House debates Questions without Notice
Workplace Relations
Michael Keenan Stirling, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
2:10 pm
The coalition welcomes the Gorgon and Pluto announcements. My question regarding them is to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations. Will the minister guarantee that LNG projects in Western Australia will not be disrupted by union activity—
Unidentified interjection - Hansard doesn't record who said this
Government Members:
Government members interjecting—
Simon Crean Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade
Mr Crean interjecting
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Order! The member for Stirling has the call and those on my right will come to order—especially the Minister for Trade.
Michael Keenan Stirling, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations
given that the Woodside Petroleum Pluto site has been subject to more than 150 union right-of-entry requests, including from Kevin Reynolds, Joe McDonald and the CFMEU, over the past five weeks?
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
What this question indicates is that the Liberal opposition hates good news. It hates good news about the employment of Australian workers and, because it hates good news about employment, when it had the opportunity in this parliament to support Australian jobs it came in here and voted against our stimulus package—voted against the jobs of Australians. I say to the members opposite: I know that if they were in my position on this side of the chamber they would be up now, saying all of this investment was a vindication of Work Choices. That is what they would have said if they were in government today. They would have got up here and said the only reason money is being spent is because of Work Choices.
Christopher Pyne Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training
Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Under the standing orders of relevance, the Deputy Prime Minister was not asked about the good-news announcement today but, in fact, asked about the level of union harassment in the last five weeks—thirty a week.
Anthony Albanese Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House
Mr Albanese interjecting
Anthony Albanese Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House
I withdraw.
Harry Jenkins Speaker
I have to say that the most irrelevant things that I have heard during this question and answer have been the interjections by nearly 50 per cent of the House.
Christopher Pyne Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training
Mr Pyne interjecting
Harry Jenkins Speaker
I will give the butterfly stamps afterwards! I say to the member for Sturt that it would assist in my adjudication of the response if I could actually hear it. I will listen carefully to the Deputy Prime Minister. The Deputy Prime Minister has the call and she is responding to the question.
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
I was asked about workplace relations and the Gorgon project. I am answering it and I am making the very simple point that, if the Liberal Party had still been in government, they would have said this was a vindication of Work Choices.
Ms Julie Bishop Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
Ms Julie Bishop interjecting
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Order! Do you really want to hear the answer? The Deputy Leader of the Opposition!
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
What, in fact, this shows is that you can have fairness and prosperity. I know those sitting opposite do not believe in that, because they never believed in fairness for Australian working people and they never will. If they ever return to this side of the House then Work Choices will be back five minutes later. We all know that. We know that they do not believe in fairness for Australian workers.
On the question of union representation arrangements under the Fair Work Act, as the shadow minister should know, if he had read the Fair Work Act, it is of course possible to get representation orders. That is a facility available under the act, should any employer in the country feel that they need a representation order in order to deal with union demarcation issues. That is available to employers right around the country.
Ms Julie Bishop Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
Ms Julie Bishop interjecting
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
The Deputy Leader of the Opposition is calling out, ‘It is a non-union work site.’ The Fair Work Act enables people to make their own choices about whether or not they want to be members of the union.
Ms Julie Bishop Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
Ms Julie Bishop interjecting
Harry Jenkins Speaker
Order! The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will resume her seat.
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
The Fair Work Act enables people to make their own choices about whether or not they want to be a member of the union, and that is the right thing—
Harry Jenkins Speaker
The Deputy Leader of the Opposition on a point of order?
Ms Julie Bishop Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
Yes, on a point of order—thank you, Mr Speaker. The Deputy Prime Minister was directing her answer to the Gorgon project. It was specifically about Pluto, where there have been 150 requests for right of entry in five weeks.
Harry Jenkins Speaker
The Deputy Leader of the Opposition will resume her seat.
Simon Crean Hotham, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Trade
Didn’t you listen to the preamble?
Harry Jenkins Speaker
The Minister for Trade might think he is helping me, but he could remain silent too, which would be helpful. There was, again, the problem where we had a preamble that mentioned certain matters; they then become relevant to the question. That has been a standard ruling from the Presiding Officers over several parliaments.
Ms Julie Bishop Curtin, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition
She is talking about Gorgon, not about Pluto.
Julia Gillard Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister
I am making the very simple point that on this side of the House and through the laws we have delivered, we deliver to the Australian people a free choice to decide whether or not they want to be members of a union. I would have thought anybody who believes in democracy believes in that, but clearly the Liberal opposition do not believe in that proposition. Indeed, when they were in government that is the way they acted. In 2007 Australians around this country made a decision that they wanted fairness and decency at work. I acknowledge in the gallery today members of the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union, who fought for fairness and decency at work, and now they can see firsthand the anti-work rabble they got rid of.
An incident having occurred in the gallery—