Leader of the Opposition wants to force collective bargaining back into the workplace. Today, at the National Press Club, ACTU Secretary Greg Combet has let the cat out of the bag. He said that Labor policy is now being driven again by the ACTU. That is a plain, simple fact. It is being driven by the ACTU and all Australians should recognise that. Yesterday Heather Ridout of the Australian Industry Group said about the policies of the Leader of the Opposition that Labor’s collective bargaining plan is a retrograde step for the Australian economy in terms of what has taken place in recent years. So, while the coalition government is continuing to improve the circumstances in the Australian economy for business, for jobs and for employment prospects for the future, the Labor Party wants to take it back into the past. We want to support job creators in this economy. The Labor Party wants to destroy them.