Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are going to try round 2. I will talk about phoenixing in a minute. First of all, for those playing 'name that MP' at home, now the microphones are working, with our good friends Kristina Keneally and Peter van Onselen, my name is Rob Mitchell and I am the federal member for McEwen.

Dodgy phoenix schemes are costing Australians over $3 billion every year. They have a devastating impact, particularly across the seat of McEwen. In our community, both the economic and social costs of these illegal activities are enormous. We see example after example of companies putting themselves under administration only to rise from the ashes the very next day, owing thousands and thousands of dollars to their subbies and suppliers and leaving everyday families in financial strife.

Phoenix companies are too easy, cheap, lucrative and invisible. ASIC has been urged time and time again to crack down on them. Why hasn't the Turnbull government acted? Why have we seen no serious steps to protect Australians from these costly and dodgy activities? Throughout my electorate I have seen the impacts of these heartless tactics, in Doreen, Gisborne, Mernda and Wallan.

It is time the government did something about this. It should join with the member for Fenner in putting this to the test and putting it to the Australian parliament. We need to stop people getting ripped off and stop watching people lose their livelihoods. Workers come home and realise the money they have been owed has not been paid, and meanwhile some dodgy builder will open up the next day under a new name.