Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation. How is the government prioritising economic reforms that help Australians both in their working lives and during retirement?

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Wills for his question. His electorate and mine border Essendon and Tullamarine airports and we know that, when we talk about prioritising for workers now and in their retirement, under this government Australia is still passing the airport test. We know in this country that when Australians come back from overseas, wherever they have travelled all over the world, this country is passing the airport test because people who come back to Australia are happy to be back in Australia. We know this country is doing all right. It does not mean that our future is guaranteed, but we know that compared to the rest of the world we are doing okay.

We have 5.2 per cent unemployment. Every job loss is a shame, but we are doing relatively better than the eurozone and we are doing better than North America. We know we have low net Commonwealth government debt compared to foreign governments in terms of their net debt. We also know that we are engaging in the fastest fiscal consolidation in Australian history. We know why this is the case. It is because this government is interested in jobs, in skills and in making sure that people do not retire poor. The way we are doing that with jobs—and you can look at the record of the last four years because we have been consistent—is by guaranteeing the banks. Unlike the financial sectors in other parts of the world during the global financial crisis, that saw jobs saved then that would otherwise have been lost. Not only did we do that but we spent more money on the educational infrastructure of our school system than in Australian history. That also retained hundreds of thousands of jobs.

We also know that, unlike the rest of the OECD, which has seen a contraction of 30 million jobs throughout the world, we have still created 750,000 jobs. This is a good record. We are also very committed to the car industry, which puts us about 20 miles ahead of the opposition. We actually believe this is a country that should be making things and we can look at the car workers of Australia and say, 'We are on your side.'

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting—

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Looks like I touched a sore spot. The more they shout, the more they cannot hear it.

Opposition members interjecting—

Peter Slipper (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! Honourable members are entitled to listen to the minister in silence and they will.

Bill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We also know that the best job security in the future is making sure that all Australians are well trained so that they can change jobs and they can find the new opportunities that are created as our economy adjusts to the rise of Asia and the creation of services industries.

Finally, it is not just people at work that this government is motivated by; it is not just the current jobs; it is not just the skills development of the future. We are the only party in Australian politics who want to make sure we can lift super from nine to 12 per cent so people do not work hard their whole life and retire poor. Those are our priorities. Where are the opposition's?