Stephen Smith (Perth, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Industry, Infrastructure and Industrial Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Prime Minister, isn’t it the case that the government’s own statistics released in May show that under the government’s industrial relations legislation 16 per cent of AWAs remove all protected award conditions in full, 27 per cent remove public holiday loadings, 29 per cent remove rest breaks, 52 per cent remove shift loadings, 63 per cent remove penalty rates, 64 per cent remove leave loadings and 100 per cent remove at least one of the above? Prime Minister, isn’t this why the government now refuses to release up-to-date statistical information on these protected award conditions cut from AWAs and why the Prime Minister refuses to guarantee that no worker will be worse off under his legislation?

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Perth. He has made a welcome reappearance. We have not heard a lot from the member for Perth for the last month or so, but it is nice to have him back from the interchange bench. What I think the member for Perth fails to appreciate and acknowledge in his question is that, long before Work Choices was introduced, there were often arrangements whereby increases in salary were granted in lieu of some of the matters to which he has referred.

Julie Owens (Parramatta, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Owens interjecting

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

Order! The member for Parramatta!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

If you are going to have a proper analysis of how people are treated, you have to look at aggregate wage outcomes. As I keep reminding the member for Perth, wages continue to rise, people continue to have jobs, unemployment continues to fall—

Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ms Gillard interjecting

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

The member for Lalor is warned!

John Howard (Bennelong, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

and the number of strikes continues to diminish. The world does not come to an end. I know you are sad and unhappy. I know you are devastated. It didn’t quite work out as you had hoped, but the Australian people, as every week goes by, know that your crowd have been running a phoney scare campaign about Work Choices. They are awake to you. They will increasingly realise how you have tried to dupe them and they will know, as the months go by, that the best friend the workers of Australia have are the Liberal and National parties.