House debates

Monday, 14 September 2015

Questions without Notice

Abbott Government

2:21 pm

Photo of Bill ShortenBill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. In the two years since he became Prime Minister unemployment is up, debt and deficit is up, growth is down and confidence is certainly down. Is this the record of the best possible Prime Minister?

Photo of Tony AbbottTony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

This is from a Leader of the Opposition who backstabbed two prime ministers and then lied about it on radio!

Opposition Members:

Opposition members interjecting

Photo of Bill ShortenBill Shorten (Maribyrnong, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | | Hansard source

We're not your problem, Tony!

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

Members on my left! The Leader of the Opposition!

Photo of Tony AbbottTony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

All this Leader of the Opposition can do is play politics, play Canberra games and indulge in all this kind of silliness, when the people of Australia want a government which gets on with the job. And that is exactly what we have done. Every day since the election we have been focused on backing hardworking Australians. We have been focused on jobs, on growth and on community safety. We have been cutting taxes, we have been building roads and we have been encouraging free trade.

And just in the last week, while members opposite have been engaging in Canberra games—it is all they can do; more Canberra games from members opposite—we have been doing what the people of our country expect. We have been making our economy stronger, and there is no better proof of that—

Photo of Pat ConroyPat Conroy (Charlton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

How's your job?

Photo of Tony SmithTony Smith (Speaker) Share this | | Hansard source

The member for Charlton is warned!

Photo of Tony AbbottTony Abbott (Warringah, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | | Hansard source

than the fact that we discovered last week that unemployment is down and employment is up—167,000 new jobs since this year began and 300,000 more jobs since this government was in office. This is because what we are doing is working with the creative businesses of this country. We are working with the decent, hardworking people of our country. We are stopping those dodgy, dishonest and corrupt union officials that that Leader of the Opposition is constantly protecting. We are stopping them from ripping off the decent workers of our country.

We are encouraging the decent businesses of our country to get on with it—with things like the free trade agreement with China, that this Leader of the Opposition is trying to sabotage with a campaign of racist lies. Now, I say to the Leader of the Opposition: stop listening to the CFMEU and start listening to the decent people of Australia, who want this country to go ahead under this government.